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You You You You You You You You You You You You You You You You You You You You All right great singing this evening At this time I'm going to go through our announcements if you do not have a bulletin Just slip your hand up real high and we'll make sure that we get one out to you If you open up to the first page You'll see our service times listed there Sunday morning at 1030 Sunday evening again at 5 p.m Wednesday night 7 is our Bible study We have the soul-winning opportunities listed there as well as the salvations And the baptisms for month of January as well as for the year, of course, it's the same number Then down at the bottom of page. We got the offering totals received through the month of January. Let's go ahead It looks like there's a good day out so winning on Sunday and some other souls that were saved earlier In the week, so praise the lord for that if there's any numbers to report for this week so far I've been reported just step up your hand. Yes, sir Monday amen. All right To on Monday, amen, that's cool. Very good anyone else? Excellent. Keep up the good work preaching gospel Let's continue on here for the prayer requests And I have to apologize Logan family I didn't get a picture in time of the the baby to be able to put it in the bulletin while the baby announcement For the next week's bulletin, but Praise the Lord for baby Hannah and the safe delivery and and mom baby are still doing well I assume they're doing good last week. So And and we've been providing meals. I think have you gotten are you good with food you've been taken care of Amen, amen, and if anyone still would like to help the Logan family by providing meal, of course, you can do that I believe my wife has been Helping to coordinate those meals and the deliveries but very happy to see the Logan family here with us and that the That baby Hannah is doing really well total answer to prayer also saw an update on maverick who was born prematurely So I saw in the what's that group? It looks like everything just appears to be just fine with him and he's still home and there's no Any signs any obvious signs at least of any type of damage any type of damage to his brain? So that is also a huge blessing We'll continue to pray for him But that is good news and I just I got a chance to talk to my neighbor Literally, we're getting in the car and I saw him and I went over and talked to him about Henry Who was that two-year-old has cancer and he is supposed to be getting an MRI done I think I forget what date but like in like a week to determine if he even needs to receive any more chemo So he already had the surgery removed the big tumors that he had He still has some tumors But the doctors think that his body will actually now that a size where his body can attack and and deal with what's left over Obviously be monitoring it but that would be very good news. They're very hopeful that he might not need to receive any more Chemotherapy treatment. So that's another another win. That's great so far. He's not you know, he's definitely not Completely healed but but he's doing well. He said he after a surgery like You know, you can't even tell he had pneumonia because it's you know immune systems kind of compromised when you go through a chemotherapy It really doesn't number to your immune system But he went into the hospital then the next day he was released and he said you couldn't even tell that he was in the Hospital at all. He's just bounced right back. So Praise God for that extra healing for him too and appreciate all the prayers. I Don't have does anyone have any other updates for the people who are still on this list? Yes, sir I Man all right So far so good preliminary checks tests look good and you know, it's gonna be another little girl I'm sorry According to blood test. All right Hey, it's not so bad girls are great, right I started off my first three were girls and They're a blessing. So praise the Lord for that. That's awesome. And You're definitely outnumbered though You have to work hard in the future to see if you get get that testosterone level back up in the household But you know what? Praise the Lord for whatever it gives you and praise the Lord for another daughter. That's great exciting news to hear Let's see any other anyone else have any updates on people who are on the prayer list right now Oh Yeah, brother Wilson friend Okay, that's good to hear Okay, okay, but the surgery went Went well, so that's good to know. So and Andy shaper who's been our list here that he had a heart surgery surgery went well So we're happy to hear about that, but he's still I mean the most important thing right now Now that buys them time physically, right? Hopefully or you know, definitely for who knows how long but the the salvation is very very important So obviously we pray for that and then let's see churches and pastor. I've paid for Baptist Church Just been a while since we've added them to list and prayed for them Nothing in particular that I'm aware of going on over there Just pray that God will bless the church and ministry and everything else are doing. I also just want to make a correction I misspoke I think it was like a week ago Sunday or something last time I brought up any news about Steadfast Baptist Church they did not They did not get the building that they were looking to get so it's not completely out of question But they just they're having issues with people with the financing now Just because of all the turmoil and everything that's going on and lawsuits and things like that. There's a risk associated with Giving the loan out to be able to purchase but they have a property they want to get everything looks great on it And now it's a matter of working out the financing so that's where they're at With with that so pray for them pray pray that things will go. Well, I did get a chance to talk to Pastor Shelley Over the weekend, so I got a little bit of an update on that and as a church we're going to be Sending another another offering for their church and for just to help them try to secure a place. It's not easy They've been you know going from different hotels different hotels to meet as a church and somehow these sodomites are still like they're like They're just relentlessly Chasing them down in harassing and harassing the hotels where they have the meetings and everything else So they're just they're just making it really difficult For them to be able to meet it's I mean they just they just will not stop They are implacable like Romans 1 says I mean, you know when the Bible gives these list of attributes and characteristics It's it's true. It's it's the truth. This is these are the things that that they are and It's only gonna get worse the more bold they get the more the more they can the more they could get away with in Society they will get it They will go after and push that envelope and continue to push that envelope that that's just who they are. It's a fact Okay, they're not gonna get any better, you know, you give you give them an inch you're gonna take a mile Okay, and then they're gonna keep taking and taking taking and you're gonna be like whoa, hold on it well, then it gets too late, so It's the way they operate but pray for them pray for the church that visit to Wash you went great It's awesome get a chance to see your foundation Baptist Church and the flesh It's been a long time since I've been out there past times It's come out here a couple times and come to our camp and stuff But it's first time being able to get a chance to go out there great church great people They got really interesting location. It's it's in an old bank building. So they actually have a vault Like this, it's super cool doors open and you can like see It was this massive vault door because it was part of a bank They don't they don't use it for for that or anything, but it's just neat to to see that like oh, man I'd be nervous that like some kid or something would just get in there and door shut and whatever but They've got they've got it handled. Well, I just It's a cool place great trip went out. So winning with them on Sunday afternoon Salsa, it's all man. There's always something there's always some stories to tell I Didn't know what I'm thinking like just super liberal because of the area and everything and We ran into two people who were actually saved one of the guys had a Sign on his on his window and you never know what you need a sign Do you think it like Norma? I'm just thinking like it's always the the no soliciting. We found Jesus We don't want you here, you know all that type of stuff This one said no vaccine solicitations or something like that or something to that effect. I've got a picture of it and I Was like that's amazing. I never see a sign like that and That was one of the doors where the guy was already