The First Collection for the Saints

[00:00:00] Let's turn to acts, chapter number eleven. [00:00:04] We will not stay here very long. [00:00:07] But we will start in verse number 27 of acts, chapter eleven. Lord willing, this will be the concluding message of Acts eleven. As we go through the Book of Acts. [00:00:20] Acts, chapter eleven, verse 27. Tonight we are going to talk about money. It. We're going to talk about money. And I looked up at everybody. And all the eyes went up like kind of like. And Miss McClain's about to spit out her water. And she's really going to spit it out. Because I pointed it out. Now, no, we're going to talk about money. But at the end, it should not hurt too bad. I promise. This is not going to hurt too bad. But let's look at Acts, chapter eleven, verse number 27. The Bible says this in these days. And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them named Agabus. And signified by the spirit. That there should be a great dearth throughout all the world. Which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar. [00:01:08] Then the disciples, every man according to his ability. Determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judea. Which also they did. And sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul. Let's pray together. [00:01:24] Lord, thank you for this evening. Thank you for those that are able to make it out tonight. And some, Lord, are listening in that were not able to come. I thank you for them as well. [00:01:33] Lord, thank you for everyone that's here. Who has come with a heart ready to hear the word. And, Lord, I pray that you would just fill our cups, Lord. And give us those things that we need. That your spirit would teach us. And instruct us in your ways. And the principles and precepts of your word, Lord. That we would respond to them. Right. [00:01:54] And, Lord, if there be any among us that do not know the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that the grace of Christ. Would be just made perfectly evident before our eyes. Even as we look at this subject. And so, Lord, I just pray that you'd give me grace and help. To be able to help your people here tonight. Lord, you know I don't have any ability, except as you give grace and help. And, Lord, I pray that you'd also give the grace, your grace. To those that hear. [00:02:22] That our time tonight. Would be profitable and edifying. And strengthening and encouraging to us. [00:02:28] So, Lord, we look to you. Our hearts are set and focused upon you and your truth. So we expect, Lord, that you would help us. And teach us in Jesus name. We ask Amen. [00:02:41] Now, so in verse number 27, there is a mention of a prophet, some prophets, that came from Jerusalem to Antioch. And I won't go into the context of a lot of these things here about Antioch, but just know that it's in Syria. And this is the first, basically Gentile Church. And then in verse number 28, these prophets come and there stood up one of them named Agabus. Now, Agabus is. This is not the only time that Agabus is mentioned, because in chapter 21, verse number ten, Agabus appears again. [00:03:16] He's a prophet from Judea. And he is the one that, after Paul's third missionary journey, he is the one that Lord sends to Paul to warn him that if he goes to Jerusalem, which he has set and intent on doing, that he will be bound and he will be arrested and he will be jailed in Jerusalem. And of course, we know that that actually did come to pass. And verse 28, this Prophet Agabus, it says, he signified by the spirit that there should be a great dearth throughout all the world which came to pass in the days of CLaudius Caesar. Now, what you have here is you have a historical note in the book of Acts. Now, you find this throughout the various historical books in the Bible. Most notably, you see it in the Book of Luke and in the Book of Acts. For some reason, it seems that Luke was interested in the historical context of the things that he wrote. You think of Luke, chapters one and two, which talk about the birth of Christ, how many secular details are mentioned, how many different provinces and governors and the different time periods of Herod's reign and such are mentioned. That's by Luke, whO's also the writer of acts. But here the Lord gives us a little historical note just to remind know there's a great deal of spiritual truth that the Lord has given us in these things, because acts was an example to us of the early Church. But it occurred in a historical period of time and that's not an insignificant thing for us to remember. [00:05:01] The Emperor Claudius Caesar was a real Roman emperor. He reigned from 41 to 54 AD. And so he was a real historical person, just like all of these men and women were real historical people. And there was an actual famine that occurred in the area of Judea, a large scale famine during his reign. And it's actually mentioned and covered by Josephus. I actually have a copy. How many of you have read Josephus? Somebody raise your hand. Have you read the entirety of Josephus? Who can? What's that? You've read some of Josephus. Yes, well, I have a copy of the works of Josephus. And Josephus was a historian, a Jewish historian, but he actually mentions this famine. He actually mentions this famine. So it's important that we understand that I've said