2Co 8:9-11 “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich. And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago. Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.”
There are people in this world that will readily make fun of you for having a “make-believe friend” to help you with life. They consider Him “make-believe” because He is not seen by the human eye. He will continue to be make-believe to them until it pleases the Father to reveal His Son in them. We walk by faith and not sight.
We should give God thanks every day that we can say we know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. His grace is amazing when we consider what He had done for us. It is even more amazing when we are blessed to understand what He gave up in order to show us this grace. He is our supreme example of giving for the good of those He has called and set apart to His service.
Our Lord was in the beginning with God, and He was God. There was nothing made without Him. As part of the Godhead, He owns the cattle of a thousand hills. All the gold of Ophir is His. The whole of creation and the halls of glory belong to Him.
In His grace and love for us, He put all that aside. He made of Himself no reputation. There was no home here for him to claim; no place for Him to lay His head. He who literally owns everything impoverished Himself that we might be rich.
His sacrifice in leaving Heaven’s glory was for us. He entered this world as a baby instead of appearing as the conquering King He was. He grew into adulthood as a mortal man. He was beaten, mocked, and despised for us; crucified for us; forsaken on the cross for us; tasted death for us. He did all of this that we who were condemned to be without God and without hope in the world should find ourselves adopted into the family of God and abounding in hope.
Paul’s recommendation to us as the church is necessary. When we first realize the everlasting riches that are ours because Jesus impoverished Himself to make it so, we are ready to give ourselves in His service with great zeal. However, it is not enough to just begin: we must also carry through because we know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It is wonderful to be willing and able to minister to the Lord’s people. It was wonderful that Jesus was willing and able, but where would we be if He had failed to perform that for which He was willing and able? We must take our willingness and our ability (which come from the grace of God) and do those things that we are willing and able to do. He has given us all we need to perform those things: we do it out of that which we have.
May we always honor Him by using that which we have been given to the honor of the great Giver!
