Lessons #589 and 590
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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The collection for the Jerusalem believers (1 Cor 16:1-4)
1Now about the collection for God’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. 2 On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. 3 Then, when I arrive, I will give letters of introduction to the men you approve and send them with your gift to Jerusalem. 4 If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me.
The section of 1 Corinthians 16:1 to 4, as we stated in our last study, is concerned with the collection to be made by the Corinthians for the benefit of believers in Jerusalem. Consequently, we stated that its message is that a local church should endeavor to provide aid to less privileged believers in other locations that they are made aware of through their spiritual leadership following biblical pattern. To expound this message, we have stated three things we should recognize. The first thing to recognize about this message to the church regarding aiding other believers is that it is the spiritual leadership of a local congregation that should make believers aware of such need for aid. The second thing is that believers’ approach to giving must be in keeping with the Scripture and that local churches of Christ should strive to operate in a culture neutral manner. The third thing we should recognize regarding the message we are expounding is that spiritual leaders should prepare the congregation to be involved in supporting fellow believers that are suffering in other locations. This third thing is introduced in the first phrase of verse 2 On the first day of every week where we ended our last study and so it is with it that we begin our study this morning.
The word “week” is translated from a Greek word (sabbaton) that may mean “Sabbath,” that is, “the seventh day of the week in Israel’s calendar, marked by rest from work and by special religious ceremonies,” as the day Jews accused the Lord Jesus of breaking because He healed on that day as recorded in John 5:18:
For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
The word may mean “week,” as a period of seven days so the word is used to describe the day believers in Troas came together for worship as stated in Acts 20:7:
On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:2, it has the meaning of “week” as a period of seven consecutive days starting on Saturday evening.
Be that that as it may, the instruction of Apostle Paul to the Galatian churches that the Corinthians were expected to follow that concerns preparation for the collection is that of the time of the preparation as we have noted in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:2 On the first day of every week.
What is meant in the phrase the first day of every week? It is a reference to our Sunday as day of worship by believers that replaced the Jewish Sabbath as a day of worship. The situation seemed to be that at first the early church consisting of Jews worshipped on Sabbath and then on the first day of the week that is, our Sunday. There are several passages in the NT Scripture that indicate that the church met on the first day of the week that is our Sunday since that is the day of resurrection of Jesus Christ. When the Lord Jesus appeared to the disciples after His resurrection, it was on the first day of the week as narrated in John 20:19:
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
There is no direct statement here that indicates the disciples were assembled for worship but that is implied. For whenever the disciples were together it was primarily for worship of God in one way or another. This we may gather from the fellowship of believers described in Acts 2:42–47:
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Here we are informed that the believers met every day to worship so when they met together on the first day of the week that Jesus appeared to them, they would have met for worship. This aside, we are confident that believers met on the first day of the week or Sunday to worship because that was the day Apostle Paul worshipped with believers in Troas as we read in the passage we cited previously, that is, Acts 20:7:
On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight.
Thus, we can assert that quite early in the church history worship on the Sabbath was replaced with worship on the first day of the week, that is, our Sunday. It is probably this day of worship that Apostle John referred as the Lord’s day in Revelation 1:10:
On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,
The phrase the Lord’s Day appears only here in the Greek NT, but the expression “the Lord’s” is translated from a Greek adjective (kyriakos) that means “belonging to the Lord” which is used in one other place in Greek NT to describe the Lord’s Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:20:
When you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat,
The day belonging to the Lord must certainly be the day of His resurrection and the day of worship that was set by the early church, that is, our Sunday. Of course, there are those who take the Lord’s day as a reference to the “Last days” or the day of God’s judgment as used in the OT. The problem with this interpretation is that John was referring to a specific day. If that is a day of judgment, the judgement is not specified. Thus, it is best to understand the Lord’s day as a reference to our Sunday. This is certainly how the day was understood early in the history of the church as we may gather from the first century manual intended to help Christians known as Didache as we read in Didache 14:
1And on the Lord’s own day gather yourselves together and break bread and give thanks, first confessing your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. 2And let no man, having his dispute with his fellow, join your assembly until they have been reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be defiled; 3for this sacrifice it is that was spoken of by the Lord; In every place and at every time offer Me a pure sacrifice; for I am a great king, saith the Lord, and My name is wonderful among the nations.
