When I was a kid I was part of a boy’s club called Royal Rangers. Think, Boy Scouts meets Jesus. One of the things the leaders of this club taught us was what they called the Royal Ranger Motto. Every time a leader would yell “What’s the Royal Ranger motto?” We would yell at the top of our lungs, “Ready. Ready to work, play, serve, worship, live and obey God’s Word.”
Whenever I read 2 Corinthians 9:1 – 5 I think of that motto and I think it’s the basic message of what Paul is saying.
2 Corinthians 9:1 – 5…
1 Now it is superfluous for me to write to you about the ministry for the saints, 2 for I know your readiness, of which I boast about you to the people of Macedonia, saying that Achaia has been ready since last year. And your zeal has stirred up most of them. 3 But I am sending the brothers so that our boasting about you may not prove empty in this matter, so that you may be ready, as I said you would be. 4 Otherwise, if some Macedonians come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident. 5 So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the gift you have promised, so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction.
In this passage the apostle Paul is preparing to come to the church at Corinth and collect a financial offering that was promised by the Corinthian church for the purpose of bringing relief to other churches that were experiencing the hardship of a crumbling economy during tumultuous times in the churches history. Paul is attempting to motivate the Corinthian church to follow through on their promise to give. As we examine these verses we learn that God calls us to be people who are ready to give.
- If you are a person who is ready to give you won’t need to be reminded to give. Paul says it’s not necessary for him to write to the Corinthians about their giving because he knows they are ready to give. Part of being a Christian is becoming the kind of person that is ready to give.
- If you are a person who is ready to give your readiness will motivate others to give too. Paul says he knows the Corinthian church has been ready to give for over a year. He is so proud of this church that he actually brags to other churches about them, which motivates other churches to become generous too. Giving is not a competition. But when we do give we model generosity and encourage others to follow Christ in the same generous way we do.
- If you are a person who is ready to give you’ll be serious about your financial commitments. Paul says he’s writing the Corinthians about their giving because he wants them to take their financial commitments seriously. Paul is sending men to collect the offering and he doesn’t want to be caught boasting in empty promises. He doesn’t want the Corinthians to be humiliated by a lack of readiness. He doesn’t want other Christians to be discouraged by a lack of giving. He wanted everything to be in order to prove that the Corinthians were ready to give as they had promised. As a Christian it’s important to take my financial commitments seriously. I must not make empty promises and I should be an example of generosity.
- If you are a person who is ready to give you’ll give willingly not begrudgingly. In verse 5 Paul says that our financial gifts must “be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction.” Paul didn’t want there to be any coercion. Paul didn’t want there to be any twisting of arms. Paul didn’t equate “readiness” with being forced or manipulated into giving. My ability to be ready to give is directly related to my willingness in giving.
In summary: I think God calls us to be ready to give. If we are people who are ready to give then we won’t need to be reminded to give. Our readiness to give will motivate others to give. We will take our financial commitments seriously. And we will give willingly rather than begrudgingly.