saved So I was just like hey, I really like your sign here is cool It's like yeah, I'm sick of these guys trying to push the vaccine, you know like amen Like hey, you should go to this church, I think you'd really like it But um, that was cool. This is a great trip real successful and it's nice to be back here and On the next page will continue on January's Bible reading challenge. So hopefully you are who's who's doing well and and and is you know kind of Where you think you ought to be? I See a few less hands that I did last week But that's alright. We're halfway through the month. Remember that we're halfway through the month Okay, you had to you have two days that that are these, you know Kind of lenient days if you're doing nine chapters a day If you're in and here's the thing too. If you're past the Gospels and like acts It's actually a lot easier from here on out. You still have some long chapters There are some mixed in there, but overall the books the chapters get shorter So if you're if you're behind you're going man, I don't know if I could do this you can You know, you've got you got Romans The chapters are not that long. Generally speaking. You can get through Romans really quickly first Corinthians Also, except for like chapter 15, you know, 15 is a long chapter but but overall they're they're 20 to 30 verses, you know, not not that long and Then you should be in second Corinthians, you know near the end of second Corinthians if you're if you're following The You know if you've took no extra days and whatever so stay with it, you know, even if you've you've fallen behind a little bit Add the extra chapter a day if you can splitting it up has worked out great for me personally, you know It's it's getting your five chapters done in the morning and then another four chapters done later on in the day really really helps to get the job done and And Yeah, stick with it, but it's a it's a great great challenge. So Let's get you out of your Savannah, Georgia. So learning marathon is Saturday January 20. Is that this Saturday already? It is that is this Saturday this Saturday Unfortunately, I'm not gonna be able to make it to this so learning event but You are invited to come and that starts at 10 a.m. And ends at 4 30 Lunch is there right in the middle of the day. They are providing lunch and I have on here, please Email Robert gray if you plan on attending. I already gave him a number of those who raised their hands Previously, but just to make sure it's you know, it's very clear, you know So you'd expect or whatever if you could it's very helpful for the organizer to just get that And he might ask you, you know, if you can do talking or like I'm not sure exactly how he's organizing it But I know I like asking questions like that in advance to be prepared for that. So We'll pray know and those of you that are going and not going to pray that this is a great success That's Saturday. That's the winning event and that many people get saved and that many People also learning if they don't know how to give the gospel you don't know how many people be showing up from these other churches, but that that we could be a blessing to them and go Expecting to have a blessing come your way, too So you get try to get paired up with people from from other churches and see if you can learn anything From other people being you know, given a gospel as well. So All right continuing on here ministry luncheon schedule so I Wanted to make sure I got this posted anyone who is either involved and want to continue being involved or is interested in Participating in any one of these roles that I have listed here You're invited to come to a luncheon with me where I'm going to be going over all the details of what these Ministries these jobs entail and what's going to be expected of you? What's the direction moving forward so that we're all on the same page? And you are also welcome to be able to attend more than one of these If you would like to be involved in more than one thing that is fine also But we need to just I just need to know how we could plan that for for example Maybe you want to be involved in the music ministry and maybe you also want to be involved as an usher or in the sound Or in soloing or whatever any of these other things we can do that and we could we could try to accommodate that But we do have a need For Pete more people get involved and I'll tell you right now One of the easiest teams is going to be that that security team. There's not much investment that's going to be needed there Other than you're gonna know that you're gonna be responsible for you things I'm just gonna have people kind of doing some checks and scans of the park a lot and just making sure our area is safe And overall though, there's not gonna be much of anything else required than that But that one is gonna be for the men. Okay, you call me sexist all day long. I don't care My requirements this church you have to be a man and you know It's gonna be the same way with with some of these other jobs as well. Not necessarily all of them, but We could go over those details. So you want to come out. We're going to talk this over lunch. They're all on Sundays So you're welcome to to join me and we'll go and make sure that we hammer out all the details for these things moving forward And then down at the bottom of page we are still in Hebrews chapter 6 for memory passage If you could quote all of that chapter word perfect without making mistakes, you'll earn a prize for that and then on the back we've got our Birthdays and Anniversaries for the month of January today is the 18th. Today is a birthday. Mrs. Michael has a birthday today So that's exciting. We're having a great day It's good to see you in church on your birthday always happy to see that and of course It's not just for the kids the adults too. If you want to get an ice cream of your choice After service you can help yourself. I recommend going into that deep freezer. You have better options The only problem is that ice machine needs to be moved now It won't be like that for too long as soon as we finish up our whole area here We won't have to worry about moving the ice machine because we actually have space to kind of spread out a little bit and get everything Organized unfortunately, we're not there yet So tonight you want to get in that deep freeze you got to move the ice maker out of the way But you are welcome to that and we're gonna sing a happy birthday to mrs. Michael and now moving forward I've decided this for starting starting now and going forward when we sing happy birthday instead of saying names because sometimes you never know Like like what to say. Maybe when I say happy birthday. Mrs. Michael happy, you know, we're just gonna say happy birthday God bless you. Okay, that's what they do a lot of other churches. Anyways, I think it's good It makes a lot easier. Everyone's on the same page and we don't have to worry about how do you Sing to and then if we have more than one person and it's their birthday Especially then it's easier just to say god bless you. So that's we're gonna do Alright, let's sing happy birthday to mrs. Michael Happy birthday to you Happy birthday to you Happy birthday God bless you Happy birthday to you Very good, and then we got the rest of the birthdays listed there for the month of June We got quite a few still coming up this month upcoming events We've got the next homeschool field trip is February 10th our Scheduled sewing marathon is going to be on February 11th That is going to be relatively local to the church and then in March. There's the next generation youth rally At very Baptist Church and then the camping trip I need to get a sign-up sheet out for that and I'm going to ask that you please please please sign up as early As possible because I need I already have people asking now as as we continue out in the years More and more people are asking about coming to this event So I'm gonna need to know who's planning on attending from our church because our church will always get first dibs Always get first choice on being able to attend but if there are spots available, we want them all filled. I want every single Camp every single cottage everything that we've reserved to be able to be given out So as soon as you possibly can sign up On Sunday, I'll have a sheet for you to sign up I'm also gonna be interested in getting volunteers as well for the camp Can't the last year's camp was the best one ever We've had more involvement more people, you know, the more we have people getting involved the better it is. So We've learned some things from last time I'm gonna make things slightly different this time, especially with the volunteer help and everything but I Would like more the more people get involved the better it's going to be and I don't want anyone being stretched thin It's nice when everybody