Table of Contents
Introduction
In Giving (2 Corinthians 8-9)
1)The Macedonians Example (8:1-5)
Would you say you have possessions or your possessions have you?
2)Finish What You Start (8:6-11)
What good intentions do you need to carry through to completion?
3)Meet Others' Needs (8:12-15)
How are your gifts to the Lord being used to meet the needs of other believers?
4)Accountable Administration (8:16-24)
5)Be Prepared to Give (9:1-7)
6)The Harvest of Giving (9:8-15)
7)Principle
A life given to Christ is a generous life.
8)Illustration
In Living (2 Corinthians 10-13)
1)The Flesh Cannot Win Spiritual Battles (10:1-6)
How goes the battle in your mind?
What thoughts do you have that need to be taken captive?
2)The Challenge to Paul's Authority (10:7-18)
A Matter of Ownership (10:7)
Mode of Authority (10:8) 4
Consistency (10:10-11)
Commendation & Measure (10:12)
Goal (10:15-16)
Accountability (10:17-18) 5
3)Godly Jealousy/Satan's Deception (11:1-15)
4)Paul's Boast: His Weakness; Christ's Grace and Strength (11:17-12:10)
Which boasting comes out most in your conversation: “The things you've done for God” or “The things God has done been able to do in spite of yourself”?
5)Paul Spends Himself (12:11-21)
What does the way you’re spending your life say about your view of ownership?
6)Call to Self-Examination and Repentance (13:1-14)
7)Principle
God's grace is sufficient for any need.
Conclusion
Introduction
When you drive a leased vehicle off the lot, no matter how much is seems that the car belongs to you, it really does not. It belongs to the lease company. But you are responsible for how you use that vehicle. You will be held accountable for the condition of the car when the lease is up.
Our lives seem much like a lease vehicle. We often feel like our lives belong to us. But they really don't. Our very breath and heart beats are on loan from our Creator. And how we spend our lives will one day be evaluated by our Creator.
Life, for a Christian, is a matter of stewardship over Christ's resources.
In Giving (2 Corinthians 8-9)
1)The Macedonians Example (8:1-5)
Giving is less about what you have and what you give and more about how and why you give. This is not to get us off the hook for giving but to help us examine the way we give.
In verse 1, Paul brings up this concept of “the grace of God” in relation to giving:
1 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia,
What does Paul mean by calling giving “the grace of God”?
I believe Paul is pointing out that anyone can give. But it takes something special from God to give in a way that honors Him. And he points out those ingredients in the next several verses.
I believe this is also why Paul is using Macedonia as an example. He is not trying to shame the Corinthians into giving. Nor is he trying to establish some type of competition for giving. None of these things would be appropriate.
Look in verse 2 at how this grace of God manifested itself:
2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.
3 For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own free will,
4 begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints—
5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.
Paul points out that the Macedonians were not giving because they were in a giving mood. Sometimes our circumstances might make us more generous than other times. This was not the case here.
They were in a severe test of affliction and rather than being focused on their circumstances, they, by the grace of God, saw the needs of others and gave toward those needs.
They were giving as a result of the joy they had in the Lord in spite of circumstances. Add to that they were apparently extremely impoverished. They had very little to offer from a financial perspective. But they gave anyway.
The quantity of what they gave may have been miniscule compared to what others might be able to give but their giving was a wealth of generosity. Generosity is a wealth that a person can have whether rich or poor.
It doesn't take wealth to be generous. In fact, wealth can be a hindrance to generosity if wealth becomes one's god.
The Macedonians also gave beyond their means. They looked at the needs of others and wanted to be a means of God's grace to relieve that need. And they needed no one to coerce them into giving. Verse 3 says that they gave of their own free will.
It was between themselves and God not what someone else had to pry from their hands.
Beyond just free will, Paul points out that they begged to be part of this relief effort. They had no intention of just giving lip service. They didn't say, “I wish I could give” of “I will give” but then didn't. It appears as though Paul and Titus knew their situation and perhaps even tried to persuade them to save for their own needs.
But they were not willing to withhold what they viewed as God's gracious provision to them.
This took Paul by surprise – this extreme generosity. But then it was an outflow of a people who were first totally given over to the Lord.
This is the best way to ensure our motives in giving are pure and that our passion for giving is generous. When you and I are totally given over to the Lord, then an outflow of our lives will naturally be a generous spirit realizing that nothing I have is really mine anyway, it is a gift from God.
