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Understanding Paul’s Call for Integrity in Promises

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“But I am sending these brothers to be sure you really are ready, as I have been telling them, and that your money is all collected. I don’t want to be wrong in my boasting about you. We would be embarrassed—not to mention your own embarrassment—if some Macedonian believers came with me and found that you weren’t ready after all I had told them! So I thought I should send these brothers ahead of me to make sure the gift you promised is ready. But I want it to be a willing gift, not one given grudgingly.”
2 Corinthians 9:3-5 NLT

Taking these verses out of context may give the impression that Paul sent the bailiffs to collect the Corinthian offering for the poor in Jerusalem. But the last part of verse 5 reads, “But I want it to be a willing gift, not one given grudgingly”. Paul just seems to be putting a little pressure on in case what they had said wasn’t what they had meant. Were they in danger of backtracking on a promise made previously? Paul continues in 2 Corinthians 9 with some instructions about voluntary giving that have helped countless Christians ever since, but more on that later.

Paul was obviously a little unsure about the state of readiness with the Corinthian offering. It was one that they had apparently promised to collect, because we read in a previous verse, “For I know how eager you are to help”. In fact, Paul was sure that they had been ready to send in their offering a year before. Perhaps because of the communications problems and the distances involved, Paul seemed to have a little niggle of doubt in the back of his mind. Paul had spent most of the previous chapter in 2 Corinthians also writing about this offering, but the situation was coming to fruition, and a party of “brothers”, fronted up by Titus, carrying Paul’s letter, were on their way to collect it.

Had the Corinthians made a promise to collect an offering, or was it just something they had discussed as a possibility, without any firm commitment? That they were going to make a collection did not seem to be in any doubt, so I suspect that there was a promise involved. Paul was just including a reminder that it was time to start the journey to Jerusalem with what had been collected, in case there were any stragglers still to give, and fulfil their part of the promise. 

The Bible says much about making promises, because they reflect a person’s character. We all know about disappointments that come from believing a promise that doesn’t materialise. A father might promise his child that a certain present will be in their Christmas stocking, only for the child to find that he didn’t keep his promise. So, Scriptures emphasise the importance of integrity, caution, and reliability when making promises. Apparently, in Jesus’ day, vows or promises were made by referring to something sacred to lend them weight. Jesus taught about this in Matthew 5. In fact, Jesus said that we shouldn’t make any vows at all in these verses, finishing the example He gave with “Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one” (Matthew 5:37). James repeated this instruction, “But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned” (James 5:12). From these verses we gain the picture that promises should be made with care, and, once made, the promise is an important part of a person’s integrity, and to break a promise goes against what God desires. The one legacy of making promises in a public setting can be found in our law courts, where witnesses are asked to swear an oath with their hand on a Bible or another holy book. But Jesus taught that a person’s character should be so reliable that elaborate oaths are unnecessary.

God’s faithfulness is beyond dispute, and He always keeps His promises. In Numbers 23:19, we read, “God is not a man, so he does not lie. He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?” Joshua had no doubts about God’s integrity, as we read in Joshua 23:14, “Soon I will die, going the way of everything on earth. Deep in your hearts you know that every promise of the Lord your God has come true. Not a single one has failed!” As we read through the Bible, we find, time and again, that God’s promises come true. The greatest of them all was the coming of Jesus, and Jeremiah prophesied, ““For the time is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land. And this will be his name: ‘The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’ In that day Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in safety”” (Jeremiah 23:5-6). Whenever we find a verse that includes “Says the Lord” we sit up and take note, because what God says will come to pass.

We pilgrims must be a people of integrity. There is no other way. He or she “breaks a promise” must never appear as a statement in a pilgrim’s list of character attributes. And whenever we find ourselves in a situation that calls for a promise, we make it with care and integrity, carefully considering the consequences. 

Dear Heavenly Father. You have made us in Your image and because You have never broken a promise, then neither must we. We pray for Your help when faced with situations requiring a promise. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Understanding Boasting in the Context of Faith

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“I really don’t need to write to you about this ministry of giving for the believers in Jerusalem. For I know how eager you are to help, and I have been boasting to the churches in Macedonia that you in Greece were ready to send an offering a year ago. In fact, it was your enthusiasm that stirred up many of the Macedonian believers to begin giving.”
2 Corinthians 9:1-2 NLT

I’ve written about boasting before, but from a different angle to Paul’s words today, where Paul is boasting about the Corinthians’ willingness to send an offering to Jerusalem. The believers in Jerusalem were in dire straits, recovering from a severe famine a year or two before. The problem with famines amongst people who rely on crops they produce to stay alive is that they end up having to eat the very seeds needed for next year’s crop. So the impact of a famine lasts for years unless they receive assistance. It was essential that believers suffering in another part of the world were helped by believers elsewhere, those who had survived the famine and who had the means to help them. The situation in Judea must have been difficult, because the news of the situation had spread to the Macedonian churches as well. But such was the bond of love between the believers everywhere that there was a general willingness across the churches to help, and this was what Paul was boasting about.