can enjoy themselves, you know when you sign up and organize an activity it's work for the people doing that So I don't want to necessarily to have the same people just working like every day of the week Obviously if you want to do that, that's great But it's nice for everyone to have time to also relax and enjoy and let someone else take the lead So if we all kind of chip in and people want to volunteer and step up and put on there Maybe I put on the the sign-up sheet if you're just willing to volunteer and you don't even know what you would do That's fine, too. I'll put on there. Just if you just need some direction and would like to know Hey, what can I do to help? I'll have a spot for that as well or if you have other ideas like last year we had mrs. Masler did organize some games for little kids Mrs. Rogers and brother Devin did some other games for kids and stuff So they were able to have their own ideas. You can also put that down as well Really looking forward to it could be a great great great time. It's one of our best events of the year So, please sign up for that as soon as you can and then finally the building man I really wish things would just get moving on this progress is getting done. You can see it's getting done Who knows when it'll be done But I am moving forward on another project and that's to get these walls a little bit more beautified okay, and I got this great idea last time I was here in church a week ago and There is a new product available That I think I'm going to move forward with and I'm talking to people about it already But I'm going to be asking for a little bit of help for those of you that want to help it So I'm throwing the idea out there right now It is possible nowadays to print designs or images on wallpaper And it's really cool. And what I want to do is is Have this whole wall wallpapered With a design with artwork So instead of having to get someone in here to say paint a mural We can grab an image anyone's good with image work We could get it from anywhere as long as it's going to be a good quality to be able to blow it up Here, so it's not like real highly pixelated or anything like that But I want I already have a good idea of what I want here because I'm moving to pulpit this way We have this corner right here But the wallpaper is going to make it look kind of seamless for everyone looking so it's going to be a To be helpful for that and then we're also going to be putting it up in like mother baby rooms as well So themes be thinking about themes of what might work Especially those mother baby rooms maybe like a Noah's Ark type of a theme or anything like that Anything like kind of kid style to make it look real nice in there and the reason why we're gonna do a lot more than just as one wall is because we got to buy like 50 yards of it. So it's 150 feet and This wall is not 150 feet so we're gonna be using it and and then we'll probably just even keep some left over we could I mean we could Do whatever it's a cool idea. So That's what I'm planning if you've got some my thoughts and ideas for that feel free The best way to let me know about that is going to be to email me I'm not moving super fast on this, but I'll collect the ideas and then I could talk to you about it When I'm ready to go through all of those and see kind of what you think and ultimately obviously I'll just make a final decision on what we're going to do but Getting getting creativity is is helpful And I know there's a lot of people here who are creative in general You have talents and abilities to think about things like that way better than I am. So I'm happy to hear anything that you have idea wise for that. All right, that's it for the announcements I don't want to eat up any more my time for Peter coming up here, please and lead us our next song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Song 310 Songenario 2nd Corinthians 9 Song 310 And as we do customary here in Stromo Baptist Church, we're going to read the entire chapter. I'd like to ask Brother Jesse if he can please do that for us. For as touching the ministering to the saints is superfluous for me to write to you, for I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaea was ready a year ago, and your zeal hath provoked very many. Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf, that as I said, ye may be ready. Lest happily, if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we, that we say not ye, should be ashamed in the same confident boasting. Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had no this before, that the same might be ready as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness. But this I say, he which soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparingly, and he which soweth bountifully, shall reap also bountifully. Every man, according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly, or of necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work. As it is written, he hath dispersed abroad, he hath given to the poor, his righteousness remaineth for ever. Now he that ministerth seed to the sower, both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruit of your righteousness. Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God. For the administration of this service not only supplieth the wand of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God. Whilst by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them and unto all men. And by their prayer for you, which long after you, for the exceeding grace of God in you, thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift. All right, II Corinthians 9. Hey, if you've been coming to church on Wednesday nights, at least for the past three weeks, because we've been in the month of January, if you've fallen a little bit behind on your Bible reading, you know, if you're following along while we read the chapter, you've got chapter 9, chapter 8, chapter 7, right? They're already read, if you follow along. So you're doing well there. You can get to, if you're behind, you get to chapter 6 and then just jump straight to chapter 10. Or you could wait until next week, because next week is still going to be part of January, and you could just go right on to chapter 11. That, you know, little bit of help there. You've got a few chapters, and, you know, stick with it on the Sunday. Who knows what I'm going to be preaching from on Sunday, but, you know, don't forget about those chapters being read as well. All right, let's dig into this chapter here. In chapter number 9, it's a continuation. I mentioned this last week when we were going through chapter 8, and this kind of continues the same theme. And it's talking about giving, okay? And giving is a part of the Christian life. Giving is something we ought to be generous, we ought to be not stingy, and not covetous, and being free and liberal with what God has blessed us with. Obviously, we all have our own needs that need to be met, and we all have things that need to be taken care of within our own homes and everything else. And that needs to be a priority to make sure that your own house is in order. But we also ought to be very generous, very free, and giving with our money, and being able to bless people. We're going to see this and how this is taught continuing on in chapter 9. So let's look at verse number 1, by the way, it's for as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you. For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achiah was ready a year ago, and your zeal hath provoked very many. So he's already complimenting them, saying, look, touching the ministering to the saints, giving to them, being able to support the saints. He's like, I don't even really need to write unto you, it's superfluous, it's just extra, I don't really need to tell you about this. Because I already know the forwardness of your mind, I know that you want to do this, I know that your heart's in it. And he's like, I even boasted of you to the people of Macedonia. I was already talking great things about you and your willingness and your desire to help and everything else. I've been boasting to you of Macedonia, and he says that Achiah was ready a year ago. You guys have already been ready a year ago, and it says, and your zeal hath provoked very many. And that is a true statement too, zeal rubs up on people. When people are zealous for serving the Lord, in many capacities. Now, in this case it's giving, but it could be in other ways that you have a zeal toward God, it becomes infectious. But the same way that fear can become infectious as well. When people are afraid and don't want to do something, it can also have an impact on other people, but you know what? Zeal also has an effect, a positive impact, obviously, to kind of stir each other up and exhort and help other people to be provoked to then get involved