Series: Action [#113]
DON’T QUIT- GIVE FREELY
2 Corinthians 8:1-24
Introduction:
What Sermon subject is known for making people mad? Of course, the subject is about money and the giving of your money to the Church. You all know that this is a subject that I rarely preach about; but giving is the subject of our text. While I may not preach about giving very often, it is an important part of your Christian life. I want you to see that God blesses those that give freely to others. (I did not say you were going to get physically rich.)
2 Corinthians 8:1-5
Giving shows…
1. God’s grace.
The people of the Macedonian Churches were extremely poor; but they gave all that they could to help others. It is implied here that Paul had told them that it was ok to not give any money; but they begged to give. They gave without being asked. They gave of all they had. They gave of their first fruits and trusted God to take care of their needs.
Even more important than the money they gave, was that they gave of themselves to God and the people. Their giving freely of all that they had shows the grace of God. God used them to help people in His name.
2 Corinthians 8:6-9
Giving shows…
2. Your spiritual wealth.
Titus started this offering and Paul asked the Corinthian Church to finish the offering. This act of grace was going to help many with financial needs; but even more so with spiritual needs. Paul said that they were already spiritually rich.
They were rich in…
* Faith.
* Speech.
* Knowledge.
* Willingness to help.
* Love.
Paul then asked them to be rich in giving. Please notice that he did not demand that they do this; but that he hoped that they would. This is an important point of giving- Give freely out of love.
2 Corinthians 8:10-24
Giving shows…
3. Your love for others.
We are given several examples of how our giving shows our love for others. The giving is not about who has the most or the least; but that it is given with the right attitude. The Corinthian Church was the congregation to start this offering; and Paul was telling them to finish strong. Paul sent Titus and an unnamed brother in Christ to them. Paul wanted them to know that he fully trusted these men with this money. He wanted to make sure that there were no questions about how the money was being handled- This included how people, (including people outside of the Church) saw their handling of the funds.