In 1 Corinthians 9:15, Paul was boasting about his willingness to preach the Good News without charge. He wrote, “Yet I have never used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that I want to start now. In fact, I would rather die than lose my right to boast about preaching without charge”. In 1 Corinthians 1:31, Paul, quoting Jeremiah, wrote, “Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord””. Jeremiah recorded an important message from the Lord, which reads, “This is what the Lord says: “Don’t let the wise boast in their wisdom, or the powerful boast in their power, or the rich boast in their riches. But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth, and that I delight in these things. I, the Lord, have spoken!” (Jeremiah 9:23-24). In the light of this Scripture, was Paul’s boasting about the Corinthians ability to give a bit misplaced? I think not, because the offering for the believers in Judea was all part of the mission of the early church, as it put into action the words of Jesus, “love your neighbour as yourself”. To back up Jeremiah’s prophecy we find Psalm 20:7, “Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the Lord our God”. The name of the Lord is an ultimate source of authority, because anything done in His name will happen. 

“Some nations boast of their chariots and horses,
but we boast in the name of the Lord our God”

Towards the end of Romans, Paul was boasting again. He wrote, “Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to God by my message and by the way I worked among them” (Romans 15:18). Regardless of all his achievements, his privations, his ministries, the miles he had travelled, the number of churches he had established and so on, Paul was only prepared to boast about what Christ had “done through [him], bringing the Gentiles to God”. It wasn’t through his efforts, he said, but through the power of the Gospel, the message he preached. 

Boasting is a very worldly characteristic, because it is associated with the braggart with a new car, or a family with a new house. Perhaps they have booked a holiday somewhere expensive, or they have met someone they, and the society around them, feel is important, like the King or a well-known actor. Boasting is associated with people who, by their own efforts (and usually a huge bank loan), feel they have the right to brag about their achievements and their possessions. But none of it will find them a path into Heaven, and one day they will face into the reality that the life after the grave has no need for a Porsche or expensive jewellery. 

Do we pilgrims have anything to boast about? Somehow, it’s not possible to boast about our faith, and not just because those worldly people around us perceive it to be a weakness. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:14, “But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means”. So why would we want to boast about such a thing, because most of our hearers would consider it foolishness? We can do nothing to earn our salvation. Through faith in Jesus, we accept the free gift of God, His salvation. The very essence of our faith is God. It’s all about Him and what He has done for us, and not about us at all. In Philippians 2:3 we read, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves”. Humility is the way forward for Christians. We have an inner strength that comes from knowing that God loves us personally and individually. And because of that we don’t have to puff ourselves up in front of our peers. We don’t have to make inflated claims about our worth, to try and make those around us look up to us. The Lord Himself will lift us up at the right time. We read in James 4:10, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honour”.

Living in God’s Kingdom is a counter-cultural way of life. The world’s values don’t exist in God’s Kingdom, and worldly boasting is one of them. But we can boast about the virtues of God’s Kingdom, and especially about all that Jesus has done for us. If that involved working for God, as with the offering being collected, then we will boast about it, because in the process, all the glory and all the praise and all the honour go to God Himself. 

Dear Father God. We humbly give You our thanks for all the things You have done for us. Our efforts have been and will be an apt response to Your presence in our lives and the lives of fellow believers. Thank You. Amen.

Being Sent Out: Embracing the Great Commission

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“We are also sending with them another of our brothers who has proven himself many times and has shown on many occasions how eager he is. He is now even more enthusiastic because of his great confidence in you. If anyone asks about Titus, say that he is my partner who works with me to help you. And the brothers with him have been sent by the churches, and they bring honour to Christ. So show them your love, and prove to all the churches that our boasting about you is justified.”
2 Corinthians 8:22-24 NLT

So there was quite a party of brothers engaged in transporting the offering, which included the contributions from the Macedonian churches. Titus and another unnamed brother went to Corinth to add what the congregation there wanted to contribute, and with them were some other brothers from Macedonia. These were Godly men, devoted to bringing “honour to Christ”. But there was one feature about them that was easy to miss – these men had been “sent by the churches”. We know nothing at all about these men, but they were most probably fully committed believers, so intent on doing God’s work that they, like Paul, had nothing and relied on the generosity of other believers whom they met on their journeys. Communications were hazardous in those days, with roads unpoliced and people travelling on them at risk of attack from bandits and robbers. Sea journeys were equally dangerous because of weather issues and other dangers – Paul himself said that he had been shipwrecked three times (2 Corinthians 11:25). But these “sent out” ones were willing to risk anything because they were focused on their mission, which was to accompany Titus and his associate and ensure the offerings made were still fully intact by the time they reached Jerusalem. 

