Willing & Ready

2:14And so, that's one of the reasons why we hadn't done this. But the kids have gotten a little bit older, and so we did it. So, we're driving, we're 12 hours in. Well, in the little town of Westcliff, Colorado, about an hour and a half or so from our final destination, we drive into the bustling metropolis of Westcliff, make a couple of turns, and all of a sudden, the traction control on our car starts going nuts. And by the end of the street, we stop in the front on Main Street, in the front of this little shop, and the wheels won't turn.

3:00Now, I know a little bit about cars. I'm not really freaked out other than the fact that it's below 20, which is cold for me. And we got kids and all of our gear, and we still have an hour and a half to go. Well, the long story short is we made it alive and we're back, obviously. All the kids made it back. You know, everybody is pretty good. But over those four hours, from the time that we broke down, which we really didn't break down, in the time that we were stuck in Westcliff, Colorado, we learned a lot.

3:39We saw God's provision, and we saw the generosity of God and of others in our lives. So it's no accident, my friends, that I was slated to preach in this series on this topic, and all of that went down, and the car wasn't even broke down. And it reminds me of our text today. But first, I want to point out a couple of people. Randy and Josh, father and son, were two folks we met. Randy is on the right. This is kind of hard to see, but in God's Providence, my wife, Chelsea, took this picture. We had just stopped. There's the shop. I'm looking down because that's what you do when you're a man, is you go out there and look as if that's going to do anything. Josh is right to Randy's left, there on the right of the screen. We met these gentlemen right as we stopped in the intersection. They helped us push the car out of the way. They offered their vehicle that we could take to make the hour and a half as long as we needed. They offered to have us stay in their home that was about 10 miles away. They offered to drive us, that's five people, to our final destination about an hour and a half. We met Sally, the shop owner. She brought us in, brought the kids in. She printed crossword puzzles, got the kids coloring, let us use her landline. Praise God, someone actually has one because our cell phones weren't great. We met Brian. He came in. He offered to help us get the car out of the way. The tow truck driver, who ended up towing our car, he offered to bring his own personal car on his tow truck, let our family drive it, and then take his car back because we can't all fit in the tow truck.

5:35And so, to be sure, we were in awe of the generosity of all of these folks who we didn't know, we didn't know anything about. We were in awe. But what struck me the most was their willingness. What struck me the most was not necessarily what they gave, but their willingness. They dropped. Everything in that moment. Randy and Josh were on a guy's retreat, father-son deal for the weekend, and they stopped everything and spent the better part of five or six hours to serve us. And it reminds me of our text today. We see Paul remind the Corinthians of the joy of generosity, the call to give, the need to give, and their promise to give. And then he commends them. He praises them for their willingness and their readiness to give. And so I think in the text this morning, what we're going to learn is that generosity always flows from willing and ready hearts. Generosity always flows from willing and ready hearts.

6:42And so if you haven't been here in the 1 Corinthians series, a little bit of background to help us know what Paul's doing in Corinthians. Paul evangelizes the Corinthians. We learn about this in the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians, in the Gospels, and in Acts. We know that he went on three missionary journeys, preaching, teaching, and church planning. And he writes letters to them. After he evangelizes them and continues on his journeys, he writes letters to them. Now, the book of 1 Corinthians and two letters that we've lost are that the tone of these letters is one of correction and rebuke, right? He is seeing, he's hearing about certain issues that are happening in the church, and he is trying to bring... Helpful correction, encouragement, and sometimes rebuke.

7:34Well, Titus, his son in the faith, his co-laborer, is out helping him. And Titus reports back to Paul that the Corinthians are responding favorably, that they are responding with repentance and faith to all that Paul is instructing them on. And it's at that point that Paul writes 2 Corinthians. And so the tone of 2 Corinthians changes quite a bit. It's one of overflowing joy, thanksgiving for all that God was doing in the lives of the Corinthians.