this before, but it's important for us to remember that the truths of Scripture are grounded and rooted in historical facts. These are not myths that have been passed down from person to person by some oral tradition. No. These are scriptures written contemporaneously at the time, in the historical context. And these kinds of verses remind us of that. So let's keep going here. So there's a famine, a great dearth throughout all the world, which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar. So when this is written, when Luke is writing this, he's writing it in the past, he's writing it retrospectively, and he's saying that what Agabus said was going to happen, which was spoken at that time. Luke is writing and saying that actually did happen. This famine lasted about three or four years, and it was an exceptionally bad famine. [00:06:46] And so Luke is reminding us that the prophet is only as good as his prophecy. [00:06:52] What was the marker of a prophet, of A true prophet versus a false prophet? There were two rules that God gave in the Old Testament, in Deuteronomy for a prophet. Does anybody remember what the two rules were? Anybody want to venture out? What's one exactly? The first rule was, if the prophet prophesied, didn't matter. If he had signs and miracles and any whatever, if it was contradictory to God's revealed will, that is the word of God, he was to be utterly rejected. What's the second one? I saw that handbag there. What is it exactly? If there was a prophecy given, it had to actually happen. And so Agabus is a true prophet. And both prophecies that we see in acts, he actually did come to pass, which confirmed that he was a true prophet. Now, it is of note that Agabus, though, he is not giving new Scripture or anything like that, he was just revealing something that God revealed to him. All right, so just keep that in mind. There's a little difference between prophets through whom God gave the Scripture, and prophets like Agabus. Okay, notice there is a famine. And we know historically that this happened in Judea. So here's what you have. These Christians in Jerusalem and in Judea are going to go through a difficult time, and Christians are not excluded from the same ups and downs and circumstances of life. [00:08:27] If we think of our own country, if our country's economy fails. There's a lot of indicators that our economy is kind of teetering with the debt and the interest rates and all those things. There's indicators of that. But, you know, if our country's economy just flatlines, we will all be affected by that. [00:08:47] If there's earthquakes, if there are famines, if there's whatever kind of disasters or whatnot, hurricanes and such like that, Christians endure those things just as well as anyone else, just the same as anyone else. But here's the difference is verse 29. [00:09:07] You see, these Christians in Antioch perhaps were not as greatly affected by what was happening in Judea, but these Christians care because of the love of God that has been put in their heart by the Holy Ghost. These Christians care about what's happening to these other, their brothers and sisters in Judea. So those brothers and sisters in Judea, though the ones in Acts, are not directly, maybe not as much affected by this Famine as those in Judea, but yet they find that they enter into that same suffering, to that same circumstance with their brothers and sisters in Christ. They have compassion. They have compassion on them. And it's not just compassion in word, it's compassion indeed. [00:09:58] And as a believer, there are times that some of us go through some things that others of us have never experienced. But what we understand is that we are in it together. We are in it together. And right now, the Lord might be preparing someone who's going through suffering so that they might be able to comfort someone later who is. And that's the principle of comfort. [00:10:26] And so Christians are in this thing together. Christians have to face the same difficulties. There's a famine here, and we're reminded of Romans chapter eight. What does Romans eight say? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? [00:10:41] Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine specifically mentioned? Or nakedness or peril or sword? You notice all of these things mentioned, and this is just one verse in Romans chapter eight. But notice, the Lord does not excuse us or exempt us from those kinds of things because we are his children. [00:11:03] It is still going to be that Christians are going to be persecuted, which comes of men, but we also know that they're going to go through difficult things because of the natural fallen world in which we live, illnesses and things from the outside as well, like famine. And the Lord says nothing, not famine or any other thing that would cause us to wonder about God's love toward us. None of that. He says it explicitly. None of that is a symbol or a token that God has his. His heart toward us is any different than it was when things are well. [00:11:41] That's why he says, nothing shall separate us from love of Christ. [00:11:45] And so we get down to verse number 29, which is what I want to talk about. Then the disciples, according. Then the disciples, every man, according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judea. [00:12:00] Now, what