4 essential attributes of giving as we investigate this spiritual gift
I. Generosity is Presumed for Christians (9:5)
A. It is an expectation of all Christians
1 John 3:16-18 - We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.
1. Christ functions as the model of generosity
2. Christ functions as the agent of generosity
B. It is an imparted gift of the Spirit
Romans 12:6-8 - Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
C. It is spoiled through covetousness
2 Corinthians 9:5 - So I thought it necessary to urge the brethren that they would go on ahead to you and arrange beforehand your previously promised bountiful gift, so that the same would be ready as a bountiful gift and not affected by covetousness.
II. Embrace the Logic of Giving (9:6)
2 Corinthians 9:6 - Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
A. View your resources as a means, not an end
B. Trust God with all you have
“Reluctance to sow generously, then, reflects a refusal to trust that God is all sufficient and all gracious. It also assumes that we can only give when we are prospering and have something extra that we will not need for ourselves. Paul says that at all times God provides us with all that we need so there is never any time when we cannot be generous.” (David E. Garland, NAC: 2 Corinthians, 407-408)
III. Strive for Proper Giving Motivations (9:7)
A. Act upon conviction
2 Corinthians 9:7a - Each on must do just as he has purposed in his heart…
B. Repent of improper giving motivations
2 Corinthians 9:7b - …not grudgingly or under compulsion…
C. Be a cheerful giver
2 Corinthians 9:7c - …God loves a cheerful giver.
“In the Old Testament, giving reluctantly or under compulsion is portrayed as cancelling out any benefit that could be received from the gift while giving with a glad heart promises reward from God: ‘Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to’ (Deut. 15:10). Scripture assumes that what is crucial is the attitude of the one who gives, not the amount. God, who knows and appraises our hearts, values only those gifts that come as a free expression of the deepest part of our souls.” (David E. Garland, NAC: 2 Corinthians, 406)
IV. Look to the Source and Example of Giving (9:8)
2 Corinthians 9:8 - And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed…
A. Draw from the source of all giving through His abounding grace
B. Model the ultimate example of giving
2 Corinthians 9:8b - [so that] you may have an abundance for every good deed…
John 3:35-36 - Do you not say, “There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest”? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
Good to see you again, saints of light!
We’re continuing the second portion of our summer series, Hope for Fruitful Service. Pastor
Rod introduced to us the gift that keeps on giving – the gift of mercy. Mercy, by the way, is a
gift that is imparted to us by the Holy Spirit.
In other words, all Christians receive at least one gift the moment they surrender to the
Lordship of Jesus and receive forgiveness for their sins. Perhaps you may recall this, but we’ve said that Scripture teaches us in Ephesians 4:8 that.
Ephesians 4:8 “to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
That is to say, God has freely portioned out/measured grace gifts to his people. The grace
measured out to me differs in degree to the grace measured out to you. That’s why giftedness
differs from person to person. The gift they receive is measured out and is to be used for the building of Christ’s body—the church.
And since a person’s giftedness differs within the body, no one person can fulfill your purpose
in the church – in other words, you are not replaceable – you are not expendable - you are not
disposable. You were created by God for a purpose, and only YOU can fulfill that role and
purpose.
Ultimately, it’s a measured out divine stewardship! Perhaps one example should suffice before
we move forward – In Matthew 25, our Lord gave to his disciples a parable describing a man going on a journey
Matthew 25:14-15 “Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants
and entrusted his wealth to them. 15 To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags,
and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.”
This parable is description of Christ who goes away on a journey, and the servants represent
believers who were given – well – gifts – here they are called a “talent” – all of them have been
entrusted with God’s wealth, and each having been entrusted with differing responsibilities.
But since God knows his people, what he gives to them is all measured out – get this – “each
according to his ability.” What then is our excuse, since God knows exactly what we can and
cannot handle in terms of our stewardship before him?
In other words, it’s not that we can’t be faithful to the wealth God has gifted us with, but we
have no excuse before our Creator because God has graciously measured it out, “each
according to his ability.” Do you see that?
So for those of us here who have been bestowed with a heart of giving, we’re going to be looking at The Spiritual Gift of Giving. Having said that, this is not a back door excuse for any of us who do not wish to give because it is not your “spiritual gift.”
But it to say that if we are able and willing to give to a particular need, we ought to so to help others, especially in the household of faith.