Being “sent out” is a fundamental part of what it means to be a Christian. We all know the Great Commission, which we can read in Matthew 28:18-20, “Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age””. This was an unequivocal command from Jesus, one that applies not just to the disciples alive at the time, but one that has rippled down the centuries since, with men and women journeying to places that need to hear the Gospel, and where churches and fellowships need to be established. People like David Livingston and Mary Slessor come to mind from the nineteenth century. From the twentieth century, we remember missionaries such as Jim Elliot and Amy Carmichael. More recently, I was on the mailing list of a young woman who lived and worked in Lebanon, as she shared Jesus’ message of hope with Muslim families there. Closer to home, a couple I know are waiting for an opportunity to return to Bethlehem, where they were involved with a charity bringing God’s love to people there. These are all faithful believers who have responded positively to God’s call.

In the Gospels, we read of several occasions when Jesus “sent out” His disciples to do God’s work. In Matthew 10:5-8, we read, “Jesus sent out the twelve apostles with these instructions: “Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, but only to the people of Israel—God’s lost sheep. Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received!” A bit later, we read about the seventy-two disciples, sent out in pairs. Luke 10:1-3, “The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places he planned to visit. These were his instructions to them: “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields. Now go, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves”. At the end of their mission, we read, “When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, “Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!”” (Luke 10:17). 

But it wasn’t just the New Testament believers who were “sent out”. In one of my favourite passages, we read about Isaiah, who had such a profound vision of the Lord in the Temple that he exclaimed, “… It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies” (Isaiah 6:5). That was a commissioning and life-changing moment for Isaiah, because he went on to answer a question from the Lord. “Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” I said, “Here I am. Send me”” (Isaiah 6:8). Later on, he wrote “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!” (Isaiah 52:7). Isaiah’s life was dedicated to being “sent out” and because of it he ultimately suffered a violent death. Being “sent out” will often have unwelcome consequences, but Jesus warned His disciples about that. He said, “Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. But beware! For you will be handed over to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues. You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and other unbelievers about me” (Matthew 10:16-18). 

Paul was a “sent out” man who devoted his whole life, following his Damascus Road conversion, to fulfilling the Great Commission. In his letter to the Romans, he wrote about the message of salvation, which we can read in Romans 10:8-9, “In fact, it says, “The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart.” And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”. But then he asked the question, “But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”” (Romans 10:14-15). 

Have we pilgrims got “beautiful feet”? Or are we prone to resting them too much, hoping someone else will be sent out? It’s a difficult question, because we often have to juggle the demands of our workaday lives with our Christian service. But when we do get the opportunities, we share the wonderful Good News about Jesus, planting seeds and reaping the fruit. And as we go, our feet increase in beauty, enhanced by the message that they bear.

Dear Father God. Please bring our way opportunities to share Your Word with those who are ready and waiting to hear it. We have been sent to share our testimonies and the message of Christ in our desperately needy world. Thank You for the privilege. Amen.

Honour and Righteousness

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“What is more, he was chosen by the churches to accompany us as we carry the offering, which we administer in order to honour the Lord himself and to show our eagerness to help. We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this liberal gift. For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man.”
2 Corinthians 8:19-21 NIVUK

Chapter 8 of 2 Corinthians starts with an account of the generosity of the Macedonian churches (Philippi, Thessalonica and Berea) in raising funds to help the poor in Judea, who were still suffering from the effects of a famine. Paul wrote, “And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. …” (2 Corinthians 8:1-3). Paul continued with an appeal for the Corinthians to add their offering to that already collected, and to help with this, Titus was sent with some other brothers to act as a public statement of trust so that the money would arrive at its destination untouched. Paul reminded the Corinthians that the offering was administered “in order to honour the Lord himself and to show our eagerness to help”. 