8:11Paul is overjoyed because he sees progress in their lives. He gets this report from Titus, and so he writes again in 2 Corinthians. And one of the things that Paul does is he encourages, one of the ways that he shepherds the Corinthians is he, as we saw last week, is he holds up the Macedonians as an example to the Corinthians. He highlights, really, and shows how their generosity is a wonderful, faithful example. And he encourages the Corinthians to be like that, to be like them. And so last week we saw the six characteristics of generosity as seen in the Macedonians giving. And so I want to encourage you to go back, listen. Of Pastor Beau's sermon. It was excellent. But in review, here are the six characteristics. First, they gave in spite of their circumstances. Second, they gave enthusiastically, characteristics of generosity as seen in the Macedonians giving. Number three, they gave as an act of worship. Number four, they gave as the Lord Jesus gave, lovingly and sacrificially. Number five, they gave willingly.

9:33And number six, they gave faithfully. And so though there's a lot in these two chapters, 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, for us to consider, I think we see three reminders in these chapters that are instructive to us, helpful for us when it comes to knowing the joy of generosity. And so, first, Paul shows the Corinthians and us that we will know the joy of generosity when we remember the call to give. Later, after our passage, in 2 Corinthians 9:6, Paul explains how giving is rooted in the grace and generosity of God.

10:20He says it has nothing to do with guilt, manipulation, coercion. Though those things may work in the short term, it's never a lasting motivator, whether we're talking about giving or any other spiritual discipline. And so Paul reminds them and says, it's about worshiping Jesus. The call throughout Scripture, the unified call throughout Scripture, is to come to Jesus and worship Him with your whole life. And giving never begins with any need or any promise that we make to give. It always begins with a call of God, which is exactly where the rest of creation begins, with God. And so, first and foremost, Paul says, remember, Corinthians, the call to give, and that it's based in God's grace. And practically, there is nothing that compares to money in our lives. It touches every single aspect of our lives. Yes, even the thing you're thinking about right now. Whatever that is in your mind, think about how money doesn't affect it.

11:47It does, right? And so, how we view and handle money says everything about what we believe and who we worship. So the call is founded in the realization that it brings glory and honor to God when we submit to him in this way, by trusting him, and when we seek to imitate him in this way. So I want us to consider the weight that these commentators place on the role of generosity expressed through giving in a Christian's life. Warren Wearsby says, to give is to be Christ-like, for his whole life was spent giving.

12:35Again, he says, if giving is difficult for a Christian, listen, then there must be something wrong with this heart. This is a hard issue. This is what Paul is trying to get across to the Corinthians. I fear there are many hearing me who may know well that they are not Christians because they do not love to give. To give largely and liberally, not grudging at all, requires a new heart. An old heart would rather part with this lifeblood than its money.

13:15There is some weight there, church. And I believe what Paul is trying to do is he's trying to show and tell the Corinthians, listen, the call to give is a Call to worship God specifically with the money and resources that He has given you. Secondly, the second reminder is that we will know the joy of generosity when we remember the need to give. Understanding the call, and only once we understand the call, it has to be in the proper order. Understanding the call helps us to see the need properly. Here's the fact of the matter: God needs nothing from us, He needs nothing from us, and yet He promised to build His church.

14:09Yet He chooses to use us as His instruments to bring glory to Him and to build His church on this earth while we wait for Him to come. So God desires to use His people, the church, to meet needs within His world. This is God's plan to rescue every tribe, tongue, and nation for Jesus. And so, for the Corinthians, they were meeting the needs of their dear brothers and sisters, fellow saints, who were unable to provide for themselves because they were experiencing persecution from the Romans.

14:49And similarly, but in a different way, we have the joy of seeing saints equipped for the work of ministry. Ministry is not about paid professionals. It is about all of us taking the great commission and doing the work that God has called us to. We get to see disciples made, people growing up in the faith. When is the last time that you walked alongside someone and saw that change? Isn't it remarkable when you see people see things and know things and understand things that they haven't before, when their eyes are open, spiritually speaking?

15:34We get to see followers of Jesus living in communities, some of which, many of you, myself included, some of which don't have faith families. And if that's you, my hope and prayer for you, because I have experienced the same, is I have a family that is bonded by something much greater than blood inside my body, but by the precious work of Jesus. And as we meet the needs of the church, we get to see this happening. We see real needs, physical needs met. We see ministries and activities and events happen so that people will come to see Jesus.

