A preacher went to visit a farmer and during the course of that visit asked him, “If you had $200 would you give $100 to the Lord?” “I would, preacher.”
“If you had two cows, would you give one to the Lord?”
“Yes, I believe I would.”
“If you had two pigs, would you give one to the Lord?”
“Now preacher, that’s not fair — you know I have two pigs!”
That apocryphal story resonates with us because sometimes it is difficult to part with that which has been given to us by the Lord.
In contrast to our difficulty, the Macedonians begged Paul for the privilege of giving, though they were in poverty themselves and from a human perspective better candidates to be receivers than givers.
So their example in 2 Corinthians 8-9 has become a testimony and guide to how believers elsewhere might practice gracious giving. Here are the principles embedded in that passage:
1. Give sacrificially and voluntarily (8:1-3)
2. Recognize the privilege of giving (8:4)
3. Make yourself the first gift (or, don’t give a gift without also giving yourself) (8:5)
4. Give to keep your spiritual disciplines balanced (8:7)
5. Give as a demonstration of your love (8:8)
6. Give in proportion to your ability (8:12)
7. Give so that you may be able to give more (9:6)
8. Give because it brings glory to God (9:12-13)
9. Give because it is an adequate response to Christ’s gift (8:9; 9:15)
Words of Grace 