The Generous God

We are not going to be continuing on in Ephesians.

Our pastor George, it's a convenient table,

our pastor George is currently on a study leave in the Holy Land.

He'll get back this upcoming week.

So this morning we'll be in 2 Corinthians 9, verses 6 to 15.

2 Corinthians 9:6–15

That is the section that Matt read for us.

This morning we're going to talk about money.

A good pastor always feels a bit uncomfortable with talking about money

and preaching about money because his income comes from the tithes of the people.

And let me just say, if that marks a good pastor, our pastor is excellent

because our pastor has so much discomfort in talking about that,

he's pawned off the sermon to me.

His underling.

And he is so excellent that he's not even in this room or the city.

In fact, he's in another continent.

Our pastor is fantastic.

Listen, that's not actually how it went down.

George, when he was leaving a few weeks ago,

he gave us a couple passages to pick from.

And this was one that felt like the Lord, out of all of them,

said, give it a shot.

Precisely because it made me feel uncomfortable.

Talking about money can be dicey, especially for a preacher.

Except that when I began to dig into this text

and started to see what it had to say,

realized that this text is less about money,

although it most certainly is about money and giving.

But this text, in fact, is about radical, loving, transformative,

expressive, imitating discipleship of Jesus Christ.

To be a disciple of Jesus is to be rich.

And I'll just say this right off the bat.

To be a disciple of Jesus Christ is to be rich.

Why?

Because God has sent Jesus, his son,

to earth to pay for our sins completely.

To ransom us from the grave completely.

And to not just save us from something,

but to give us something.

New life.

The resurrection of the dead.

That we are now sons and daughters of the living God.

That our cup is always not to the edge of the top.

It's overflowing.

We are blessed people.

To be a disciple is to be rich.

But to be a disciple also is to be an imitator of Christ.

It means following the example and direction of our King Jesus.

It means recognizing that we have been bought with a price

and that the life we now live is not our own.

I think for some of us here,

we need to hear that.

That the life you live,

if you call yourself a Christian,

if you have confessed faith in Jesus Christ,

that he is your Lord and Savior,

he has forgiven you of your sins,

your life is not your own.

His ways always lead to blessing and praise towards him,

but they are his ways,

not our ways.

We don't enter into this relationship with God

only to start calling the shots.

He has laid out for us the way he wants us to live.

And including in that is how we approach money

and how we approach our resources,

how we approach our talents,

all the commodities that we may possess.

And really the attitude towards those things

as a Christian disciple of Jesus Christ

is an attitude of generosity.

So our text today, we'll jump right into that.

We'll address that.

It'll look at three things.

Excuse me.

It'll look at the motivation for being generous,

the results of being generous,

and the foundation of what generosity is all about.

So we have the motivation of generosity,

the results of generosity,

and the foundation of what generosity truly is.

But first let me pray

and then we'll just jump into the text.

Lord God, it's a dicey subject.

Pastors in North America have not got the best rep

for teaching on money.

Lord, the heart of this text is generosity.

Help us to see with your eyes,

to be moved by your Holy Spirit.

We pray these things in Jesus' name.

Amen.

So before we get into the text,

a bit of a background with what's happening here.

Chapter 9, our text today,

verses 6 to 15,

is nestled within chapter 8 and 9,

obviously.

But what's not obvious is that

Paul is making an appeal

to the Corinthian people

about a collection for the saints in Jerusalem.

Paul here is essentially making

a pitch for famine and poverty relief.

So we know from the early chapters of Acts

that in Jerusalem,

the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost

and there was a huge conversion.

Thousands of people converted.

But we don't necessarily see the fallout.

We get a bit of it here.

Undoubtedly, the saints in Jerusalem

would have been ostracized from their family

if their whole families didn't come to faith.

Kicked out of their families.

If they had businesses,

it's likely that their businesses

would have suffered.

If they had any kind of employment

with somebody who was not a believer,

it's likely that they would have lost their job.

They would be pushed to the fringes of society.

You know, this actually happens a lot

in the world today.

Not so much in our culture,

but in places like Iran or in China,

places like India.

The Jerusalemites were poor.

They were very, very poor.

And Paul here is making a big pitch,

not only to the Corinthians,

but also to the Macedonian church.