16:20And we get to support the sacrificial, wonderful men and women who drop everything, sell everything, and go across. This world to tell people about Jesus. And we get to support the men and women who serve in our local church. In all of these ways, because we understand the call to give is about worshiping Jesus, we can properly see the need. And finally, the third reminder is that we will know the joy of generosity when we remember the promise to give. And this is part of what Paul is doing. Also, in Acts 11 and Romans 15, 1 Corinthians 16, and 2 Corinthians 8, we see Paul reminding the Corinthians of their promise to join in on the work by giving. The foundation was laid. The why was answered. Why we participate? Why we give in this way. And so he's reminding them to keep their word by doing what they promised.

17:28Both by keeping their promise and by giving, they were bringing glory to God. They were telling the truth about God. They were highlighting God's faithfulness because by not keeping their word, they would be lying about God's faithfulness to keep his word. By not being generous, they would be lying about God's generosity. And so Paul is adamant, Corinthians, keep your word. Similarly, we ought to consider what we're saying, what we're showing about God with our generosity. God has called us to be a generous people. In church, we have promised to do so.

18:22Namely, in our church covenant. And so, what are we saying, and what are we showing about God in this way? Important question for us to answer. Well, these three reminders help us to frame what we learn now in 2 Corinthians 9. And that is, generosity always flows from willing and ready hearts. And so, first, Paul commends the Corinthians for their willingness to give generously. And Pastor Beau mentioned this last week. It's the fifth mark or characteristic of generosity as seen in the Macedonians' giving. He says that a graceful giver is one who gives willingly. There's a couple things that I want to remind us of. First, it's not because they have been pressured into it. Right? Remember the call.

19:16They were not forced into any unbiblical standard or amount because that's not what it's about, but eagerly and willingly with the desire to honor God with their giving. They're called to give. And we see that in our text in verse 5. Notice, Paul commends them for their willingness, noting that it's not an exaction. It's not a payment for any service rendered, but to do so willingly. Because it's a response. It's an act of worship at the deepest heart level. Now think about, if you've been with us, think about all that we've said about the Corinthians, all that we've seen rather, in our Messy Church series.

20:09We see a people who are divided, who don't have it all together, who are struggling with all kinds of issues related to marriage, sex, food, and that's just the beginning. But they were a redeemed people. They had been rescued from sin and received grace from God, the old being made new. And that is how Paul in 2 Corinthians approaches them. You can almost see in Paul's writing him rejoicing. It's almost as if he can see the old falling off and the new coming. Similar to our trees that we've just witnessed. All of the old, dead stuff fall, and really quickly we'll see the new. Buds come forth. It's almost as if you can see as if Paul can see that in their lives. In light of the present troubles, they had decided in their hearts, and it had nothing to do with their circumstances. They were convinced and convicted that obedience to God in this way was right.

21:23And so, no matter what was going on around them, they were willing. They were willing. One of my concerns for us is that, unlike any other area, we've never really settled this in our hearts. And as a result, we are unwilling. We can't even consider because we haven't done the hard work in our hearts. And until that happens, we will never be willing to be obedient in this area to be sure, but really in any area of our lives, spiritually speaking, as we approach God.

22:06You see, willingness is rooted in humility. It's the recognition that when God shows me something, I ought to be willing to consider that He is right and I may be wrong. And as a result, maybe I need to change. Maybe there's an adjustment that may need to be made in my life so that I can. Can trust him, follow him in this way, and be willing. You see, not all of us are where we want to be. As we think about generosity, maybe you're thinking about other areas.

22:43But in order to be a generous people, we must be willing to search our hearts, settle this in our minds. Jesus is our new master. He is a good, loving, benevolent master, not like the master of sin. And we've been called to worship him with all of our lives. And that will be evident in the way that we give, in our generosity. Here's the thing: my sense is that even if we all agree and understand all that we've said, even if up until this point you're like, yes, completely on board, I think that many are not able.

23:41In my hundreds of conversations with folks in and around money, one of the things that I have seen is that people are not able to be faithful and generous primarily because they are not good managers. Now, listen, we can say a whole bunch of other things. We know this is deep in the Heart, and we got a lot of things to work out, maybe there. But one of the primary issues is that we are poor managers.

