2 Corinthians 8-9 - Part B

Now having said that, I will say a good indicator or one of the indicators, one of the barometers, one of the gauges of a person's spirituality is what they do with their finances. Take a tour of somebody's checkbook, somebody's bank account, and you will see what's important to them. Where a man's heart is, there will his treasure be awesome.

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Call 800-922-1888 or give securely online at connectwithskip.com slash offer. All right, we're going to be in 2 Corinthians 8 today as Skip continues his message. I've always been and probably will continue to be low key when it comes to finances. It's how we started, and we've seen God provide. When we started, and we started just a few miles from here at a movie theater on Sunday mornings, before we had a Sunday morning, we had a Thursday night Bible study in an apartment gathering room at a nearby apartment complex. And the room was provided by the owners of the apartment complex. Those who ran it said, it's a Bible study.

You don't have to pay anything for it. But we still wanted to buy coffee and desserts for people who came to our Bible study. So we had a little coffee can with a slit on top for people to put anything they would want in there to buy coffee and cookies. When we began our Sunday morning, and the question was, well, how are you going to receive the offering for Sunday morning? I thought, maybe two cans, one on each side of the movie theater.

And that's what we did. We had a coffee can on one side, a coffee can on the other. And then when we moved into the building, we kept the can concept, only we decided to use what we call agape boxes. There they are in this sanctuary, scattered throughout. And we just thought, look, the Lord's provided pretty well through cans, coffee cans. Perhaps He'll provide through agape box. We'll just let people know that's where you can give your tithes and offerings to the Lord.

Let's just see what the Lord does. But we've always been that low key. Now, here's the reason why I started with the coffee can concept. When we moved here, I noticed that Albuquerque, New Mexico was on the geographic crossroads of two major freeways, across country, north and south, east and west, I-25, I-40. People passed through here, not just people passing through here, but evangelists and televangelists and ministries passed through here. And while we were just starting our church, and Lorraine, I have this memory because your parents would tell me some of the stories. There was a particular evangelist that had been coming through town and was taking exorbitant offerings using trash cans in his meetings.

And he would tell the people, we're passing the trash can, we want them filled to the brim and just pressuring people to give, to give, to give. And your parents told me that they got up one night and walked out. They were just fed up with it. They had the discernment that this is wrong. And as they were walking out, the evangelist from the stage called out and said, you wouldn't leave a restaurant without paying.

And they knew right then, this guy's abusing his office. They told me that, and so I thought, coffee cans, we're going to use coffee, we'll use agape boxes and let the Lord do it that way. So I've always been low key because I hate hype. You know, there are 20 people here with $20,000 or $2,000, the Lord is revealed, all that nonsense. I just hate that kind of hype, and I think God hates that kind of hype. So it's a grace. See it as a grace. If you don't see it as a grace, keep it.

Don't worry about it. That's between you and God. Now, having said that, I will say a good indicator or one of the indicators, one of the barometers, one of the gauges of a person's spirituality is what they do with their finances. Take a tour of somebody's checkbook, somebody's bank account, and you will see what's important to them. Where a man's heart is, there will his treasure be also. But having said that, Paul wanted to give them the opportunity without forcing them into it. So complete this grace in you as well. But as you abound in everything, verse 7, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us, see that you abound in this grace also. Now, a word about that verse, because Paul acknowledged that the Corinthian church had abundant resources and abundant giftings. He said, as you abound in everything, in faith, I think they were faith-filled people. They had faith in Jesus Christ. Besides faith in Jesus Christ, I believe that they expressed the gift of faith, the spiritual gift of faith.

They had supernatural, unusual manifestations of faith in God. The gift of faith was used in that congregation. In speech, meaning in proclamation of the gospel, perhaps in the vocal gifts, prophecy, tongues perhaps, interpretation, it's hard to know exactly what Paul is referring to, probably those gifts.

In knowledge, perhaps a reference to the word of knowledge, or it could be simply Bible knowledge. In all diligence and in your love for us, see that you abound in this grace, the grace of giving also. In 1 Corinthians, the first letter that we have as 1 Corinthians, Paul did say, you come behind in no spiritual gift. He said that to the Corinthians.

You come behind. You're not lacking in any spiritual gifts. You guys have the manifestation of all the gifts in your congregation. So he's probably acknowledging that here, saying you're gifted and graced in many areas, also excel in the grace of giving.

And again, we should see it as a grace. I remember when I was in medical training for radiology, we learned about the condition called cirrhosis of the liver. And it's a condition that happens to people for a variety of reasons.

One of the main reasons is if they consume too much alcohol, it will compromise the system and they'll get cirrhosis of the liver. But I've learned as a pastor, some people could be diagnosed with cirrhosis of the giver. It's almost as if their hands are paralyzed when it comes to giving, but miraculously cured when it comes to buying something.

