Generosity.

2 Corinthians 8 & 9 are letters written to churches of Corinth discussing the churches of Macedonia and their generosity.
A little background of the Macedonian churches: They were suffering economically, much more than the Corinthian churches. They were described, as facing "severe affliction" and "extreme poverty" (2 Cor. 8:2). But is also described as having "overflowing joy". The Macedonian churches were the exemplary church in generosity.


I don't know about you but this doesn't really make sense to me. How can a church that is suffering so severely be so generous with the little they have. So why did the Macedonians do something so "out of this world"? Paul says, "They gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God’s will" (v. 5). They did it in service to the Lord. Their sacrifice was to him first and foremost. It was a work of grace, of God working in their lives, and they found themselves happy to do it. Responding to the Holy Spirit in them, they knew and believed and acted as if life is not measured by the abundance of material things. Wow.


I believe we as believers need to realize that we are not the owners of our money. We are merely stewards. God has entrusted us with things so we can distribute them to others. God calls us to love people & use money to do that. Not to love money & use people.


"Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity" (v. 2).

"The point is not simply to meet a temporary need or change a startling statistic; the point is to exalt the flory of Christ as we express the gospel of Christ through the radical generosity of our lives." -Radical:David Platt


Facts:
1. The most unlikely tithers & givers are people under the age of 25, single adults and liberals.
2. More than 1 out of every 4 American Protestants give away no money at all.
3. Jesus talks about money about 25% of the time so it is obviously something he doesn't want us to take lightly.


Lord, my prayer is that you would open my eyes to the needs that surround me. That I would surrender the things of this world and that you would reveal to me things that I can live without for your glory.