24:10In other words, we're not ready to be generous and to give because we haven't prepared to do so. And there's a lot of reasons. Lack of knowledge and understanding, that's a big one, right? There's a lot of elements to thinking about being a good steward that sometimes are a little bit complex. Yes, absolutely. Maybe fear of the unknown or fear of what you might find. If I dig into this, if I look at this more closely and I seek to be faithful in managing all of this, I don't know. I was never taught, and I've been doing what I've been doing for years now, and so I'm a little, yeah, absolutely. Maybe the uncertainty of life. Well, who knows what's going to happen.

25:07But, my friends, one of the chief enemies of generosity, from what I've seen, is poor and short-sighted decisions. Oftentimes, we haven't stopped to think how our management or mismanagement. Management is going to influence our ability to be generous. Stick with me because it's going to sound different than I mean it. The houses we purchased, the cars we drive, the activities we participate in, the entertainment, the activities we allow our kids to be a part of, and the list goes on. Hear me, I am not condemning anything in particular.

26:01Please trust me on that. I'm not condemning anything in particular. What I am saying is that some of our choices haven't left us any room to be obedient to God in this way. We have no room. Or we don't even know, right? But Paul here commends, he praises the Corinthians for their readiness to be generous. If you look back at these two chapters, you see the word ready, readiness so many times. I underlined them in my Bible, and there's a lot of them.

26:44In other words, they did what was necessary to be ready to respond to God generously. And the struggle with money and giving in particular is that it's like a no other spirit. Discipline because it's so closely tied to the heart, and therefore, we cannot and must not expect to be healthy in this area without being intentional and active. It seems overwhelming, I understand, but it's the same prescription that we would give to any other brother or sister with any other spiritual discipline, right? We would say, well, listen, if you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time. So you have to be intentional and you have to be active to sort through this and learn things you don't know and bring others alongside of you. All of those things. And so we will never be healthy unless we do that. We're intentional and active.

27:49And so it begs the question: well, what did the Corinthians do to prepare? How did they ready themselves to be generous people? First, as we've seen, they settled this matter in their hearts. They understood that coming to Jesus meant worshiping with their whole lives, and that includes generosity and giving. 2 Corinthians 8:5, they gave themselves to the Lord, right? But secondly, they submitted themselves to faithful teaching and to God's word. The second part of chapter 8, verse 5 says, and then by the will of God to us, they brought themselves under the teaching. Teaching of Pastor Paul and others submitted themselves to God's word. But thirdly, I'm scared to say this word. They intentionally planned to be able to give and be generous. Don't check out, I said the planning word. I know that not everyone is planners, and that's fine, but hang with me. Look at these references. In chapter 8, verse 3, they gave according to their means.

29:06Chapter 8, verse 10, a year ago started not only to do this work, but also to desire to do it. 8.14, your abundance at the present time should supply their need. So for at least a year, they have been planning and preparing to meet this need. And they understood where they were at because they gave according to their means and in abundance. That must mean that they were basing their decision off something concrete that they knew about themselves. Now, I understand it's hard to know all that there was, but I think we can at least see that here in the text.

29:58Maybe this is the first. Reference to a budget? I don't know, maybe not. I'm always trying to find it. I know that's the wrong way, that's backwards, but I'm just saying. It appears that the Corinthians were ready to give because they were prepared to do so. And in order to be prepared, they had to have a plan. So, what about you? What about us? Are we ready to follow God in this way? To be faithful and generous?

30:35Are we ready? If not, is it because we haven't prepared to do so? We don't have any sort of plan. It doesn't matter your station in life. It doesn't matter how much you've been given. The call upon our lives as God's people is to look at what we've been given and to be faithful. That's the call. I want to offer three really practical things because I want to get practical to help us. I know this is such a struggle. So, three practical things to consider as it relates to the readiness of generosity. Number one, you have to begin where you always begin when you're making a hard decision. You have to. Begin with the end in mind. You have to set a goal. What is it that you want to achieve? When we think about generosity and being and giving, what is the goal as believers in Jesus?

31:46There's a lot of words running through your mind, but it's very simply faithfulness. We want to accurately reflect the goodness, the grace, and generosity of our God in the way that we handle and the way that we give what's been entrusted to us. That's the goal. So that's number one. We have to have that ingrained in our mind that that is the ultimate overarching goal when we talk about this subject. Has nothing to do with numbers, anything like that. Faithfulness. Number two, we need to get above it all, right? We need to get up into the air 30,000 foot and really consider what we believe about money, the many categories that fall under it, and how God has called us to use what we've been given. Okay, so get above it all because once we answer some of those questions, I think it'll be easier. So, for example, what does God say about savings? Is retirement better? Biblical.

