Tag: 11 May 2019

2 Corinthians 8:8 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.

The Apostle Paul exhorts the church in Corinth to prove the sincerity of their love by their giving. The Corinthian church had resources by them more than they needed for themselves. Unlike the churches in Macedonia who despite their poverty sacrificially gave.

Indeed, as one observed well, “A rejected opportunity to give is a lost opportunity to receive.”¹ The Corinthian church would have missed out on the Lord’s blessing if they had withheld.

The Apostle Paul is not commanding piety rather gently jolted them on the path to the Lord’s larger blessing.

2 Corinthians 8:7 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.

The Apostle Paul exhorted the church in Corinth to exercise their gift of giving. There are brethren in Jerusalem in need and he is exhorting them to help them. The church in Corinth has the means to do so.

MacDonald observed well, “Since the Corinthians were so outstanding in many ways (and they were), Paul now wants them to excel in the matter of giving. He gives them credit for abounding in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence (earnestness), and in their love for him. In The First Epistle, Paul had commended them for their knowledge and speech. Here he adds several other virtues, doubtless as a result of Titus’ visit.”