It was C.H. Spurgeon who famously quipped that the wallet was the last part of us to be converted.  As we were hearing at DTP the other evening, our money (or at least what we often perceive as our money) is very much an extension of ourselves, and so what we do with it reveals what is actually important to us.  Our bank statement is a much surer guide to what we value that our rhetoric.

It is strange that we feel able to think of ourselves as Christians without ever really engaging with what the Bible teaches about money.  If we did, we would realise that there are very clear and unambiguous priorities concerning how Christians use the money God has put at their disposal.  We are no more at liberty to ignore the Bible’s teaching about how we use His money, than we are at liberty to ignore the Bible’s teaching about adultery or murder. 

One of the most extended sections of teaching about finance is the double-chapter we have before us this week, II Cor.8-9.  Paul tackles not just the mechanics of how we should give to support the Church elsewhere in the world, but also the much deeper and more complex question of our heart, and our motivation (see e.g. 8:7,12; 9:2,7 etc.).  Our love for the Church bring with it an inevitable sense of financial responsibility for other Christians in need.  This isn’t just taught about theoretically – we are shown that this shaped the life of the Church in actuality in the Book of Acts.  ‘All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need’ (Acts 2:44-45).  As we continue to read through Acts, we find this is not a one-off situation.  Acts 4 reiterates this as an ongoing part of the Church’s life: ‘there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need (Acts 4:34-35).  And in Acts 6, there is a dispute about the distribution of such support (vv.1-6).  We find that those like Barnabas, Dorcas or Cornelius are commended because of their gifts to the poor (Acts 4:36-37; 9:36; 10:4 etc.).  But perhaps the most famous and telling example of this is the collection for the Church in Jerusalem (mentioned in Acts 24:17; Rom.15:24-27, where it is considered important enough to postpone a mission trip; I Cor.16:1-4; and of course here in II Cor.8-9). 

This is what the teaching of Jesus looks like when put into practise.

Questions:

Can you be a Christian without it affecting the decisions you make about money?  How different should our budgets look to the budgets of those who aren’t Christians?

Does the Bible ever give Christians a mandate to give money to non-Christian charities?

As you read through Chap.8-9, do you feel Paul is being manipulative?  How would you feel if these arguments were used at MIE to encourage giving?

What do you make of the Macedonian Churches’ behaviour in 8:1-4?  Is this irresponsible?  Have you ever seen anything like this in your own experience of Church?  What does Paul mean in v.5 – and how significant is that in understanding their behaviour?

Do you think of giving as a grace (8:7)?  Is it a grace Christians today seek to ‘excel’ in?  Why do you think this is?

A critical part of this passage is II Cor.8:9. To what extent is Paul expecting us to follow Christ’s example?  Do you think he is teaching that our giving should be so sacrificial that it makes us ‘poor’?

What is it about Christianity that results in all Christians being ‘cheerful givers’?  How would you counsel someone who gives reluctantly, under compulsion, or not at all? 

Do you believe what Paul claims in II Cor.9:8?  How do you explain the experience of Christians who do not have all that they need?

What is the goal of God’s material provision?  Does God’s provision achieve this in you? 

How does it make you feel that other people will worship God and give thanks to Him, because of your generosity?...and that others will pray for you because of your gifts? 

What passages of Jesus’ teaching do you think Paul is drawing from and allowing to shape how he pastors the Corinthian Church through this crisis?