33:02What about spending? How about debt? Oh my gosh, what about insurance? And of course, giving. But when we begin to answer those questions, right, the big picture, it will help us as we move number three to the ground. On the ground. And on the ground level, we intentionally and actively manage every dollar and every resource that God has given us. Some people call this a budget. I was hesitant to even use that word because some people will think I'm cussing in church using the word budget. But really, think about this.

33:48How else will we know what to do with what we've been given? How will we know if certain things are too much or too little? How will we know if we have enough margin to provide for our families, to be generous? What about preparing for the future? And the list goes on. My friends, you and I are managing our Father's resources, and he has a massive kingdom. He has a massive kingdom. It's all his. He's entrusted some to us. Doesn't it make sense then? That we would have some semblance of a plan in order to faithfully, that's the goal, manage what we've been given. Absolutely. Because generosity always flows from ready hearts.

34:48We can't be ready if we've never prepared and planned to be ready. Well, ultimately, the reason Paul is writing to the Corinthians and to us is not just to offer some helpful reminders, to not just encourage them, right, to not help them feel good, but to move them to action. Just as James says, we must not be hearers of the word only, but doers of the word. But here's the thing: no matter how well, as you've kind of been doing this checkup, as we've been talking, no matter how well you think you're doing, no matter how well I think I'm doing, every single one of us falls short. Every one of us.

35:40Even the guy, even the guy who likes spreadsheets, right? You fall short. You fall way short. But there's good news. In God's wisdom and grace, He has done everything necessary. To save us, sanctify us, redeem us. Jesus was perfectly willing. That meant that he was willing to do whatever was necessary in every way that we are not and will not and will never be. He took action. He came to rescue us from sin and ourselves and to redeem us.

36:28He willingly gave himself most obviously to save our souls from sin, but particularly to redeem our view of this world and everything in it. And that includes money and the topic of generosity. Through faith, we have been given God's own Spirit inside of us, so that we know His will and His ways. Generosity always flows from willing and ready hearts. But my friends, don't forget that it begins in the heart. And so, for some, part of your response, as we remember the Lord Jesus this morning with the Lord's Supper, part of your response is going to be to surrender, realizing that your ideas, your thoughts, your ways are not His ways. In lining yourself up.

37:37But more than that, this subject is difficult. Practically speaking, it is really hard. And so, if you're realizing that the desire is there, you are willing, but you are just not ready, you are not prepared, I want to encourage you. Don't think that it's unspiritual to ask for help, to ask a life group leader or a pastor or maybe your mentor. Every single one of us is not where we want to be. And whether it's this topic or any other, we all need help.

38:20And so, I want to encourage you to get the help. Reach out and say, help me prepare. I want to be that kind of person because that's who God is, and I want to tell the truth about Him. Help me be prepared to be faithful in this way. Generosity always flows from willing and ready hearts. And our hope and prayer, both today and with this series, is that we would understand God's heart and His call upon our lives to most accurately reflect Him in the way that we manage all that He's entrusted to us.

39:00So, church, may we run together towards that goal of faithfulness. That's our hope and prayer. Let's pray together. God, I'm grateful that you haven't left us alone. We remember that most clearly as we come to the table to celebrate the life of Jesus, what he did for us, and the promise that he will return. But we also remember that you haven't left us alone when we consider all that your word has to say about life and godliness.

39:53We pray this morning, God, that we would at least see and understand that this area of our lives matters, as does every other area of our lives. That the call of the Christian life is to regularly, continually, always bring ourselves under the authority and teaching of your word so that we can better and more faithfully reflect your goodness and grace. We cannot do this on our own. We've tried. And so we ask you this morning to change us and make us the kind of generous people that you've called us to be.

40:49We hope that when people see our lives, they would know that none of this was possible apart from the supernatural grace of God working in and through us. May that be true. Work in us this morning, we pray. Amen. Thank you for listening to the sermon audio from New Life Baptist Church in College Station, Texas. For more information or to support our ministry, visit us online at newlifecs.net.