Honour, trust and righteousness are key words in our verses today, and they should feature in all dealings in churches where money is involved. We should also add the word “integrity” because that reflects the character of the people involved in its administration. Sadly, today, an occasional news story emerges that exposes a misdemeanour. There was an occasion some years ago in a UK church, when the church secretary, who occasionally dipped into the offering placed in a safe overnight, was confronted by one of the leaders who had suspicions about what was going on. The money wasn’t usually counted before it was placed in the safe, but one day the leaders did count it and discovered that some of it had gone missing the next day, after the secretary had arrived at work. Thankfully, the leadership handled the situation very sensitively, the money was repaid, and the situation was resolved in a Godly way with restoration for the person concerned. But back with the Corinthians, Paul wanted to avoid any criticism of how the gift was administered, so he put in place men of honour and righteousness to do the necessary.

There is a connection between righteousness and honour, as we read in Proverbs 21:21, “Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honour”. But underpinning all Scriptures about integrity is the principle of stewardship, and this applies to everything that God has given us, our time, our talents or our treasure. Always under constant review are the ways we apply the whole of ourselves, in whatever we are doing, such that in it we honour God. Jesus taught a parable that we can read in Matthew 25. It starts, “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone” (Matthew 25:14).  His three servants had differing abilities, so he gave five bags of silver to one, two bags to another and one bag to the last. We note that this parable was about the Kingdom of Heaven, God’s Kingdom, and in some translations, the reference is to talents, which expands on the meaning of the resource being allocated. But in the parable, we read on and find that the first two servants put the money to work and doubled its value through wise and sound investments. Sadly, the last servant just hid his bag of silver, and, although it was intact, it achieved nothing for the benefit of his master. The first two servants heard that wonderful accolade from their master, we read, “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together! ’” (Matthew 25:21). But the last servant wasted his opportunity and ultimately ended up in “ … outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth”. 

We pilgrims need to be careful to use what God has given us in a way that honours Him, regardless of the resource. It could be the way we use our time: perhaps we should ask ourselves, “Is what we are devoting our time to producing a return for God?” Similarly, with our talents, the ability gifts God has given us. We may have the gift of encouragement: Romans 12:8a, “If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. …”. There are many more gifts God has provided but we don’t ever want to be accused of not using them. And of course, there is our money. Some people have a philanthropic ministry funded by their wealth, but at the other end of the spectrum, we read about the Temple offering from a poor woman. “Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins. “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has”” (Luke 21:2-4). But we must take note that we each have a “bag of silver” to invest in God’s Kingdom. 

Honouring God and living in righteousness are fundamental characteristics of all pilgrims living in God’s Kingdom.

Dear Heavenly Father. Difficult words and thoughts today, but we pray for Your help because we get so easily sidetracked. Please forgive us for the ways we have failed You in the use of our gifts, and we pray for opportunities to use them as You intended. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

The Importance of Integrity in Christian Service

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“But thank God! He has given Titus the same enthusiasm for you that I have. Titus welcomed our request that he visit you again. In fact, he himself was very eager to go and see you. We are also sending another brother with Titus. All the churches praise him as a preacher of the Good News. He was appointed by the churches to accompany us as we take the offering to Jerusalem—a service that glorifies the Lord and shows our eagerness to help.”
2 Corinthians 8:16-19 NLT

Paul was a man of integrity, regardless of what others said about him. On occasion, he was forced to say something in his defence, as we read in 2 Corinthians 1:17, “You may be asking why I changed my plan. Do you think I make my plans carelessly? Do you think I am like people of the world who say “Yes” when they really mean “No”? The attacks on Paul largely came from opponents in Corinth, Jewish leaders who disagreed with his teachings on the law and about Jesus. But integrity would have been integral to Paul’s character, and he surrounded himself with other men of integrity, such as Titus. Paul wrote with gratitude about Titus, whose heart, we are told, was stirred not by obligation, but by genuine care. Alongside him was another believer, also entrusted with handling the offering being collected for God’s people. This wasn’t just administration; it was a ministry built on integrity, accountability, and shared purpose. It was essential to make the point that in a world where corruption was common, here were men of integrity who could be trusted to take the whole offering to Jerusalem without dipping into it on the way, or even doing a runner somewhere with the whole amount in their pockets. It’s easy to think of integrity as a “practical” issue rather than a spiritual one—but Paul sees no separation. Anything to do with handling money, working with others, and being accountable is not just an organisational concern—they are acts of worship. These men knew that when they served God, how they did it reflected the God they represented.

In a world today, where trust is a fragile characteristic, there are some messages to believers everywhere from our verses today. Take Titus, for example. He wasn’t pressured to go to Corinth. He was eager, we read, and he had the same enthusiasm as Paul did. All believers are in some form of service in their fellowships and churches, and in the church I attend, there are opportunities for service all the time, not just on a Sunday. Do we do these acts of service willingly with integrity and caring? These characteristics are the bedrock of any fellowship and fulfil our Christian obligations to one another. The men travelling with Paul had reputations for doing what was right. Trust is built over time through a consistent character. Today, this means being honest with finances, following through on commitments, and, in all of it, acting with transparency. We must realise that our everyday choices are shaping our witness. As a friend of mine once said, our attitude determines our altitude.

