Welcome to the defender bible study. A weekly encouragement to equip the body of Christ through the study of scripture and prayer to manifest the gospel to orphans and vulnerable children around the world. This podcast is a ministry of Lifeline Children Services, where we believe that defending the fatherless begins by being rooted in God's word.

Hey, there. It's July 8, 2024. Welcome back to the Defender Bible Study. This is Rick Morton. Hope you had a fantastic July 4th holiday.

Had an opportunity with family and friends and celebrating the opportunity

to be

able to be free to do things like this, to study God's word. And so today we're gonna talk about the first 15 verses of chapter 8 of 2 Corinthians. Paul is obviously continuing his letter to the church in Corinth. And today, he's really talking about giving and generosity and really trying to teach a lesson to the church in Corinth. And he uses the church in or the churches in Macedonia as kind of an example to be able to challenge the Corinthians.

And so in Macedonia, we're talking about the churches in Philippi and Thessalonica, Berea. These are churches that were living in really pretty abject poverty. Those areas in Macedonia had been taken by the Roman Empire, and they had pretty much been cleaned out. So, unlike places like Corinth, where they had the ability to be able to produce income and there was trade that really sustained them. And so there was ongoing wealth and the people didn't suffer as much.

The people were suffering in Macedonia because they just didn't have the ability to do much to earn money to produce things to help themselves. Reminds me of actually last year, traveled to Burundi, 1 of the poorest countries on the planet, 1 of our partners there, spent some time with him. And 1 of the things that's just remarkable about Burundi is no exports. There's nothing that they do. There's nothing that they sell.

There's nothing that they really engage in trade. And so they live at a profound trade deficit, which just means that there's social poverty everywhere you look in society. And so there is a very wealthy class of people that most people live in really what is grinding poverty. And that's kind of what the Macedonians were living in. But the thing that we know from the New Testament, Paul writes here, he also writes in Philippians, that the Macedonian church was incredibly generous.

They were an example to the rest of the body of Christ because they gave deeply and sacrificially for the needs of other saints. And they gave out of their poverty. And so the amount that they gave wasn't really big. It may not have been even consequential. But the truth is the quality of their sacrifice because of how little they had is profound and noteworthy.

And that's kind of the point that Paul was trying to make. And so first 5 verses he uses the the Macedonian church as an example. He talks about the fact that they were generous, that they gave sacrificially as we've already said. 1 of the things that Paul says about them is that they beg for the opportunity to give. And so Paul affirms the fact that the church in Macedonia is that they gave not because because they felt like they had to, not because they felt like there'd been some percentage that was placed upon them that they had to do in order to measure up to some standard.

But the fact is that they gave, they wanted to give because they wanted to participate in the work that the that the Lord was doing. And so they wanted they they trusted God for what they have. They trusted that God was gonna give them enough and he was gonna provide for them, but they begged for the opportunity to give. And 1 of the important things that Paul says is that they gave and they participated in this way they because they love Jesus first. And so ultimately, the thing that kind of underlies all of this is the fact that they had such a profound love for Jesus that they they loved Christ.

They believed in the mission. They gave joyfully because they wanted to see the kingdom of God grow because they were really deeply in love with Jesus. What an incredible confession. And so, beginning in verse 6, Paul then kind of turns the, he turns the tone of things and he really kind of begins to kind of get into the business again of the Corinthian church. And he begins to really again chide them.

And what I mean by that is that he's even really kind of sarcastic. So he says, verse 6, it says, accordingly, we urge Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this act of grace. In other words, look, you started to give and the gift that they were giving was a gift that was to be sent to the church in Jerusalem that was under incredible persecution. And so they were The church in Jerusalem was basically being forced out of society, honestly. They didn't have a way to make a living for themselves.

They were being ostracized and imprisoned in their own society for their faith. They weren't given the ability to earn a living. They weren't able to they weren't able to really participate in society because they were completely outcast because of their faith. And so the monetary gifts that were being given were going to literally sustain the church in Jerusalem because they really had no way to provide for themselves and they were dying for their faith. And so Paul says, first, he says, well, we urge Titus that what you guys have thought about, we need you to do more than think about.

We want to challenge you to actually do something. And then he says to them, But as you excel in everything, in faith and speech and knowledge, in all earnestness, and our love for you so that you would excel also in this act of grace. And it kind of seems that Paul is being a little bit sarcastic here. And he's saying to the Corinthian church, well, since you're great at everything, then be great at this too. And of course, we know from the first letter that we have that Paul wrote to this church and this letter that we're walking through now that this church had a lot of work to do.