We see that at the beginning of chapter 8.

Macedonians were poor themselves,

but he's making a pitch to them

for this famine relief.

And then he comes to the Corinthians,

who have an abundance

and have been collecting funds

for over a year,

but for whatever reason,

are struggling with being generous.

They're struggling with being ready,

as the text says.

Something has to do with,

something about their lack of readiness

must have had to do with

not being cheerful in their giving.

Maybe their zeal that they once had

was waning.

They were becoming reluctant

in their giving.

And it's this context

that we find our text

and bring us to our first point,

the motivation for being generous.

So look with me in chapter 9.

We'll start in verse 6.

And we'll go to verse 9.

The point is this.

Whoever sows sparingly

will reap sparingly.

And whoever sows bountifully

will also reap bountifully.

Each one must give

as he has decided in his heart,

not reluctantly or under compulsion,

for God loves a cheerful giver.

And God is able to make

all grace abound to you

so that having all sufficiency

in all things,

at all times,

you may abound in every good work.

As it is written,

He has distributed freely,

He has given to the poor,

His righteousness endures forever.

He who supplies seed to the sower

and bread for food

will supply and multiply their seed

for sowing and increase

the harvest of your righteousness.

Paul makes it clear

that what he is making an appeal to,

this famine relief,

is not some sort of tax.

We see this if we go up

just one verse in verse 5 of chapter 9.

And he says,

So Paul here plays on

this imagery found throughout Proverbs

of sowing and reaping.

It's full, full of that imagery

throughout Proverbs.

And he's calling the Corinthians

back to the scriptures,

back to the heart

that God so desires

for His people.

So Paul encourages the Corinthians

to be generous

in order that they may reap a bounty.

What kind of bounty?

Well, we'll see in verse 10.

Notice that he doesn't say anything

about a dollar amount.

So in the Old Testament temple system,

a tenth was what was required.

But here Paul simply says

that it is a personal matter

and that personal choice

must not be reluctantly given

nor given under pressure.

Why?

Because God loves a cheerful giver.

Here's the motivation for generosity.

It is to reciprocate God's grace

that He has given to us.

And we know this because,

like I mentioned,

this section is nestled

within a broader section

of chapter 8 and 9.

And in chapter 8, verse 9,

this is what it says.

For you know the grace

of our Lord Jesus Christ

that though He was rich,

yet for your sake He became poor

so that you by His poverty

might become rich.

So what we have here

is Paul making an appeal

to the Corinthians

to remember the example

of Christ Himself

that He gave Himself up willingly,

not through some kind of compulsion,

but He sought joy

to go to the cross

to endure the sufferings.

And that should be

our attitude,

our motivation

to give generously.

And this results

in two things.

The cheerfulness,

God loves a cheerful giver,

but also faith.

So let's look first

at the cheerful giving.

Why is reluctant giving

such a big issue?

Why is it?

I mean,

if it results

in the same thing,

if you reluctantly

give somebody $5

or joyfully give somebody $5,

they have $5 in their hand.

I mean,

the ends

kind of work out.

They both have

the $5.

But why is there something

not okay

with reluctant giving?

Well, remember,

we talked about

how this text

is about discipleship.

And to be a disciple

of Jesus Christ

means to follow

in His ways

to be saved by Him,

to follow in His ways,

empowered by His Spirit.

And this is not following

the example of Christ.

Like I mentioned,

Christ did not

give Himself up

for us

reluctantly.

It did not,

in one sense,

it pained God,

but in another sense,

it pleased God

that our suffering

should be laid

on the Messiah.

That God gives

freely and graciously,

not reluctantly.

And therefore,

reluctant giving

is not God honoring.

And by the way,

you might get

a $5 bill,

no matter what,

from a reluctant giver

and a cheerful giver.

But that reluctant giving,

it might be $5,

but it comes with

some strings attached,

doesn't it?

Or you feel like

you might be

in their debt.

Or that person

might scoff at you

and look down

their nose at you.

Or maybe they just

don't go through

with it

and take the money away

and then you're

left with nothing.

But the point is,

there is a difference

between reluctant giving

and generous giving.

This giving

that we're supposed

to engage

in this cheerful giving

is voluntary.