I call this is the first collection for the saints. So what they've decided to do, this Church in Antioch has decided to take up an offering and to send it to the churches rather in Judea, in order to give them relief. In other words, they were not willing to stand by and see God's people, their brothers, their sisters in Christ suffering, and not actually reach out to help them. Now, I want to make something clear that this collection was not a tip. This collection was not a tip where we just drop a five or something like that. You'll see it in a minute. [00:12:44] Sometimes people pat themselves on the back and they think they've done some grand thing because they literally give one 20th of a percent of their salary to some organization. And they say, well, I've done my good deed, but that's not what we see here. These people were giving substantially. These people were giving sacrificially. [00:13:09] But there's two principles I want you to see from here, from this. And then we're going to look at the second collection of the saints that is found in Romans 15 and first and Second Corinthians. But notice this. It says then the disciples, every man, according to his ability, determined to send relief. Now, here's what I want you to understand. [00:13:30] This was not a command. [00:13:32] They're sending money to help these poor saints who are going through this Famine, who are also being persecuted. We know, but this was done voluntarily. [00:13:43] These people determined, they made a decision to do it. [00:13:49] That throws a whole different light on money. And this is a principle we see again. But the second principle I want you to see is in verse 29 as well. It says, every man according to his ability. Here's what I want you to understand from this. Every person was not obligated or expected to give the same amount because the offering was made according to one's ability. You think of the Widow's might, right? Think of the Widow's might. And the Lord commended the Widow's might. We're talking just pennies, what we would call pennies of an offering. And the Lord commended her because of her ability, her ability. It was the comparison of how much she had versus how much she gave, rather than the absolute amount of how much she gave. In this case, not everyone was going to give the same because not everyone had the same ability. You know what? That's okay, because you know what? When we talk about money and we talk about giving, or even if we're not talking about money, this is not a comparison. This is not a race. It's not like we're comparing each other's financial statements to see who's spiritual. [00:14:59] None of that. It's about you. It's about me and God, period. [00:15:06] That's all it's about. It is about our heart to God. [00:15:11] That's what it's all about. That's what we're going to see. Look at Romans. [00:15:15] Well, before we do that, I'm sorry, look at verse 30, which also they did. So they took the money and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul. Now, I want to make a note here that as a church, we got to keep in mind, it's important for us to recognize and understand that this money, which was given by the saints, was properly cared for and that it arrived at its destination and was used for its intended purpose. So you know what they did? They chose trustworthy people to deliver it. In other words, steps were taken to ensure that this money was handled and used honestly, that there was no opportunity either for God or man to misunderstand what the money was being used for. [00:16:11] Now, what does that say about how our church should handle money? [00:16:17] What does that say about, you? Think about missions, projects. One thing about missions projects we got to keep in mind. You see people advertise. Did you know, you all probably don't know this, but on our church's Facebook page, at least on a weekly basis, we get people that are contacting the church, they're trying to find an inroad to give kind of their spiel for why, that they need support. Now, they don't come out and say, here, I need support. But some of them do. Some of them caught right? And say, hey, will you support the orphans that we're taking care of? And when you listen to the stories, the reality is the stories might all be true, but there's no way for us to know. There's no way for us to know. So the question is not, well, is what they're saying true? Is what they're saying false? That's not the question at all. Is, do we know that what they're saying is true or false? And is there some way that we can ensure that helping people like that is actually going to get to what it's used for, because we know that not everybody's honest, not everybody's upright. And so there are people who are looking to take advantage of that. And we just listen. In all of our policies, we have to make sure that whatever we decide to do, that it's done honestly, it's done above board, so that there can be no question or doubt as to what's being done with that money. Because really, money is not everything. Money is one aspect. But you know what? Often money is something that becomes a huge blot in a church ministry. It can be a very, very big problem. That's why at the outset, before we do anything with it, we say, this is what's going to happen. Everything's