2 Corinthians 8:1

Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; how that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality... that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also. 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. (2 Corinthians 8:1–7)

How a poor, persecuted first-century church became a 2,000-year-old example of gracious giving.

Why Giving Stirs the Church

Last week we began a series of studies in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 dealing with treasure, wealth, and giving. This topic can cause a stir within the church. Some churches speak about money excessively; others hardly mention it at all, and some have not stewarded their finances well. All of those experiences can make people uncomfortable when the subject comes up.

But one of the primary reasons the issue causes a stir is that many people in churches across our nation are not good stewards of what God has given them, and they simply don't give. As a general principle, the people who get riled up by teaching on giving are those who don't give. I don't say that to offend anyone—but if it offends you, you might consider why. Those who give regularly and seek to manage their finances well are generally blessed and encouraged when the topic is addressed biblically.

Here at Cross Connection we don't talk about treasure and giving very often. We address it only when the Scriptures we're going through address it—and 2 Corinthians happens to deal with it quite a bit.

The Word as a Mirror

If ever we are bothered or convicted when a subject is biblically addressed, we need to take note of that. God speaks through His Word and uses it to reveal areas in our lives that need to change. If a preacher addresses covetousness and I'm convicted, I can't get mad at the preacher or at the Word—I need to step back and say, "Lord, are you dealing with me on this?"

James tells us the Word of God is like a mirror. When I wake in the morning and look in the mirror, it's frightening what's happened in the night—everything's disheveled. The mirror's purpose is to reveal what's out of place so I can set it right. But the mirror itself can't fix anything; it only exposes the problem.

The Word of God does both. It reveals what is wrong, and it shows us the right path forward. This is why Paul tells Timothy that all Scripture is God-breathed and useful for instruction, correction, reproof, and training in righteousness. God's Word is the perfect law of liberty; it reflects back where our heart is and then shows us how to make it right.

The American Church Is a Giving Church

Before we jump into the text, I want to give an encouragement. Statistically, the American church is a giving church—and not just financially. When we talk about giving, we're talking about giving of our time, which is often our most valued asset. Most of us feel busier than we are broke; if we could pay money to buy more time, we would.

Consider Larry King, who hosted his show on CNN for many years. He has already planned and paid to be cryogenically frozen within minutes of his death, hoping that if a cure for death is ever found, he can be brought back. Here's a man spending his wealth to defeat the loss of time. So stewardship involves our time, our talents, and the wealth God has entrusted to us—especially in a nation that has so much. As Jesus said, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also," and God desires that our heart be with Him.

The Barna Group, a Christian research firm here in Ventura County, has shown that the evangelical Christian church in America is by far the biggest giver—not only in the church, but in America, since the church is the largest charitable entity in the nation. That makes the evangelical Christian effectively the biggest giver in the world.

In 2007, Barna found that 96% of evangelical Christians gave money to their churches, and 81% gave at least a thousand dollars. On average, evangelical Christians gave $4,260 to non-profit entities besides their church. By contrast, non-Christians who still attended a religious institution gave on average $905, while those classifying themselves as atheists or agnostics gave less than $500—just $467. That means the evangelical church gives ten times more than the atheist. Let that sink in.

Why does the church give more? Because their God has given so much to them. It is His nature to be a giver, and He has imparted that nature to us. Interestingly, atheists and agnostics often say it's the government's responsibility, not theirs, to meet needs. But the church believes it is our God-given call to lovingly meet the needs of others, because we are children of a Savior who is a giver.

God's Blessing on Our Church

Yesterday our elder board met, and our controller, Pastor Richard, gave his financial report. After 25 weeks into 2012, our weekly giving averages are 11 percent higher than this time last year. I don't say this because we need more money—we teach on this because the Bible speaks of it. God has blessed our church, and that's a phenomenal thing. When Pastor Richard shared the report, our elder Don Steigerwald said, "That's a miracle." And it is.

Because of the position God has given me, I get to see the whole breadth of what's happening here. Every time a need is shared, it is almost immediately taken care of. On average, each person in this sanctuary gives just under $35 to the general fund every week. Our budget this year is just under one million dollars, and every year the Lord meets and exceeds it, because Ephesians 3:20 says He is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think.

