Real love flows from God’s generous goodness revealed in Jesus Christ. Real love acts in generous goodness for others.
(2 Corinthians 8:8-15)
SERMON OUTLINE:
“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)
Jesus the True Example of Generous Goodness (2 Corinthians 8:8-9)
- All comparisons stop at the grace we encounter in Jesus
- Jesus let go of His riches to become poor for us
- And we through His poverty have become rich
- The Gospel is centered in Jesus’ generous goodness
The Marks of Truly Good Generosity (2 Corinthians 8:10-15)
- Willingness in generosity
- Moving in generosity toward completion of a good goal
- Equality in sacrifice and sharing in the good
Living in Jesus’ Focused Generosity
- Perspective
- Willingness
- Completion
- Equality
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Open Up (answer 1 of these 2 questions):
- What is the most generous act you’ve ever seen?
- What is something that took you a long time to complete? What helped you endure to the end?
Follow Up: Let’s touch base on how we did with our generosity challenge from last week…anyone have any stories to share about how you implemented the “Macedonian” challenge to show generosity even if you felt lacking?
Dig In:
- Why do you think Paul calls this a “test of the sincerity of their love”?
- How do you think a proper understanding of the gospel and what Jesus did actually increases our love for God and our capacity for generous living?
- Based on verses 11b &12, what do you think kept the Corinthians from “completing” the work of giving they began? Has this ever impacted you?
- What principle of giving does Paul teach in verse 12? What does this mean to you?
- What does Paul say to them in verses 13-15 to reassure them that they can complete their work of giving?
Look Up:
- Pray for the families involved in the recent Child Dedication. Ask God to help us model the sacrificial love Paul describes here in this section to the next generation.
Live It Out:
- Identify one practical need in your neighborhood, small group or workplace. How can you act in “generous goodness” to impact that need this week? OR
- Look at verse 11. Is there a “good intention” you’ve had regarding your faith or generosity that you haven’t finished yet? What is one step you will take to complete it?
DIG DEEPER:
- Exploring Faith: What typically motivates your generosity? (guilt, duty, thankfulness, love, etc.). How might an example of someone like Jesus inspire your generosity instead?
- New Disciple: What typically motivates your generosity? (guilt, duty, thankfulness, love, etc.) How can you reorient your generosity to be an outflow of what you know Jesus has done for you? Memorize Matthew 6:21 as a “reorienting” verse for our approach to generosity.
- Christ-Centered Disciple: Verse 14 speaks of “fairness” and “abundance” meeting “need.” Christ-Centered Disciples are sacrificially investing in others for God’s Kingdom. Whether through actual resources or in other ways, how are you able to be the “abundance” for someone else’s “lack” right now?