2 Corinthians 9:6-15
6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 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. 8 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. 9 As it is written: “He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”
10 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. 11 You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
12 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. 13 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. 14 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
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What Paul states in these concluding verses of the topic of generosity to the Corinthian believers was not only pertinent to the context of the special offering being collected for the needy church in Jerusalem, but it also applies to every believer in Christ thereafter. This important and relevant spiritual principal of giving, ties into what Jesus taught such as in the following verses.
Luke 6:38, “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.”
Matthew 25:34-36,40 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” 40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”
Verse 6, “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”
Paul makes a simple comparison to a very common fact that everyone even today is aware of, even if they are not involved in agriculture. The act of being generous or the grace of giving (“see that you also excel in this grace of giving.” 2 Corinthians 8:7) in every believer’s life, is similar to planting seed. The more you seed you put in the ground, the more plants you will have. However, it is important to remember, as with anything that is planted, it will be a matter of time before we see a plant sprout and even more time to harvest what the plants produces.
Another important point to notice is that Paul uses the word “generously” twice. Being generous or generosity is an attitude and expression of the heart. It is “showing a readiness to give more of something, as money or time, than is strictly necessary” or asked for. Some Christians who have yet to learn about the grace of giving or generosity and experience it’s blessings will naturally think, “the more I give away the less I will have for myself”. This is a clear indication that they have yet to learn and experience the blessing of the grace of giving. A mature Christian knows, generously giving is not having less after it is done. But in it’s truest sense, it is an investment of increase for the future.
Not only does the one who is generous know that they will have what they need after they give, but they are confident that they will continue to receive from God to be able to continue to be generous to others in the future. Verse 8, 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.
Being generous involves trust in God. If we only know God casually and do not know God personally and intimately, it will be very difficult to trust Him and understand what He is saying through Paul what he is teaching the Corinthians about excelling “in this grace of giving.”; 2 Corinthians 8:7, But just as you excel in everything — in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us — see that you also excel in this grace of giving.”
Being generous and giving to others who are in need ceases to be generosity if we give to be recognized by others by what we do. Jesus made this clear in Matthew 6:1 “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
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.
Our generosity is our decision in obedience of how the Holy Spirit leads us. What we give is recognized by God because of our desire and the attitude of our heart when we give. It is not the amount given or what is done that determines God’s recognition, but it is the heart of the one who gives who is trusting God and in what He says in His Word.
Verse 10, 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.
Again, as before, Paul is using an example from agriculture to make a comparison and to state a spiritual fact or truth of what a believer who has learned to excel in the “grace of giving” knows; that all of what they have and ever will need comes from God, “he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food”.
Verse 11, You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
In addition to what verse ten says, a believer who has learned to excel in the “grace of giving” also trusts God that He will provide not only for their needs but much more so they can continue to be generous to others who are in need. The believer who has learned to excel in the “grace of giving” also has the assurance that God will continue to make them “rich in every way”. This is not limited to only finances but in every way possible that will characterize their generosity by who Christ is in them and by what they do.
Reading the last four verses we see that Paul the focuses on God. 12 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. 13 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. 14 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!
God needs to be the purpose and motivation of our generosity, not how we are recognized and praised by others or what we get out of it. Paul makes this clear multiple times by what He says in these final four verses. It is the heart and the purpose of those believers in Christ who excel “in this grace of giving.”
Pastor John
