Daily Devotion 11/19/18
2 Corinthians 8:8-9 I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.
I’ve learned that if you want to see people squirm in church, talk about money. Generally speaking, we don’t like to talk about money at church. It makes us feel uncomfortable. That’s because the Christian church hasn’t always had the best track record with talking about it. We have laid guilt on people and have created rules where rules shouldn’t exist. So this week, we are going to open up Scripture and see what the Bible has to say about giving.
Today, we see what motivates us to give. In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul tells us the “why” behind the “what”. Why give? Because through Jesus, you and I are rich. Jesus generously gave up everything so that you and I might have everything. Jesus had all the riches anyone could ever imagine. He had no problems. He had no suffering. He had no needs ever. He sat on his throne ruling all things. Yet, he gave that all up. He became poor for you and me. The God of this world left his throne and came to this earth where he had no home. He relied on the generosity of others to fill his needs. And then, while living here in poverty, he died for us. He generously gave everything up and died so that you and I might have the riches of heaven: the forgiveness of sins, the love of God, the assurance that heaven is ours. See, through Jesus, we are rich! We have wealth that won’t spoil or perish, but it will last forever. This is what our God has done for us, and it is his generosity that motivates us to be generous as well.
Dear Jesus, thank you for being so generous that you gave up everything for me. Thank you for making me spiritually rich with the forgiveness of sins and life eternal. Help me to be generous in every way today. Just like you have been for me. Amen.