During this same period—2008 to 2012, one of the deepest recessions in a generation—many in our church have experienced financial difficulty. I talk with other Calvary Chapel pastors whose churches have had to cut budgets by 30 or 40 percent, and when they ask how things are going here, I'm almost embarrassed to say they're going really well. It is an awesome blessing to see what God is doing.

The Macedonian Example

What we see in the first seven verses of 2 Corinthians 8 is very similar to what is happening at our church. The churches of Macedonia—Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea, planted by Paul in Acts 16—were not in thriving, powerhouse cities. They were in depressed, difficult places financially. Yet the work God did through them was awesome. Paul holds them up as an example of gracious giving to the church at Corinth in the south of Greece.

Is There a Tithe in the New Testament?

A common objection is that the tithe is a Jewish ordinance of the Old Testament and is not seen in the New Testament. To that I answer both yes and no—but first, what is a tithe? The word literally means a tenth.

In Leviticus 27:30–32 God says, "All the tithe of the land... is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD," and likewise of the herd and flock. The word holy means set apart or consecrated. When we get paid, certain things are consecrated—taxes are taken out for the government, then in my house we set aside our offerings, then our mortgage. God said a tenth of Israel's gross domestic product was His, set apart and not to be touched.

What were they to do with it? Numbers 18:21–24 tells us: God gave that tithe to the tribe of Levi, who served the tabernacle. This is the Lord's tithe—but it wasn't the only one. There was a second tithe, the festival tithe (Deuteronomy 12 and 14), an additional ten percent given at the Feast of Tabernacles. And there was a third tithe, given every three years, to care for the poor (Deuteronomy 14). Added up, Israel was mandated to give roughly 23 percent of their GDP.

That's not all. Farmers couldn't reap the edges of their fields, leaving them for the poor to glean. Every man twenty and older paid a half-shekel temple tax—remember when Peter found the coin in the fish's mouth to pay it for himself and Jesus. Every seventh year the land was given a Sabbath rest with no planting, and the fiftieth year was the year of Jubilee with another year off.

Why so much? I believe God mandated this so Israel would acknowledge that everything they had was His. He brought them out of 400 years of slavery in Egypt, fed them manna, gave them water from rocks, and brought them into a land flowing with milk and honey—cities they didn't build and vineyards they didn't plant. They gave in this way as an acknowledgment: "God, everything we have is yours." For many years Israel lived as a theocracy, with God as their King. When they later demanded an earthly king in 1 Samuel 10, God warned them they would face new taxes—and they did.

Gracious Giving Under the New Covenant

So is there a tithe in the New Testament? Yes and no. In Matthew 23:23 Jesus affirms tithing. He rebukes the scribes and Pharisees: "What sorrow awaits you... for you are careful to tithe... from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law, justice, mercy and faith." They were meticulous—counting out nine for themselves and one for God—while breaking God's law and being unjust and unmerciful. They were trying to buy off God, and Jesus says you cannot do that.

Which tithe is Jesus speaking of? I believe it's the Lord's tithe, given to the work of the ministry, because that tithe predates the Law. In Genesis 14:18–20, more than 400 years before the Law, Abraham gave a tenth of all to Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, who brought forth bread and wine. Abraham was not required to do this; he gave freely. Jesus reaffirms this in the New Testament: giving should be part of our life.

How then is the new covenant different? The old covenant required and mandated the tithe; the new covenant does not. New Testament giving is a free-will, gracious offering. The church is not a nation like national Israel. The church is a theocratic entity with Jesus as its head, and it is supranational—it transcends national boundaries, borders, and governments. Christians live under democracies, dictatorships, monarchies, and republics, and in every one of them the church exists and pays taxes. As Jesus said, "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's"—pay your taxes.

So we pay taxes to support government and social structures, while at the same time we have the added opportunity to be part of the kingdom of God, supporting the ministry, fellow believers in need, and even those who are not Christians. The church does not give by command, compulsion, or coercion. You will never have an elder from Cross Connection Escondido show up at your door to discuss how much you should give, because we do not believe giving is by compulsion. We give freely and graciously, just as God has freely and graciously given us everything—including salvation.

The Giver's Dozen: Thirteen Principles

With that foundation, consider thirteen principles of giving exemplified by the Macedonian church—what I call the giver's dozen.