going to be honest, everything's going to be above board. There's going to be accountability so that there can be no question. Look at Romans 15, if you would. We're going to look at the second collection for the Saints. [00:18:22] So this is the first collection of the saints, and really, that's all that's mentioned. Paul and Barnabas do deliver that. But then I want to look at the same principles. They're expanded upon in Romans 15 and one Corinthians and second Corinthians. Look at verse number 25. The Bible says this. Romans 15, verse 25. Now, this occurs much later in Paul's ministry. This is during. He's writing this during his third missionary journey. Remember, there were only three, and then there was his journey to Rome. So this is at the latter end of Paul's life, really. He says in verse number 25, but now I go unto JeRusalem to minister unto the saints, for it hath Pleased them of Macedonia and AkayA to make a certain ContRiButIon for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem. So you can see this Overlaps with what we're talking about Tonight. [00:19:17] VeRsE 27, it Hath pleased them veRily, and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made Partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things. When therefore, I have performed this and have sealed up to them this Fruit, I will come by you into Spain. Now, notice in verse number 26, it hath pleased them. Here you see that same principle, Voluntary. [00:19:45] There was no shaming, there was no brow beating. [00:19:51] It was, however it came about, these saints were know there's some of God's people in Judea who are going through a difficult famine, or in this case, probably not a famine, but some difficult financial problem. You know what we need to do something. We don't need to just feel sorry. We need to actually act. [00:20:13] And so it came up in their heart to help. [00:20:17] It was voluntary. That's that principle you see here. Those not be the only time we see it. [00:20:24] You also see the PrinciPle in verse 27. [00:20:28] It says in the Middle of the veRse, for if the GentileS have Been Made Partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is Also to minister unto them in Carnal things. So here's this Principle. [00:20:42] It is repaying with temporal things, money for spiritual things received. This is a principle in the New Testament, repaying with temporal things for the spiritual things we have received. Now, when you look back at the Old Testament, what you see is the Lord ordained priests and Levites to take care of the temple, right? [00:21:10] The priest did the offerings and things, and the Levites took care of basically the temple grounds. Right? But did you know, did you remember that the priests and the Levites were supported by the tithes of the children of Israel? In other words, the priests and the Levites were performing what we might call a spiritual Function, service to the people of Israel. And because they were Engaged in that, the Lord provided a way so that their temporal needs would be met. And so this Principle, and Listen, this is not only a thing that's found in the Scripture, this is also found in other Religions as well. I noticed that when we were in Cambodia, this principle is also found, Although it comes in a different form, I think. But the principle is there's a spiritual ministry, and the temporal things are taken care of as a repayment for the spiritual. Look at one Corinthians, Chapter 16. [00:22:12] I'm not going to spend a lot of time here. [00:22:15] I want to get to Second Corinthians. But first Corinthians, Chapter 16, verse one. [00:22:25] The Bible says this. [00:22:28] Now, remember, First Corinthians is the first letter of Paul to the Corinthians. Second Corinthians is the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians. So the first one occurs first, the Second one occurs second, about a year apart. All right, we're going to read Second Corinthians. Just a minute. But remember, Second Corinthians occurs about a year later. So again, historical context, verse one. So in Romans 15, we're reading in Romans, Paul, speaking of the same matter, taking an offering from Macedonia, and Acaiah Akaia is where Corinth was. [00:23:06] Back to the people of Israel, the people of Judah. Okay, verse one. Now, concerning the collection for the saints, as I had given order to the Churches of Galatia. Even so do ye, upon the first day of the week, let every one of you lay by him in store as God hath prospered him. Notice they meet on Sunday. That's what this says. The first day of the week is Sunday. [00:23:31] It says, lay by him in store as God hath prospered him. Here's that principle. [00:23:39] It's not all going to be the same amount, because each one of us has a different ability. That's why it's not a competition petition. It's not about that. [00:23:47] There might be somebody in our church who makes $200,000 a year, and there Might be somebody in our church that makes $40,000 a year. There might be somebody in our church who doesn't have a job at all because they're in school or whatever the case might be. And so the amounts are going to be different. That's not the point. [00:24:03] That's one thing in Cambodia, one thing I've brought this up before, but one beef that a lot of Cambodians had was this