I have become a fan of the Message bible. I love how it reads. I was listening to an online sermon and the series was ... He started reading from 2 corinthians 8. I loved what he read. As always, I look it up for myself and read it in KJV, NIV and the Message. As I am reading through, the words...Pleading for the Privilege pop off the page. When is the last time we pleaded for the privilege to help?? Here is the set of verses from the message bible.
2 Corinthians 1-4Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts. I was there and saw it for myself. They gave offerings of whatever they could—far more than they could afford!—pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians.
When is the last time we gave more than we could afford for the cause of Christ and seeing others come to know him? Pressure triggered and unexpected outpouring of generous gifts. I think we all know pressure and this set of verses talks alot about their character. When is the last time your trial exposed your true colors and those colors being pure and generous?? Have any of us ever pleaded for the privilege of helping the poor?
Much later it talks about how this church repsonded the way they did and how we as a the body of Christ could find ourselves responding in the same manner.
5-7This was totally spontaneous, entirely their own idea, and caught us completely off guard. What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God and to us. The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives. That's what prompted us to ask Titus to bring the relief offering to your attention, so that what was so well begun could be finished up. You do so well in so many things—you trust God, you're articulate, you're insightful, you're passionate, you love us—now, do your best in this, too.
I pray first that we would give ourselves UNRESERVEDLY to God and our leaders. Because then I believe our giving will flow out of the purposes of God working in our lives.
With the economy the way it is. There are those of us that the pressure has caused us to once again focus on the true meaning of Christmas. Christ birth. Others of us, sad to say are still spending more than we have. Buying gifts we can't afford and will be deeper in debt come Janurary. In the next set of verses he uses the word Stimulus and I thought about some others that are counting on a new stimulus package.
8-9I'm not trying to order you around against your will. But by bringing in the Macedonians' enthusiasm as a stimulus to your love, I am hoping to bring the best out of you. You are familiar with the generosity of our Master, Jesus Christ. Rich as he was, he gave it all away for us—in one stroke he became poor and we became rich.
In one stroke he became poor and we became rich. WOW We are rich whether we believe it or not. We have all things in Christ. Every good and perfect gift comes from God. Have you accepted his good and perfect gift???
I will end with this thought. Scripture says that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks...I like how this verse ends. Looks like what's in the heart motivates all we do.
10-20So here's what I think: The best thing you can do right now is to finish what you started last year and not let those good intentions grow stale. Your heart's been in the right place all along. You've got what it takes to finish it up, so go to it. Once the commitment is clear, you do what you can, not what you can't. The heart regulates the hands.
Do what you can, not what you can't!
Much love and prayers
Merry Christmas!
Stacy
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