beyond words

Posted on November 12, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (12)

devotional post # 2198

2 Corinthians 9:13-15

2Co 9:13  When they see the evidence of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission and your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others,
2Co 9:14  while their prayers will express a strong affection for you, because of the overwhelming grace of God evidenced by you.
2Co 9:15  Thanks be to God for his gift which is beyond words!

beyond words

Paul imagines the Jerusalem saints, seeing the gifts collected from the Gentile Christians for them in their time of need, pouring out their hearts in gratitude in their prayers. It will be all the more overwhelming for these suffering saints because they will know that all those gifts came from hearts that were touched by God’s gift of grace in Christ, a gift which is beyond words.

While on deputation a few months ago, we visited a small church and promoted the mission agency we represent. This church was mostly older people, but they give overwhelmingly to the mission every year. When so many give so little, it is absolutely refreshing to see this kind of generosity. It reflects God’s grace in giving us Christ — a gift for whom we cannot be grateful enough.

LORD, thank you for your loving grace, and for those who reflect your generosity in their giving.

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what good it does

Posted on November 11, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (11)devotional post # 2197

2 Corinthians 9:10-12

2Co 9:10  The one supplying seed to the planter and bread for food will supply and inrease your seed for planting and increase the harvest of your righteousness.
2Co 9:11  You will be enriched in every way so you can be generous in every way, which will produce thanksgiving to God by means of us.
2Co 9:12  Because the purpose this ministry serves is not only supplying the needs of the saints but it also overflows, bringing many thanksgivings to God.

what good it does

Some Corinthians might have been wandering what good it would do them to give to the needy in Jerusalem. Paul lays out two positive outcomes: God would increase their harvest, and he would increase the gratitude of the recipients to God.  Generosity has its perks.

Paul intentionally uses words in this section that stress religious ritual. Perhaps he was speaking to those Corinthians who were looking for ways to express their devotion to God. So, maybe Paul was hinting that the best way to show your love for God is to love your neighbor.

LORD, show us ways to express our devotion to you, by our are for others.

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the generosity package

Posted on November 10, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (10)devotional post # 2196

2 Corinthians 9:7-9

2Co 9:7  Each one should give as he has decided in his heart, not out of guilt or from fear, because God loves a happy giver.
2Co 9:8  And God is able to richly bless you in all kinds of ways, so that having all your needs supplied in all things at all times, you may be rich in every good work.
2Co 9:9  Just like what is written, “He has contributed generously, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”

the generosity package

Paul quotes from Psalm 112:9 here. He was using the quote as a footnote to the entire psalm, which lays out the activities and results of a righteous person’s life. Paul was telling the Corinthians that when they give generously to this cause, they are doing something that a righteous person does, and they can expect to be blessed in various ways.

  • His family after him will be prominent.
  • He will have wealth and riches.
  • His times of darkness will be followed by light.
  • He will be vindicated if charged of wrongdoing.
  • He will be strong during tough times.
  • He will be an honored leader.

Generosity is only part of the righteousness package of Psalm 112. But it is a part of it.

LORD, teach us to do right, including doing right by our giving.

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what others think

Posted on November 9, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (9)devotional post # 2195

2 Corinthians 9:4-6

2Co 9:4  If you are not ready, some Macedonians might come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be shamed– to say nothing of you– for being so confident.
2Co 9:5  So I thought it necessary to encourage the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the gift you have promised, so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as something you grudgingly give.
2Co 9:6 But consider this: whoever plants minimally will also harvest minimally, and whoever plants amply will also reap amply.

what others think

Paul warned the Corinthians that if they did not make good on their promise to contribute to the Jerusalem relief fund, it would shame him and them. They lived in an honor/shame culture, and it mattered to them what others thought of them.

It also mattered what God thought of them. If they were to scrimp on this charitable act, perhaps God would see to it that others are just as stingy when they have a need. 

It matters what others think of us, because we identify with Jesus. Jesus is a generous giver. It also matters what God thinks of us, because he is a just God, and repays evil, and rewards good.

LORD, show us how to honor you in what we do, and not to shame you or ourselves.

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prove me right

Posted on November 8, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (8)devotional post # 2194

2 Corinthians 9:1-3

2Co 9:1  In one sense, it is redundant for me to write to you about this service to the saints,
2Co 9:2  because I know how eager you are; I brag about you to the people of Macedonia, saying that Achaia has been ready since last year. And your fervor has stirred up most of them.
2Co 9:3  But I am sending the brothers so that our bragging about you may not prove empty concerning this project, so that you may be ready, as I said you would be.

prove me right

Paul has assured other regions that there would be no problem getting funds from Achaia. So, now he sends a gentle reminder to the Corinthians to prove him right. Relief funds are needed, so now it is time to make good all that stuff about loving our neighbors as ourselves. Christianity is a profession, but there comes a time when we have to demonstrate what we profess.