idea that they used money to perform merit, you see? And the more money they had, the more ceremonies you could pay for, the more merit you could obtain, right? That's the idea. And so they would say, well, I don't have very much money, so I don't guess I have a lot of merit. So me and born. And they would say, well, but see here in the Scripture, it's not tied to how much money you have. [00:24:41] The Lord doesn't reckon it like that. Whatsoever. Whatsoever. The Lord is looking at our heart. You know what? Whatever is in our heart is what comes out in our life, right? [00:24:55] So one Corinthians 16 says, they laid by him in store as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings. When I come. Verse three. And when I come, Paul says, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality unto Jerusalem. So Paul's gathering, he's going around and he's saying, now, you get your money together to help these poor saints in Jerusalem. You get them together, and the church is like, all right, we want to do it. We have determined to do it. We want to help them. And so he said, you get it together and then you pick somebody from your church to go and take this money. So what you have is you have Paul and Barnabas, and then you have not Paul. And at this point, Barnabas is not with Paul, but you have Paul and his group, and then you have representatives from these churches going, you know, what's going on here? Accountability. And they're delivering that money so that there's no question the amount, where it's going, who is it being given to? [00:25:59] You. There should never be any cause to doubt that money that passes through this church is being used for anything except its intended purpose. [00:26:10] And you know what? We have to submit ourselves to accountability to that end, every one of us, myself included. [00:26:19] I don't know if anybody knows, but on our work day, we went into the garage and we cleaned it out. We actually can park the van in the garage now and we don't have to climb out the passenger side. But there were a whole lot of chair, old chairs that the church has apparently owned since the 70s. Literally old brown chairs. And we were able to put those on Facebook Marketplace and sell them for $260.34 chairs for $260. Now, here's the thing. I'm just being transparent with you. Nobody was here when I took that money. Nobody was here. [00:26:54] They gave me the man and his wife that gave me the money, $260 from the chairs. I put it in an envelope and I put it in that offering, in that offering box back there. Brother Vernon saw it. [00:27:07] Brother Dennis saw it. Did you guys count it? I assume you counted it. [00:27:12] Yeah. [00:27:13] And you know what? So it's going through multiple people. And you know what? If there's any question, I have the Facebook messages where we agree on the price and everything. Like, know, here's the thing. [00:27:23] God knows. But that's not the point. That's only one part of it. God knows already. There's not an issue with the Lord. [00:27:32] But it's also important that we all know. [00:27:35] You see what I'm saying? So it produces trust among us. And we say that, listen, accountability has nothing to do with an idea that we doubt people. We don't doubt people. It has to do with making sure there's no opportunity for Satan to get in and cause problems. [00:27:56] So we just keep it open, keep it transparent. You know what? That's right. That's biblical. And so you see this principle here, verse four. And if it be meat that I go also, they shall go with me. All right, look at two Corinthians, chapter eight. [00:28:15] So a year has passed. They still have not gotten the collection for the saints in Jerusalem. And so Paul's saying, all right, it's time. He's going to be passing through. [00:28:27] And he spends two chapters. Don't worry, we're not going to spend, not going to study all two chapters in the remaining ten minutes. We got, I promise but in these two chapters, he talks about the same subjects of collection for the saints. [00:28:42] And so I want to give you. I have ten principles I want to give you and show you the verses real quick about this, about giving. Now, remember, in this context, the giving being spoken of is giving a collection to being taken for poor saints in Jerusalem. There are other types of giving in the Bible as well. There's giving, missionary giving in Philippians, chapter four, which is also a biblical type of giving, as an example. [00:29:07] All right, look at chapter two. Corinthians, chapter eight, verse two, or verse one. Moreover, brethren, we do you, to wit, of the grace of God. That's what we talked about this morning. Bestowed on the churches of Macedonia. How then, in a great trial of affliction, the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power I bear record, yea, and beyond their power, they were willing of themselves. Here you have. The Churches of Macedonia are poor, right? This is like Thessalonica, this group. They're being persecuted. They're poor, but yet they're still liberal. [00:29:52] They're poor, but they're still liberal. Again, that reminds us that liberality has nothing to do with the amount that you give. In absolute terms. [00:30:03] Here's the principle. This is, Number one. Having an abundance is not necessarily required to exercise