In any event, there is evidence that the early church moved from worship on the Sabbath to worship on Sundays. The point is that the phrase of 1 Corinthians the first day of every week refers to our Sundays. So, the apostle described the time for carrying out the instruction he gave to the Galatian churches in preparation for the collection to be made for the benefit of believers in Jerusalem in the phrase the first day of every week. In any event, the third thing we should recognize regarding the message we are expounding is that spiritual leaders should prepare the congregation to be involved in supporting fellow believers that are suffering in other locations.
The major preparation spiritual leaders should make to the congregation in matter of contributing to the needs of others or of giving in general consists of two related instructions. The first is that any contribution should be made thoughtfully and willingly without any feeling of compulsion. The second is that the amount given should reflect a person’s financial position. Both instructions are based on what Apostle Paul penned down in 1 Corinthians 16:2 each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up. Literally, the Greek reads let each of you from himself put (aside) saving up whatever anything if he has been prospered. The instruction of the apostle given here either in the literal translation or that of the NIV is packed with important details we should be mindful regarding contributing to the needs of other suffering believers or giving in general for the support of the ministry of a local church.
The Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul conveys to us that every believer in a local church should give whether in a special collection or in the support of the ministry. This assertion is based on the phrase of 1 Corinthians each one of you or literally each of you. The word “each” is translated from a Greek word (hekastos) that may mean “each, each one, everyone.” It is in the sense of “everyone” that Apostle Paul used it to convey that believers would be rewarded for good works they do irrespective of their social standing in a given society as we read in Ephesians 6:8:
because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
The meaning “each” of our Greek word may be used to focus on a member of a group as Apostle Paul used it to instruct individual believer regarding avoidance of falsehood in Ephesians 4:25:
Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.
The word may mean “anyone” as it is used to describe the service rendered by the early church in terms of meeting needs of members as we read in Acts 4:35:
and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:2, the word is used with the meaning “each one” in the sense of everyone considered individually. Thus, the apostle used the word to indicate that every believer in a local church should do what he instructed. To ensure that the apostle is concerned with the entire congregation of believers, he used the word you in the phrase each one of you. The pronoun “you” is in the plural in the Greek to convey that the apostle had in mind the entire congregation in Corinth and by implication that of any congregation of believers anywhere else on this planet. The point is that every believer is expected to give whether with regard to a special collection or in the support of the ministry.
It is our assertion that the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul conveyed that each believer in a local congregation should give either in a special collection or in support of the ministry because of the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:2 each one of you. The phrase each one of you raises an important question of how to apply it to families. I realize that some married couples operate their finances independently of each other. I argue that such practice should not be applicable to spiritually minded believers. I realize also that one of the reasons for such is that of a feeling of insecurity in marriage. In other words, some have the fear that their spouse would divorce them and so they become financially stranded. However, if believers are spiritually minded, they should not have divorce as an option in their marriage and so they should consider themselves as a team. If husband and wife function as God intended in marriage, then the phrase each one of you should apply to the entire family. I mean that the husband and wife would be considered as an entity as it pertains to giving to a local church or for a special collection. There are at least two reasons for this interpretation. First, the husband and wife as believers in Christ form a unit since our Lord clearly stated that a husband and wife come together to become one as He quoted from Genesis 2:24 as we read in Matthew 19:5–6:
5 and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”
The word “one” in verse 6 is translated from a Greek word (heis) that no doubt means “one” in a numerical sense, but the Greek word may mean that which is a unit, so it has the sense of “unit” in the description of the body that the apostle eventually applied to the church of Christ as we read in 1 Corinthians 12:12:
The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.
