Ye being enriched in everything unto all liberality, which worketh through us thanksgiving to God.
Being enriched in everything ... This is a promise that Christians who give as they should will "in everything" be enriched, meaning, not merely in their financial ability, but in countless other ways also. This heavenly promise is the pledge of God himself that giving pays rich dividends to the giver. We have seen how some decry the motive of this promise in people's hearts (2 Corinthians 9:6); but the inspired apostle did not hesitate to place it in his appeal here; and this is far more than enough authority for respecting it. As Plumptre said, "The context points primarily to temporal abundance";[19] but it is quite evident that many other blessings are likewise included.
DIVIDENDS RECEIVED FROM GIVING
Underlying every sacred commandment is the purpose of God to achieve the utmost happiness and benefit for the obedient child of God; and obedience to the commandment to give, in the normal progress of human life on earth, is inevitably rewarded with the richest possible dividends.
The classical example of the rich young ruler (Matthew 19:16ff) is a startling demonstration of this principle. When he knelt at the feet of Jesus and asked how to inherit eternal life, the Lord commanded him to sell all that he had and give it to the poor and to come and "follow" the Lord Jesus (Mark 10:21). The Lord's command to this rich young ruler was for the man's own benefit, not the benefit of Jesus. The Lord did not need his money; Judas was already stealing what little the Lord had; and, in a short time, the Lord intended to die upon the cross. Furthermore, there was no special crisis among the poor, and the distribution of one man's estate could hardly have benefited any of them permanently. Would this rich young ruler have benefited from full and complete compliance with Jesus' command? The answer is affirmative.
Forty years after this young man knelt at Jesus' feet, God poured out the accumulated wrath of centuries upon Jerusalem. The young man was old when that happened, and there is no reason to doubt that he stood with his countrymen against Rome. All of his wealth and posterity were swept away in an hour by the soldiers of Vespasian and Titus. If he perished, along with over a million others, or if through some chance his life was spared to see the Holy City forever humbled under the feet of the Gentile, there was for him, in either case, no joy, no consolation, no hope. Did he remember what Jesus said about selling it all and giving it away? What if he had obeyed? If he had been a member of the Christian community, he would have believed Jesus' prophecy, and with all believers would have fled to Pella until the storm was passed. It is clear enough that this young man's best earthly interests would have been served by doing exactly what Jesus commanded. But so would every man's! There were special circumstances involved in Jesus' words to "sell all" in his case; and this is not a requirement of being a true Christian; but the command for liberal giving is applicable to all who obey the gospel; and, for ourselves, no less than for him, Jesus commanded that which will benefit his followers, not only in the eternal world, but NOW and HERE. (See full discussion of the rich young ruler in my Commentary on Matthew, pp. 295-296.)
SATISFACTION. Giving as the holy Scriptures command pays a one thousand per cent dividend in satisfaction. This is precisely the thing that all men are seeking; and, in their efforts to procure it, they leave home and friends, travel over continents and oceans, climb mountains and cross deserts, build skyscrapers, torture their bodies, sear their consciences, and deaden their souls - all they want is satisfaction! However, the deepest needs of the soul can never be satisfied by any such activity. The true satisfaction is available only in Christ. He said, "He that loseth his life for my sake shall find it" (Matthew 10:39).
It is in giving that the great satisfaction is discovered. The smile of an orphan child given to a benefactor over a glass of milk is worth more than the fickle praise of a multitude. The joy of seeing one soul turn to the holy Christ is sweeter than all the pleasures of earth. Giving provides benefits to the needy, glory to God and satisfaction for the giver. Souls having not the courage to give are missing the most wholesome satisfaction life affords.
A HIGHER STANDARD OF LIVING. What is the mystery of two families from the same neighborhood with approximately the same income, same number of children, same health, same obligations, etc., but one of which has a standard of living dramatically higher than the other? The mystery is even more perplexing when it is discovered that the family with the higher standard gives liberally to the church, whereas the other never gives anything.
What is the explanation of this family which gives and gives and yet has more? It is found in the influence of Christianity in their lives. The other family pays a heavy liquor bill, indulges in gambling, wastes time and money on all kinds of questionable entertainment, involves itself with immoral and unprincipled associates. A son takes up with bad company, incurs a heavy fine, gets drunk and wrecks the family car, etc., etc. The wisest investment any man can make is a regular and faithful contribution to the church. In actual money it will save him many times over what he gives, closing sources of waste, extravagance and sin that would otherwise be open. He will actually find a higher standard of living by faithful giving to the work of the Lord.
THE TERRIBLE COST OF NOT GIVING. A man grew very rich and had no time for the church. "All the church wants is my money," was his reply to every invitation. His only son grew up in a Christless home, became a libertine and a squanderer. One day, he quarreled bitterly with his father, while drinking heavily, and in an angry fit shot and killed his father. Something like this, or worse, will happen to every home where the teaching of Christ is refused. It probably never occurred to that unfortunate man that what the church really wanted was not his money at all, but the true salvation of himself and his family. Sure, faithfulness would have cost him part of his money; but Satan took all of it, and his life and soul along with it! One makes his choice and pays the penalty if he chooses wrong.