It's amazing how it works. So excel in this grace also. I speak, verse 8, not by commandment, I'm not forcing you to do this, telling you you have to do it, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others. That's why I compared the Macedonians who gave out of their poverty. I'm not saying you have to do this, but I'm saying here's a church that does not have the financial resources you do, Corinthians, and yet they've been so generous. Now Corinth had more money. It was a bustling, busy capital of commerce in the ancient world, so a lot of resources were coming through it, so no doubt the church had more financial war with all. For you know, verse 9, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor that you, through his poverty, might become rich.

You see what he's doing? He's saying one example to you, Corinthians, on giving is the Macedonian church, but the ultimate example of giving is Jesus. He was rich.

He is God the Son, second person of the Trinity. His home was and is now heaven. He left that glory and came to this earth, and when he came to this earth, he was born in poverty. His parents were poor. Mary and Joseph couldn't even afford a lamb for the dedication of their son in the temple, which was required by law. The stipulation the law allowed was that if you are poor and can't even afford the lamb offering, you can bring two turtle doves.

That was the allowance. Mary and Joseph brought two turtle doves. They were poor. Jesus was born in a borrowed manger. He was put in a borrowed tomb.

When he wanted to give an example, he couldn't reach in his pocket and grab money out. He said, hand me a coin, held it up, and said, whose image and superscription is on this? Caesar.

Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar. Another time when taxes were due and Jesus didn't have the money to pay the taxes, Jesus said, Peter, go down to the lake. Pull out a fish.

There'll be a coin in its mouth. It's pretty handy. Handy guy to have around at around this time of the year, right? So if your husband says, I'm going fishing. He was rich, yet for your sakes, he became poor. And a little cross reference for you or to keep in mind or right in the margin of your Bible is Philippians chapter 2. Though being in the form of God or being in very nature God, he made himself of no reputation or he poured himself out to the very last drop, took on the form of a servant, coming in the likeness of sinful flesh. So he divested himself of the prerogatives of deity. That's what the theologians call that. He divested himself of the prerogatives of deity for a 33-year period.

He became poor for your sakes, that you through his poverty might become rich and how lavishly rich spiritually we have become. And in this, I give advice. Now, I like Paul. Paul says, I'm not commanding you, but I do want to give you some advice about your money and about this offering because my advice is don't embarrass yourself.

You're going to see that. Don't lag behind in something you promised to do last year and then when it comes around to it, you don't get involved in it, and it would just be embarrassing for you. Prove your love. I give you this advice. It is to your advantage not only to be doing what you began and were desiring to do a year ago, but now you must also complete the doing of it, that as there was readiness to desire it, so there also may be a completion out of what you have.

For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has and not according to what one does not have. So a year ago, a year ago, we talked about this. A year ago, you said, count me in.

A year has passed. We're headed to Jerusalem. Step up to the plate. In most sports where you use something in your hands to connect with a ball, like a golf club in golf or in tennis or in baseball, they will tell you to not only keep your eye on the ball, but what's important is to follow through, follow through. Your follow through makes all the difference in the trajectory of the golf ball down the fairway, the tennis ball to the other side of the court for placement thereof and for the baseball in a game.

Follow through. So Paul is saying, now step up to the bat and follow through with your commitment that you made a year ago. And notice again in verse 12, it is accepted according to what one has, not according to what he does not have. So one of the principles in giving is proportion, proportion. God is more concerned with proportion more than He is with portion.

The amount doesn't matter to Him. It's the proportion that you have. It's the heart that you have with that proportion more than the amount itself. Again, Jesus said this woman put in more than everybody else even though she put in one-eighth of a cent. It's not the amount.

It's the proportion. For I do not mean, verse 13, that others should be eased and you burdened, but by an equality that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack, that there may be an equality. What does He mean by that? Well, He could mean you're giving now to the Jerusalem church, a time could come in the future where they have the finances and you find yourself in that poor situation and they need to support you.

He could mean that. Or He could simply be talking materially versus spiritually. There's a principle in Romans chapter 15 where Paul writes to the Romans and says, look, if you have been partakers of their spiritual benefits, why shouldn't they be partaker of your material benefits? They've given to you spiritually, give back to them materially.

So that could be the idea of an equality supplying their lack. As it is written, verse 15, as it is written, He who gathered much had nothing left over. He who gathered little had no lack. What is he quoting from? He's quoting from Exodus chapter 16 when God brought food from heaven.

What was that food called? Manna. So God told him to go out every day and pick up manna, just enough for one day.