It's what Paul says

in chapter 8,

verse 3.

It is given freely.

We looked at it

in chapter 9,

verse 5.

And generously,

excuse me,

in verse 6.

So giving cheerfully

to bring gifts

with joy

that come

from a place

of blessing

and not with

tight-fistedness

that harbors

resentment.

That is what God wants.

Growing up,

I would hear

every now and then,

God loves a cheerful giver.

And I just thought,

it's just,

it's like you're

taking the edge off

of asking people

for money

to,

whether it be pastors

or ministry leaders.

But no,

no,

it is,

it is,

it is a call

to follow

in the very example

of Jesus Christ himself.

To give cheerfully.

Cheerful giving

and being a miser

don't mix.

But remember,

if you're feeling

like,

oh,

I don't want to give

if I'm not giving cheerfully,

understand

that Paul is saying

it is voluntary.

You need to decide

what you're willing

to give yourself.

Now,

when we give to the church,

all the resources

come together

and we have

a godly council

and a godly pastor

that try their best

to seek the Lord

and ask for the Holy Spirit

to lead

and then invest

and to bless

in the different ministries

in our church,

in the city,

beyond,

with our missionaries.

So,

you know,

there is this aspect

of just a communal

giving that ends up

happening to the church.

It's like

more buying power,

right?

We put all our pot

together.

But ultimately,

ultimately,

you guys are individuals

and the call is

to make that call

yourself.

But make sure

that it's done

cheerfully.

And again,

why do we do this?

Because God himself

is a cheerful giver.

But you might

not feel like

you can give much

or you're reluctant

to give.

Or you might

have this feeling

inside that

if I give,

I will suffer.

If I give,

I won't have enough

for bills,

I won't have enough

for potential car repair,

I'm hoping to,

you know,

have some leisure activity,

vacations coming up.

Or maybe your kids,

you know,

like you've,

you've budgeted

a certain amount of money

to put your kids

in sports or activities.

Whatever it may be,

whatever it may be,

the call is still

to give generously.

Again,

but I'm not going to say to you,

you have to give this amount.

That's between you

and the Lord.

Seriously.

Remember,

Paul is making this appeal

to the Corinthians

who are in abundance,

but he's also made the appeal

to the Macedonians

who are poor themselves.

So,

it's hard to be

a disciple of Jesus.

It is hard

to counter

our flesh,

to counter

the devil,

and most certainly

to counter

the world

and its influences.

There are real

and large obstacles

standing in the way

of walking with Jesus.

We can keep

this religious zeal

for only so long,

but you'll get wearied

or you'll get worried.

And just like

the Corinthians,

your excitement,

your drive

for the Lord

will start to wane.

And that's just

a part of it.

But,

what do we have here?

We have,

in verse 8,

this wonderful

declaration of,

sorry,

in verse 6 and 7,

this wonderful

kind of charge

to give generously.

But then in verse 8,

this wonderful

kind of declaration

by Paul

that God,

if you give,

He will provide.

Look with me

at verse 8.

And God is able

to make all grace

abound to you

so that having

all sufficiency

in all things

at all times

you may abound

or literally

overflow

in every good work.

It's a bit of a wordplay

going on there.

You aren't able

as yourself

to change

every problem

that you see.

Our church

isn't able

to address

every issue

or problem

that we encounter.

But the areas

that we encounter

that God

is leading us to,

He will,

He will provide

for us.

Not so that we

can store it up,

so that we can be

a conduit

of blessing.

But this requires

faith.

And that's hard.

Because we are

potentially putting

ourselves out on the line

when we give

in such a way

that hurts.

But He is saying,

listen,

give generously.

You'll reap generously.

But understand,

God will supply.

Maybe the supply

will be

in the form

of other people

giving to you.

That will require

some humility.

That's hard.

It's easier to give

than to receive

for most of us.

Maybe it will be

one of those things

where

what He will end up doing

is He will

challenge you

to refashion

your life

and priorities.

So that certain

areas of your life

that previously

you could afford

or that you could

devote time to.

Because remember,

this isn't just

a money thing.

This is a resource thing

that you have time

to put towards.

Or certain talents

that you've used

for yourself.

Now you're being

challenged to use them

for the benefit

of other people.