Moving on from this point, let’s consider some additional passages of Scripture for us to chew on, such as 2 Corinthians 9:5-8 – let’s read the passage and afterwards, allow me to provide some context:
Please follow along with me as I read the passage
2 Corinthians 9:5-8 I thought it necessary to urge the brethren that they would go on ahead
to you and arrange beforehand your previously promised bountiful gift, so that the same
would be ready as a bountiful gift and not affected by covetousness. 6 Now this I say, he who
sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also
reap bountifully. 7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly
or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace
abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an
abundance for every good deed
With the time we have remaining, let’s consider 4 essential attributes of giving so that we may come to a better understand of our giftedness while in service to the King of glory.
The first point provides context into the spiritual gift of giving – the remaining three give us
action steps to walk out the gift
The first aspect of giving is that…
I. Generosity is Presumed for Christians (9:5)
There are some gifts that God has given you that others may not have. So it follows that we
would not function well in said area or position that does not suit our giftedness – seems to make
sense, right? Why would you try to fit a square peg into a round hole?
It’s ok if the Lord has not given to you a special gift to lead or a special gift to teach – and the question we should ask ourselves is whether we are ok with that or not. I raise this point because I believe we can be discontented with how the Lord has spiritually wired us. We look at someone working in said ministry and at times it has crossed our minds – what, faith? “I wish I could be like…that”
And what are we doing at that point? We are neither satisfied – neither trusting – neither thankful with how the Lord wired or with what the Lord has gifted us with. But when it comes to all Christians and generosity, my friends – generosity is presumed because it is commanded by God to do so.
A. It is an expectation of all Christians
In other words, we’d be hard pressed to make any excuses for a lack of generosity.
If God has blessed you financially and your brother-in-law is heading out to the mission field and he
asks for support, could we really argue that God placed you in His accounts receivable department
and that the brother in need should call up someone from accounts payable instead?
How do you think that will shake out?
Or what about if someone sees you on your phone playing candy crush and asks if you’d help
them carry in a grocery bag or two, can you really say “sorry – I just don’t have the spiritual gift
of generosity.”
You’re probably going to get the…stare…
PLEASE INSERT FUNNY STARE PIC - https://www.reactiongifs.com/r/SLJ.gif
All I’m saying is that there are a number of passages that demonstrate the universality of
generosity among Christians. Remember what the Apostle John said that…
1 John 3:16-18 - We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought
to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his
brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in
him? Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.
In other words, if we are aware of another brother or sister in Christ’s need, yet are unwilling to
sacrificially give out of our surplus – how does the love of God abide in that person? The questions
is written as a linguistic way of stating what’s obvious – meaning, that it does not!
Don’t shoot the messenger! I’m just telling you what the Scripture says.
Part and parcel of our laying down our lives is that of generosity in our giving, especially those
whom the Lord has prepared and hardwired with the use of their spiritual giftedness.
1. Christ functions as the model of generosity
We know what giving is and how it’s displayed, because God loved the world in this way: He
what..?...gave. I pray that never grows cold in our hearts. Because in the giving of his Son to those
to who are the recipients of eternal life was God’s most model of
giving and sacrifice – of His time, talents, and treasures.
Not only do we know love by what Jesus did (as this passage states it), we know generosity
because of Christ’s life. Second,
2. Christ functions as the agent of generosity
(Expand on this if possible)
B. It is an imparted gift of the Spirit
We just looked at the broad command to give, but we need to narrow our focus to the gift itself.
We’ve read this before, so it bears repeating…
Romans 12:6-8 - Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to
exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his
serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives,
with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.
Two weeks ago, we had categorized the miraculously gifted men who had unique authenticating
gifts that confirmed that they were messengers of God. Once they passed off the stage of history,
so did their authenticating gifts and are no longer in use in this church age. Here’s are the charts
again
PLEASE INSERT THIS CHART BELOW THAT WE USED TWO WEEKS AGO FROM JOSH GREINER.
PASTED BELOW
Authenticating Gifts:
Gift |
References |
Gift of Prophecy |
1 Corinthians 12:10, Romans 12:6 |
Gift of Healing |
1 Corinthians 12:9, James 5:14-15 |
Working of Miracles/Powers |
1 Corinthians 12:10 |
Gift of Tongues |
1 Corinthians 12:10, 1 Corinthians 14 |
Interpretation of Tongues |
1 Corinthians 12:10, 1 Corinthians 14 |
Edifying Gifts:
Gift |
References |
Gift of Teaching |
Romans 12:7, 1 Corinthians 12:28 |
Gift of Exhortation |
Romans 12:8 |
Gift of Giving |
Romans 12:8, 1 Corinthians 13:3 |
Gift of Leadership |
Romans 12:8, 1 Corinthians 12:28 |
Gift of Mercy |
Romans 12:8 |
Gift of Serving |
Romans 12:7, 1 Peter 4:11 |
Gift of Administration |
1 Corinthians 12:28 |
Word of Wisdom |
1 Corinthians 12:8 |
Word of Knowledge |
1 Corinthians 12:8 |
Gift of Faith |
1 Corinthians 12:9, 1 Corinthians 13:2 |
Discerning of Spirits |
1 Corinthians 12:10 |
So when it comes to the more permanent and edifying gifts, those who have a spiritual gift of giving will display a unique level of liberality (the Grk) It’s primarily used to convey sincerity or genuineness of heart, but also includes generosity.