One: They gave as God was giving through them. Paul writes (NLT), "Now I want you to know... what God in his kindness has done through the churches of Macedonia." God worked in them to will and to do His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).

Two: They gave as an expression of God's grace. "We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia" (ESV). Their financial gift was an expression of grace—God's riches at Christ's expense—given freely with no strings attached.

Three: They gave as they were motivated by God's grace. "The grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia" (NKJV). We give because God has given so much to us. When we behold the giving nature of our God—"For God so loved the world that He gave"—we are stirred to give also.

Four: They gave although they were in the midst of severe difficulty. "In a great trial of affliction." They were severely and deeply distressed, under extreme pressure—and they still gave. There's a temptation, when we're in difficulty, to feel we can take a break from giving and serving. Not so with Macedonia.

Five: They gave joyfully. "The abundance of their joy." The NIV says, "out of the most severe trial, they overflowed with joy." They were hard pressed, yet gave with joy.

Six: They gave in spite of deep poverty. "Their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality." People say, "If I had more, I'd give more—if I won the lottery, you can't imagine how generous I'd be." But Jesus said in Luke 16 that he who is faithful in little will be faithful in much, and he who is unfaithful in little will be unfaithful in much. Don't expect that a big inheritance would suddenly make you a generous giver.

Seven: They gave in abundance and beyond their ability. "They gave not only what they could afford, but far more" (NLT). This is one of the most challenging points for me, because I've always believed we should be wise stewards. But I've experienced this myself—hearing of a need, being stirred to help, and saying, "Lord, I don't have anything to give," and the Lord saying, "Do it anyway." He has always ministered to me in those situations. As 2 Corinthians 9:8 says, "God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work." We do not hold to prosperity theology—we do not give in order to get rich—but we do see that God honors giving. You cannot out-give God.

Eight: They gave willfully. "They gave... far more... and they did it of their own free will" (NLT). Paul did not compel them; he presented the need, and they were motivated by God's grace.

Nine: They gave eagerly. "They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem" (NLT). How many of us have ever begged for an opportunity to give? The Macedonians did.

Ten: They considered giving a privilege. They begged for "the privilege of sharing in the gift." They knew the teaching of Jesus from Acts 20:35, that it is more blessed to give than to receive.

Eleven: They gave as unto the Lord. "This not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord" (v. 5). When we give to the Lord rather than to man, our motives stay pure and we recognize that it's His to give to whomever He wills.

Twelve: They gave in accordance with the will of God. "First they gave of their own selves... unto us by the will of God." When we give graciously and in a godly manner, we are giving as the Lord desires.

Thirteen: They gave in such a way as to become an example to others. "Now I want you to know, dear brothers." Two thousand years later, they still stand as an example of godly, gracious giving. They were an example to the church in Corinth, and Paul urges Titus (v. 6) to finish this ministry of giving among them: "Since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in enthusiasm and in your love for us—see that you also excel in this grace of giving."

Reflecting the Greatest Giver

The Macedonians gave because God gave through them, as an expression and motivation of His grace, in the midst of severe trial and deep poverty, joyfully, beyond their ability, willfully, eagerly, counting it a privilege, as unto the Lord and according to His will—and so, two thousand years later, they remain an example.

It is my prayer that we would be a pattern of giving as well—not because we need a bigger bank account at the church, but so that we would reflect the grace and glory of God wherever He calls us to go, in our neighborhoods, workplaces, and schools. This is the sole purpose of going through this passage: God is the greatest giver, and one way He manifests His glory through His church is in the fact that we give ten times more than the atheists. In my opinion it should be even greater—to the point where the world looks and says, "There's something about the church." Because of our fallen nature, all humanity clings to its treasures. To have an open hand with no strings attached is counter to the culture of humanity. It's otherworldly. It's from God.

Closing Prayer

Father, I thank You for Your Word, although it's challenging. Lord, I pray that You would work into us, that we would manifest Your glory and reflect You wherever we go—today, this week, in our neighborhood, at the baseball field, at the grocery store, at our workplace or school, wherever we may be. God, manifest Your glory through us that people would see You in us. Transform us, Lord—the way we live, the way we think, the way we think about our future and our treasure. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.