I do not say this as a command, but I am testing the genuineness of your love against the earnestness of others. (2 Corinthians 8:8)
Paul starts off 2
Corinthians, Chapter 8 by praising the churches of Macedonia. He sees their struggle that they have been
suffering. Yet in their suffering, they
found the ability to be generous, and serve their community, meeting the needs
of those who are suffering.
Paul calls to all of
us, not in a commandment, but in the genuineness of love, to be reminded of
that generosity and emulate it in our community. However, what does it mean to be generous?
What I gain most from
this passage is that our generosity should come from love. Just as Christ’s love for us led to the
generosity of his sacrifice, it is our love and compassion for our community
that should influence our generosity in giving and serving. We are not commanded to be generous, instead
we are generous as a result of our love.
As we continue
through Advent in preparation for the birth of Jesus Christ, we are reminded
that this generous gift was given to us through the love God had for God’s
people. Walking in the same path of love, we must continue to evaluate our ways
of being generous.
Generosity isn’t expressed
solely in the giving of monetary gifts, but in our time and talent as well. Regardless
of our ability to be generous, we are reminded by Paul that we are all called
to love our neighbors and give generously too them.
God of love, continue to walk with us. Open our eyes and hearts to the ways in which
we can continually serve you in our generosity to others. Amen.
Kristen Kelly leads
the Interwoven intergenerational program at Allegheny Evangelical Lutheran
Church, Mohnton, Pa.
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