1328. They Gave Joyfully

They Gave Joyfully

"The abundance of their joy * * abounded unto the riches of their liberality" (2Co_8:2).

We seem to be climbing a ladder:

Round 1. They gave themselves to the Lord.

Round 2. They gave willingly.

Round 3. They gave proportionately.

Round 4. They gave sacrificingly.

Round 5. They gave ungrudgingly.

Round 6. They gave joyfully.

One would scarcely have contemplated such a passage as this. One would have thought that those who had climbed the ladder of sacrificial giving would perhaps have been somewhat gloomy and chagrined over the necessity of their sacrifices. But these Macedonian saints were filled with joy. Some one has well said that Christians should give and give till it hurts; then they should give some more till it stops hurting; then give still more, till the joybells begin to ring. But why were these Christians so filled with joy?

1. They saw through their gifts certain needs supplied. They knew that their abundance was a supply for the want which their brethren experienced. They knew that their gifts made possible the sustenance of saints. Surely there never has been a day when greater opportunities presented themselves before saints, so far as their giving is concerned. Think of the marvelous march of missions.

Recently we published a little booklet on "The Faith Missions." This booklet sets forth a score of Missionary Societies who stand behind hundreds of men and women who are preaching the full Gospel in every part of the great world field. The need of these missionaries is great. Thousands, yea, thousands upon thousands, and millions of dollars could be spent without the least of waste, upon this world-wide mission field.

Then there is the need at home. There never has been an hour when literature presenting the full Gospel message was more needed than now. There are Bible conferences to be supported. There are Bible schools and seminaries, which are preaching the full Gospel message, which need our help. Besides all this, it is high time that God's children establish schools which stand four-square for the faith. There are few places today where Christian young men and women can go without being blighted by rationalistic theology. The need has never been greater than it is today.

2. They were happy over the good accomplished. For the administration of this service not only supplied the want of the saints, but it occasioned, also, many thanksgivings unto God. Sometimes we have wished that we were in the realm of the business world and making large sums of money, in order that we might see our money work for God. The minister can give himself, he can toil and labor, preach and pray, by day and by night; he can, if he will, wear himself out in the service of God; but he is always conscious of the fact that he is but one, that he can only be in one place at a time, so far as his verbal testimony is concerned. He feels straitened. But what of the man who went recently to one of our mission boards and said, "I have $80,000.00 which I wish to give to the Lord's work." That man is not a preacher; he is a farmer, and yet, he is preaching the Gospel, by his money, in Africa, and India, and China, and other lands. What about a certain business man, who by honest effort accrued a fortune through his oil wells? Recently he gave $1,750,000.00 to one of our mission boards as a trust fund, and he stipulated that the income from this vast sum should be used to support only such missionaries as believed in the Deity of Christ, in the atonement, in the inspiration of the Scriptures, and in the Lord's Return. Do you wonder that men and women who give of their money rejoice? This man who gave his millions will have hundreds and thousands of men preaching the Gospel for him. He will be holding the ropes, as many go forth preaching the Word. The Macedonian saints caught the vision of their money at work for God.

3. There was a far deeper reason for their joy. They knew that the fruits of this ministration would glorify God. They loved the Lord and they wanted to bring honor to His name. No marvel then that they gave themselves and then gave their money beyond that they were able–gave it ungrudgingly, gave it beseeching that the brethren would take upon them their gifts.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR