#101 – Abounding Grace

ABOUNDING GRACE

2 Cor. 9:8 “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.”

Paul is challenging the church at Corinth to give. One of the gifts he speaks of is the offering for the poor saints in Jerusalem. He took a special offering from the Gentiles to the Jewish saints in Jerusalem who had fallen on hard times. But Paul does not just write about the specific offering for the poor saints in Chapters 8-10, there are verses where he deals with giving in general. The principle of giving is dealt with in Chapter 9:6-7 (not the tithe. Giving is in addition to the tithe). Paul teaches that giving is possible because giving is a GRACE (8:1,7) and grace is a gift of enablement from the Lord. What God gives, the saints must trust Him for. Therefore, there is a claim made by Paul in our text that solicits faith on the part of the readers. We will discover that the claim made by Paul goes beyond giving, to the whole of the Christian life. We will look at this verse and as we do, I want to point out four things that seem to be what Paul is saying. First we see,

THE ENCOURAGEMENT TO BELIEVE

Paul says, “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you . . .” The “And” translates “de” and is a continuative conjunction that links what Paul claims here to the words, “He that soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully,” and, “Every man as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give, “ and, “God loveth a cheerful giver.” When people who are having it tough financially, are challenged to give, the natural response is to say, “Hey, I’d love to do it, but we have a hard time paying our bills.” That is an understandable response. It is a response that even the more affluent will say when they reach a certain point in giving. Paul is saying that the answer to that is not RATIONALISM but FAITH. If God is able to make all grace abound toward you, then it is not a matter of our ability but HIS.

The words “God is able” mean that God is strong. His strength is unlimited. We have an all powerful God and He will be as active in our lives as we are willing to believe. Without faith it is impossible to please Him. Faith is that by which we walk. It is the breath and heartbeat of the Christian’s life. God is honored when we trust Him and will bless the one who trusts. When we quit believing, we cease to be actively engaged in God’s kingdom work and operate only in the world in which unsaved people live.

I have a book called YOUR GOD IS TOO SMALL BY J. B. Phillips. The very title of the book is a rebuke to most of us. If what we do is determined by God’s power and His power is appropriated by faith, then if the work is not being done, it has to be because the Christian does not believe God is big enough or faithful enough to trust. Next lets look at,

THE EXTENT OF PAUL’S CLAIM

The words “to make all grace abound” translates “perisseuo” and means, “to exceed a fixed number or measure, to be left over and above a certain number or measure.”

The word “grace” is used in chapter 8 and verse 1 to explain the generous giving of the poverty stricken churches in Macedonia. God in His grace had enabled them to do what they could not have done otherwise. Most of us are familiar with the definition of grace that says it is the unmerited favor of God. That is a good definition. If this definition holds true as it applies to the giving in the churches of Macedonia, then it means that God took a group of sinners saved by the grace of God, who were also very imperfect and did not deserve to be used in any special way, but used them anyway because they did dare to believe that He was big enough to enable them, and He could be trusted to do it. Now that is a good statement even if I did make it!

God’s grace in any area of God’s supply, and our need, makes Him available to us no matter how unworthy we feel.