His indescribable gift

2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Key Verse 9:15

Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

In the previous passage the Apostle Paul talked about the practical aspect of giving. In today’s passage the Apostle Paul speaks of the principle of giving. The practice aspect of giving has to do with ‘what,’ whereas the principle aspect of giving has to do with ‘why.’ It is difficult to be told to do without being told why. Why then does the Apostle Paul urge the Corinthians to practice the grace of giving? Here is why.

First, giving is like sowing (6-7)

Look at verses 6-7. “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

The Corinthians were reluctant to give largely because they thought that giving is just giving something away and that is it. But the Apostle Paul says that that is a misconception. Rather, giving is sowing or, in modern terms, investing. So after urging them to give, Paul then talks about sowing saying, “When you sow generously you will also reap generously.” Then he starts talking further on giving. In what respect then is giving like sowing? 

We can find an answer to this question by considering what we do with our hands, arms, feet or legs. Personally, I am very sympathetic towards my hands and feet, for they have had to work hard. Having grown up on a farm, I have strong urges to go outside and do dirty work with my bare hands. To some, digging the ground with a shovel or moving dirt with a wheelbarrow is sheer toil. But to me outdoor work is sheer joy. There is another category of work which I like to do, that is, carpentry. My father was a carpenter. While I was young I saw my dad going to a big town, securing fine tools for carpentry, such as handsaw, chisel, or plane, and with these tools I saw him build a house; and he built houses with timber, bricks, and thatches. As he built houses I helped him out by sawing, chiseling, or hammering. Carpentry is in my blood. But there is a problem: as I work with my hands more they start aching. I feel pains on my fingers. My arms get sore. The same is with my feet, ankles, and legs. As I stand outside working long hours my legs grow sore. Then I look at my hands and say, “Oh, you poor hands. Why do you have to work so much?” I also give a massage to legs and say, “Oh, my poor legs. Why do you have to work so hard?” 

But I know why they exert so much. They work hard all for my body. In fact, all of my bodily parts work sacrificially, not for themselves but for their boss, which is me. In other words, they give to sow in me. What is the end result? As my bodily parts serve their boss, their boss in turn nurtures his bodily parts, making sure that they are all well.   

In the passage, the Apostle Paul is operating with the same idea. In the Bible, the community of people called believers is called the body of Jesus Christ. Thus far the Apostle Paul characterized the monetary offerings as a “service” to the saints in Jerusalem (1Co 16:1-4). From God’s point of view the saints in Jerusalem and the saints in Corinth are not two separate communities: they belong to one body. In a way, the saints in Jerusalem served other churches as a headquarters, whereas the churches in the Gentile territories operated as branches. Figuratively speaking, the Jerusalem church was like the heart of a man’s body, whereas the churches being developed in the Greco-Roman world, such as the church of Corinth or the Macedonian churches, are like the hands and feet. Monetary offerings collected from these Gentile churches and sent to Jerusalem in service to the saints there represented sowing, for they served the heart of the Lord’s body, which in turn benefited the local churches in the Gentile world. 

This weekend Seattle UBF is holding a Bible conference. Downey UBF sent two servants, Philip and Jason, to support the conference. Missionary Philip will share his life testimony and Shepherd Jason will serve a message. This is an example of one branch of Jesus’ body giving something to nurture the body of Jesus Christ. 

In this way giving in the Lord (in the service of the saints) is never throwing things away: it serves to build up the body of Jesus Christ. For this reason the Apostle Paul urges the Corinthians to make offerings in service to the saints in Judea. In our ministry we have saints inside and saints outside. We have growing needs for saints inside and for saints outside. The needs for little saints (the members of BBF, CBF, HBF, etc.) require particular attention. Soon the number will grow to be more than 120. Already co-workers among us had a sense of problem, so they started praying for better ways to serve them in better environments. We also have growing needs for saints outside – that is, saints in the east coast of the U.S., such as in Chicago, saints outside of this nation, such as the Latin American countries, or the African continent such as Sudan, Kenya, and Uganda. It is my prayer that the sacrificial giving by the coworkers among us would result in nurturing the body of Christ world-wide, so that the blessing of the Lord would overflow inside out, flowing to the four corners of the world. 