We’ve seen these kinds of people in the church. They are eager to offer up their God-given abilities when given the opportunity but are also shrewd and discerning in the sense that they want to make sure their gift of money is not squandered away.
This gift also seems closely associated with the gift of hospitality. In other words, they not only want to give, but they also want to share what they have with others – these people are also seen in the opening of their homes and the sharing of their homes with others.
I’m sure you know some people like that in the church who are such exemplary in giving – such great examples – these are the ones who are describes in Romans 12:13 “contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.”
I can personally attest to God’s providence in so far as me having personally interacted with and have been extraordinarily blessed by these people in the household of faith over the years.
But take heed, Christian – because…this gift can be sullied.
C. It is spoiled through covetousness
2 Corinthians 9:5 - So I thought it necessary to urge the brethren that they would go on ahead to
you and arrange beforehand your previously promised bountiful gift, so that the same would be
ready as a bountiful gift and not affected by covetousness.
II. Embrace the Logic of Giving (9:6)
2 Corinthians 9:6 - Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and
he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
In other words…
A. View your resources as a means, not an end
Verse 6 makes reference to a seed. Ok, let’s look at some options…
(1) we can use it to sustain ourselves.
(2) we can squander it (i.e., let it rot), or
(3) we can plant it
Let’s look at the first one – the Lord has created us as dependent creatures upon him. We need
food, shelter, water, clothing, etc. We can use a modest amount of what the Lord’s given us to
ensure we have what’s required to sustain us.
There’re even occasions to enjoy the excess of the Lord’s blessing in our lives! This can be
difficult to gauge for each one of us, I think – but over time, it becomes clear whether we are
hording our Lord’s bounty to ourselves.
Covetousness can lead us to consume more than what’s pleasing to Christ, and I don’t know
what that may be for you because each one of us have impediments and sins that slow us down
in the race set before us.
Second, each of us are guilty of squandering the seed our Lord has given to us. Perhaps we
should take a look at our inventory. Perhaps a little less purchasing of goods. Perhaps less
spending in whatever area that happens to tickle our fancy.
Third and last, we can plant that which the Lord has given us! There are many obvious ways to
accomplish this that produce lasting produce:
- Invest in the gospel through supporting missionaries, or giving your time towards evangelism.
- Invest in Christ’s bride through involvement and sacrificial giving in the local church – the stated purpose for spiritual gifts.
- Invest in the lives of others with your time, talent and treasure, freely giving to any who are in need.
Does this get you thinking through the use of your giftedness?
I do want to provide a caveat – this isn’t a health, wealth, and prosperity message. I’m not
suggesting that “if you plant your seed of $20 into Faith Church, you’ll reap $100!”
God’s promise is that those who sow bountifully will reap bountifully – you may know what you
sow, but God doesn’t say what you’ll reap. That ball is in his court!
You may generously give of your time to the homeless shelter, shamelessly proclaiming the gospel to anyone and everyone there. But what you may reap, from your perception of things, may very well be rejection and loss of a job, perhaps.
God may be using you as a blunt tool to break ground for the gospel, and he may have allowed
you to lose your job for the purpose of gaining incomparable wisdom. I can’t give you the
specifics—but I can give you the promise, and call you to.
B. Trust God with all you have
“Reluctance to sow generously, then, reflects a refusal to trust that God is all sufficient and all gracious. It also assumes that we can only give when we are prospering and have something extra that we will not need for ourselves. Paul says that at all times God provides us with all that we need so there is never any time when we cannot be generous.” (David E. Garland, NAC: 2 Corinthians, 407-408)
Just as the farmer entrusting his crop to the Lord as he puts it in the ground. Just as the farmer has no control over the weather to make it rain in order for his crops to grow.
Just as the farmer entrusts his crop into the hand of the Lord, so too we must entrust
whatever outcome in the hand of the Lord and he’ll provide what’s necessary as we
employ our gifts in the local church.
There’s a sense in which I feel as though I am preaching to the choir. Yet, there seems to be a
number of professing believers who simply don’t serve and they give excuse after excuse for
not serving – it boggles my mind.