But there are some who are determined to beat God's system. They will go to church and bring up a Christian family without giving, or at least without giving very much. If such is attempted, the children will see through the sham and hypocrisy of it. One cannot love the Lord and the church without giving to it; and, if one is not a giver, his religion is worthless; and all people will know instinctively that he does not love the Lord or his church and that his pretensions are false. The unchristian life is far more expensive than the Christian life.
INCREASED PROSPERITY. In this chapter, Paul declared that the bountiful sower will reap a bountiful harvest; and that is a pledge of increased prosperity. Some people are almost afraid to hope for prosperity, fearing that it might be wrong to do so; but one of the apostles prayed for a friend, "that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth" (3 John 1:1:2). It is not the apostle's intention, however, that prosperity should exceed spiritual growth, but keep pace with it.
The principle of increased prosperity for true Christians is not a mere inference from some ambiguous text, but an imperial decree from on high. The Son of God said:
Verily, I say unto you, there is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father or mother, or wife or children or land, for my sake and the gospel's, but he shall receive an hundred fold now in this time, houses and brethren and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions, and in the world to come eternal life (Mark 10:29).
Some profess not to believe this; but no one who ever tried it disbelieves it. God's hand is still visible in the affairs of men. "He that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully." Here is the explanation of the mystery as old as Solomon, that "There is that scattereth and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty" (Proverbs 11:24,25).
A BETTER PERSONALITY. All the world is divided into two classes, the givers and the hoarders. One class is continually becoming more and more selfish and unlovable; and the other class is forever increasing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord and are "changed from glory to glory" by his gracious Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18). The ancient allegory of the two seas, Galilee and the Dead Sea, is true. For the Galilee people, life's blessings flow in, but also outward to bless and benefit others; and for the Dead Sea people, life's blessings flow in but never out. The giver becomes a Galilee person, full of sweetness and love; but the Dead Sea person becomes an old salt, crusted over with selfishness and cynicism, full of hatred and apprehension. A Christian who gives as the Lord commanded invariably becomes a Galilee person. This is exactly the type of personality that commands the highest honor and respect in any community on earth.
FRIENDS OUT OF THE MAMMON. Jesus was speaking of the use of wealth when he commanded his follows to:
Use mammon, dishonest as it is, to make friends for yourselves, so that when you die, they may welcome you to the eternal abodes (Luke 16:9).[20]
See exegesis of this passage in my Commentary on Luke, pp. 349-351. The friends to be made by the wise use of money are the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the angels of God. The eternal abodes are the mansions of the blessed, the "many mansions" of the Fathers' house (John 14:1ff). This is the eternal dividend for those who honor the Saviour's command to give; and, in this passage, Jesus did not fail to connect the stewardship of money with the welcome of the redeemed eternally. Christians who are lame in the giving department have simply overlooked the fact that an unbelievable percentage of the whole New Testament is devoted to this subject.
A MEMORIAL BEFORE GOD. It was written of Cornelius that an angel of heaven stood in his house and said, "Cornelius, thy prayers and thy alms have come up as a memorial before God" (Acts 10:4). The deep, eternal longing of human souls to be remembered after death is realized only by faithful Christian givers. Not only will they be remembered on earth, but in heaven. God will take account of the gifts tendered by his children; and this is the most glorious thought of all. Also, there is the lavish gift of Mary of Bethany who poured out the priceless nard upon the feet of Jesus. The Master said, "Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this which this woman hath done be told for a memorial of her" (Matthew 26:13). Faithful giving creates a memorial of the giver before God in heaven.
THE RETURN OF THE PRINCIPAL. Bob Hope once said that he was more interested in the return of his money than the return on it! The super-colossal climax of dividends received from Christian giving is the ultimate return to the giver of all that he gave. Jesus said, "Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, etc." (Matthew 6:19-21). This is proof that the Master will repay at the last day the full account with all accrued dividends. When Christ gave this teaching, he also called attention to the doubtful and insecure investments that people make on earth, where moth, rust, thieves, and all kinds of dangers threaten not merely the dividends, but the principal also. "Riches make themselves wings and fly away as an eagle toward heaven" (Proverbs 23:5). If any man doubts this, let him ask the man who has seen his life's savings swept away in a fire, a robbery, a revolution, an epidemic, a flood, a drought, an earthquake, a tornado, a broken trust, a wreck, an accident, an unjust law, or by means of any one of a thousand unpredictable disasters which may strike like lightning at any time and at any place.
Nobody ever gave Jesus anything, whether a grave, as did Joseph; or a basket lunch, as did the lad; or anything else, without receiving more than he gave. Joseph received his grave again; and the little lad was the lawful owner of the twelve basketfuls taken up after the feast! Let people try giving it to Jesus. No investment can compare with that.
These studies on the subject of giving have been included in this commentary because of the near-universal need for Christians to be taught and to understand the truth about the central duty of the Christian life.
[19] E. H. Plumptre, op. cit., p. 396.
[20] James Moffatt, The Bible, A New Translation (New York: Harpers), in loco.