Second, the way of a bountiful life (6-11a)

The Corinthians did not know the way of life that produces a bountiful harvest. Knowing their spiritual ignorance, the Apostle Paul not only exhorts them to give but also enlightens them as to the secrets for living a life that produces bountiful harvests. What are the secrets? 

In view of the Bible passage for today two things are critical: 

Generous giving

Look at verse 6. “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” This statement is not the Apostle Paul’s idea. He got this from the Old Testament Scriptures. For example, Proverbs 11:24 reads, “One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.” Does anything click in your mind? Listen to another Bible passage: “He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done” (Proverbs 19:17). Notice the word “lends.” What is lending? We know the answer, for by giving one becomes a creditor and God becomes a debtor! Notice the word “reward.” Nowadays a lot of people are defaulting on their home mortgage loans. But God never defaults. In fact, God is going to give back to you way more than you gave. How much more is he going to give back to you?  Let us listen to what Jesus has to say: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Luke 6:38).

“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” This principle reminds me of a man I met last October at the Orlando Bible conference. His name is Don Lee. He is a church elder. During his high school days he met Jesus. Then the desire to go out to a foreign country as a missionary arose within him. So from his high school days he prayed to the Lord for the way to go out as a missionary. For this prayer topic he prayed every Friday evening, staying up in his church: throughout the night, he cried out to God to show him the way to go out as a missionary. But God did not open the way. Then he met his wife, a believer. Together with his wife he continued praying to go out as a missionary family. But God still did not open the way. Then he got an idea. That is, he started adopting orphans of all different races. In this way he adopted twenty-five orphans with different skin colors – black, yellow, white and speaking different languages. He helped all of them to be bilingual, so they not only spoke their native languages but also Korean. In this way his house became an international house. Some spoke in Spanish, some English, some Cantonese. The Lord also blessed his career. One thing led to another and he is now the Vice Chairman of the World Trade Association based in Manhattan, New York. Through his trade business the Lord blessed him to make a lot of money, so that he is donating to charity organizations $5 million a year. At the Orlando Missionary Conference last October, Pastor Samuel Choi had a financial problem, because the new owner of the hotel from India demanded Mr. Choi to pay all the room charges in advance, all in a lump sum. He did not collect the fees from the conferees yet. So he asked the conferees to pray for the situation. On hearing this prayer topic, on the very spot, Mr. Don Lee sat down, cut a check for $50,000 and gave it to Mr. Choi.  

Cheerful giving

The next secret is cheerful giving. Look at verse 7. “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” This passage shows us who is not a cheerful giver and who is. 

Who is not a cheerful giver? The passage gives out two categories: the one who gives reluctantly and the one who gives under compulsion. Let us stop for a moment and think about them. In the King James Version the word “reluctantly” reads “grudgingly.” Grudge means, “deep seated feeling of resentment or rancor; bitter, long-lasting resentment or ill-will.” This definition indicates that what is inside of a man can work to hinder him from becoming a cheerful giver. What hinders or stops man from becoming a cheerful giver?  Well there could be many factors:  past experiences, such as one’s childhood memories, preoccupations on giving, misguided information on charity organizations, doubt in regards to the integrity of church leadership, such as the Apostle Paul, etc. 