Another message from this passage today involves how we deal with resources, either our own, our church’s, our employer’s, or even our family’s. From our verses today, we read that the brothers’ actions were “a service that glorifies the Lord”. That is the ultimate motivation. Whether we’re serving in church, volunteering in our communities, or working in our jobs, or whatever we are doing, we are representing Jesus, doing all to His glory.

One characteristic that shines in all that Paul said was faithfulness. This, we know, is a fruit of the Spirit, and is something that Jesus encourages in all of us. Solomon wrote about it, “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them round your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart” (Proverbs 3:3). 

God’s work is not only advanced by great preaching or bold vision, but by ordinary believers who can be trusted with responsibility. Think about faithfulness in the small things, integrity in the unseen moments and willingness to do the everyday tasks. These are the building blocks of a life that honours God.

Dear Heavenly Father. We understand the importance of personal integrity, because it honours You. Let us never forget that. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Biblical Principles of Sharing Resources in Modern Times

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Right now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when you need it. In this way, things will be equal. As the Scriptures say, “Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over, and those who gathered only a little had enough.”
2 Corinthians 8:14-15 NLT

Paul quoted a Scripture from the days of Manna, that whole food supplied by God for the Israelite nation while they were in the desert, transitioning from Egypt to their Promised Land. Manna was indeed a whole food because it not only contained all the carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and vitamins necessary for life, but was also available for forty years to a whole nation of somewhere between two and five million people. This could have amounted to up to 150 billion meals! We remember the two occasions when Jesus miraculously fed a crowd who had come to hear him in a remote place: on one occasion, five thousand men, and on the other, four thousand. But wasn’t the Manna time an even greater blessing from God? In the Exodus account, we read about the instructions that Moses gave to the Israelites when they discovered the “flaky substance as fine as frost” covering the ground outside their tents. Moses said to them, “These are the Lord’s instructions: Each household should gather as much as it needs. Pick up two quarts for each person in your tent” (Exodus 16:16). This was one occasion when the Israelites were obedient, and the next two verses read, “So the people of Israel did as they were told. Some gathered a lot, some only a little. But when they measured it out, everyone had just enough. Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over, and those who gathered only a little had enough. Each family had just what it needed”. The miracle didn’t end with the supply of manna. It continued with the distribution of the food to all the people. 

In our verses today from 2 Corinthians. Paul also said if all the churches he had established shared all their resources, then “things will be equal”. That is a noble principle, but one that does not sit easily in today’s society. Today, people are driven by selfish desires, and only the affluent West can claim to have the choice and sufficiency of food to match those desires. In some ways, the sin of selfishness is compounded by people using fat-reducing drugs to offset the effects of eating too many and too much of the wrong foods. Imagine a society where supermarkets are replaced by distribution points where people collect a bag of food each day, no more and no less. In that society (Utopian?), there would be enough food available to feed the world. But sin would soon take over, and a black market would emerge. I’m sure there are politicians and activists in the UK today, religious or not, who would enthusiastically embrace such a society. 

“five barley loaves and two fish“

But we pilgrims live in this kingdom of sin, although we are citizens of God’s Kingdom, and we share God’s love and grace with those around us, perhaps by demonstrating the same unselfish behaviour as the young boy with a packed lunch. John 6:8-9, “Then Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up. “There’s a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?” There was a season in our lives when the church my wife and I attended always seemed to have visitors on a Sunday, and more often than not, we ended up needing extra places at the dinner table. There were many times we prayed over what seemed to be a pathetically small joint of meat, only to find that there was more than enough. God will supply what we need as we reach out to Him in faith. 

We find that some people in our societies need a meal and lack the resources to provide for themselves. There are a number of reasons why this should be the case, some self-inflicted, but regardless of the reasons, we believers must share God’s love and compassion, doing what we can to help them. When my daughter was very ill in hospital, my wife sometimes lacked the time to make meals, but there were two neighbours who occasionally blessed us with a meal, and one lady even helped with our washing and ironing. We will always be grateful for what they did. Some Christians also help at food banks, often run by churches, which are always stocked with food to help the unfortunate. A local church also allows homeless people to sleep in their building overnight, supplying a breakfast the next morning if necessary. We live in a different society from the first-century communities and cities in the Biblical countries that Paul would have known, but the principles that Paul wrote about still apply. Once again, we remember that we are “salt and light” in places where God has planted us. We mustn’t turn our backs on opportunities to bless someone.