generosity. You don't have to have a lot. [00:30:16] You could have just farthings. Does anybody know what a farthing is? Is anybody from Britain? Here, you could just have a little bit of money. And you can still exercise generosity and be liberal in your giving. Number two, verse five. [00:30:34] And this they did this church and churches in Macedonia. And this they did not, as we hope, but first gave their own selves to the Lord and unto us by the will of God. So here they're giving their money. But before they ever gave one red cent, they gave themselves to God. [00:30:51] See that? Here's what I want us to see from this. We must give ourselves to the Lord before we give our money. [00:30:59] Our money is not a substitute for ourselves. [00:31:07] You see, here's the thing. If the Lord. If we offer ourselves, like Romans, chapter one or chapter twelve, verse one and two, if we offer ourselves to God as a living sacrifice, that includes what's in our back pocket. [00:31:20] And that doesn't mean that we take a vow of poverty necessarily or anything like that. [00:31:26] But if God has us, he has everything we have. We can't say, here, God, take my $20. And that's my substitute. You can't do that it's not the way it works. He is the Lord. We aren't. [00:31:39] So we must give ourselves to the Lord before our money. Number three, verse eight. [00:31:47] I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others and to prove the sincerity of your love. See, they were giving to these poor saints as a token of the love that they had for them. In other words, their love was not just words. Their love was action. They put their money where their mouth was. [00:32:13] So many people in our society today, it's all about the way it sounds, the way it looks. There's no substance behind so much of it. It's just smoke. And that's the TikTok generation. It's all about the way it's Instagram reels. It's all about the way things appear. [00:32:34] But that's not what they're talking about here. They were proving the sincerity of their love. [00:32:40] So here's the principle. [00:32:42] Giving is a token. Giving money now is a token of the sincerity of our love. And I say are because I'm in this just as much as you are. We're not even. Listen, in this context. We're not even talking about giving to the church. This is not even what we're talking about. This is talking about giving to the poor saints, not unlike what we did a couple of weeks ago when we got some stuff together and did a pounding for that family. All right, number four, verse nine, for ye know, I'll just stop here. I want to make sure I don't miss this. [00:33:18] Verse nine, for ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes, he became poor, that ye, through his poverty, might be rich. Now, stop a second. [00:33:37] This is the example of Christ. [00:33:40] Now, Christ's primary example was not an example, merely of someone who was generous, who gave. [00:33:51] When the Bible says he became poor though he was rich, it's talking about his incarnation. He departed from his throne in heaven. He came down into this world to become poor. Not because he wanted to equalize all of our financial states. No, he did that because sinners needed saving. [00:34:18] When he died on that cross, many believe naked, he had nothing. [00:34:27] He died alone as a sinner. He didn't even have. Listen. In the sight of God, he didn't even have his righteousness, for he had become sin for us. Right? [00:34:40] This is what it means. When Christ came and made himself poor has nothing to do with our money. It says, look, he became poor that ye, through his poverty, might be rich. This is not speaking. Listen. You can read this context all day long. This is not talking about how much money we have in our bank account. This is spiritual riches. [00:35:02] And you know what the Bible says, for those that have received Christ, they will rule. We will rule and reign with him, and we will inherit all things with him. There is no way to be more rich than that. [00:35:17] But you see the Gospel. So the example of our Lord Jesus Christ is the basis for our giving sacrificially to the saints. See, when the light of the Gospel of Christ shines down upon our lives, it alters the way we view all of these situations. [00:35:36] We see someone who is in needs, one of our brothers and sisters who's in need. [00:35:43] How can we, with that example in our mind, how can we look at that? And, you know, if I give anything that might hurt a little, I might not be able to go to Starbucks as many times this month. [00:35:59] You see the example of the Lord Jesus Christ and what he did for us, what he gave. He gave it all that we might be rich. [00:36:12] How can we look upon these things in the same way? [00:36:16] And he himself is the example. [00:36:20] All right, number five. We're hurrying to the end. Verse 14. [00:36:24] But by inequality, that now, at this time, your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want, that there may be an equality. [00:36:34] So these saints in Macedonia, and they. They perhaps had an abundance, perhaps, perhaps not. We saw that the ones in Macedonia did not actually have an Abundance. But there are times when some of us have an abundance and others are lacking. You know what the Lord said? He says, I have