What happens to your facial expression when you hear the word “giving”? Do you smile as you think of what your giving expresses to God and what it means to His mission? Or do you get that uncomfortable feeling like when you realize you missed your dental appointment?
Some of you know the joy of giving and the satisfaction of sacrificial generosity, both toward God and those in need. But inevitably others will recognize that the way they use their money doesn’t honour God. In his letters to the Corinthians, Paul gives four corrections that can help when you feel guilty about your giving.
1. Focus on your attitude in giving
Churches often get this wrong, so it’s not surprising that individual Christians do also. Giving in God’s eyes is fundamentally about the heart. Paul was collecting money for believers in Jerusalem who were experiencing severe financial need. He knew that there was a lot at stake. And yet he took great pains to ensure the right attitude in those who gave. He urged that the collection take place before he arrived (1 Corinthians 16:2) “so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction” (2 Corinthians 9:5).
He says that “each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion” and then he adds that “God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7). If you’re giving to look good or not look cheap, then you may just be making an investment in your spiritual public relations. That kind of giving has little to do with God and will give you none of the joy of genuine generosity.
Take some time alone with God and plan your contributions as an act of faith and love. Your heart matters to God, and He wants your giving to reflect it.
2. Don’t tell yourself that you’ll give when you have some left over
Many people struggle with their finances. Many of us have never been taught healthy financial disciplines, and we live in a culture where the desire for more and the allure of easy credit trap many. It’s easy to assume that giving is for people who have extra money on hand. But what if some of our financial headaches are actually connected to us not giving God authority over our finances in the first place? What if giving God our leftovers is actually a symptom of an unhealthy view of money, not just a consequence of it?
Paul describes the Macedonia churches as experiencing “a severe test of affliction” (2 Corinthians 8:2). Facing such a terrible trial, it would have been easy for them to be consumed with their own problems. But Paul says: “Their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord” (2 Corinthians 8:2-3).
Despite their extreme poverty, their joy in Christ moved them to give sacrificially. Giving isn’t for people with leftover money. In fact, studies have shown that people with less are often more likely to give. Getting our giving right is often the first step in getting our finances right.
3. Treat giving as a gift in response to the Gift
Describing the Macedonians, Paul said that they were “begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints” (2 Corinthians 8:4). It’s surprising to hear people begging to give away their money. But the rest of the verse explains why. It says that they were begging “for the favor of taking part.” Other Bible translations render it “the privilege of sharing.”
The word “favor” or “privilege” is from a Greek word that’s often translated “grace.” In fact, Paul uses this same word repeatedly to describe their giving. He speaks of “the grace of God” (2 Corinthians 8:1; 9:14) and “this act of grace” (2 Corinthians 8:6, 7). Then he says, “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 by his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). Paul points them to Jesus, who left the riches of heaven and forsook the riches of this world to make us spiritually rich. Every offering we make is a response to the infinitely greater gift that Jesus first gave us. That changes why we give.
4. Believe that God blesses those who give
Everything that we have ultimately comes from God. And Jesus’ gift of life involved a greater sacrifice than we could ever return. So it’s hard to fathom why God would respond to our gifts with His blessings, but remarkably, He promises to do so. After warning that “whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6), Paul promises that “God is able to make all grace abound to you” (2 Corinthians 9:8) and He will “supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness” (2 Corinthians 9:10). Obviously, the promise isn’t about getting rich, but it does describe real blessing. That blessing comes when we honour God with our finances and give generously as an expression of our faith. When we give, He notices, and He responds.
Have you ever sat down in prayer and planned your giving as an expression of your love for God? Do you put God first in your finances, or do you give Him the leftovers? Is giving a privilege to you? Do you give in response to Jesus’ greater gift? Or is it just a habit or an obligation? Let’s lay hold of the grace of giving and the blessing that God promises to those who are generous.
In awe of Him,
Paul
Originally published: February 17, 2021. Revised: November 4, 2026.