themselves. And that's why I like highlighting victories and wins. When people are doing a lot of extra work and stuff, or whatever the case may be, highlighting zeal in someone. Because when you see a brother or sister in Christ that's doing something great, it's like, you know what? Why don't you do that too, right? Why don't I do that too? And hopefully I could challenge you and help you to just be like, you know what, hey, if they're doing it, why can't I do it? And it's not just coming from like one person. He's highlighting and boasting of the Church of Corinth to those in Macedonia. He's not talking about his own works and his own, you know, that he's done all this and that. Because people could say, well, of course, it's Apostle Paul, of course he's just sold, I mean, that guy's just amazing or whatever. But when you start hearing about just, you know, we'll call them common folk, right? Not the superstar, but just other people, other congregations, you know, hey man, they all banded together, they're doing this great work. They have this zeal, and then that provokes other people too. When you start just seeing your average person, your average church member, I mean, that's one of the things I love about our church is because our average church member is actually very zealous for serving the Lord. Our average church member is reading the Bible every day. Our average church member is praying, is coming to church, is faithful, you know, is striving to improve and loves the Lord. You know, like that's great. And that's what we want to see, and that's what's going to help spark zeal in other people as well. And we see this happening here. Now, he talks about this a few times. You know, he says Achaea was already a year ago. What does that mean to be an Achaea? Well, in the chapter before, in chapter 8, verse 10, he also mentioned this about being forward a year ago. Look at verse number 10, the Bible says, 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. So, he was, and if you remember from last week, he was just saying how, you know, talking about the giving, and saying, I know you were willing and ready a year ago, now it's ready, now it's time to do it. And he brings us up again here in verse number 2, hey, Achaea was ready a year ago. And then he even opens up this chapter, just so you understand, Achaea is similar to like what Macedonia is. Achaea is an area, it's a region. Just like Macedonia is a region. So, if you remember from last week, I was teaching that Philippi is a city in Macedonia. Well, similarly, Corinth is a city in Achaea, in that region. Okay, and both of these regions are like in modern day Greece, is where they're actually located. And we even see at the beginning of 2 Corinthians chapter 1, the very first verse, who the letter is directed to, the Bible says, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy, our brother, unto the church of God, which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaea. So, the letter is directed to the church at Corinth, but then it's also including all the saints in all Achaea, like in that whole greater region. It would be like a letter being written to the church in Norcross with all the saints in all Georgia. Right? I mean, something to that effect. Like, okay, I'm writing it to you, and then you could just distribute it to all the saints in all that area around about. Or in Gwinnett, or wherever big the region is, you could kind of apply it that way. And we also see even at, now I can't prove this perfectly, but I think there's enough evidence to kind of show that this is probably the case, because he brings up multiple times how a year ago they were ready, a year ago they were going to do this, and he's like, now I want you to do it, your zeal has provoked very many, I'm boasting of you, of being able to do this giving. At the very end of 1 Corinthians, that first letter that he wrote, he says in verse 1 of 1 Corinthians 16, Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come. And when I come, whosoever ye shall approve by your letters, then will I send to bring your liberality unto Jerusalem. Now the target, the saints that they're trying to minister to Jerusalem is the same as who he's talking about in 2 Corinthians, that he wants to be able to provide a blessing for the saints in Jerusalem. He was saying in 1 Corinthians, hey I'm going to collect that when I go and meet up at Corinth, and then we'll send it by the people you've chosen out, and we'll make sure that that gets to them. What I think happens here is that this doesn't ever actually materialize his command here in 1 Corinthians 16 to say, hey gather together, save up, and then take a collection for the saints. I think this is saying, hey they were all willing, they were going to do it and everything else, but it never actually happened, he never made it there. And then in the second letter, now he's saying no, we're coming, and now it's time to perform the doing of this. So I think for whatever reason it just didn't quite materialize after that first letter, and now it's just taken some time and we're revisiting it again, because it's all the same circumstances, conditions, it makes sense. It also provides maybe a little bit of a timeline in between the first letter to the Church of Corinth and the second letter, about a year potentially. Now again, I can't prove that beyond a shadow of a doubt, maybe other people can, maybe there's other information that's there that I'm not seeing, but that's what it looks like to me. I think it's reasonable to make that connection. So, but anyway, anyhow, let's get going, because I want to really cover more about this actual type of giving. Let's go back to 2 Corinthians 9, verse number 3, the Bible says, Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf, that, as I said, ye may be ready, lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we, that we say not ye, should be ashamed in this same confident boasting. He's like, okay, look, I'm going to give you a little bit of warning now, before we actually show up, that you're ready, and you have everything ready to go, and you've got this bounty prepared, and the blessings prepared, and that ministering of the saints, it's all ready to go, because I don't want to show up after I've just been bragging on you, and telling the Macedonians, you know, how great you are, and how generous you are, and everything else, and then we show up, and you don't really have anything, and then if some of the people from Macedonia decide to come with me, he's like, that's going to look really bad, because I've just been telling them how generous and everything you are, and then we show up, and you're like, yeah, we don't have anything. He's like, that would be a shame, he's like, obviously, he would be ashamed, he says that we say not ye, because you've already been talking about giving and everything else, so basically he's saying, he's like, I'm giving you plenty of warning here, I'm giving you plenty of time, so you can get ready for this, we're going to show up, have it ready to go, so there's nothing wrong, and we don't just look really stupid when we show up, and you don't have it ready to go. Man, I've got so many correlations to this, it has nothing to do with giving, but expectations about things being ready to go with our church building, right? Which is not happening. It's kind of a shame when people walk in, it's like, yeah, where's your forwardness that you guys had like three months ago when you wanted me to sign the contract and hire you to do work? You were really forward a few months ago, but now where's the performing of it? Sorry, it's been on my mind. Let's keep going here, verse number five. This is talking about giving, this isn't talking about that work. Verse number five. Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren that they would go before unto you and make up beforehand your bounty, where have you had noticed before that the same might be ready as a matter of bounty and not as of covetousness. So what's he talking about as a matter of bounty or make up beforehand your bounty? Bounty is just, it comes from the word bountiful, right? It's the resources, the money that you have, that God has blessed you with, that's kind of over and above. You have a bounty. God's blessed you, you're bountiful. So you have extra to be able to spare, extra to be able to give. And that's what they're asking for is that abundance, that extra that they have to be able to give. And it's not of covetousness and that they wouldn't be covetous over their own bounty, right? Say, hey, God's blessed you with all this extra stuff. Don't be covetous and want to just keep all of that for yourself when your brothers are in need, right? That's the covetous that we don't want to have, the covetousness. You say, yeah, but I earned this and I did this and I did that. Well, we got to be careful with how we think about even our own stuff. Like, yes, you earn it, right? And I'm not saying that you ought to just give what you've earned unto some bum who's doing nothing, who doesn't love the Lord, who's just asking for free handouts and everything else. That's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about all the brothers and sisters in Christ that are in need, they love the Lord, they're serving God, but they're on times where, you know, they may be being persecuted like the saints in Jerusalem were at that time. And they're having a need now. But look, God's blessed you, so why don't you take that abundance instead of being covetous over it and be like, no, but I can get more and I can build this and I can do this with this money and be able to say, you know what, hey, God's really blessed me, you're in need, why don't you take that abundance? And not be covetous over the blessing that God's given you. Because we have to understand at the end of the day, no matter how hard you work, which, amen, you ought to work hard, you know, when you have abundance, it's because God's blessing you. It truly is. God blesses you. God will bless you for your hard work. God will bless you for many reasons, but we have to recognize that just as easily as God can bless you, He can also make it that it's like your pockets have holes. And you'd be working really hard and even earning, say, a lot of money, and it's just flushing out and just goes away. God can easily cause that to happen, too. Especially when you start getting a bad edge, you just think that I'm just going to focus on work and you kind of just leave behind everything with church. It's like you think you're going to do all this stuff. God can make it to where that never materializes for you. Because you're not doing the right thing. Because you're not seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. So, when we kind of look at it from that perspective, you could say, hey, look, I'm still going to work hard, right, I'm still going to do what I'm supposed to do, and then if I'm blessed and God has given me bounty and I'm bountiful, well, I'm going to view that money not as just being real covetous over it, but if there's a need, hey, let's give. And even in the situation where I was talking about the announcements, you know, as our church, we're going to try to be a blessing to another church. You know, I could look at the money in our bank account and be like, oh, man, I could be real covetous and think like, well, we can do this or that or kind of think of like something that ultimately isn't going to matter. I'm kind of like, what are you going to spend the money on anyways? If we have an abundance, which right now, God's blessed us, we have an abundance, why don't we help those who are in need, right, and are facing some hard times, let's give. Let's not be covetous over what's sitting in the bank account and say, hey, let's, great, God's been blessing us. You've been going through a hard time. You've been persecuted. We're going to send some to the saints over in Texas, some of the bounty that God's blessed us with. And amen. And God can use it and multiply it even though we don't have like that much, but still, God can multiply it, make it work. But God wants our heart to be right. And He wants our heart to be right about our own resources, about the money, about the bounty, and about the love and care for other saints and for other people, be able to care for them. This is why it's so important. This isn't about any one person getting money. See, that's a huge difference when we preach on money, where the Bible talks about this, and look, there's a considerable amount of resources, of God's word being given to this concept of giving money. The difference between the false prophet and what the word of God says, the false prophet just wants the money. They're going to be trying to get you to give the money so it goes to them, because that's what they want. That's what they care about. They're covetous. They're going to make merchandise to the people. But God's word is talking about giving the money, yes, but giving it so that the work of God can continue and so that those in need can have a supply to their want and that the work that the saints are doing for the Lord can ultimately get done. That's what it's for. That's the whole point. So that those in need, God's people, can continue and work and thrive and survive, and then those who've been, you know, whatever. That's what we're seeing here. And also, when you give, look at verse number 6, the Bible says, But this I say, he which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly, and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. And this is kind of a reference, as he made in the last chapter, about fruit being given to your account. So when you give to support these other people in need or you're going to support a ministry or a missionary or evangelist or something, people are doing the work of the Lord and they're producing for God, well, your help and your abundance and your supply for their need puts some of that fruit on your account. And what he's expressing here, you've got to understand this, he's making it just like if you sow a seed, if you want to grow crops, you want to grow anything. You want to grow grass, you want to grow anything that comes from a seed. If you only sow a few seeds, if you only sow a little bit, of course you're not going to have very much come up and grow. You have to sow bountifully in order to have a bountiful harvest, in order to have more things being produced. I mean, that's just common sense, right? But in the context here, he's talking about their giving. So if you're real stingy and you're just going like, well, you're sifting through your hundreds, which I have nothing. I've got debt notes here, but you're sifting through and you're going like, and then you're like, here, here's a dollar. Like, that's sparingly. Like, what are you going to expect that you're going to, what kind of fruit are you going to expect to get on your account for that? Right? Now look, I'm not saying we should be going, let's pass the plate around ten times and pressure people into just going into debt to give for someone else or something like that or just giving well beyond your means. Nothing like that. That's not what the Bible's teaching. I don't think we should do that. But if God has blessed you and you have abundance and you have a bounty, that's what you're giving of to be able to help other people out. And you know what? God blessed some people and some people are in that situation for themselves and then you know what? Praise the Lord, they're able to give. And not everyone's in that situation and that's fine. But those that are capable of giving and have that bounty, hey, if you sow bountifully, you're going to reap bountifully. You're going to have fruit added to your account that's going to be very helpful for you. Turn, if you will, to Romans chapter 15. We're actually going to see another reference to the giving to the saints at Jerusalem in Romans. Romans chapter 15. Now I would say this. Obviously there's a need at Jerusalem. And also Paul's going over this into Rome. He's going over this to Corinth. He's bringing it up twice in both epistles of the Corinthians in the book of Romans. Obviously, and he already mentioned Galatians, the Galatians, that they've also been instructed on this. It was a big deal. So he's kind of reaching out to a bunch of different people to help them out. And it's not just any one group of people being tasked with helping. He's teaching all of them, hey, try to dig deep and see what we can do to help out the saints at Jerusalem because they're being persecuted. Look at verse number 25 of Romans 15. The Bible says, But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the saints. For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem. It hath pleased them verily, and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things. When therefore I perform this and have sealed to them this fruit, I will come by you into Spain. So he's informing them what he's going to do. I need to bring this money to Jerusalem to help the saints out there because the people in Achaia and Macedonia have given this great gift to be able to give to the saints at Jerusalem. So I'm going to do this and I'm going to seal to them this fruit. So I'm going to make sure that there's going to be fruit applied to their account by bringing this money to them, by bringing this offering unto them. But then he makes this point, and again, it's another thing that we need to understand and when we're thinking about our money or our resources, that he says, look, it hath pleased them verily, and their debtors they are. Those of Macedonia and