It is not about the Benjamins

“You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.”(2 Corinthians 9:11ESV)

I find this one of Paul’s most important verses in 2 Corinthians. In this statement, Paul makes clear that the change of a human who finds salvation through Christ is a total change.

The path to Christ and salvation is not an easy one. The gate is narrow and often difficult to find. What makes it so challenging? The personal nature of the journey. It is a gate you must walk through alone, a journey that is uniquely yours, and it demands your full commitment.

Sometimes, one must walk away from everything they have ever known. Did you have to do that? It means giving up everything you ever believed or never believed. It means giving up a charade called control, the control one thinks they have over their life. You may have to walk away from everyone you know or ever loved, completely baring yourself of everything, standing naked before your Savior. How extreme must this be? John told us in John 12:25, “You must hate your own life.” Lastly, one must trust and have faith in a mystery that may not seem fully quantified or qualified. There are many reasons in addition to these, but I believe these are some of the hardest to overcome. This may seem like slavery, and this is why it is a tough sell to an unbeliever and why it requires the intervention of God for that message to take hold.

For the person who finds this narrow gate, Paul tells us of the enrichment that follows salvation. This enrichment is not the false prosperity gospel type of enrichment, focused on money and health. It is a deep, personal spiritual enrichment that, when nurtured, enriches every aspect of the believer's spiritual being, bringing a profound sense of fulfillment and true value to their faith.

Paul writes that salvation allows us to be generous. It does, but this generosity is not all about money. This generosity can be about time, time given to help move another forward, personally, in ministry, and as a servant of God. This generosity can be about helping with material needs, a Bible, a book on faith, a meal, a shower, and something as simple as asking someone their name. Did you know that many who live on the streets, the homeless, the addicted, often forget their name. No one calls them by their name, most are isolated and alone. A name makes someone a person.

Generosity is about love and worship. Every act of generosity is an act that glorifies God when it is given in God’s name. When you bring God into the equation, that person you are generous to will remember you because of God, and they will remember God. A man I would help who asked for money near a food store named Mike was like this. The second time I ministered to him with the word and a meal, he said I remember you; you did this before; you told me about Jesus—this time, I gave him a Bible. I had not seen Mike in a while. Six months passed, and I saw Mike in the nearby food store. Mike was working in the store cleaning. He did not recognize me, and I did not talk with Mike then, but this was not the Mike I ministered to on the streets. I think Mike found the gate, and his transformation glorified God.

Generosity is not about money; you can tithe all you want, but without mercy and grace, you are not accomplishing God’s will. You may not have the money to give, but if you are a child of God, you have so much more that produces more excellent fruit. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.” (Matthew 23:23 ESV)

Give of yourself and be blessed by the Lord. I pray you too will hear, “ Well done, my faithful servant.”

Grace and Peace!