Travis D. Hutchinson
Highlands Presbyterian Church
LaFayette, Georgia
17 April 2011
Study Notes
2 Corinthians 9:6-15
6. The sowing must be related to giving money. I assume the reaping is not necessarily monetary, though it would seem a little abusive of the text to not include that meaning. Chrysostom bids us not only to consider the poor when we give, but also the Lord, “who takes as his, kindnesses shown to the poor.” This makes me think of Psalm 19:7: “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed.” I wonder what we could do to REALLY give to the poor? I wonder what Steve thinks is the best organization helping the poor? Note that this refers to the poor, many churches take money and spend it all upon themselves. I think we all should also be giving to the Care Mission. Calvin: Giving to the poor is like sowing because it seems like your stock of seed is going away, but instead you have a harvest coming which far exceeds what you sowed. Also, the more generous we are, the more we will find the blessing of God upon us in every way. PEH: We don’t give from the purse, but from the heart. Even giving a cup of water to the poor will be rewarded. Matthew 10:42. God is a generous rewarder!
Proverbs 11
24 One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.
25 Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.
7. No one can tell you how much to give and giving should not be under compulsion. God loves it when we give from hearts of rejoicing. Rejoicing and compulsion are in contradistinction here. “Ambrosiaster” says that when we give cheerfully, we’re storing up treasure in heaven. I think he’s right in that when we don’t give cheerfully, there’s no spiritual benefit. St. Basil says that uncheerful gifts are “blemished sacrifices.” Chrysostom comments that God both for the nourishment of the needy and the benefit of the givers, and “more so for the latter than the former.” If God was only concerned with the poor, he would not have called for cheerfulness. Good point! Maximus of Turin (not the Confessor) contrasts the one who gives to the poor with the one who pays taxes. The one who gives to the poor obtains heavenly treasure with a few small coins. The one who pays taxes is sad and dejected (you got that right!). He is sad because he is drawn to payment out of fear of punishment, whereas love urges the other to give. “The one is invited by rewards; the other compelled by penalties.” God estimates and judges giving not by sum but by disposition (Calvin). See Mark 12:42, the widow’s mite. When we give a) to get God to accept us; b) to win the praise of others; c) out of guilt, trying to atone, we are not giving cheerfully, which is freely. Ananias and Sapphira are an extreme example. Acts 5.
8. So, if Psalm 112 is the context for this, then… Paul is saying that God is able to supply what you need so that you may abound in every good work. Calvin: God is disabusing us of our worry in regards to our own interests.
9. Somehow this explains verse 8. This verse is from Ps 112:9. This Psalm is all about God blessing the righteous and generous. This man fears the Lord and greatly delights in his commandments. His offspring will be mighty. He will have wealth and riches. He has given freely to the poor. He won’t necessarily ENJOY all of the riches themselves, but they will pass through him and he will have great happiness and his needs supplied. The righteousness described is the fruit of the transformed heart. Secret giving is proof positive of this. Matt 6:1
10. He will supply what you need for your acts of righteousness. Back to the introduction to the series, not only do you not OWN the resources, you don’t SUPPLY the resources. He GAVE them to you (Calvin). Don’t forget that there are LOTS of people who work harder than you who have less.
11. God will enrich you in EVERY way through your generosity, which will end up producing thanksgiving through Paul and friends delivering the gift (Worship!).
12. This ministry is not only assisting the saints, but also creating a worship of thanksgiving.
13. The recipients will worship God in response to your gift. Your gift is your submission. Your submission flows out of your confession of the Gospel. Your confession of the Gospel goes hand in hand with your generosity. They will worship because the Gospel was manifested in your obedience. Lit: “The obedience of your confession.” They will worship because God provided for them through you. They will worship because you are providing for the needs of others. James 2:14-17, the leader of the Jerusalem church taught that faith which leaves people in their need is meaningless.
14. Your generosity is evidence of the grace of God on you. They long for you and pray for you. Theodoret of Cyr: They reap the benefits of the prayers of the poor. I find that this is true in my own life, not the irresponsible poor, but the very and desperately poor. We find out that they had had an insatiable desire for doing good, 1 Clement.
15. Thanks to God for his gift, which is the foundation of all other gifts. I think his gift is Christ, and so does Chrysostom (“by his incarnation”).