Our generosity reflects God’s nature
Paul writes to urge Christians in the Corinthian church to follow through on their commitment to giving to the work of ministry. In writing this letter through Paul the Holy Spirit highlights to us how generosity in our lives through our giving expands God’s kingdom in us and in the world around us.
Our God is a generous God! Everything comes from Him (Colossians 1) and in Him we have everything we need. His generosity was ultimately expressed in the greatest gift of sending His son, Jesus Christ, as our Saviour – later in the chapter we are reading today Paul reflects on this and exclaims “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!”. Generosity starts in the nature of God and is expressed by Him towards us who believe. We, therefore, are called to be a generous people and so reflect the nature of God!
In this passage we are reminded that God loves a cheerful giver! A giver who delights in the giving! This is likely to be someone who has a revelation of the Giver Himself and who delights themselves in Him! We give because it pleases the Lord and to please Him is our joy.
Paul encourages us to sow generously, bountifully – a readiness to give more! A farmer sowing seed in the ground does so at cost but with an expectation that the seed will produce a bountiful harvest. Seed that is not sown cannot produce anything. How much more is this true in the Kingdom of God! Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Luke 6:38). In God’s economy, as we sow in generosity, we can be assured that we will reap a harvest. However, this is more than just for our own prosperity and is more than just our money. As we lay our lives down for Him, give of our time, talents, money and resources He assures us that there will be a harvest of righteousness, a harvest that goes much further than just us. This ‘seed’ causes God’s grace to abound -assuring us that our generosity will cause a harvest to meet our needs and produce an abundance for every good work.
The Message translation puts it this way,
“This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you. He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God”.
I pray this blessing over you today, that you will know the Generous Giver in a new way, causing your life to be one of abundant, bountiful generosity that the Kingdom of God would expand through you! “Now may He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness that you will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion!”
- Hannah Worrall