Givers

        “I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or clothes. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my own needs and to the men who were with me. In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:33-35).

        As the apostle Paul says his final goodbyes to the elders of the church in Ephesus, he highlights how he had ministered among them. He wasn’t motivated by greed or financial gain. He worked hard. This commitment was evidenced by his willingness to support himself when necessary. Paul reveals that his sacrificial attitude was prompted by something he had heard from the Lord Jesus Himself: “It is more blessed to give than receive.” These were not empty words on the part of the Messiah. He Himself lived a life full of giving.

        He gave up the riches of heaven to come to earth. “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).

        He gave up the comforts of earthly life. “Jesus *said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head”” (Matthew 8:20).

        He gave up equality with God. “...who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:6-7).

        He gave His life. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

        Jesus Christ was a giver. Those who claim to follow Him will seek to be givers as well.

God loves you! Mike