1329. They Gave As an Example

They Gave As an Example

"Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; how * * abounded unto the riches of their liberality" (2Co_8:1-2).

It was a great joy to the Apostle Paul to bear witness to the gifts of the Macedonian saints. Their giving stirred other saints to give. Paul wrote to Corinth and after recounting the gifts of these saints, he said, "Therefore * * see that ye abound in this grace also." There is the gift, however, of another which the Holy Spirit, by the Apostle Paul, brings out in this same chapter, which far surpasses the gifts of the Macedonian saints. This gift is spoken of in 2Co_8:9 : "For ye know the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich." Thus after all, we need not follow the example of any church. Our chief example is our Lord. When we consider what He gave for us, how He left the glory above and took upon Himself the form of a servant with no place to lay His head, and became obedient unto death even the death on the Cross; surely all of us must bow our heads in shame. What have we done for Him comparable to what He has done for us? Christian giving will never reach its peak until the grace of giving, exampled in Christ has gripped the hearts of saints. It is only when we grasp God's unspeakable Gift and Christ's unspeakable grace that we will give either ourselves or our means as we ought to give.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR