Generosity That Overflowws

1 Now indeed, it is not necessary for me to write to you concerning this service to the Saints. 2 For I know your willingness to help, which I boast about to the Macedonians, that Achaia has been ready since last year, and your zeal stirred up most of them. 3 But I am sending these brothers, so that our boast about you may not prove empty in this matter, so that just as I said, you should be prepared. 4 Otherwise, if some Macedonians come with me and they should find you unprepared, we – to say nothing of yourselves – would be humiliated in this undertaking. 5 I considered it necessary therefore to urge the brothers that they should go on ahead of me in order to make arrangements in advance for your previously promised generous gift, prepared as a blessing and not affected by greed [or, expecting something in return].

6 Now the point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each person should` do just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in everything, at all times, because you always have enough of everything, you may overflow in every good work, 9 just as it is written,

He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor,

His righteousness remains forever.

God wants his people to be generous. There are three main movements in this passage I want to cover this morning. First, Paul urges the church to keep their word. Second, he reminds them that finishing matters as much as starting. Finally he warns against giving with wrong motives.

Keep Your Word – Verses 1,2

1 Now indeed, it is not necessary for me to write to you concerning this service to the Saints. 2 For I know your willingness to help, which I boast about to the Macedonians, that Achaia has been ready since last year, and your zeal stirred up most of them.

· Based on his conversations and visits, Paul knew the Corinthian church had been pulling together an offering over the last year. Paul wrote them a year earlier and said this in 1 Corinthians 16:1–4 - GW:

1 Now, concerning the money to be collected for God’s people ⸤in Jerusalem⸥: I want you to do as I directed the churches in Galatia. 2 Every Sunday each of you should set aside some of your money and save it. Then money won’t have to be collected when I come. 3When I come, I will give letters of introduction to the people whom you choose. You can send your gift to Jerusalem with them. 4 If I think it’s worthwhile for me to go, they can go with me.

· It wasn’t necessary to convince them of the importance of the project and get their buy-in.

· Paul used the Corinthian church as an example for others to follow boasted to the churches in Macedonia about the generosity, zeal, and willingness of the Corinthians to help. This inspired the poor churches in Macedonia to generously give as well.

Finish Well – Verses 3,4

3 But I am sending these brothers, so that our boast about you may not prove empty in this matter, so that just as I said, you should be prepared. 4 Otherwise, if some Macedonians come with me and they should find you unprepared, we – to say nothing of yourselves – would be humiliated in this undertaking.

· Following through with what you say takes discipline and perseverance. Example: A church may decide to build a new building. At the kickoff, excitement was high and the pledges rolled in. But a year later the excitement cooled and only a fraction of the pledges were fulfilled. Compare this with another church where members quietly and faithfully followed through, even through lean times. The difference? One finished what they started and the other lost credibility.

· Those who complete what they begin earn the respect of others. Their word is considered reliable, valuable, and they are held in honor.

· One day a man came to Jesus and said, “I will follow you Lord, but first permit me to say goodbye to those at home. Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:61,62) The word fit, as in fit for the kingdom, refers to being well suited for something, ready. Those who say they will do something and then get sidetracked with other pursuits only show that they were not ready but insincere.

· Paul wants his friends in Corinth to complete what they started and is sending the brothers to help them get their gift ready.

· He knows that if some Macedonians come with him and they were to find the Corinthian church not ready, as Paul said they would be, Paul would be humiliated and would lose all credibility and the task that is supposed to inspire unity and show brotherly love will be discredited. The Macedonians would probably abandon Paul, go on to Jerusalem by themselves, and disunity would prevail. Example: Think of a marathon runner who trains for months, starts strong, but drops out at mile 24. No medal, no finish. All people will remember is that this one didn’t finish. Paul reminds the Corinthians (and us) that finishing generosity is as important as starting. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not keep it (Eccle 5:5)/

Guard Your Motives

Let’s read verse 5 again,

5 I considered it necessary therefore to urge the brothers that they should go on ahead of me in order to make arrangements in advance for your previously promised generous gift, prepared as a blessing and not affected by greed [or, expecting something in return].

· I am surprised by the boldness and the bluntness of verse 5. It’s not enough to give, but make sure you do so with the right motives.

· They promised a generous gift. The reason for the gift is to be a blessing to the people of God who are suffering in Judea.

· Our intentions may start out as unselfish and self-sacrificing, but ulterior-motives can creep in. With all the trouble and disfunction that had taken place in the Corinthian church, Paul wants to make sure the reason they are giving is to bless others, not to covet something from them. We are to give graciously, not greedily.

Example: This is like a person who gives a friend an expensive birthday present, but later keeps reminding them of it, expecting special treatment in return. Was that really generosity or manipulation? Paul reminds us that true giving is blessing, not bargaining.

6 Now the point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each person should` do just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

· Some may take verse 6 as a promise, that if you give generously, God will repay you generously. This is the opposite of why we are to bless others. This is the message of the False Prosperity Preachers. Paul is not promising riches but an abundance of grace for every good work.

· Sowing refers to scattering seed. The sower goes out to sow and as he sows, he scatters. Sometimes the seed falls on good soil, and sometimes on bad soil. Either way, the Sower scatters. He doesn’t skimp on the seed but spreads it generously across the field.

· The experienced farmer knows that if he sows sparingly, the harvest will not be plentiful. Sure, he may have seed left over for another day, but he shouldn’t expect to bring in a great harvest. The one who sows sparingly is a greedy farmer, more concerned with what he will get rather than what he can give.

· The one who sows generously does so with the expectation that God will use his efforts to create a bountiful return of blessing for the kingdom.

· When God puts it in your heart to give, prayerfully decide up front how much you to give and then follow through with that amount.

8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in everything, at all times, because you always have enough of everything, you may overflow in every good work, 9 just as it is written,

He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor,

His righteousness remains forever.

Verse 8 is rich. It tells us of the character of our generous and gracious God. God’s generosity first flows to us. He makes all grace abound to us so that in everything and at all times we have enough. Then, His grace flows through us as He gives opportunities to grace others.

The point I hope we leave with today from all that is said in chapter 9 is that God is generous and God’s people should be generous as well, not for show and not for the purpose of getting something in return. But when God provides in abundance, it is so that we have enough and can overflow in good deeds of generosity that advance the kingdom.

Our generosity should be out of sincere love for others with the expectation that God will use the abundance he gives to us as a means of creating and bringing in a generous harvest for His kingdom. As we live generously, the Lord of the harvest will allow us to reap generously. We will overflow in every good work and God will receive the glory.

All that we have is from God. It belongs to Him and he gives to us for two reasons: 1) to provide for our needs and our blessing, and 2) to have in excess so that we might do good deeds that bless others.

God gives abundantly to us, so He can give abundantly through us!

Amen.