1Now, brethren, we wish to make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia, 2that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality. 3For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord, 4begging us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints …
Stewardship is the theme of 2 Corinthians 8–9, and this extended section provides the most thorough treatment in all of Scripture on the subject of giving financially and materially to the Lord and His people. Paul’s reasoning is relatively easy to follow and commends itself to us for its logical flow and sensibility. The real task of this passage is in the application of the principle laid out—we should give to the Lord.
Motivation being the root issue, Paul begins with throwing down the Macedonian gauntlet, namely to provoke or stimulate his readers to “love and good deeds” (Heb. 10:25). First and profoundly foremost, whatever the Macedonians were doing was a result of God’s grace in them and through them in their giving. Their stewardship was a result of grace, not a means to grace. They were gifted by God to give. In fact, it is true that anything we do for Christ is in truth a grace from Him. At its very root, our faith is a grace from God that works for our salvation and for our sanctification. It is all of Him.
The evidence of this grace in the Macedonians’ lives, and in all those who are growing in grace (see 2 Peter 3:18), is seen in generosity. The Christians there were not even close to being rich or having any disposable income. Their giving came out of two things. First, it came out of an abundance of joy. They understood that joy does not come by having wealth, but joy is a motivator to generosity. By faith they embraced their wealth of all spiritual blessings (see Eph. 1:3, 2 Peter 1:3). Second, the lack of wealth (i.e. poverty) overflowed in generosity. How ironic, since we normally think of generosity as an overflow of having much. This can only happen when people are fully given over to God in faith, believing in His promises.
Paul can’t say enough about the generosity of giving, and so he continues to extol the Macedonians. They gave beyond their ability; in other words, they gave until it hurt and then gave some more. Their generosity impacted their humble and meager lifestyle. It came not from any apostolic pressure, but from willing hearts that saw the opportunity to give as a “favor” to them. In fact, they begged Paul for the “favor of participation” in the benevolence project. They enthusiastically wanted to be a channel of God’s grace to others.
Lord, I am motivated by the Macedonian example to be generous to others.
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