What Ted Turner, the former media mogul, said in one of his new interviews in Time magazine is quite revealing on deep seated feelings that can disrupt man from becoming a cheerful giver. As of today he is the largest individual landowner in this country with 1.8 million acres of landownership. He owns acres everywhere – Nebraska, Washington, Montana, South Dakota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, California, and Texas. In Nebraska alone he owns 350,000 acres in real estate. In fact, Turner Empire is bigger than the State of Delaware. It is enough mountain, valley, river, and prairie, that it could rank the 48^th largest state. He owns so many acres in so many different places that even if he tries to visit all different lands in his private jet, he is afraid that he is unable to in his lifetime. So while he was seated on one of the ranches the interviewer asked him, “What made you to be so greedy on land? In the first place, what good does the landownership do for you?”  He pondered for a while and said, “Look at my shoes. It is made of snake skin.” Then he pointed to the rock formations of the desert ranch and said, “Suppose that World War III breaks out. Suppose every one starves to death. I still can come to this place, catch a few snakes running around there, peel off the skin, make shoes, and turn the flesh into a dish and survive.” Ted Turner is now 72. Apparently, he went through the post-Great Depression trauma. The memory of people starving to death, or at least the fear of the possibility for starvation, is deeply seated inside of him. This is but one example of what might get in the way of a man becoming a cheerful giver. 

Paul says that we are not to give under compulsion.  According to the American Heritage Dictionary, compulsion means, “an inevitable impulse to act regardless of the rationality of motivation.” A little while ago, Shepherd Isaac Kim suggested that we make offerings to the Second Gens in Maryland UBF by buying T-shirts. Instead of impulsively approving his suggestion, I asked him to find out why they needed to raise money. He made an explanation, which is to go out to Mexico along with a local church organization as a summer program. I thought about their motive, especially, their desire to help out in depressed areas. I also considered the possibility that this kind of experience would lead them to becoming missionaries in the future, so I bought two T-shirts, $15 each. This is a small example of rational thinking. But, a man who gives under compulsion does not go through this kind of process. Again, Paul says that we are not to give under compulsion, for as a rational being each of us has a rational mind, so it is necessary for us to consider the reason why we give. Then we are motivated to give, and give cheerfully.

Now let us consider who is a cheerful giver. Who is he? We find an answer to this question in the word “cheerful.” The word “cheerful” comes from the word cheer. Cheer means, “gaiety, animation, happiness, or comfort.” The word cheerful means, “being in good spirits, producing a feeling of cheer and courage.” Just think about cheerleaders in a sports game. They are out there to cheer on the players on the field. Similarly, as you walk into any Home Depot, you can hear an announcement repeating continually, “You can do it; we can help.” Likewise, a cheerful giver is an encourager; and giving is one of the most powerful ways to cheer up God’s servants doing God’s work! 

How then can one be a generous and cheerful giver? Look at verses 8-11a. “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written:  ‘He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.’ Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion…” This passage is rich in meanings. Yet, for our own purpose, we would like to focus on the seven expressions: (1) [God is able to make] all grace [abound to you]; (2) [in] all things; (3) [at] all times; (4) [having] all that you need; (5) [you will abound in] every good work; (6) [you will be made rich] in every way; and (7) [you can be generous on] every occasion. These expressions are all connected together. But there is a progression: that is, provision serving the purpose.  

What this means is knowing God in person, especially his ability to provide for his children, and the reason why he provides his children with as much as they have, is the key to one becoming a generous and cheerful giver. We can easily understand this truth when we think about Abraham in Genesis. At first he started out as Mr. Nobody. But with the vision to establish him as a source of blessing for all peoples on earth, God called him to live by faith in God. Eventually, he learned faith in God who provides. Then, by faith in God, he was able to give back to God—even his son Isaac. (cf. Genesis 22:14) Through his faith in God he became a VIP, that is, a source of blessing for all peoples on earth. 

Ultimately, Jesus set the perfect example of the one who by faith became a generous and cheerful giver. How was Jesus able to give so much? We know the answer: Jesus had absolute faith in God. So with this faith Jesus made many rich, and he is still making so many people rich. 

Third, reaping is for thanksgiving (11b-15) 

Look at verses 11b-15. “…and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” This passage gives us the vision that generous and cheerful giving causes God’s kingdom to arise, grow, and expand powerfully among the members of the churches from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth, with the result that all who believe in the Lord would render glory to God giving thanks to God for all of his grace, especially the grace of his indescribable gift! 

One word: Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

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