There is nothing wrong with having possessions, but there is something very wrong when our possessions have us. It doesn't matter whether you have a lot or a little, possessions can own us.
But if we are given over to the Lord we realize that He has given us the possessions we have so that they can be used for His glory.
That's the way the Macedonians modeled. May it be true of us.
Would you say you have possessions or your possessions have you?
Not only did Paul present Macedonians as an example of giving no matter how much, but he also points out the importance finishing what one starts.
It's not just the thought that counts, its carrying out what is in the heart.
2)Finish What You Start (8:6-11)
It is God's grace that gives us what we have – we are stewards. It is God's grace that enables us to carry out an act of generosity. And it is God's grace to the needy that takes place when you and I give out of love and gratitude to God.
Apparently Corinth had talked about giving in the past. And Paul wanted to remind them and give them time to prepare so that when the time came, there would be no knee-jerk reaction but instead, planned giving.
Here's our model for completing the work of giving:
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 carried out the extreme act of giving. One that was planned in eternity past. He would give everything for His people (become poor) so that we might become rich. Rich in spiritual things (not earthly treasures). And that we might see our earthly treasures as belonging to Him anyway.
What good intentions do you need to carry through to completion?
3)Meet Others' Needs (8:12-15)
We touched on this earlier, but Paul points out that our gifts are not meant to take away what we need to live on, but to supply what others in need might need to live on.
I have heard some use Scripture to backup forms of socialism. But this is not at all what Paul (or Jesus) is getting at. He is just pointing out this principle that giving is a way of living out the command to love your neighbor.
Besides, they are doing the same thing for us.
13 I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness
14 your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness.
15 As it is written, “Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”
This quote, in verse 15, is from Exodus 16:18. When some went out to collect manna, they only gathered a little, but that was enough for them. Others were greedy and thought they would collect an abundance, but they found that they had just enough.
Hoarding your money may give a sense of security. But if you have been around for very long, money has a way of falling out of a hole in your pocket, so to speak.
If we are not good stewards of our money, God can easily take it from us and give it to someone else who will be a good steward.
Not only money, but everything a Christian owns belongs to God. We need to use our stuff as good stewards of God's stuff.
How are your gifts to the Lord being used to meet the needs of other believers?
4)Accountable Administration (8:16-24)
Paul wanted no one to question the administration of this money. He was accountable to God, ultimately, but it was also important that no man could accuse misappropriation of funds for this money. This was a safeguard for the giver and the one administering the money.
Therefore, Paul sent Titus and reliable men from other churches in order to ensure everything was above board.
19 And not only that, but he has been appointed by the churches to travel with us as we carry out this act of grace that is being ministered by us, for the glory of the Lord himself and to show our good will.
20 We take this course so that no one should blame us about this generous gift that is being administered by us,
21 for we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of man.
This is crucial when you and I give to a ministry. When you give beyond your local church, there are organizations out there that perform independent audits of charitable organizations in order to ensure they are wisely using God's funds. This is part of our responsibility as good stewards – ensuring that what we give is used for God's ministry and not squandered.
5)Be Prepared to Give (9:1-7)
How do you prepare to give to the Lord? Do you pray about what you will give? Do you plan what you will give?
Is giving a consistent part of your worship experience? That is what giving is – it is worship.
Paul points out in these 7 verses that giving should never be due to someone extracting the money from you:
5 So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the gift you have promised, so that it may be ready as a willing gift,not as an exaction.
You get the sense here that someone has a clenched fist full of money and the pastor or priest has to pry the wad of bills out of their hand.
I hope you never feel that type of pressure when at church. There should never need to be begging from the podium so that people will give. Yes, from time to time we need to be reminded of our need and obligation to give. But if you and I are feeling like we are giving from clenched fists, we need to ask ourselves why.
Is it undue pressure from the one calling me to give? Or is it my unwillingness to give in a way that is pleasing to the Lord? Am I first giving myself fully to the Lord?
6)The Harvest of Giving (9:8-15)
Finally, Paul presents the Corinthian church with some rich agricultural metaphors for giving.
He quotes from Psalm 112:9:
“He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.”
I think what he's pointing out here is the fact that our gifts are God working through us to meet others' needs. And the righteousness of God is revealed in such an act. God's righteousness, primarily. But certainly when we act obediently in faith by giving, we are living out the righteous life God enables us to live.
