2 Corinthians 9:6-15
For I say, he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever. Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;) being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God. For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God; whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men; And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you.
Thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift.
C. H. SPURGEON (1834-1892): Why does God love a cheerful giver?
JOHN CALVIN (1509-1564): Nothing is pleasing to God which is offered “grudgingly or of necessity;” what is said about alms, that “God loveth a cheerful giver,” ought to be applied to every part of life, that we render to God our willing service.
C. H. SPURGEON: God loves a cheerful giver because Divine Grace has placed such a man in order with the laws of redemption. And what are these? We who are called, “Calvinists,” delight in asserting that the whole economy of the Gospel is that of Divine Grace. It is all of free Grace from first to last, and not in any measure or degree a matter of debt and reward. Salvation is not a thing to be earned and to be won by men, but is the result and exercise of the free Grace of God.
C. H. MACKINTOSH (1820-1896): The Lord loveth a cheerful giver, because that is precisely what He is Himself.
C. H. SPURGEON: The Lord is the most cheerful of all givers! Think of that for a minute. Who spared not His own Son? Oh, what a Gift was that! God, the cheerful Giver, spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, as says the Word. And since then, what a cheerful Giver He has been! He has given without our asking. We did not ask Him to make the Covenant of Grace. We did not ask Him to elect us. We did not ask Him to redeem us. We did not ask Him to call us by His Grace, for, alas, we did not know the value of that call, and we were dead in trespasses and sins! Preeminent Grace came to us, outrunning all our desires, and all our wills, and all our prayers. He first made us pray. He gave us the spirit of supplication, or else we had never prayed! He gave us the will to come to Him, or else we should have remained afar off. He was a cheerful Giver to us, then. And when we went to Him with broken hearts, how cheerfully did He give us pardon!
C. H. MACKINTOSH: Marvellous grace! The very thought of it fills the heart with wonder, love and praise.
C. H. SPURGEON: Never is anything in God stinted, never churlish, never grudging—God stands in the work of Grace as a wondrous Giver.
C. H. MACKINTOSH: And He would grant unto us the rare and most exquisite privilege of being imitators of Him. We are not only saved by grace, but we stand in grace, live under the blessed reign of grace, breathe the very atmosphere of grace, and are called to be the living exponents of grace, not only to our brethren, but to the whole human family. “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all, especially unto them which are of the household of faith,” Galatians 6:10.
C. H. SPURGEON: God delights in a cheerful giver because in such a Believer He sees the work of His Spirit.
H. A. IRONSIDE (1876-1951): Notice the state of the heart that God takes into account when it comes to giving. “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart.”
THOMAS GOODWIN (1600-1679): This belongeth to the argument, why we should imitate God.
C. H. MACKINTOSH: An open heart and a wide hand are like God.
H. A. IRONSIDE: Twice in 1 John chapter 4, we have that wonderful statement, “God is love.” This is the divine nature, the very nature of God.
C. H. SPURGEON: He gave to us freely of His unsought but boundless love.
THOMAS COKE (1747-1814): A genuine principle of love makes a cheerful giver. God loveth a cheerful giver, and His love is the greatest of blessings.
MATTHEW HENRY (1662-1714): Let the heart go along with the gift. “Though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor—and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing,” 1 Corinthians 13:3. Not what is meant by ‘charity’ in our common use of the word, which most men understand of alms-giving, but love in its fullest and most extensive meaning—true love to God and man, a benevolent disposition of mind towards our fellow Christians, growing out of sincere and fervent devotion to God.
JOHN GILL (1697-1771): Great are the advantages and profit that a cheerful giver reaps.
THOMAS COKE: God is able abundantly to recompense you, both in spiritual graces, and worldly goods; so that you shall still have an abundant sufficiency through His good providence, and be enabled to abound in every good work, never finding yourselves the poorer for what is spent in His blessed service.
A. W. PINK (1886-1952): First, there is an inward benefit. The one who shows mercy to others gains thereby: “The merciful man doeth good to his own soul,” Proverbs 11:17. There is a personal satisfaction in the exercise of pity and benevolence, which the fullest gratification of the selfish man is not to be compared with: “He that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he,” Proverbs 14:21. Second, he reaps mercy at the hands of his fellows: the overruling providence of God causes him to be dealt with mercifully by others. Third, he receives mercy from God: “with the merciful Thou wilt show Thyself merciful,” Psalm 18:25.
G. CAMPBELL MORGAN (1863-1945): Paul then recites the advantages of giving. The first of these is that giving will fill the wants of the saints. That in itself is good, but the outcome is even better. Through such ministry, gifts will cause glory to God.
MATTHEW HENRY: This would redound to the praise and glory of God. Many thanksgivings would be given to God—those would bless God, who had made them happy instruments in so good a work. Besides those, others also would be thankful; the poor, who were supplied in their wants, would not fail to be very thankful to God, and bless God for them.
MATTHEW POOLE (1624-1679): Another way by which the glory of God will be promoted, that by this He will have more prayers, which also will redound to your advantage, for it will procure prayers for you; and not prayers only, but a great deal of fervent love; so as they will long after your good, and after your acquaintance, when they shall receive such an experiment of the exceeding grace of God in you.
JOHN GILL: The sense is, they glorify God on your behalf, making mention of you in all their prayers at the throne of grace, giving thanks to God for your liberality to them, and imploring all the blessings both of the upper and nether springs upon you.
H. A. IRONSIDE: “God loveth a cheerful giver.” The original word in the Greek is hilaron, and may be translated “hilarious.” God loves a hilarious giver.
VERNON J. CHARLESWORTH (1839-1915): Once, at a public charity, a note was handed to Roland Hill in the pulpit, inquiring “would it be right for a bankrupt man to contribute to the collection?”
ROWLAND HILL (1744-1833): Certainly not! But, my friends, I would advise you who are not insolvent not to pass the plate this evening, as people will be sure to say, “There goes the bankrupt man.”
MARTIN LUTHER (1483-1546): If you’re not allowed to laugh in heaven, I don’t want to go there.
