"His Unspeakable Gift"

I Corinthians 9:15

In this chapter and the one before it the Apostle Paul is admonishing the Corinthian believers to give. You will notice, in reading the passage, that he does not draw a single motive from the law. He does use the law as an illustration, but never as a motive. Paul does not say, "Tithe and God will bless you." Nor does he threaten punishment if you fail to do so. He knew that he was writing to believers, men under grace not the law. Therefore, he places upon us the irresistible Constraint of love. His argument is this - since God has given you the richest gift of his love, Jesus Christ, it is most reasonable that you give cheerfully, from a heart of love. Can any redeemed soul resist such an argument? Never! Mark these lessons:

First, give your ownselves to the Lord (8:5). Give yourself to Christ, heart, soul, mind, body, and spirit. Christ has redeemed me. I belong to him. All that I have is his. "Here, Lord, I give myself to thee, 'Tis all that I can do."

Secondly, When you give, give with a willing heart (8:12). We give not of necessity, out of fear, or by constraint. We give because we love Christ. And our giving in the interest of his kingdom is but a slight proof of our love. Our sorrow is not that we must pay a tithe, but that we cannot give more. "God loveth a cheerful giver." A redeemed heart is a generous heart.

Thirdly, give from a proper motive (8:9), Our Lord, who was rich in all the glory of his eternal God-head, became poor for our sakes. For us he endured the poverty of hell itself upon the tree. He had this reason for doing so, that we might enjoy all the riches of grace, salvation, and eternal life in him. Having such a Redeemer, having received from him the gift of eternal life and the best gift of all, his own self, can we be niggardly and selfish? I think not.

Don Fortner