If a husband and a wife are considered a unit before God, then their giving should be viewed as coming from a unit and so the phrase each one of you applies to both husband and wife considered a unit if they handle their finances jointly as they should. Second, OT Scriptures indicate that in matter of giving or offering or sacrifices the family represented by the husband is treated as a unit. The vow made by a woman without the consent of the husband could be annulled according to Numbers 30:7–8:
7 and her husband hears about it but says nothing to her, then her vows or the pledges by which she obligated herself will stand. 8 But if her husband forbids her when he hears about it, he nullifies the vow that obligates her or the rash promise by which she obligates herself, and the LORD will release her.
Part of the reason for annulling the vow of a wife by the husband is that both are considered a unit in which the wife is under the husband’s authority. If the husband says nothing about his wife’s vow, then it means he agrees with her so that there is a sense that the vow is a family vow. Tithes were considered family affair as in the instructions of Deuteronomy 14:22–23:
22 Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. 23 Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the LORD your God always.
Annual sacrifices were considered family affairs as illustrated in the practice of the family of Samuel described in 1 Samuel 1:21:
When the man Elkanah went up with all his family to offer the annual sacrifice to the LORD and to fulfill his vow,
During the rebuilding of the temple after Israel’s exile, the head of the families were responsible for what is described as “freewill offering” in Ezra 2:68–69:
68 When they arrived at the house of the LORD in Jerusalem, some of the heads of the families gave freewill offerings toward the rebuilding of the house of God on its site. 69 According to their ability they gave to the treasury for this work 61,000 drachmas of gold, 5,000 minas of silver and 100 priestly garments.
These examples suggest that it is expected that the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:2 each one of you be understood as applicable to husband and wife as a unit regarding the matter of giving in a local church. In other words, if the husband and wife have a common account of operation, as they should, an offering from the common account meets the requirement in the phrase each one of you. By the way, because of sin, it is important to make further comment about having a common account of operation in marriage. This requires that both husband and wife are quite sensible in handling their finances. In other words, each must be careful in spending money to ensure that they have substantial savings for the future as implied in the advice to watch the activities of ants in providing for the future in Proverbs 6:6–8:
6Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! 7It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, 8 yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.
In any case, as we have indicated, giving either for a special collection or for the support of the ministry requires careful thought and planning so that a believer is not giving under duress or under emotion. This point is underscored first by the instruction of the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul as stated in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:2 each one of you should set aside a sum of money. The phrase a sum of money is not technically in the Greek as reflected in many of our English versions, but it is implied since literally, the Greek reads let each of you from himself put (aside)
The expression “set aside” of the NIV is translated from a Greek word (tithēmi) that may mean “to lay, put”, that is, to put or place in a particular location. Thus, it was used for burial in the sense of the laying away or putting away the body of Lazarus in the grave after his death as per the question of the Lord Jesus to his sisters recorded in John 11:34:
“Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
It is in the sense of laying that the word is used in the quotation from the OT Scripture regarding the stumbling stone laid in Zion that Apostle Paul cited in Romans 9:33:
As it is written: “See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”
The word is used for Jesus Christ giving up His life for us in 1 John 3:16:
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
The word may mean “to appoint, assign” to some a task or function, as Apostle Paul used it to describe his appointment or assignment regarding the gospel message in 2 Timothy 1:11:
And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.
The word may mean “to make” in the sense of making someone something, as in the instruction of Apostle Paul in his farewell address to the elders of the church of Ephesus who have been put to their position of overseers of believers in Ephesus by the Holy Spirit, as recorded in Acts 20:28:
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.
The word may mean “to fix, set, establish” as it is used in the response of the Lord Jesus to His disciples, after His resurrection, regarding the time God has set to restore the kingdom to Israel, as stated in Acts 1:7:
He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:2, the word is used in the sense of “to lay aside/deposit” of money, that is, “to put something out of the way or in a more convenient place.” The apostle used a present tense in the Greek that in our verse implies an action that is repeated at various intervals. Certainly, laying aside something, such as money, in a repeated interval requires careful thought and planning. Hence, the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:2 each one of you should set aside a sum of money indicates that giving as it relates to the ministry of God’s word requires thought and planning as we have stated.
