Image from ttglutheran.wordpress.com
Hear the devotional here: https://bit.ly/3gUkiIG
7 Now as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you —so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking. 8 I do not say this as a command, but I am testing the genuineness of your love against the earnestness of others. 9 For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich. 10 And in this matter I am giving my advice: it is appropriate for you who began last year not only to do something but even to desire to do something— 11 now finish doing it, so that your eagerness may be matched by completing it according to your means. 12 For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has—not according to what one does not have. 13 I do not mean that there should be relief for others and pressure on you, but it is a question of a fair balance between 14 your present abundance and their need, so that their abundance may be for your need, in order that there may be a fair balance. 15 As it is written, "The one who had much did not have too much, and the one who had little did not have too little." (2 Corinthians 8:7-16 NRSV)
Happy Tuesday! May this second day of the work week be a blessing rich in God's grace to you, dear Friend, and all of the ConCafe Family, is my prayer. Please keep a relative of mine in your prayers, Ms. Cami Chapa, who is in need of two surgeries in Dallas, TX. Cami lives in San Marcos, TX, and lost both her parents when she was a young adult. Please continue to pray for one another, and for yourselves.
Whether you know it or not, we grade churches. How? First, if we visit a church, within minutes, if not seconds, we have decided whether we will re-visit that church or not. And if we have been "regulars" of that church, we leave each Sunday with at least something we loved about the service, and something that did not quite meet our expectations. Sometimes, we get petty and if a certain someone doesn't greet us, or we don't sing at least one of our favorite songs/hymns, we get irritated and we ponder what our next option should be regarding our worship at that church or not. Here, we have just read that Paul, who was a strict critic of almost all things, has rated this church as "excel(ling) in everything -- in faiith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you." Quite a list! We could say, an A in Faith, an A in speech (interaction with one another), an A in knowledge (knowing the Scriptures and all things Christians); An A in eagerness, make that utmost eagerness (Not a bad thing in any church; a willingness to embrace responsbility and duty, and then doing them!); and an A in love. Yet, Paul knew there was another area in which this particular church could excel; that of being generous in their giving. Churches require the generousness of its members to continue their ministries. Yes, we know of abuses by so-called "evangelists" of the television type, who buy jets, mansions, ranches, etc., and lavish lifestyles and give the Church a blackeye. Of course, there were other so-called evangelists that came along that made church councils to appear to make decisions on statements of faith such as The Apostle's Creed, and other creeds to define othrodoxy. Not quite the same thing, but it opened a door.
Paul was aware of the great financial need of the mother church in Jerusalem. As we can imagine, it was very difficult for a Christian church to be thriving in Jerusalem, the headquarters of the Jewish faith. The persecution against Jesus did not die down with His death; and the Jews frowned on anyone going to church at a Christian establishment. And whatever else was impacting the church, a lack of funds was crippling them and Paul was aware of it and had decided to start a fundraising campaign to help them. This letter was part of that effort. and Paul wants this church in Corinth, who excels in all things, to now excel in generous giving.
Paul finds the logical place to start, the life of Christ, the perfect example of giving; as in "For God so loved the World, God gave..." Paul then shares how Jesus left all the celestial riches in Heaven for the sake of the world, coming to live among, and as, the poor. For though in poverty, Christ wanted all people to be rich in the things that really count. And Paul wants the Corinthians Church to complete the work they had started a year earlier, and bless the Jerusalem Church.
Paul also addresses the concern that some givers have, that of not having enough or the gift being large enough; Paul says it all balances out. There's a church in Texas where one family supported it for most of its life with their gifts. It wasn't until the late 80s that they realized that the money in the family account meant to support the church was depeleting fast, and for the first time in their history had to have a stewardship campaign to raise the needed money for the church. Life-long members had to learn how to give because they were never taught!
Teaching giving is a process that should start early in life. Parents have the challenge of changing the "MINE!" mindset of most infants to one of "Here, I can share." I've shared the story of a former bishop of ours, who shared how one Sunday he preached a sermon on tithing, that of giving ten percent of one's income to the Lord, and how that afternoon, he got a call from one the church's treasurer who said, "Pastor, I know you were probably about to take your Sunday nap, but I wanted you to know that someone in today's worship service left a check for $36,000." The bishop asked if the giver had left a phone number, and he had. He called the number and the young man who answered said, "I never in my life had heard about tithing, and it made me want to give 10% of a bonus I got in my job. I just moved here and this Friday I got this unexpected bonus of $360,000, so your sermon moved me to give to God what is God's! And don't worry I'm getting four more this year, and I'm going to start tithing on my regular check." What a story! What a blessing. The beauty was Paul or the bishop, did not have to explain the balance of things; this man knew in his heart that it was right to give unto God, what was God's and he felt blessed; and gave from his heart that which was truly not his, but God's. And this is what Paul wanted to teach to those in Corinth, Ephesus and all the other churches with which he had had dealings.
"Is this all? I get to keep the other part?" This is what I asked of my Mom when she taught me how to tithe with the very first job I had making $1.50 a day. Fifteen cents seemed like nothing and me keeping the other $1.35 for myself. Giving is an expression of grace, God's grace; and when we give with our hearts, we are immediately blessed and God is blessed and glorified. Giving is what gives us and our churches and ministries life.
PRAYER: Loving Father, we praise and thank You for all You have given for us and to us. You loved us enough to give Jesus and so we should love You enough to give You what is truly Yours. Receive my thankfulness and love; and help me make a difference in all that I do; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Give someone something unexpected today is my prayer today.
Receive my blessings of love and peace,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
If you would like to support Ms. Chapa's medical needs, she shared this link with me and I share it with you: https://gofund.me/123a3703
