1323. They Gave Themselves

They Gave Themselves

"And this they did, not as we had hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God" (2Co_8:5).

There are two things clearly set forth in this passage. Let us notice them separately.

1. They gave themselves "TO THE Lord." True Christian giving must be preceded by the gift of our personalities. Those who have not given themselves to the Lord will certainly give but scantily of their means. Oftentimes we have been asked how a church should conduct its system of giving. Our own church has been most liberal in its offerings, and people imagine that there must be a system, or scheme, which is followed to secure such satisfactory results. We wish to bear witness that our chief aim as a minister has always been not to reach people's pocketbooks, but their hearts. We know that when the saints have placed themselves upon the altar, that all they have–either with or without some special system of church finance–will be given to the Lord.

Another important feature in this consecration, of ourselves, lies in the fact that we must give ourselves to God, and not to some field of service, to some ideal, to some pastor, or evangelist. Jesus Christ must be the One to Whom we yield our all. It is unseemly to ask God to tell us where He wants us to go and what He wants us to do, and then to yield ourselves to a "plan" outlined to us. We should be willing to give ourselves to God no matter what He wants us to do, or where He wants us to go. "Ours is not to reason why; ours is but to do or die." When we give ourselves to God, then He will very clearly make known unto us the plan.

2. They gave themselves "UNTO US." After we have yielded ourselves to the Lord, we then are in position to throw ourselves into fellowship with others who are likewise yielded. Paul speaks most tenderly of those who labored with him in the Gospel, and of those who took care of him in a financial way, supplying his needs. True saints should never desire others to follow them, save as they follow the Lord. They should not say, "Give yourselves to us and to the Lord," but "Give yourselves to the Lord and to us." If real consecration to Jesus Christ will break our fellowship with saints, then that fellowship should be broken. We should give to others, of our means, and of our service, and of our co-operative fellowship only as we are, therein, giving to the Lord.

The 16th chapter of Romans gives a striking record of faithful saints in their relationship to the ministry of the Apostle Paul. There was Phoebe, who had been Paul's succorer; there were Priscilla and Aquila, who had been his helpers in Christ Jesus; there was Mary, who had bestowed much labor on him; there were Andronicus and Junia, his kinsmen, who had been his fellow-prisoners; there were Amplias and Urbane, who had been fellow-workers in Christ; there was the beloved Persis, and Tryphosa, and many others, who had labored in the Lord in conjunction with the Apostle Paul, but all of these had given themselves to the Apostle Paul secondarily. First they gave themselves to the Lord.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR