2 Corinthians 8:7-8 Therefore, as you abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us… Consider the duty of consecrating a portion of our substance to purposes of benevolence. I. The REASON of the duty. 1. It is the natural issue of the spirit of benevolence. God is love, and he that is begotten of Him in His own image must have a loving heart. Love delights to give — it is its nature to give; it needs no specific commandment — it is a commandment unto itself. 2. To the same result are we led, I remark further, by a regard for God's glory. 3. This brings us to mention, as another incentive to Christian liberality, the love of God's truth. 4. I add here another motive — it is that of gratitude. 5. It is a further plea for the duty before us that it benefits those who perform it. A bountiful spirit leads to temporal advantage. It favours industry, for he who delights in giving liberally will the more readily toil that he may have something to give. For a like reason it is conducive to economy. Selfishness more or less deranges our powers, and, among other harms, it puts the judgment in peril. Benevolence restores the balance of the mind. Many a man has become a bankrupt who, if the sweet spirit of charity had ruled him, raising him above grovelling aims, presenting things in their true relative importance, and allaying the fever of financial ambition, would have gone in comfortable solvency to his grave. Habits of beneficence secure, besides, the goodwill of men. But of far greater consequence is the influence of Christian liberality on our spiritual well-being. It is a precious means of grace. II. From the reason of the duty before us we pass now to the MANNER of performing it. 1. We should give intelligently. 2. We should give cheerfully. 3. Of great importance is it that we give frequently. 4. We should give systematically. III. We advert, in the last place, to the MEASURE of our benevolence. The language of our text is, "see that ye abound in this grace." What a man can do, and what abounding is, must depend on three conditions, jointly considered — his capital, his income, and his necessary expenses. (A. D. Smith, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also. |
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