By Kevin Harris, pastor of the Illawarra Community Baptist Church in Wollongong, NSW
I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love. For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
2 Corinthians 8:8-9
This letter was written to a church family in Corinth. 572 kilometres north of them was the church of Thessalonica. 160 kilometres further north was the church of Philippi.
These last two churches were collectively referred to as ‘the churches of Macedonia’ in verse 1. They had heard of heavy financial pressures that the churches of Judea, 2000 kilometres away, were experiencing.
What could they do, besides pray for them and send messages expressing their love? They wanted to do more than say, ‘Be ye warmed and filled’ (James 2:16).
This passage reveals what they did to prove the genuineness of their love for the Judean Christians. They were collecting an offering to minister to their needs (verse 4).
Now the Apostle Paul tells the Corinthian church what the brethren to the north were doing, and encourages them to do likewise, just as they had promised the year before. It wasn’t a command, but a suggestion. If they followed his counsel, he says it would ‘prove the sincerity of your love.’
What proves our love for needy believers? Giving does. Parting with my earthly goods, sacrificing what I need to help another, if done out of Christian love (1 Corinthians 13:3), shows that I’m fair dinkum. On the other hand, stinginess says, ‘I could care less about your problems.’
Our Saviour gave us the pattern of selfless giving. As He set aside heaven’s riches and came to this earth to die in our place, He impoverished Himself in order to enrich us.
Father, thank You for showing the reality of Your love for me. Pry my fingers from things I treasure in order to prove that I truly love needy Christian people. I ask this in the Name of the Lord Jesus, Amen.
This article was written by Kevin Harris Dapto pastor of Illawarra Community Baptist Church.