Dear Father God. Thank You for the resources that You have provided for us. Please lead us to needy people whom You want to bless. In Jesus’name. Amen.

Promoting Equality Through Christian Compassion

Posted on by Adrian Clark

Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. Of course, I don’t mean your giving should make life easy for others and hard for yourselves. I only mean that there should be some equality. Right now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when you need it. In this way, things will be equal.”
2 Corinthians 8:12-14 NLT

In this passage of Scripture devoted to encouraging the Corinthians to provide of their resources to help the poor elsewhere, we come across this verse (13) that seems to promote the thought that the burden of living should be shared across the churches. In those days there was no government funding to support those in need, and, quite rightly in my opinion, the churches were encouraged to fill the gap. After a major famine in Judea, people who were unaffected elsewhere made a positive move to help their fellow believers in need. This philosophy of shared resources was there right at the beginning of the early church, as we read in Acts 4:32, “All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had”. Two verses on, we read, “There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them”. But all was not problem-free, as we read in Acts 6:1, “But as the believers rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food”. There was obviously in place an early version of a “social security” system amongst Christians, and this principle spread across the early church. 

However, the question remains about the extent to which this process should be implemented. In Galatians 6:2, Paul wrote, “Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ”. This is something we do with our fellow believers because all of us sometimes face an emergency, financial or otherwise, and need help. So we are called to help each other by sharing the burden. But in Galatians 6:5 we read, “for each one should carry their own load”. Loads and burdens. We should discern the difference when we meet with people, believers or not. To illustrate the difference, I recently met a young man begging outside my local supermarket. He was stopping passers-by to ask for help with something to eat. In conversation, I discovered that he had missed two appointments at the DSS and that his benefits had been stopped as a result. He had the responsibility to carry his “load” in that particular phase of his life, by attending the DSS appointments. But his particular “burden” that day was to find some food, which I was happy to help with. A hard-hearted person might have walked away at this point, leaving him, in their opinion, to the results of his own stupidity, but that is where Christian compassion, helping others less fortunate than ourselves, kicks in. I have been in churches where the leadership has provided funds to help a congregant with a pressing need, such as an unexpected bill for which they had no resources. That was a “burden” we were happy to assist with. Separately, their “load” was already catered for by their own efforts.

In 2 Corinthians 8:13, we read, “Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality”. Paul believed that there should be fairness among the Christian community. It didn’t make sense to him that some believers should live on the verge of starvation while others lived to excess. But isn’t that the case globally in the 21st Century? People living in the West have plenty, whereas those living in more deprived areas of the world are always close to starvation. The frustration is that there is sufficient food in the world to feed everyone, but due to distribution inefficiencies and corruption in various governments, people go hungry.

Christian giving is meant to foster fairness and equality, not to create hardship for the giver to ease others’ needs. Paul clarifies that the goal is balancing abundance and need among believers, rather than causing poverty for one group while relieving another. To a large extent, that process has been taken over by our societies with the government of the day taxing those who live in abundance so that the money raised can be given to those living in poverty. Unfortunately, such systems can fail, and there are still people in the UK who rely on food banks and other support because they are unable to supply their basic needs, even with government help.

The word “equality” also applies outside this context of financial giving. Equality in society means ensuring every individual has equal rights, dignity, and access to opportunities, free from discrimination based on factors like race, gender, or religion. Key aspects include fair legal treatment, economic equity, access to education, and healthcare. Greater equality leads to healthier, more stable societies. But such a support system doesn’t come cheap, and the tax burden has been steadily increasing and is expected to reach 38% of the UK GDP by the end of this decade. In the first century, society was much simpler, and the Christian ethos of sharing possessions did much to promote the Gospel and establish the church, in a harsh world where the “haves” survived and often the “have-nots” didn’t. 

We pilgrims are part of a worldwide faith that reaches into just about every society on this planet. But we are also part of a community of friends and family that need help from our resources from time to time. And I’m sure that we do help where we can. And so we must be available to those we know, always willing to share what we have, be it money, love, grace, or whatever. Jesus said, “A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35). True equality only comes in the way we treat others. God shows no favourites, and we all stand equal before Him. James 2:1, “My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favouritism”. So in our churches and fellowships, we remember that we are all equal before God’s throne, freed from any thoughts of inferiority or superiority. 

