Reflection - A Call to Share

By Rev Clive W Ayre

There is a tendency in some circles to do no more than is strictly necessary, to look to the minimum needed to get by. But the Christian faith is calling us to something greater than that and offers us a more substantial reward as well. At the heart of the passage in 2nd Corinthians, chapter 8 is a memorable sentence: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake, he became poor so that by his poverty you might become rich”. There is more than a minimum standard caught up in that, and it comes to us as a call to share.

Paul has an interesting word for the Corinthians: “Now as you excel in everything – in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in your love for us – see that you excel in this gracious work also”. The 'gracious work' referred to is a collection for needy Christians in Jerusalem. It is the kind of caring concern that has been exercised many times over the years, but this is the earliest example of inter-church aid recorded. We are still called to such practical caring.

He goes on to say how they gave even beyond their means, "begging us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints". But, says Paul, "they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us". The story of the Macedonians is truly heart-warming, and Paul uses it to good effect. He doesn't use it as a stick to beat the Corinthians about the head, but he uses it by way of example and moral encouragement.

Paul uses what has been called “the supreme motive”, namely the rich truth that Jesus Christ gave all for us. James Reid makes the point that “God cannot coerce, even in love, without destroying that which he seeks to save”. So there is that self-emptying that we call the Incarnation, as God himself sets out to win our love. He became poor, that we might become rich. But the wealth he is talking about is primarily of a spiritual nature. It is love, peace, and compassion.

But we cannot avoid the practical spirituality in this passage - to see a need and to set out to meet it. Paul's impassioned plea to generosity is very apt today, in a society in which the 'have's' often begrudge real assistance to the 'have not's'. The real need in the modern world is not crumbs from the rich people's table, but in the face of overwhelming poverty on the part of millions in many countries, we need a more searching analysis of the causes of that need.

But there is one more essential, and that is the preservation of the human dignity of the person receiving the gift. Let us give; by all means, let us give in the sacrificial spirit Paul is advocating, but never, never, at the cost of another person's dignity. Ours is not a minimum standard that duty has demanded but a maximum that the self-giving love of God constantly calls from us.