Another indicator that giving, either for a special collection or for the support of the ministry, requires careful thought and planning so that a believer is not giving under duress or under emotion is provided in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:2 saving it up.
The expression “saving…up” is translated from a Greek word (thēsaurizō) that may mean “to store up,” that is, to keep some material thing safe by storing it as it is used in Jesus’ description of the fate of someone who stores up his material wealth but ignores the spiritual as stated in Luke 12:21:
“This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”
The word may mean “to save up” of money or wealth as it is used to describe what is not expected of children with respect to their parents in that they are not to save up money for their parents instead it is the other way round according to 2 Corinthians 12:14:
Now I am ready to visit you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you, because what I want is not your possessions but you. After all, children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.
The word may mean “to hoard” wealth as it is used in the denouncing of the rich that ignore paying the wages of their workers because they want to hoard wealth as stated in James 5:3:
Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.
The word may mean “to reserve” as it is used to describe the coming judgment of God on the present heavens and earth as we may gather from 2 Peter 3:7:
By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:2, it means “to store away” for future use.
The apostle used a present participle in the Greek for the word that we said has the sense of “to store away” or “saving… up” in the NIV. There are at least two implications of the apostle using a present participle. A first implication is that the storing away or saving of money occurs approximately at the same time that it is laid aside. A second implication is that the storing away or saving of money defines the manner in which the setting aside will occur. This is because a participle is subject to different usages in the Greek in relation to the main verb of the sentence. In our passage, the participle could be interpreted as indicating the time when the setting aside of money occurs or it may describe the means of setting aside of the money or simply to complete the thought in the main action of setting aside money. All three interpretations make sense and may well be needed to fully explain the apostle’s instruction of setting aside money but with emphasis on completing the apostle’s thought. In other words, the apostle instructs the Corinthians to set aside some money and he explains what that means as storing away or saving the money.
Saving up or storing away resources requires thought and planning as we have stated. We can see that in the events surrounding the flood. God instructed Noah to store away food for humans and animals that he was to preserve in the ark as we read in Genesis 6:21:
You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.”
Noah certainly thought and planned carefully to achieve the goal God gave him about storing food for the creatures in the ark. Likewise, the storing of food in Egypt in the time of prosperity as suggested by Joseph required thought and planning as we may gather from Genesis 41:35–36:
35 They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. 36 This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine.”
Interestingly, the Holy Spirit implies that even ants are involved in some form of planning for future by storing away food as stated in the passage we cited previously, that is, Proverbs 6:6–8:
6Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! 7It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, 8yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.
The point is that because Apostle Paul directed the Corinthians to store away what they were to give regarding the collection for support of believers in Jerusalem supports our assertion that giving should be made thoughtfully and willingly without any feeling of compulsion.
The sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:2 each one of you should set aside a sum of money presents a problem in view of the literal translation let each of you from himself put (aside) saving up. The problem is that nothing is said about where the collection is to be made or saved up. So, some interpret the apostle’s instruction to mean that each person should make the collection and save it at the individual’s home. This interpretation does not seem to be what Apostle Paul had in mind. Instead, the apostle had in mind that the collection would take place in the location where believers assemble for worship on the first day of the week, that is, Sunday and the collection is to be kept under the care of the leaders of the congregation as was the case in the early church where those who sold their property gave the proceeds to the apostles as stated in Acts 4:34–35:
34 There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
This interpretation that the collection is to be made during worship and given to leaders of the congregation for safekeeping is demanded by the fact that if the apostle meant for the setting aside and saving of the money to occur at home, there would have been no need for him to reference the first day of the week in the passage. Furthermore, it is if the collections were stored in one location that will ensure that no offering is taken up when the apostle comes to Corinth, as he stated later in the verse we are considering. In any event, the first instruction spiritual leaders should give to the congregation in matter of contributing to the need of others or of giving is that any contribution should be made thoughtfully and willingly without any feeling of compulsion.