LORD, prepare us for proving our faith in you, and our faithfulness to you and to each other.

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I like to prove it

Posted on November 7, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (7)devotional post # 2193

2 Corinthians 8:22-24

2Co 8:22  But with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found eager to accomplish many tasks, but who is now more eager than ever because of his great confidence in you.
2Co 8:23  As for Titus, he is my partner and coworker in your region. And as for our brothers, they are missionaries from the churches, shining with Christ’s brightness.
2Co 8:24  So prove to the churches that you love them, and show these men that our claims about you are true.

I like to prove it

A reputation is a good thing, but a proven reputation is what I want. Paul wanted the Corinthians to prove that they were supporters of the mission and church as a whole. It means nothing to say that you support missions if you do not support missionaries. This team coming to Corinth would be an opportunity for the missionary band to show their support for Corinth, but also an opportunity for the Corinthians to prove their relationship with the mission.  It is one thing to say that “these are our missionaries.” It is another thing to prove it by listening to them, praying for them, and giving to the needs they inform you about.

LORD, show us how to prove our reputations.

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mature money management

Posted on November 6, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

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devotional post # 2192

2 Corinthians 8:20-21

2Co 8:20  We are being careful to do this; we don’t want anyone to criticize us about this large amount that we are transporting,
2Co 8:21  because we want to do what is right — not only as the Lord sees it, but also as a man might see it.

mature money management

Paul could have carried large sums of money around himself, doling it out to whomever he wished. He was the head of the missions team, and he had been tasked with transporting the funds. But he decided to pass on this responsibility to a team that he could trust, which also had the trust of the churches.  That was a mature, practical and wise decision. It protected the purpose of the mission, and it avoiding the appearance of evil.

LORD, help us to make decisions which protect us from potential conflicts, and keep us focused on our primariy mission.

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church business

Posted on November 5, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (5)

devotional post # 2191

2 Corinthians 8:18-19

2Co 8:18  Accompanying him we are sending that brother who is famous among all the churches for his proclamation of the gospel.
2Co 8:19  And not only for that, but he has been appointed by the churches to travel with us as we carry out this act of grace that is being accomplished by us, to demonstrate the brightness of the Lord himself and to show our integrity.

church business

One of the dangers of doing missions work is that churches often lose sight of the fact that it is also church business. Paul wanted to avoid that danger by assigning relief funds collectors who were appointed and well known by the churches themselves. Missions business is church business. Anything that appears to separate missions from the work of the church itself sends the wrong message to believers.

LORD, keep us from fostering an unhealthy disconnect. Show us how to stay close to our churches as we serve them — and you.

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very eager volunteering

Posted on November 4, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (4)

devotional post # 2190

2 Corinthians 8:16-17

2Co 8:16  But thanks be to God, who placed into the heart of Titus the same eager concern I have for you.
2Co 8:17  Because he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very eager he is volunteering to go to you.

very eager volunteering

As I write this, I am beginning several months of home service this morning. I am jet-lagged, just moved into a new house and neighborhood yesterday, had to get up early and find a service station that serves coffee, then I proceeded to spill the coffee all over myself, so I had to change. I do not feel like Titus did — eager to go to new places and tell them about our mission and its mission. But I want to feel that way.

LORD, give us the heart of Titus. We want to serve you, and we want to want to serve you.

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helping without hurting

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Jefferson Vann

marmsky devotions pics November 2017 (3)

devotional post # 2189

2 Corinthians 8:12-15

2Co 8:12 Because if the willingness is there, it is acceptable based on what a person has, not based on what he does not have.
2Co 8:13 Because I do not mean that others should be relieved and you burdened, instead, that as a matter of fairness
2Co 8:14 your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may later supply your need, that there may be fairness.
2Co 8:15 Like what is written, “Whoever gathered a lot had nothing left over, and whoever gathered a little had no lack.”

helping without hurting

Paul and his team had been tasked with the role of collecting relief funds. He explained to the Corinthians that the goal was simply to balance out things. Other Christians were suffering, and the Corinthians had an excess at the present. The relief funds were not meant to become a standard tax. The collection was not to become a ritual to test the charity of the Corinthians. After all, the Corinthians themselves might need relief someday. Indiscriminate giving can often hurt more than it helps.

LORD, show us how to help others in need without hurting them by creating long-term dependence.

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