All of those situations

might cause you

to refashion

your life a little bit.

But again,

God will provide.

All sufficiency

doesn't mean

some sufficiency.

It is absolute.

We need to trust God.

This is His word

and we are disciples.

Again,

disciples of Him.

Listen,

I'm talking like,

oh,

I've figured out.

Like,

I am in the boat

with you guys.

And sometimes

it is hard

to put our faith

and trust

and hope in God.

But sometimes

I think

that when Jesus says,

if you have the faith

of a mustard seed,

He actually means

the faith of a mustard seed.

But who is that faith in?

It's in Jesus.

And it says here

that He is able,

verse 8,

to make all grace

abound to you.

So I challenge you guys

that as you think

of generously giving,

generously give,

trusting that

the God

that created

the universe,

the God that did not

withhold His own Son,

will provide for us.

We don't know how,

but He will.

He gives us His word

that He will provide.

I'll just pause

really quickly here.

If you think

that this is

some kind of,

I don't know,

like,

I could potentially

see this,

like,

we turn some words around,

like,

maybe this is

a talk

that a cult leader

would give.

Like,

just give me the money

and God

or whatever deity,

like,

you will be blessed.

But,

I would encourage you guys

that if you are truly,

if you are truly moving

in the direction

of faith and trust

and hope in Jesus,

to hold God's feet

to the fire,

so to speak.

God is,

He is not

a distant God.

He is ever close.

And,

He knows the things

we are going to ask

before we ask them.

So,

I would challenge you

to do your best

to push away

the skepticism

and to look

to be generous givers.

There's a wonderful,

wonderful,

wonderful story

in 1 Kings.

It's the story

of Elijah and the widow.

And,

this is precisely

this generous giving

that results

in cheerfulness

and an increased

faith in God's provision

that is talked

about here.

We see it

in 1 Kings

1 Kings 17 · chapter mention

chapter 17.

I'll read this to you.

You don't have to turn there.

So,

this is in light

of a famine

and a drought

in Israel.

And,

this is what it says.

Then the word of the Lord

came to him,

Elijah,

saying,

Arise,

go to Zarephath,

which belongs to Sidon,

and dwell there.

Behold,

I have commanded

a widow there

to feed you.

So,

he arose

and went to Zarephath.

And,

when he came

to the gate

of the city,

behold,

a widow was there

gathering sticks.

And,

he called her

and said,

bring me a little water

in a vessel

that I may drink.

And,

as she was going

to bring it,

he called to her

and said,

bring me a morsel

of bread

in your hand.

But,

the widow said,

as the Lord

your God lives,

I have nothing baked,

only a handful

of flour

in a jar

and a little oil

in a jug.

And,

now I am gathering

a couple of sticks

that I may go in

and prepare it

for myself and my son

that we may eat it

and die.

And,

Elijah said to her,

do not fear,

go and do as

you have said,

but first make me

a little cake of it

and bring it to me.

And,

afterward,

make something

for yourself

and your son.

For,

thus says the Lord,

the God of Israel,

the jar of flour

shall not be spent

and the jug of oil

shall not be empty

until the day

that the Lord

sends rain

upon the earth.

And she went

and did as Elijah said,

and she and he

and her household

ate for many days.

The jar of flour

was not spent,

neither did the jug

of oil become empty,

according to the word

of the Lord

that he spoke

by Elijah.

God,

he doesn't fool us.

He's not a trickster.

If he says it,

he says it,

he means it.

He makes the promise

and he follows through

because he is able to.

It's a wonderful,

wonderful story.

So,

giving generously,

the motivation

for giving generously

is in light

of what Christ

has done for us,

the generous God

giving to us,

and it results

in cheerfulness,

it results

in increased faith.

But it also results

in a couple other things,

not for us,

but for others.

So you see

what's happening

is that

there is

trust in God

that results,

there's blessing

from God

that results

in thanksgiving

to God,

and that we in turn

put that blessing

to other people

that increases

their faith

and our faith,

which then

helps people

to trust in God's

blessing and provision

as they give.

good time

to throw up

that first picture

if you have it.

My drawing.

Oh, there it is.

So I scribbled this

on a post-it.

Andrew just

made me not look

goofy.

