Give generously
In 2 Corinthians 8: 1 to 7 we read about that church that gave generously despite them going through tough times and being very poor. The church gave as much as they could afford and even more, simply because they wanted to. They even begged the servants of God to let them have the joy of giving their money to God’s people. They did more than the apostles had hoped. These people gave themselves 1st to God and then to the apostles, just as God had wanted them to do.
I want to urge you to learn from these people, they did not give because they had a lot to give, in fact, they gave even out of their poverty, by so doing, the Bible says they demonstrated God’s kindness. Giving is not about whether you have or not, but it’s about understanding the joy that come through giving. When you give out of whatever situation you are in, God will see you through that situation. So give despite your debts, give despite your bills.
The Bible says “they gave themselves 1st to God, and then to the apostles”, meaning that when you give, you have to start giving in the church which you call a home, in that way, you are giving to God. You must then give to the servants that God has put in charge of you, then you can give to the needy and to all people.
When you give 1st to God, God will take care of your ministry. I believe every one of us has their own ministry. For some of you, your ministry is your career, and for some it’s your business, and for me and the Prophet, its Changing lives. So if you give to God, God will take care of your business or your career. When you give generously, you will find yourself enjoying undeserved blessings, that promotion which you do not qualify for will be yours. No one will understand how you got it, but your generous gift will take you to that promotion.
In verse 6 its says “Titus was the one who got you started doing this good thing, so we begged him to have you finish what you had begun” this means that we also as children of God, must learn to finish what we started. Our Salvations started by us receiving Jesus Christ as our Saviour, we must now complete it by giving.
You cannot say that you are a child of God when you are not a giver. Some of you are men of God, called to do the work of God, and now when you are still in training or in preparation for God’s work, you find it hard to give. When it’s time for you to start the ministry that God has called you for, who do you expect to give in that ministry because you never gave ?
When you give, you are planting a seed which will be multiplied back to you. When the time to receive comes, you will receive with open arms, because you know the seed that you have planted. The Bible says in verse 7, “You do everything better than anyone else. You have stronger faith. You speak better and know more. You are eager to give, and you love us better. Now you must give more generously than anyone else”. This means that just as we have perfected our faith, we must perfect our giving.
When you have perfected your giving, you become a generous giver. When you are a generous giver, you will receive what you need from God. God knows what you need. It might not be money at the time, but God will give it to you because of your generous gift. It may be the fruit of the womb, it may be open doors that you need in your business. Give generously and God will make a way for you.
To Him be Honour and Glory.