Dear Heavenly Father. Please help us, we pray, to reach out and be available to those fellow members in society who are in need, so that we can bring Your love and the resources You have graciously provided for us to help them. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Understanding God’s Generous Grace in Our Lives

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich. Here is my advice: It would be good for you to finish what you started a year ago. Last year you were the first who wanted to give, and you were the first to begin doing it. Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have.”
2 Corinthians 8:9-11 NLT

Grace – God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense – is at the very heart of why we pilgrims are Christians. And as Paul rightly wrote, the grace became flesh through the person of Jesus Christ. He left the richness of Heaven to become poor for the sake of anyone who believed in Him and who responded positively to His message of grace. We didn’t deserve such favour from our Creator and holy God. We had done nothing of ourselves to warrant it. Rather, our unholiness was a stench in God’s nostrils, and we could have no complaint if there was no future for us in His presence. And yet, “He became poor, so that by his poverty He could make [us] rich”. And rich we are. Paul wrote, “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). There are no spiritual blessings that are unavailable to us, and we have a treasure trove that we can draw on now and in the future. In Philippians 4:19, Paul wrote, “And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus”. I’m sure all of us pilgrims can testify that, so far, we have had a life where God has supplied all our needs (not “wants”, by the way). Jesus said to the church in Ephesus, “I know about your suffering and your poverty—but you are rich! …” (Revelation 2:9a). In all these cases, however, we need to beware of associating richness with worldly wealth. The richness in Christ is priceless, and He said, “And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?” (Matthew 16:26). We need to remember that hell is a depository for rubbish, just as the valley next to Jerusalem, called Gehenna, was. Jesus often associated hell with this rubbish dump “where the maggots never die and the fire never goes out”  (Mark 9:48). It is a place where those who decide not to benefit from the free gift of God’s grace will spend eternity. Jesus was horrified by the thought of hell, and His life was dedicated to supplying an unlimited fountain of grace to provide sinners with a Godly alternative.

“let your good deeds
shine out for all to see“

We pilgrims are the children of grace, because through all that Jesus did for us at Calvary, we can now stand righteous before our Heavenly Father. We call Him “Abba”, which, translated, means “Daddy”. The only way any of us can enter into a relationship with God is because of His grace toward us. Ephesians 2:8, “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God”. But we can’t leave it there. We hold that message of grace and have the opportunity to take it to those we know and meet. That does not just mean providing tracts to anyone we meet, but it also means we are dispensers of “salt and light” wherever we go. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:13-16). In my walks around the West of Fife, I occasionally meet people who are scared and fearful, without hope or vision for their lives. One elderly man I recently met confessed that he was glad that he did not have many more years in this life to endure the worry of the wars that blight our planet and the political decisions made by our government. A lady walking her dogs talked in a similar way, using it as an excuse for not becoming a believer, because, as she claimed, how could God allow all the suffering in this world to happen? We pilgrims have the words of Jesus, which we can use to counter the lies of the devil. But to know these words, we have to be diligent in reading what He said. When He was tempted in the wilderness, Jesus used Scriptures to refute the devil’s invitations. And so can we, when faced with arguments from people who have no knowledge of who God really is.

As Paul wrote, we pilgrims “know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ”. Let us today look for opportunities to share that with others through our attitudes, our generosity, our kindness, and our love for those not as fortunate as we are. And if the opportunity arises, we can share our testimonies of what God has done for us.

Dear Heavenly Father. Thank You for Your “generous grace”, made so available to Your children and the people around us. Help us, we pray, to find the time to reach out to the needy and share all that You have done for us. In Your precious name, Amen. 

Excelling in Faith: Lessons from the Church in Corinth

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Since you excel in so many ways—in your faith, your gifted speakers, your knowledge, your enthusiasm, and your love from us—I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving. I am not commanding you to do this. But I am testing how genuine your love is by comparing it with the eagerness of the other churches.”
2 Corinthians 8:7-8 NLT

From all accounts, and regardless of the issues Paul raised, this was a very gifted church in Corinth. The believers there were blessed in so many ways. But Paul was introducing them to some harder challenges that would test them a bit. What about your giving? he asked. Paul effectively asked, “Do you really love the Christians in other places who perhaps are not as financially blessed as you are?” Such questions often expose the love and commitment that believers have, and even today, some churches collapse because the congregation is either unwilling or unable to support the work. 

The church in Jerusalem was struggling financially, as we read in Acts 11:27-30, “During this time, some prophets travelled from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus stood up in one of the meetings and predicted by the Spirit that a great famine was coming upon the entire Roman world. (This was fulfilled during the reign of Claudius.) So the believers in Antioch decided to send relief to the brothers and sisters in Judea, everyone giving as much as they could. This they did, entrusting their gifts to Barnabas and Saul to take to the elders of the church in Jerusalem”. As far as the timeline of events goes, Claudius reigned from 41 to 54 AD. Paul wrote his second letter to the Corinthians around 56 AD, so the Judean believers must still have been in difficult times and desperately needed assistance.