And they were not great at a lot of things. And there was a whole lot of room for growth as they figured out what it meant to live for Christ in their society and in their world. And so, Paul's just kind of acknowledging them a little bit through sarcasm that they're struggling with selfishness. And that they really needed to learn how to give. They needed to learn how to excel in being selfless and in trusting Christ for, you know, for their sustenance by and 1 of the ways that they did that is by giving with not concern for themselves, but concern for others.

And so, and so Paul presents this idea to them that giving is a way for them to be like Jesus. And so he says in verse 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 by his poverty you might become rich. And in this manner, I give my judgment. This benefits you who a year ago started not only to do this work, but also to desire to do it. And so he says, look, like he wrote in Philippians in Philippians 2, that Jesus stepped out of heaven.

Jesus gave everything. Jesus sacrificed everything that was rightfully his in order to in order to to purchase our salvation by His blood in order to do this work that no 1 else could do. And so when we give generously and sacrificially, we're doing something that models who Jesus is. We're showing the world something that looks like Jesus, but we're participating in doing something that is that is like our savior. And so that's pleasing to the Lord.

And he kind of points out to him here that their good intentions aren't enough, that this isn't just about pious words. He says, look, it was good that you set out a year ago to do this, but you need to do it. He says, so now finish doing it as well, verse 11, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he doesn't have. And so he says, look, give out of what you have.

Don't give out of what you don't have. And that sounds simple. But I think the profound thing that Paul is saying here is he said, look, don't give to impress someone else. Don't borrow something from someone else in order to be able to give. This is about you giving what you have.

And it's about it's an act of you being selfless, and an act of you trusting God. And so, give out of what you have and don't worry. If it's a little bit that you have, then give of the little bit that you have. If you have a lot, then give a lot of what you have. I think to the example, 1 of the 1 of the examples that I think of is the LaTourneau family that started LaTourneau University.

And the fact is that they were they built great wealth in the heavy equipment business. And But they set a standard of living and they never lived above it. And so everything that they made as they continue to amass wealth through their business ended up being it was given to kingdom causes, including the founding of that university. And how were they able to do that? Because they lived modestly, They lived at a predetermined standard of living and they gave generously because they had a lot.

Well, everybody doesn't have a lot, but everybody has the ability to give. And that's kind of what Paul is trying to the idea that he's trying to present here. And he says, verse 13, For I don't mean that others should be eased and you be burdened, but that is a matter of fairness. Your abundance at the present time should supply their needs so that their abundance may supply your need. In other words, there may be fairness.

So in other words, there's this idea that if we do this well, then people will be taken care of and there'll be kind of an equitable fairness. And so Paul's not calling for communism here. He's calling for generosity. And then he ends the passage by quoting Exodus 16 18 where he says, Whoever's gathered much had nothing left over and whoever gather little had no lack. And the reason those that gathered little had no lack is because those who had gathered much didn't have anything left over because they gave.

And so it wasn't they gathered much and then they stored it up and hoarded it for themselves. The reason that those who gathered little had no lack is because those who gathered much shared. And there's a sense that people took care of 1 another. And that doesn't mean that that necessarily that's not a call to communism. It's a call to generosity and care for your neighbor and care for your brother.

And so I hope today that this passage has helped you. I know it's helped me just to really reflect on generosity and to reflect on the opportunities that we have to give of our time, of our talent, and also of our belongings or our treasure. And that we have the opportunity to do that because God is giving us that that as we think about caring for vulnerable children and vulnerable families that we think about sharing. And we think about sharing what God's blessed us with in order to help them ultimately, not just to help them, but to give people a picture of who Jesus is and to be able to open a door to be able to tell the gospel. And so this week, let's be generous, but let's also be people who remember that in our generosity, the greatest gift that we can give is to be able to tell people about the greatest news that you or I've ever heard.

And that's the good news that Jesus has provided a way for us to be reconciled to God. And so I hope you have a great week. And, and we will see you right back here again next week on the defender bible study.

Thanks again joining us for the defender bible study. If you enjoy making this podcast a part of your weekly routine, we'd love for you to take a moment to subscribe, rate, and review the defender bible study to make it easier for more people to find. For more resources and information on how you and your church can partner with Lifeline, please visit us at lifelinechild.org. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter by searching for Lifeline Child. You can email us directly at info at lifelinechild.org.

We look forward to seeing you again next week for the Defender Bible Study.