QT 6/5/2025 2 Cor 8:6-15, Do the right thing

2 Corinthians 8:6–15 (ESV) —

6 Accordingly, we urged Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this act of grace. 7 But as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you—see that you excel in this act of grace also.

8 I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. 10 And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. 11 So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. 12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. 13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness 14 your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. 15 As it is written, “Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”

 

NOTE: Much of these two paragraphs is to remind the Corinthians of an earlier commitment to give to the poor in Jerusalem, and now the need to complete the gift. Paul spends a lot of time with a number of the churches in Macedonia, Achaia, and Asia (Western Turkey) to bring this project to completion and to supply needs in Jerusalem. In the end, although I am sure there were grateful believers in Jerusalem, Paul has to suffer through people probably questioning his motives, his handling of the money, and ultimately being put in Jail after he delivers the money to the Jerusalem church. Later, he might have wonder if it was the right thing. The outcome of an action is not always the best measure of the action. While many negative things happened to Paul, he did get to share the gospel with a group of people, Roman citizens, leaders, military officers, guards, and other high-ranking officials. In essence, he traded 5 years of his life and his subsequent death to reach this group for Christ (He also wrote a group of prison epistles which are timeless and of infinite value).

 

As we evaluate God's will for our life, the highest priority must remain "what is the right thing to do?" As opposed to asking the question, "what might happen to me?" We do the right thing and trust God for the outcome.

 

PONDER:

Am I seeking God's will in some decision? One of the questions needs to be (if not the first question), "What is the right thing to do?"

 

PRAYER: Father, thank you for the opportunities that you present for service. Sometimes I miss them, but sometimes you make them impossible to miss. Thank you that you continue to use me.