It'll come the next day. Don't hoard it. Don't get too much. And what they notice is if they went out and picked up too much and just hoarded a whole bunch of it, it started to decay and stink and they had to throw it out. And so what they would do if they got too much of it is they would share it with others. So gather enough for yourself and if you can, share what you can with others. That's the principle out of Exodus chapter 16. He who gathered much had nothing left over. He who gathered little had no lack. Now, the early church practiced this idea of dispersing what they had to those in need. Again, Acts chapter 2 where it says, All who believed were together and had all things in common. That's common property, common finances. Ananias and Sapphira sold land.

They lied about it, but the idea is this was going on. People were selling things and pulling the resources together. So gather what you need and share what you can. But, verse 16, thanks be to God who puts the same earnest care for you in the heart of Titus. For he not only accepted the exhortation but being more diligent, he went to you of his own accord. Remember, Paul had been in Ephesus. Paul was on the move west, first to Troas, then to Macedonia. He sent Titus to Corinth with the letter, 2 Corinthians, and with the commission to ready them for a collection for the church in Jerusalem. What Paul is saying is I didn't have to push or convince or cajole Titus into doing it. He volunteered for it. Maybe he said, you know, I really got to get this letter over to the Corinthians and we should include them in the offering. Titus said, I'll go.

And he had an earnest care for them as much as Paul did. And I like that. You know, over the years, I've talked to people and I've had a conversation that goes something like this. Well, how long have you been coming here?

Oh, I've been coming here for 10 years. Great. And so tell me about your interests.

And are you involved in any ministries here in the body? Well, no. But I guess I'm waiting for you to tell me. I go, well, you're going to be waiting a long time if you're waiting for me to tell you. Because A, I don't have the time to notice every single thing and figure out what you may or may not be gifted for. That's what our life course is all about. But more than that, when a person has a heart to be available, they'll just look for an opportunity that sounds like it fits their gift mix.

So Titus just said, yeah, I'd be good at that. I'll do that. I volunteer. I sign up. That's being available. So God's work is always available to you. Are you available to God's work?

Isaiah the prophet said, here I am, Lord. Send me. That's what God is waiting for. Just that, here I am. Send me. Use me. I offer my body as a living sacrifice.

Go for it. So Titus stepped up. He accepted the exhortation, being more diligent. He went to you of his own accord. Verse 18, we sent with him the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches. Who's he talking about? The brother. That's who he's talking about. Well, who's the brother?

We don't know. He's not named. He's just anonymously called, you know, the brother. Whose praise is in the gospel. Whoever this brother was, obviously, look, Paul's putting a delegation together. Probably it is going to be himself, Titus, the brother, whoever that is, probably a delegate from the Macedonian churches. Some have guessed it's Apollos. Others have guessed it's Luke. Others have guessed it's Silas. Could be any of them.

We don't know. He's not named. And sometimes I smile when you have people who aren't named because I wonder why would God do that or why would Paul do that? Why didn't he just name him? He named Titus.

Just name the brother. But maybe he just wanted theologians to have something to do, you know, to write a dissertation about or argue about in their commentaries and because they have, they've been doing that and trying to argue for one or the other. We don't know and if we needed to know, we would, but it's just some brother who obviously has a reputation because his praise in the gospel is known throughout all the churches.

So somebody famous. Not only that, but who was also chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift which is administered by us to the glory of the Lord himself and to show your ready mind, avoiding this that anyone should blame us in this lavish gift which was administered by us, providing honorable things not only in the sight of the Lord but also in the sight of men. And we have sent with them our brother whom we have proved diligent in many things. Now, this could be yet another unnamed brother, perhaps a Corinthian delegate, but now much more diligent because of the great confidence which we have in you. It's very obvious that when it came to financial matters, Paul was very careful.

He did not want people to think, Paul's making money off this collection. That's Skip Heitzig, challenging you to consider where your treasure is with a message from his series Expound, 2nd Corinthians. Find the full message as well as books, booklets, and full teaching series at connectwithskip.com. Right now, we want to let you know about a special opportunity you have to pursue biblical studies in a way that works with your schedule. Imagine turning your desire to make a difference for the kingdom of God into a purposeful and fulfilling career in ministry. Calvary Church of Albuquerque is pleased to announce a partnership with Southeastern University, a fully accredited Christian university. The Southeastern University partnership with Calvary launches with the fall 2024 semester, offering online degrees from Southeastern University in general education as well as several ministerial leadership degrees. Visit calvarynm.church slash schools to learn more about available degree programs, tuition, and financial aid details, and to start your application. Fall classes begin soon, so check out the SEU at Calvary webpage to learn more about this incredible new partnership with Southeastern University and begin your Christ-centered flexible degree program today. The website again is calvarynm.church slash schools.

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Thank you. Come back again tomorrow for the conclusion to Skip's message and discover what God desires out of your giving. Make a connection, make a connection at the foot of the crossing, cast all burdens on his word. Make a connection, connection. Connect with Skip Hyten is a presentation of Connection Communications, connecting you to God's never-changing truth in ever-changing times.