blessed you so that you can voluntarily help these people, that there might be inequality, because, you know, one day it's going to be flipped, probably in the abundance that we have, the abundance that they have, rather, we will be in need of. And so the Lord spreads his grace around, but he uses his people to do it and gives to those that need. The Lord blesses some in abundance, that they might bless others who currently, at this moment, lack. [00:37:19] All right, that's the principle the Lord wants. You could just say, spread his grace around. Number six, verse 21 says this, providing for honest things not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men. That's what I was talking about earlier. Honesty must be evident both before God and man. And he mentions Titus here in verse 23. Titus was the one chosen. That's why they sent Titus, because they trusted and knew Titus, and they knew he would be honest, and so they sent him with him. [00:37:50] Number seven, verse chapter nine, verse six. But this I say, he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly. And he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. [00:38:04] If you have a garden and you're planting tomatoes and you plant five tomato plants, you're going to get the yield of five tomato plants. If you plant 500 tomato plants, you're going to get the yield of 500 tomato plants. Right? Here's the point. [00:38:24] In the context of giving, there is a return of our investment. [00:38:31] There is a return. [00:38:32] One day we're all going to stand before the Lord as believers, and he's going to examine our works, and he does not forget what we have done. [00:38:41] You see, we're sowing these things in God's sight, not for men to see, for God to see. [00:38:54] Verse number eight. Verse seven. [00:38:56] Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give not grudgingly or of necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver. [00:39:08] God expects us to give with joy, not reluctantly. [00:39:15] Now, I'm going to go so far as to say this. [00:39:20] I believe it would be better for you and for me to not give than to do it begrudgingly. [00:39:31] Because remember, God is looking at our heart. [00:39:36] Besides, we give begrudgingly whatever investment we make, whatever reward the Lord might give us from that. Listen, it's all gone. If our motive is wrong, it's gone up in smoke. What we talked about this morning. [00:39:52] God expects us to give with joy, not reluctantly. Number nine. We're almost finished. Verse eight. [00:39:58] And God is able to make all a grace abound towards you, that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work. [00:40:08] Here's the principle. God will supply our needs even when we expend our substance for his glory. [00:40:17] God has taken upon himself to supply our needs. So you know what that means? That means that our giving, as a token of our love before God, in God's sight with joy, is an act of faith that we give, trusting that God is going to supply. And when we give in that way, if we trust God, that he's going to supply our needs, which is what it says, then that removes the boundaries of how much we might give. [00:40:48] Because we know that God is the one looking, and God is the one who's going to supply our needs. Lastly, number ten. Verse twelve. [00:40:57] So they're giving. And it says, for the administration of this service not only supplyeth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many Thanksgivings. Unto God. To put it simply, here's what it means. [00:41:10] These saints in Jerusalem who are poor are going to get this money. The elders are going to get it and they're going to distribute it as according to people have the needs people have. You know what's going to happen? They're going to hear that these people in Antioch, in our first example, these people in Macedonia and Acai, these Christians far, far away, never met, never will meet. [00:41:30] They're going to hear, these Christians gave this money, you know what they're going to do? They're going to get on their knees and they're going to say, God, thank you for supplying my needs, and God, thank you for what you've done in the hearts of those people as well. [00:41:50] So this ministry, you say, well, it's just money. No, it's not just money. [00:41:55] This ministry brings others closer to God this Thanksgiving, and it brings them closer to their brothers and their sisters in Christ as well. [00:42:10] You see, again, it's not about money. It just happens that this is the subject before us. [00:42:18] The final thing is in verse 15, which is not one of the principles, but I have to say it to close. [00:42:24] At the very end of all of it, he reminds us, thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift. [00:42:35] All that we have, all that we give, money or otherwise, has to be done in the context of what Christ has done for us, what God has given to us, the gift that God has given to us, unspeakable, that is, it can't be described with words and it sets every other gift in comparison, is just like minute, insignificant. [00:42:59] Listen. God himself, our Lord himself, be it the Father who sent the Son, or be it the Lord Jesus Christ himself who gave himself. He is the real giver. [00:43:12] He is the real giver. Let's pray together.