So,

this is essentially

what we're going to see.

This is what

generosity results in.

So we have generosity

and it results

in thanksgiving

and faith.

And we'll see here

that blessing

will ensue.

The Jerusalemites

will be blessed.

They will be

physically blessed.

They will receive

from Paul

the gathered

famine relief

from the Macedonian

church,

the Corinthian church,

and they will have

their needs met.

And then they will

in turn

thank God

and bless God

for that generosity.

And then them,

they themselves

will give

out of their blessing.

And then we'll have

this continual

growth

in thanksgiving

and blessing

and faith

and generosity.

continues

and grows

and grows

and grows.

It really truly is

like just a little

yeast

that spreads.

So,

look with me

in verse 11

to 14.

You will be

enriched

in every way

to be generous

in every way

which through us,

that's Paul,

the apostle,

talking about

collecting the money,

through us

will produce

thanksgiving to God.

Thanksgiving to God

from whom?

The Jerusalemites.

For the ministry

of this service

is not only supplying

the needs

of the saints,

but is also

overflowing

in many thanksgivings

to God.

By their approval

of this service,

they will glorify God

because of

your submission

that comes

from your confession

of the gospel of Christ

and the generosity

of your contribution

for them

and for all others

while they long

for you

and pray for you

because of the

surpassing grace

of God

upon you.

What ends up

happening

is the Jerusalemites

have their needs

met

and the result

is

thanksgiving

and praise

to God.

Not only that,

they'll turn around

and they'll begin

praying

for the Corinthians.

Their affections

towards the

Corinthian people,

it will grow.

Corinth

is very far away

from Jerusalem.

Jerusalem.

Maybe these people

potentially could have met.

My guess is not a chance.

But the point is

there's people

that are called

by the same God

that are brothers

and sisters in Christ

in Asia Minor

and in the ancient Near East

and they have affection

for one another,

brotherly love

for one another.

They're unified together.

But all of a sudden

it says

that the Jerusalemites,

they're going to be

praying for the Corinthians

and longing for them.

So this generosity

results not in

our own personal growth

in what it means

to be cheerful

and our personal faith,

but it will result

in their needs being met

and their praise to God.

And in verse 12,

Paul says this,

for the ministry

of this service

is not only,

put your finger on that,

not only supplying

the needs of the saints,

but also overflowing

in many thanksgiving

to God.

That not only,

but also,

it's taking something

that's good

and contrasting it

with something

that's better.

So not only are you

supplying the needs,

but also

it's bringing thanksgiving

and glory to God.

That's the ultimate thing

when we're talking

about being generous givers.

It glorifies God.

He gets the praise.

He gets the honor.

It's wonderful.

People's faith grows.

Generosity ensues.

All things are from God

and for God.

God enriches

for generosity

which results

in thanksgivings

to Him.

So the Jerusalemites,

although they themselves

are unable to repay the money,

not that that was a condition

upon which they receive the money,

but instead they reciprocate

again with affections

and prayers.

And the wonderful thing

about this

is that although we are

a local church

and like we're a part

of the Anglican Network

in Canada,

which is a part of

the Global Anglican Communion,

we are connected

by virtue of faith

in Jesus Christ

to every true

Orthodox Christian

that lives today

and that has ever lived

before us,

we are unified with them.

And the thing is

when we grow in unity

and we grow in affection

with people,

it transforms the world.

So not only

is the result personal,

but it benefits others.

It actually benefits the world.

In John 17,

John 17:20–21

verses 20 to 21,

Jesus in his high priestly prayer

prays this,

I do not ask for these also,

but also for those

who will believe in me

through your word,

that they may all be one

just as you, Father,

are in me

and I in you,

that they also may be in us

so that the world

may believe

that you have sent me.

When we are generous,

it proclaims to the world

that there is a God

and that he has sent his son,

Jesus Christ,

and that God desires to bless.

So wherever the church

has been truly walking

in the way God has called her to walk,

there has been incredible blessings

for the world.

Hospitals have been built,

children have been educated,

widows and orphans

have been cared for,

lepers have been tended to,

oftentimes,

at the peril of the Christians

looking after them.

It is a giving of themselves

cheerfully.

