September 25, 2024
by Pastor Chuck SwindollScriptures: 2 Corinthians 8:1–3
THE CHRISTIANS IN THE Macedonian churches were servants who gave without any concern about receiving the credit for their generosity. But Paul reveals something else remarkable about the nature of their gift:
THE CHRISTIANS IN THE Macedonian churches were servants who gave without
any concern about receiving the credit for their generosity. But Paul
reveals something else remarkable about the nature of their gift:
Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness
has done through the churches in Macedonia. They are being tested by many
troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant
joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity. For I can testify that they
gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of
their own free will.
2 CORINTHIANS 8:1–3
When they gave, they "overflowed" in the process. Yet that cascade of
generosity didn't spring from an overflow of material treasures but from a
deep well of spiritual riches! You can be materially rich, but destitute
spiritually. Conversely, yours can be an experience of extreme material
poverty, but you can give out of an abundance of spiritual joy. I love
that!
Moreover, the application of such generosity of spirit applies to so much
more than monetary gifts. It includes giving ourselves . . . our time and
energy, our care and compassion, even our belongings on occasion. What a
need there is for this trait within the ranks of humanity today! And yet
how rare it is!
Let's stop clutching our possessions so tightly that we wind up living most
of our days with white knuckles. Instead, let's begin to relax our grip on
our possessions and consider how some of the things we have could be used
to bless someone else. Would you join me in prayerfully asking the Lord to
make you into an open-handed, great-hearted, generous giver? Today would be
an ideal day to start!