Do we readily understand how that would fly before our Lord? When the Lord gives his gifts to
us, it follows that we all will make use of those gifts, right?
Second, trust that if you sow bountifully, you’ll reap bountifully. This leads us to our third
point.
III. Strive for Proper Giving Motivations (9:7)
In verse 5, we see Paul setting up the facilitation of a bountiful gift that the Corinthian
church had promised at an undisclosed time prior. After reciting a proverb-of-sorts in verse
6, he picks up where he’d left off in 5, urging the church to.
A. Act upon conviction
2 Corinthians 9:7a - Each on must do just as he has purposed in his heart…
Since generosity is an overflow of a Christian’s life, the Spirit will convict him or her when a
need is presented and though that may be the case experientially, it’s not necessarily what
Paul’s talking about here.
This “purposing in [one’s] heart” has more to do with a standing conviction – a predetermination
towards generosity that serves as a credo in a Christian’s life “Christ has been generous
with me – I will be generous with others”
Now that’s a flag we can fly, yes and amen! While God has given our church several who have the
spiritual gift of giving, all of us are expected to live... genuinely... generously…to do this, we must.
B. Repent of improper giving motivations
- Corinthians 9:7b - …not grudgingly or under compulsion…
We’ve all done it, and it’s been done to all of us…*story of begrudging giver (ask for moving
help, complain the whole time | give to someone in need, constantly bringing it up after-the-
fact). When we see this in ourselves, REPENT!
And instead…
C. Be a cheerful giver
2. Corinthians 9:7c - …God loves a cheerful giver
“In the Old Testament, giving reluctantly or under compulsion is portrayed as cancelling out any benefit that could be received from the gift while giving with a glad heart promises reward from God: “Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to” (Deut 15:10). Scripture assumes that what is crucial is the attitude of the one who gives, not the amount. God, who knows and appraises our hearts, values only those gifts that come as a free expression of the deepest part of our souls.” – David E. Garland, NAC: 2 Corinthians, 406.
If it’s truly better to give than to receive (as Jesus said), then joy is the natural byproduct
of giving Make a predetermined commitment to live generously, repenting of all forms of
begrudgery or compulsion in your giving, but ensure you’re motivated by joy in your
generosity.
IV. Look to the Source and Example of Giving (9:8)
Earlier, I’d mentioned that Christ is both the model and agent of our generosity. In other
words, we know what giving is because of His gift of Himself, and we’re able to display
generosity by His Spirit at work in us. The final verse in our passage drives these points
home in that…
2 Corinthians 9:8 - And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all
sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.
We can trust Him to provide for us as we.
A. Draw from the source of all giving through His abounding grace
We are only able to be generous with others because God has been generous with us
And the specific attribute that’s listed in verse 8 is the abundance of grace that God’s lavished
upon us. Men and women who have the spiritual gift of giving seem to inexplicably abound in
grace.
Conversely, those who struggle with giving can lack in dispensing grace to others which goes to
show – you can only draw water from a well that’s filled…
In other words, those who are overwhelmed by the grace that Christ imparted to us – especially on the cross – will have and over-abundance of grace to share will others for those who are underwhelmed or unaffected by God’s grace, gracelessness will be their obvious by product
And Christ’s generosity is, of itself, a well that will never run dry – our passage literally says, “so
that ALWAYS having ALL SUFFICIENCY in EVERYTHING, you may have an ABUNDANCE for EVERY
good deed…”
What could possibly fall outside of that?? Let my put it to a litmus test: if you’re not generous with
the various seeds the Lord has given you, it can mean one of two things:
1) though a Christian, you’re not drawing from the deep well of God’s grace on your life, or
2) you’re not a Christian and have nothing to draw with or from
The solution to either is the same – embrace the ALL SUFFICIENT and EVER ABUNDANT grace of
Christ and as our final portion highlights.
B. Model the ultimate example of giving
This all-sufficient grace is provided by God.
2 Corinthians 9:8b - [so that] you may have an abundance for every good deed.
There’s action required…
Jesus, for His part, didn’t simply will our salvation – He accomplished it
Not only does He call us to walk in a manner pleasing to God, He exemplified perfect
obedience to the Father during His earthly ministry
And as the 1 John 3 passage pointed out, it’s not enough for us to have the gift of giving—
we must engage in giving with those around us
What’s there to gain in giving?
Jesus put it well, after sowing the seed of the gospel within the heart of an obscure
Samaritan woman at a well:
John 3:35-36 Do you not say, “There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest”? Behold, I
say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. Already he who
reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who
reaps may rejoice together.
What will you do with the seeds entrusted to you?
Authors
