Paul is in the midst of a discussion on the opportunity to give generously. After winning the favor of the Corinthians in the first 7 chapters of this letter, he then uses his authority to encourage them to generous giving for the saints in Jerusalem in chapters 8-9. Specifically he has revealed giving as a grace of God out of genuine love in chapter 8, and here in chapter 9, Paul will discuss stewardship specifics for the Corinthians in v1-5, expectations for a return on their investment in v6-9, and the results of giving generously in v10-15. Let’s take a look.
1) V1-5 – 1There is no need for me to write to you about this service to the saints. 2For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting about it to the Macedonians, telling them that since last year you in Achaia were ready to give; and your enthusiasm has stirred most of them to action. 3But I am sending the brothers in order that our boasting about you in this matter should not prove hollow, but that you may be ready, as I said you would be. 4For if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we – not to say anything about you – would be ashamed of having been so confident. 5So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. Then it will be ready as a generous gift, not as one grudgingly given.
Though Paul doesn’t need to remind them to be ready with their gift, which they should have been storing up for nearly a year, his mere writing about that lack of need serves purposefully as a reminder! He wants to boast in their generosity, which has stirred Macedonia to give even beyond their means, but he doesn’t want to have to go around asking money the next time he comes to Corinth, for that would be humiliating and shameful. Robert Rayburn says, “From one point of view there is no need for him to write, for he knows how willing they were to undertake the collection for the poor in Jerusalem; indeed, he had boasted about that willingness to the Christians in the Macedonian churches of Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea. Remember, Paul knew these people well. He had lived among them for almost two years. But from another viewpoint, how embarrassing if the Macedonian brothers, who had been so encouraged by the Corinthian example a year before, should arrive in Corinth and find that Paul’s boasting in their eager generosity was premature. Remember, in the address of the letter Paul said that he was writing to the Christians in Corinth together with all the believers in the province of Achaia.”
2) V6-11 – 6Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 9As it is written: “He has scattered abroad His gifts to the poor; His righteousness endures forever” [Psalm 112:9]. 10Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.
Paul issues a farming analogy about sowing and reaping. Do you realize that to sow is actually to lose what you have? Yet the farmer does it willfully, knowing that he will get back far more than he “loses.” It is the expectation of God for His people to be generous (Luke 6:37-38), and above that, to be cheerful givers. The difference between “sparingly” and “generous” has everything to do with one’s means and attitude and nothing to do with the actual amount given. This is hard to grasp, but seen clearly through Scripture. The word for “cheerful” is the root for the English word, “hilarious.” We ought to enjoy giving with a smile.
Rayburn notes an old Latin adage, “Quicquid cor non facit, not fit. Literally, it reads, ‘whatever the heart does not do, is not done.’” It is important to remember, in this spirit, that it’s not the New Testament norm to receive the harvest in physical, material terms this side of heaven (8:9, 11:27; Luke 6:20-25; James 2:5). Nevertheless, giving should be done cheerfully, for God gives His blessing to us through our giving. Whatever is given is never lost. Proverbs 19:7 says, “He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and He will reward him for what he has done” Proverbs 22:9 says, “A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor.” See also Galatians 6:9 and Psalm 112:9.
The repetition of “abound” in v8 reminds us again of God’s grace at work in us both to provide the means and the willingness to use those means for His glory. God blesses a generous person, making them abound in every good work. In other words, they are able to sow more and more. Commenting on v9, Rayburn says, “We are reminded by this citation that generosity toward the poor was a major emphasis of the Law of Moses. The righteous man in the Bible, from beginning to end, is a man who is generous to the needy. The need of other people deciphers the hypocrite.”
Finally, in v10-11, Paul has shifted from calling on sowers to do their work and reminding them of the way God blesses that generous work, to praising God for working through the sowers. For God is the supplier of seed, making rich His givers in order that they may be increasingly generous. And ultimately, God is glorified by generosity, which is His gift to us, because it leads to thanksgiving to Him! Submission and obedience to the gospel magnifies God’s grace.
3) V12-15 –12This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 13Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 14And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!
In v12-15, we should notice the connection of worldwide believers, especially when it comes to “the grace of giving.” Sam Storms asks, “What is God’s ‘indescribable gift’ for which Paul offers thanks?” He then answers, “Is it ‘the surpassing grace of God’ in the Corinthians, mentioned in v14 (cf. 8:1)? Or is it God’s gracious gift of Jesus (8:9) who, though rich, impoverished Himself to make us rich? The answer is both! As Tasker said, Jesus Christ is ‘the divine gift which inspires all gifts.’” Prayer is also a part of “His indescribable gift” (Jesus), as those who receive gifts often in turn pray for those who give gifts.
Rayburn concludes, “The Lord is not interested in your money. He is not interested in your time or talents for themselves. He is interested in your having a heart like His and in your living for others as He lived and died for you. He wants you freely to give to others as He has freely given to you. And, to help you become such a person and to live such a life, He assures you that the generosity you show to others in His name will not go unnoticed or unrewarded. Not that you do it only for the reward. You do it cheerfully out of love and gratitude. But as a loving father, He will delight to reward His children when they do what is right for His sake. And what will be the rewards? Well, you will be made rich in every way and others will praise God for you… With simple eloquence Paul brings any debate on Christian giving to an end: Given what the Lord has done for us, we cannot be otherwise than generous to others. Whatever would please the Lord must please us! John puts it more famously but makes the same point when he writes, ‘Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another’ (1 John 4:11). So Paul concludes his discussion of the collection and of the Corinthians’ stewardship where he started, with ‘the grace of giving.’”