Achaia are indebted to those at Jerusalem. Why? For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things. So he's saying because they have already reaped spiritual blessings, because they've already had preachers come and minister unto them and get these churches started and getting people saved and all the work that's been put forward for the Gentiles coming out of Jerusalem, the prophets coming out of Jerusalem, the preachers coming out of Jerusalem and preaching to the Gentiles in Achaia and in Macedonia and all the great blessings they're receiving as receiving all the ministering. He's saying, you know what? It just makes sense. It's their duty that they would at least give them some carnal things. At least help them out with their travel expenses and their food and their needs that they have, their physical needs, because let's face it, the spiritual blessings, the spiritual bounty is way more valuable than the carnal. What you gain that's a spiritual fruit, that's spiritual wisdom, that's spiritual growth is so much more important, so much more valuable than how many pieces of silver you have. So he's saying, yeah, of course, if you've been blessed by them, it just makes sense. It's your duty to just help them out now. They gave of themselves. They came at their own cost. They came at their own expense. They came and gave of themselves to serve you. Can you at least now just help them out in their time of need now that things are going bad for them and just give a little bit of your carnal resources to them? Of course it is. And this is what we need to understand. Go back to 2 Corinthians 9. When it comes to giving, when it comes to the free will offerings, because that's exactly what this is. Verse number seven, 2nd Corinthians 9 says, every man, according as he purposeeth in his heart, so let him give, not grudgingly or of necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver. You ought to be happy about helping people in need and happy about your giving. Now I want to make this point and we're going to go into this just a little bit here. This verse, this chapter, is not talking about the tithe. Not at all. But the people who want to deny that any Christian has to pay a tithe in the New Testament love to go to this passage and say, see, look, you shouldn't have to give of necessity, but if you have to give a tithe, that's of necessity. And look, is a tithe of necessity? Yes. Because what God has increased you with, he gets the tenth. That's what a tithe is, the tenth. And that's something that you are looking to specifically and saying, okay, what has God blessed me with? I'm going to give God the tenth. That goes to the Lord. That is the tithe. That has nothing to do with being a cheerful giver because you're not like just giving. You are paying the Lord his money. And when you tithe, you're not paying me. So I'm not saying I am the Lord. You're not paying me your money. The money goes into the church account for the things of God, for the house of the Lord to operate the way that God would have it to operate. I mean, it's the purpose of it. But you are showing your faithfulness to the Lord. You are showing your respect to the Word of God and to what he's done for you by acknowledging and saying, here, God, here's the tenth that belongs to you. Here's my first fruits that go unto you. You've blessed me. You've allowed me to earn this money. You've given to me. So here we go. I'm going to give you that tenth because that's what you've commanded in the law. And I'm not going to go into all the reasons why it still applies today. I preached on that before. I think, in my opinion, one of the best sermons I preach on it is when I go over the order of Melchizedek and how that was something that people were doing before Moses' law was established, was giving the tithe. And that even Levi gave of tithes in his father's loins, right? So, like, the tithe was given way back before it was even established, you know, specifically in the law of Moses, and continues because the same purpose, the same needs are all there being met. The purpose was so that there may be food in the Lord's house. And when the tithe was given, the widows and the fatherless would come and be able to eat with the Levites and partake of the tithe. Well, the church is also tasked with, the New Testament church, with the widows, right? With caring for those widows or widows indeed. The same way in the Old Testament that they would go and partake of the tithe. The same responsibility of the people of God. Anyways, I'm not going to re-preach all of that. You can listen to that sermon later on if you want to hear more about that. But turn, if you would, to Malachi chapter 3. I'll read for you from Leviticus chapter 27. While you're turning to Malachi 3, it's the last book of the Old Testament, right before the book of Matthew. Leviticus chapter 27 verse 30, the Bible says, In all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, is the Lord's. It is holy unto the Lord. So we're talking about the tithe. That's the Lord's money. It belongs to God. So we view a tithe as something that belongs to God. It's not a choice. When you're deciding, well, am I going to give the tithe or not? Well, you know, the tithe belongs to God. So you decide for yourself, am I going to give that or not? Well, I mean, whether you keep it in your pocket or not, it belongs to God. The difference is, if you keep it in your pocket, instead of giving it to God, now you're in trouble. Now you're in transgression. You give the tithe to the Lord for the purpose that God's already spelled out. And here's the other thing, too, and I'm a firm believer of this as well, and I brought this up, I think, last week, but, you know, as someone giving the tithe, you're not responsible for every aspect of how that money is spent. But you are responsible for giving your tithe to God. So when you give, you don't have to think about, well, I'm giving to this person or whatever. You're giving to God. So when it becomes wrong, you give your tithe. Let the Lord deal with, if people are handling the money deceitfully and doing things that are wrong, God will have to deal with those people, but don't make God deal with you because you're not giving. Does that make sense? Because the tithe is the Lord's. Malachi 3 spells this out really clearly. Malachi 3, verse 8, the Bible says, Will a man rob God? I mean, no one in their right mind would actually think of, like, if you could see a physical manifestation of God and be like, oh, there's God, I'm going to go and pickpocket God. I'm going to take something else. No one would do that, right? You wouldn't even find him doing that. He's saying, Will a man rob God? Yeah, you have robbed me. He's saying, but you did it. You did rob me. But you say, where in heaven, how did we rob you? That's for preposterous. We would never rob God. In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse, for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Why? Because they weren't tithing. So he's saying, you're robbing me. And now you're cursed as a result because you're not tithing. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse that there may be meat in mine house and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it. He's saying, I'll take care of you. I'll bless you. Like right now you're cursed because you're not tithing. People think, well, I don't have enough money to pay my tithe to God. Well, you're going to have even less because God's going to curse you. How about you just trust God and show him that you care about his word and if he says to do this, out of faith you give. Why don't you just see if I'll open up the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing? Why don't you test me? God's saying, test me on it. What more do you need? What more confidence do you need to say, all right, I guess I'll just do it. And look, I can tell you as someone who has tied faithfully for I don't even know how long, ever since I got back into church and actually started going, you know, faithfully, regularly, it was just, I mean, it's just something that I've done. And I'll tell you this, does that mean I've never struggled financially? No, of course not. Everybody, everybody, who doesn't struggle financially? I mean, I've yet to meet the person. People are always struggling financially, always. But you know what, I can say this very honestly, very completely, all my needs have always been met. Every single time, my needs have always been met. Every single time, needs met, never went hungry, never didn't have clothing for me or my children, any of my six children, and I have tied faithfully every paycheck, every increase that I have to the best of my knowledge. If I've missed something, it's because I just didn't even know. And I'll tell you, the reason why I'm even saying that