One example,

there is a letter,

it's called the Epistle of Diognetus.

It comes from the second century

and it talks about

what the Christians look like.

It's a longer epistle,

I'm only going to read

a couple of the verses

and it says,

of Christians,

they dwell in their own countries

but only as sojourners.

They bear their share

in all things as citizens

and they endure all hardships

as strangers.

Every foreign country

is a fatherland to them

and every fatherland is foreign.

They marry like all other men

and they beget children

but they do not cast away

their offspring.

They have their meals in common

but not their wives.

They find themselves in the flesh

and yet they live not after the flesh,

they obey the established laws

and they surpass the laws

in their own lives.

They love all men

and they are persecuted by all.

They are in beggary

and yet they make many rich.

They are in want of all things

and yet they abound in all things.

So what happens

when brothers and sisters

dwell together in unity,

when they give generously,

when they put their faith

and trust and hope in Jesus,

trusting that he will provide

for the things

that he has called them

to do as his disciples.

This last bit,

we have the motivation for generosity,

we have the results of generosity,

but the ultimate foundation of generosity

is Christ himself.

Look with me at verse 15.

Thanks be to God

for his inexpressible gift.

This inexpressible gift,

even though Paul here,

he talks about,

excuse me,

he talks about

how the Jerusalemites

will praise the Lord

because of the submission

of the Corinthians,

because they have put their hope

and trust

and they're walking

in obedience

and faithfulness to Christ

in verse 13.

But ultimately,

the thanks

that Paul gives to God

for his inexpressible gift

is Jesus himself.

Again,

chapter 8,

verse 9.

For you know the grace

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

that though he was rich,

yet for your sake

he became poor,

so that you,

by his poverty,

might become rich.

Jesus,

when we put our hope

and faith in him,

again,

he saves us

from sin

and from death.

He gives us

a new family.

He unites us

with people

in far off lands

and far off parts

of our city,

with neighbors,

with relatives.

But the ultimate,

inexpressible gift

that God gives us

is himself.

We are made

to worship God.

We are.

And when you don't

worship God,

you don't stop

worshiping.

You just worship

other things.

But those other things

are not meant

to be worshiped

and they cause

a strife.

And in our

affluent city,

we struggle

with money,

whether it is

coming from

a spot of great wealth

or great poverty.

Money is something

that is tough,

that we struggle with.

All too often

we worship.

But if we,

as God's people,

can understand

that he has given

us himself

in Jesus,

that we can

worship him

and know him,

and not just

know him,

but be known

by him,

warts and all,

like genuinely,

that we don't have

to strive

for more money,

we don't have to

strive for a better

reputation,

for a better job,

for more obedient

children,

for whatever it

may be,

that will somehow

give us credibility.

We don't have to

strive for that

because we have

credibility in Jesus

that we are already

operating at an

overflow,

not a surplus,

like at an overflow,

overflow,

overflow,

overflow,

because we have him.

That will change

the way we live.

And that is what

is offered to us

as Christians.

If you are not

a Christian,

this is the day,

because tomorrow

is not guaranteed.

It isn't.

Tomorrow may be

guaranteed for some

people,

but it's not

necessarily guaranteed

for you.

So I'd encourage you

to put your faith

and hope and trust

in God,

and he will give you

himself,

and you will know

what it truly means

to live as a human

being,

made in the image

of God,

made for God,

known by God

because of Jesus

Christ and what

he has done.

Lord,

thank you so much

for the call

to be generous.

Now,

this call to be

generous isn't

a sly way of

getting more money

into the church

coffers.

It is a call

to discipleship,

to be like Jesus

Christ,

who again,

chapter 8,

verse 9,

the grace that

he has shown us,

though he was rich,

became poor,

that in his

poverty,

we might become

rich knowing you.

Lord,

transform our hearts.

Help us to see this.

Help us to spur

one another on

in good works.

Help us to do

the good works

you called us to,

knowing that you

will supply our needs

so that we will be

all sufficient

in all things

at all times

to do every good work.

And Lord,

thank you so much

that all of this

is for your renown,

for your glory.

Lord,

help us to be

disciples of Jesus

that are truly,

truly gripped

by your gospel

and learning to live

for your glory.

In Jesus Christ's name,

Amen.