A second instruction spiritual leaders should give to the congregation in matter of contributing to the need of others or of giving in general for the support of the ministry is that the amount given should reflect a person’s financial status. This truth as well as further support for being thoughtful in giving is stated in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:2 in keeping with his income. Literally, the Greek reads fully as whatever if anything he has been prospered. This is because the Greek consists of four words as we will examine.
The word “whatever” in the literal translation is translated from a Greek word (hos) that may be used as a relative pronoun with such meanings as “who, which, what, that.” It is with the meaning “which” that Apostle Paul used it to reference the gospel message he preached as a servant of Christ for which he also suffered for doing so as he informed the Colossians as we read in Colossians 1:23:
if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.
It is with the meaning “whatever” that Apostle Paul used our Greek pronoun to instruct the Philippians to practice what he taught them as we read in Philippians 4:9:
Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
The word may mean “what” as Apostle Paul used it to reference the gospel, he preached to the Galatians that they also accepted so that he pronounced God’s judgment on someone who preaches a different gospel as stated in Galatians 1:9:
As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!
The Greek word may be used as a demonstrative pronoun with the meaning “this” as that is the sense that it is used when Apostle Paul referenced the doctrine of the mystery of Christ that he espoused in his epistle to the Ephesians as we read in Ephesians 3:4:
In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ.
In our passage of 1 Corinthian 16:2, the Greek word is used with the meaning of “whatever.”
The word “if” in the literal translation whatever if anything he has been prospered is translated from a Greek word (ean) that may be used as a maker of condition of a reduced likelihood of occurrence of an activity referenced with the meaning “if.” It can also mean “when” as a marker of point of time which is somewhat conditional and simultaneous with another point of time. In our passage, it is used to introduce an event that is expected to occur under which circumstance what the apostle states will then take place. The word “if” is preceded in the Greek by a word translated “anything” in the literal translation.
The word “anything” in the literal translation whatever if anything he has been prospered is translated from a Greek pronoun (tis) that may mean “a certain one, someone” as a reference to someone or something indefinite as Apostle Paul used it to state one of the reasons Timothy stayed in Ephesus was to stop some unnamed false teachers in Ephesus from erroneous teaching as stated in 1 Timothy 1:3:
As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer.
The word may mean “some” as Apostle Paul used it to describe some of those who were eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ but were no longer living when he referenced the resurrection of Jesus Christ as part of his gospel message as we read in 1 Corinthians 15:6:
After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.
The word may refer to “a person of importance” as the word is used to report the caution of Gamaliel to the Sanhedrin regarding their treatment of the apostles as he mentioned someone who claimed to be important, but his movement went nowhere after his death as stated in Acts 5:36:
Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:2, the word has the sense of “something” referring to something indefinite that is expected to take place.
The expression “in keeping with his income” of the NIV of 1 Corinthians 16:2 or “prosper” in the literal translation whatever if anything he has been prospered is translated from a Greek word (euodoō) that originally meant “to have a happy/successful journey,” and was then more widely applied to success in business so that it means “to have things turn out well,” hence means “to prosper, succeed.” It is with the meaning “to prosper” that the word is used in the Septuagint to describe what would not happen to an individual that ignores sins in the person’s life as we read in Proverbs 28:13:
He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
The word is used by Apostle Paul to convey that he desired for God to grant him success in his attempt or desire to come to preach to those in Rome as we read in Romans 1:10:
in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.
The translators of the NIV used the meaning “way may be opened” while majority of our English versions translated the word with the meaning “succeed.” The word may mean “to go well with” as it is used in the NIV in Apostle John’s prayer for his friend Gaius as recorded in 3 John 2:
Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:2, the word has the sense of “to be prosperous financially.” Although there are those who think that the word is used with the idea of saving, implying that it is successful saving by the Corinthians was in the apostle’s mind but that is unlikely. We insist that it is the idea of being prosperous financially that is intended by the apostle. Thus, the idea the apostle was concerned with is that every believer in Corinth should give weekly a part of his/her income as the Lord blessed the individual and then offer it during worship on Sunday for the special collection to help believers in Jerusalem. This interpretation is supported by the fact that Apostle Paul was in the church of Antioch where believers gave for the support of believers in Judea during a famine that area experienced as stated in Acts 11:29:
The disciples, each according to his ability, decided to provide help for the brothers living in Judea.