is because I want you to prove it. If you don't have that, look, have that faith. I'm testifying that this is true. Okay, this is a fact. You can give, and you know what, I still tie to this day. Pastor Brothers, you're just like, look, it's not about the money. I have a job outside of here, and you better believe that I still tie it to this day. Just because I'm the pastor of church doesn't change anything. I do the exact same thing. I'm not telling you to do something different, and oh, it's just because you want all the money. No. No. Yeah, I want all the money. That's why we're going to give a bunch of money to another church, right? Like, whatever. Anyways, so that's one type of giving is a tie. This is very specific, not what we're talking about in 2 Corinthians. It's not talking about the tie. This is talking about just giving to saints that are in need. What this is more akin to, what it's more like in the Old Testament would be like the free will offering that you could just bring an offering unto God if God has blessed you, if God has done something great for you, and you just want to honor God and praise God, there's a way you can do that through an offering. Now, it still had to be done the right way, and that's why there's all the rules of law of what you could bring and how to bring and how it's all done, but you can do that, and God accepts that, and God likes those sacrifices and those free will offerings, but that free will means it's up to you. It's not of necessity. It's something that you can do. Similar, what we see in the New Testament, is a giving of alms. Turn with me real quick to Matthew chapter 6. So the giving of alms is something that people give. It's not the tithe, but it's something that you just give out of the heart because you want to be a blessing to someone. In Acts chapter 3, verse number 2, the Bible reads, And a certain man, lame from his mother's womb, was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple, which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple. Who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked an alms. So this is the story of a man from birth. He's had this problem. He's been debilitated. He's lame. He can't walk on his own. People have to literally carry him. He can't work. So he's not a bum panhandler. He's someone who is physically disabled, and he has been from birth. So he has to be cared for somehow. So what does he do? He shows up basically to church to just ask people for a blessing. He's asking for alms. Hey, do you have some spirit? This is someone who's saying, hey, can you give me a blessing? Can you help me out here? Because obviously he can't work. That's not the guy you're going to say, go get a job. I mean, he can't. He can't do anything, right? He needs help. So he's asking for alms. Alms is something that was not required. It's not something that's a tithe. It's something that you bless people with. And this is what Jesus said also in Matthew chapter 6, verse number 1, the Bible says, Take heed that you do not your alms before men to be seen of them. Otherwise you have no reward of your Father, which is in heaven. So he's saying, you don't broadcast when you're giving. If you're trying to help someone out, you're trying to give, you don't broadcast that to try to make a big deal out of it, to just make sure everyone knows you're helping people out, you're giving. He says, Therefore, when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. If you think you're going to give, just so everyone can see how great person you are because you're helping someone out and giving them, then that is your reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth, that thine alms may be in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret Himself shall reward thee openly. What's he mean by let thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth? He's basically saying, look, if you're just going to give, be generous and give and don't worry about it and don't have to think too hard about what you're giving someone. You want to be a blessing to someone, just do it. Go ahead, give of your bounty and help that person out. No one else needs to know about it. You just bless that person and you know what, God's going to bless you for doing that. So which is why you don't have to be super careful about, well, I can give one, two, three, you know, it's just like, you know what, don't worry about it so much. Just go ahead and give. Just help them out, give them those alms. But people also want to turn to this and try to say that this is talking about the tithe. Look, this can't be talking about the tithe because the tithe, your left hand has to know what your right hand's doing because you're calculating 10%, right? It's a different type of giving. It's just why he calls it alms and not tithes. He doesn't say, give not your tithes before men. And see, this is also why some churches, they don't like passing around play because, oh, I don't want anyone to see. It's like, look, no one knows what that money's for, first of all. Second of all, it could be their tithe. So if you're giving your tithe, I mean, it's not like you have to do that secretly because you're just giving your tithe, right? You're paying your tithe. There's nothing wrong with that at all. But when people start reading too much into these things and misapplying it to stuff that it's not about, then you're going to get some other things that isn't really biblical. What's biblical here is that you pay your tithe because it's God's. But then outside of that, you can give and help people out, and it's a good thing. And if God has really blessed you and you have this bounty, then help him out. Give. And give cheerfully. And don't think you're just giving, well, oh, I have to. I mean, other people do it. Now I have to do it too. Look, no. That's not why you give. And we shouldn't be looking at each other going like, oh, so and so didn't give. We're taking up a collection and so and so didn't pay. No, that's all wrong. And no one ought to feel compelled that they have to give either because, well, what will people say? Look, you don't have to. Just like Ananias and Sapphira, look, wasn't it yours? You didn't have to give. You didn't have to sell your property and give it. You could do whatever you wanted to do with it. And if you wanted to, you could have just sold it and given some of the money. But don't go around telling everyone that you did this, right, and lying to the Holy Ghost when you didn't do it and sounding your trumpet in your giving. Just look, it is what it is. Give whatever you want to give and just be thankful for that and be happy about it and be cheerful. And don't worry about it. Don't stress about it. God loves a cheerful giver. Let's go back to 2 Corinthians 9. So he says, not grudgingly, not of necessity, God loved a cheerful giver. Verse 8, And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work. God's going to take care of you. God's able to make the grace abound toward you. You want to give. You want to be generous. Great. Be cheerful. Give. Don't worry about it. And God will just take care of you. Verse 9, As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad, He hath given to the poor, His righteousness remaineth forever. And just like it says in the Old Testament, there's plenty of, look, this is still talking about giving, right? We're more than halfway through this chapter now, or halfway through the chapter, and this is the context. This is quoted from Psalm 112. You can turn there if you'd like. I'll just read it for you. In Psalm 12, where it says in verse 9, 2 Corinthians 9, As it is written, I'll read it for you in Psalm 112, verse 5. We'll get more context. The Bible says, A good man showeth favor and lendeth. So what does a good man do? He shows favor and he lends. He will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely he shall not be moved forever. The righteous shall be an everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established. He shall not be afraid until he see his desire upon his enemies. He hath dispersed. He hath given to the poor. His righteousness endureth forever. His horn shall be exalted with honor. The righteous person that shows favor, he lends, he's dispersing, he's distributing, he's giving to the poor. He says, you know what? God's going to exalt his horn with honor. God's going to honor that person. God's going to lift that person up and exalt them for their generosity and their care and their love. Verse number 10 in 2 Corinthians 9. And then this is still part of the parenthetical verses. Now he that ministereth seed to the sower, both minister bread for your food and multiply your seed sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness. Now I'm going to read real quick from Isaiah chapter 55, a similar concept, basically