That's pretty much what he points out in verse 10, God provides what we give, He increases it even, and the harvest is acts of righteousness.
10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.
Not only that, but God is praised when we act this way. He receives glory and honor that is due Him:
11 You will be enriched in every way for all your generosity, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.
13 By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission flowing from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others,
What an opportunity God has given us. We take what is not ours and offer it back to God in generosity and He uses it to meet the needs of others and bring praise and glory to His name. And on top of that, he calls this acts of righteousness.
In my mind, that's a win, win, win proposition!
7)Principle
A life given to Christ is a generous life.
8)Illustration
It's God's grace that produces generosity. His grace frees us from being bound to our stuff.
In Living (2 Corinthians 10-13)
1)The Flesh Cannot Win Spiritual Battles (10:1-6)
Paul moves on, in chapter 10, to address some of the challenges to his ministry in Corinth. This was the plague that continued to travel wherever Paul journeyed, those that would come behind and try to undermine the truth of God's word through Paul.
Paul recognizes this for what it is. It isn't a popularity contest, though some that do it may be motivated by popularity. It is a contest between the kingdom of God and the king of this world. It is a spiritual battle that Paul (and all believers) face.
Tough-mindedness and determination are no match in this type of battle. It's not a battle of wits or intelligence – no man can outwit Satan.
Paul recognized that much of the battle was a defensive one against the enemy. But their was also a time for offensive moves, but only by the power of God's word.
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh.
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.
The ultimate goal is obedience to Christ (verse 5). And that is what the enemy of Christians works against. If you and I are living neutral lives, then we are not obeying Christ and we are no threat to Satan's kingdom.
But once we determine to take him at His word and obey what His word says, then the battle is on. The aim of the enemy is defeat even though he is already defeated.
One of his major tactics is to toy with the truth and present us with something that sounds right, but is in fact false. And boy is he good at that! He has been doing that from the way back. He is the father of lies. That's why our defense must be to saturate our minds with God's word:
Psalm 119:9 How can a young man keep his way pure?
By guarding it according to your word.
11 I have stored up your word in my heart,
that I might not sin against you.
I'll tell you a secret, this works for old men too!
Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
13 And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
God and His word provides our only defense against our adversary.
How goes the battle in your mind?
What thoughts do you have that need to be taken captive?
2)The Challenge to Paul's Authority (10:7-18)
A Matter of Ownership (10:7)
Paul belonged to Christ. That's who he was accountable to and where his authority came from. And besides that, nobody has anything to do with their position in Christ. It can never be a position of boasting on the Christian's part. We didn't cause ourselves to belong to Christ and we can't maintain our position in Christ.
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Mode of Authority (10:8)
Paul was tasked with building up the church. This was true of Corinth and all the rest. He never intended to tear them down.
10:8 For even if I boast a little too much of our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed.
As we'll see later, those who were opposing Paul were not seeking to build up the church in Corinth. They had selfish ambitions in mind and were in fact tearing it down. Any teaching that is contrary to Scripture serves to tear down God's church.
Consistency (10:10-11)
No one could ever accuse Paul of living inconsistently from the words he spoke. He was being accused of being one way in letter and another in person.
11 Let such a person understand that what we say by letter when absent, we do when present.
Commendation & Measure (10:12)
Paul did not want to be compared with other men. He wanted to be compared with the commission that God had given him.
10:12 Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding.
Goal (10:15-16)
Paul's goals were not for the fame of his name. He wanted the Corinthians to come to maturity and he wanted to push beyond Corinth to spread the gospel abroad. These goals are Godly goals.
Accountability (10:17-18)
Finally, Paul points out that he is accountable to God for what he does as an apostle.
17 “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
18 For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.
This knowledge of Paul caused him to live in such a way that no man could legitimately malign his character. They had to lie about him in order do that.
Paul's quote in 10:17 comes from the prophet Jeremiah:
23 Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches,
24 but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”
When a person is concerned about their image and reputation, it takes an inordinate amount of energy to maintain that image.
You and I are accountable to God as well. May our boast be like this as well.
3)Godly Jealousy/Satan's Deception (11:1-15)
Just a few notes about these things.
First, God is a jealous God. He calls himself that. He means that He is jealous for the complete devotion of his people. That's why the first commandments deal with God being our only god. His jealousy is a righteous jealousy.
And this is Paul's jealousy as well. He has no underlying motivation. It is not his reputation. He is not trying to build a mega-church for his name (not that mega-churches are wrong).