The phrase each according to his ability is literally to the degree that anyone was prospering. This is because Luke used a Greek word (euporeō) that appears only here in Acts in the NT Greek that means “to prosper financially,” that is, “to be well off, to have plenty.” Believers in Antioch contributed to the needs of believers in Judea in keeping with how the Lord prospered them and so Apostle Paul would have had the same concept in his mind when he wrote the Greek of 1 Corinthians 16:2 that we said literally reads whatever if anything he has been prospered. The Greek used a passive voice implying that it is God who is rich in mercy that provides each believer what the individual needs for a given week.
Be that as it may, it is important to be careful with the idea of prosperity when it comes to giving. We say this because there are members of a local church that are poor materially but that does not exclude them from giving. Every believer, as we have already stated, should give based on the person’s ability or resources. It is really a matter of priority and determination to give that is at stake not so much the amount. We make this point because the Lord Jesus commended a widow who gave a small amount compared to the rich as having given sacrificially as narrated in Luke 21:1–4:
1As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 “I tell you the truth,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
The point of citing this passage is to convey that no believer should exempt self from giving since a believer should give according to the person’s blessing. As we have stated, blessing should not be equated really with having plenty money but having sufficient to meet one’s need. So, a believer who is able to take care of self should find a way to give. It is important to recognize that failure to give would result in God’s discipline of the type meted to the Israelites who returned from Babylonian captivity. They were affected economically because of their neglect to contribute to build the temple as Prophet Haggai stated in Haggai 1:5–6:
5 Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”
The reason the people were suffering economically is, as we previously stated, because they neglected to give for the rebuilding of the temple as stated in Haggai 1:9–10:
9 “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the LORD Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops.
In any event, a second instruction spiritual leaders should give to the congregation in matter of contributing to the need of others or of giving in general for the support of the ministry is that the amount given should reflect a person’s financial position.
We have considered two instructions spiritual leaders are to give to believers regarding special collection and giving in general but there is also an instruction for spiritual leaders. This instruction is that they should guard against pressuring believers to give. Believers who hear this instruction directed to spiritual leaders should then resist any kind of pressure to give. Of course, as we have already considered, every believer is expected to give in support of the ministry regardless of the amount given. That aside, the point we want to emphasize is that spiritual leaders should guard against pressuring believers to give. If a special collection is to be made, believers in that local congregation should be given ample time to prepare for such a collection. The basis for this caution to spiritual leaders of not pressuring a believer to give and of providing ample time for any special collection is the reason the apostle provided for the advance instructions to the Corinthians about the special offering in the passage we are studying.
The apostle introduced his purpose for advance instructions to the Corinthians for the special collection for believers in Jerusalem with the first phrase of the last clause of 1 Corinthians 16:2 so that. The expression “so that” is translated from a Greek conjunction (hina) that may be used as a marker of purpose with the meaning “in order that, that, so that” or it can be used as a marker of result so that it may be translated “that, so that, as a result.” Often, it is difficult to differentiate purpose from result in which case the Greek conjunction is used for the result that follows according to the purpose of the subject. This notwithstanding, the Greek conjunction is used in our verse to express the purpose of Apostle Paul’s advance instructions regarding the special collection for believers in Jerusalem.
The purpose of advance instruction is to avoid making any collection when the apostle arrived in Corinth, presumably on his way to Jerusalem to deliver the collection to believers there. It is this purpose that is stated in 1 Corinthians 16:2 so that when I come no collections will have to be made. If collection is made when the apostle comes without prior preparation for it, the implication would be that believers in Corinth were being pressured to give urgently, especially if the apostle was already on his way to Jerusalem. It is because of this reason of the apostle that we stated that spiritual leaders should guard against pressuring believers to give. In any event, let me end by reminding you of the message of this section of 1 Corinthians 16:1-4 which is that a local church should endeavor to provide aid to less privileged believers in other locations that they are made aware of through their spiritual leadership following biblical pattern.