just talking about this giving seed to the sower. When you're given these resources, you're given these people in Jerusalem, the saints in Jerusalem, you're helping them to be able to further the cause of Christ. You're helping them out and by supplying them as it were with more seed because they're out sowing the seed, out sowing the Word of God, you're supplying them with the necessities that they need to be able to continue to go out and sow, continue to go do that work and multiply that seed that sown. Isaiah 55 verse 9 the Bible says, For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven and returneth not thither but watereth the earth and maketh it bring forth in blood, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater. So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Ministering seed to the sower, we know God's Word does not return void. So this is how we know we get fruit added to our account because if you're giving money, if you're helping and ministering to the saints that are going out and sowing the seed, doubtless they're going to come, rejoicing, bringing the seed with them. It's a good investment. It's a good investment to give bountifully to those who are doing the work of Christ because if they're going forth and preaching the Word of God, they're not going to return empty. The good work will be done. The fruit is going to come forward as a result of that work and you helping that person in supply and need and being able to allow them to do even more, that's going to come back on your account. Praise God. Let's finish up the chapter here. Verse 11, 2 Corinthians 9. Being enriched in everything to all bountifulness, which cause it through us thanksgiving to God. For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God. Whilst by the experiment of this ministration they glorified God for your professed subjection unto the Gospel of Christ and for your liberal distribution unto them and unto all men. So, sometimes you read these verses and there's just a lot of words being done that are being said, but the concept's real simple. That the ministration of this service, the giving forth of this money and of their blessings, it supplies the want of the saints, the needs of the saints, but it's also abundant by many thanksgivings unto God. It gives God the glory. It makes people joyful and happy and thankful to the Lord for these blessings. And he says that they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the Gospel of Christ and your liberal distribution unto them. So, they're thankful to God, not just for the money they're receiving, but also because you're faithful to the Gospel too. You're out doing this work. You're faithful. You care about the work. You're with them. It's like a double blessing. It's an encouragement, not just because you've received financially, but you also have these brothers and sisters that care about you and are helping you, so when you receive that, it's a double blessing. And for the individual, for any one of us individually, it could just be like not that big of a deal, and it shouldn't be that big of a deal. You ought to be like, yeah, you know what? God bless their heart, except meaning that for real, not in the way that a lot of people mean it. You know, God bless them. Not that big of a deal. I'll just throw 20 bucks, 30 bucks, whatever, you know, whatever, and great. But then, to those on the receiving end that have a need, wow, this is great. You know, they're helping us. They're supplying our need. They're faithful. They actually care about the work that's being done here. They're behind the work that we're doing. Total blessing. And all praise and thanksgiving then goes unto God. Verse 14 says, And by their prayer for you, which long after you, for the exceeding grace of God in you. Hey, when you give to people like that, they're praying for you, too. I don't know about you, but I love when people pray for me. I love when people say they're praying for me, because prayer works, and prayer goes a long way, and that's something that I covet is other people's prayers, because especially those who are serving God. You know, you got someone who is living in obedience to God and serving the Lord faithfully, and you know God's ear is gonna be attentive to that person. That's the person I want praying for me. I'll take whatever I can get, but, you know, especially those who are gonna be faithful like that. And, hey, being faithful, even just in giving and being generous and helping other people out, you know what then? In turn, they're probably gonna end up praying for you and praying for even God's blessing upon you for blessing them. That's great. And then at the end here, last verse, Thanks be unto God. At the end of the day, everything is thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift. I mean, as we're talking about giving give, you know, unto others and unto the saints, well, hey, you know what? Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift. Thanks be unto God for that gift of salvation, for that gift that is just unmeasurable. Immeasurable gift. Just thanks be unto God for that. And thanks be to God who's blessed any one of us here, all of us. He's blessed us definitely, but even blessed you and given you bounty. If you have bounty from the Lord, you have extra abundance. Hey, praise God for that. And for the people that choose to be a blessing unto other people that are in need, hey, God bless you for that. And praise the Lord for even having that ability to be able to do something like that. If God's given you that ability and God's given you... That's one of the things... Man, where is that passage where he says to, you know... Or he that giveth as... There's like... Oh, man. I don't know. I'll come up with it and I'll probably say it after the sermon's over now because I'm wrapping things up anyways. He goes through a lot of different things that people could be good at and then he talks about people giving. Right? Anyways, that's probably the word of prayer. Dear only Father and Lord, we thank You so much for being generous unto us and giving us for a free gift our eternal life, dear Lord. And I pray that You please help us to be generous in what You've blessed us with and that we wouldn't have too tight of a grip on the carnal things that we have, but that we'd be able to loosen up and not be covetous, but be able to freely distribute when there are people in need, especially the saints, dear Lord, especially those that love You and serve You. I pray that You would please help us to be able to give freely and that we would not even give thought or question to the things that You've commanded us, like whether or not we're going to tithe or if we see a brother in need and we have those things available to us that we can help them out, Lord, that we would not hesitate but just be able to bless and give. And Lord, just help us as we're in these carnal bodies not to get wrapped up in the desires of our flesh to just want to keep everything for ourselves but to be willing to give gifts and understand the more we're able to give that Your Word will just ring more true to us that it's more blessed to give than it is to receive. And God, we just love You for the wisdom that Your Word teaches us. I pray that You would please help us to walk in the Spirit increasingly more every day. So in Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Alright, we're going to sing one last song before we're dismissed and that verse is starting to come to me now, of course, more. But, brother Peter, come on up and lead us in our last song. My church, can you give both of your hymnals the song number 315? The song 315, take my life and let it be. The song 315. On the verse. Take my life and let it be, consecrated more to Thee. Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love, at the impulse of Thy love. Take my feet and let them be, stiff and beautiful for Thee. Take my voice and let me see, always longing for my King, always longing for my King. Take my silver and my gold, not on Thy blood I will fall. Take my moments and my days, let them flow in ceaseless praise. Let them flow in ceaseless praise. Take my hands and make it thine, it shall be no longer mine. Take my heart, it is Thine own, it shall be Thy royal cool, it shall be Thy royal throne. Amen, all right, that verse is from Romans chapter 12, that I was thinking of and I could not come up with it, and I was right there on the tip of my tongue, having then differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith, or ministry, let us wait on our ministering, or he that teaches on teaching, or he that exhorteth on exhortation, he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity. That was the verse I was trying to spit out of my mouth. I just couldn't do it. We're dismissed. Thanks for being here tonight.