Paul wants to present Corinth as a virgin bride to her only husband. What a rich metaphor. This is often used in the old and new Testaments as well. And when Israel turned from God, He spoke in terms of adultery and unfaithfulness.
Paul's concern is first for God, that His people recognize what they are: the bride of Christ. And He deserves purity in his bride.
But Satan wants anything but a pure bride. He wants us to fall into temptation and even into false doctrine.
3 But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
4 For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.
Corinth had fallen for the old trick. It sounds good so it must be true.
Notice that Paul does not hold back. This is another Jesus. Just because someone uses the name Jesus does not mean that they are speaking of the Jesus revealed in the Bible.
If they receive a spirit, it does not mean that it is the Holy Spirit – who, by the way, only comes by means of the real Jesus through the real gospel, not another gospel.
They fell for the smooth tongue of the speaker and failed to discern the error in the message.
Paul's message was a true revelation of the real Jesus, presenting the authentic gospel, and was accompanied by the Holy Spirit. It was brought by a man that loved the people:
11:10 As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia.
11 And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
4)Paul's Boast: His Weakness; Christ's Grace and Strength (11:17-12:10)
Paul then goes on to talk about what he calls a boast. But unlike the super-apostles, this boasting did nothing to pump up Paul's strengths, only God's strengths.
Sane people don't go through what Paul went through because they enjoy it.
[We can't cover all that he went through]
12:8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
We don't know what Paul's thorn was. But we do know why he had it. It was something God allowed to keep him humble.
We don't know exactly why God didn't remove this thorn either. It was certainly not due to a lack in faith on the part of the apostle Paul. In fact I would say that the many trials Paul endured served to strengthen his faith in the Lord.
Paul's weaknesses were opportunities to boast in Christ. To show that our Lord is sufficient for any and every need. And his weaknesses were marks of validation pointing out that his ministry was approved by God.
Which boasting comes out most in your conversation: “The things you've done for God” or “The things God has done been able to do in spite of yourself”?
Do people come away from a conversation marveling about your goodness or the goodness of God?
5)Paul Spends Himself (12:11-21)
Paul has just gone into detail about the marks of Christ in his ministry. It was a boasting of sorts, but it was unlike the boasting of the super-apostles.
His hope was that Corinthians would see the sincerity in Paul and discern the false motives of others.
12:14 Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.
15 I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls. If I love you more, am I to be loved less?
This will be his 3rd visit, but he wants, not what they possess, but he wants them. And as he said before, he wants them so they can be presented to God as a pure virgin.
And Paul is willing to spend what he has and to be spent for the sake of their souls. Paul's very life belongs to God and he is ready to spend it any way God wants him to spend it.
If this isn't love, I don't know what love is. If the Corinthians see anything but pure motives, then they are blinded.
What does the way you’re spending your life say about your view of ownership?
6)Call to Self-Examination and Repentance (13:1-14)
And so Paul brings them back to his call for purity in the church and the authority of Christ in him.
They had been seeking proof, or questioning whether, Paul was speaking by the authority of Christ. And there were some among them that were making claims against Paul and for the teachings of others. They had sided with the false teachers and were driving a wedge between the Christians and those who claimed to be Christians.
Paul tells them there's a way to find out where you stand:
13:5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
6 I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test.
If you are in the faith, you have Jesus Christ in you and you pass the test.
But if you don't have Jesus Christ in you, then you are not of the faith.
Paul (and his companions) passed the test. They are in the faith. They are indwelt by Christ. And they speak the truth in the power of Christ.
The power, which Paul points out, as appearing weak – it came in meekness and lowliness and weakness (human frailty) but is in fact powerful. It accomplishes God's will.
13:4 For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.
So, was Paul being a good steward of what God had given him? Yes. He pointed to no one but God himself. He spent and gave of himself freely. He was jealous for God and the purity of his people. He wanted to stop what was false and expose it while teaching the truth in love.
All of Paul's ability to live this way were not learned and acquired by any other means than the grace of God being poured out on him moment by moment.
The same grace afforded you and I, by the way. That is if we pass the test. If in fact we are in the faith, then our lives too can be living examples of grace in action. Of good stewards of what God give us.
7)Principle
God's grace is sufficient for any need.
Conclusion
One of these days it's going to be time for you and I to turn over the keys.
And what we've done during the terms of our lease is going to be clear to the owner.