The believers in Corinth excelled in their faith, Paul wrote. When we think about our faith, we consider it as a name for our Christianity, in the context that it is the one faith amongst many. Our current King, Charles III, holds the traditional title of Defender of the Faith as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, but he has expressed a desire to be a “defender of faith” (or “all faiths”), acting as a protector for all religions in a multicultural Britain. While he retains the traditional, formal title, he has emphasised a broader, more inclusive approach to religious diversity, which was reflected in his coronation ceremony. Sad, really, because his mother was definitely a defender of the one true faith. 

We pilgrims also think of “faith” in the Hebrews 11:1 context, which starts, “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see”. In this context, faith is perhaps more objective and far enough away not to bother us too much. But further down in Hebrews 11 we read verse 6, “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him”. Such a faith is more immediate and personal and is a reflection on how we live our Christian lives. The question is, “How does our faith in God impact our daily lives?” Do we attend church on a Sunday, and yet fail to uphold Godly principles in the office on a Monday morning? Or do we fall apart when a problem arises and our faith is then soon forgotten? Excelling in faith means consistently growing beyond basic belief into an overflowing, active, and Christlike life, characterised by deepened love, knowledge, and dedication rather than complacency. So we diligently seek to glorify God in all that we are and do, acting in ways that demonstrate our faith. Most of the time, we are not talking about a faith like Noah’s, a big faith that persevered for a hundred years, building a boat large enough to take all the animals. Or a faith like Abraham’s. Romans 4:3, “For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith””. Our personal faith is worked out in our day to day lives, as we journey on to glory, meeting the problems, troubles and challenges that all people experience, but applying our faith-filled lives with a Godly faith.

Paul also commended the Corinthians for their gifted speakers. These were not just the up-front preachers, but all the believers, as they spoke out their wisdom, knowledge and prophetic words, all for the edification of the church. This was a thriving fellowship devoted to growing in numbers and their faith, and they applied themselves enthusiastically to living their lives together. Don’t forget, this was a church at the cutting edge of Christianity in a hostile world, and they needed all the faith and other resources that they could muster. Paul and his colleagues loved them dearly, and I’m sure did their best to encourage them in their lives as believers.

What do we pilgrims excel at? The fact that we are here so far along the trail is a testimony to our growing faiths. We have been Christians for varying lengths of time, and we will all have been facing a unique series of events as we go about our daily lives. School and further education, the workplace, family matters like marrying and having children, and then on to retirement and a new twilight season with perhaps some health challenges. But these are generalities which we will encounter, but within them, there are the hard times when our faith is really tested. It may have already been tested severely, but in it all, we are overcomers. That is where our faiths excel. 

Paul wrote to the Roman believers, “Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? … No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us”(Romans 8: 35, 37). We pilgrims see beyond the short-term troubles to the time when we will give God the Glory He deserves, to the time when He will reward us for our faith. Our faith connects us with the Source of all that we need to be overcomers in a world that seems to lurch from one disaster to the next, disasters driven by sin and wickedness. Jesus said, “ … Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world” (John 16:33b). Our faith is taking us on an exciting journey, and the Corinthian believers seemingly were excelling in walking by faith through the difficulties of their times. Are we as well?

Dear Father God. You are the Source of all our faith, and nothing will separate us from Your love. We thank You for Jesus, our Lord and Saviour, and we praise You today. Please help us in our walk of faith, as You have done on so many occasions. Amen.

Giving Ourselves to God: Understanding True Sacrifice

Posted on by Adrian Clark

“Not only [did they give materially] as we had hoped, but first they gave themselves to the Lord and to us [as His representatives] by the will of God [disregarding their personal interests and giving as much as they possibly could]. So we urged Titus that, as he began it, he should also complete this gracious work among you as well.”
2 Corinthians 8:5-6 AMP

There is an order of priority to be followed in our Christian walk, an order that may not always align with our own desires and inclinations. We can experience a degree of conflict between our sinful natures and the Spirit of God within us. But in our verses today, Paul writes that they seem to have got the order of priority correct. The Corinthians were eager to give money to help the poor in Jerusalem; in fact, they were quite insistent. However, Paul could see that their first priority was to give “themselves to the Lord”, and, as well, give themselves to “us” – Paul and his colleagues, as God’s representatives. 

Any human being starts life not thinking about others but instead thinking about themselves, motivated by a desire to please themselves. As we grow, that usually doesn’t change much. Our focus can become more dispersed among areas that are important to us, such as relationships, careers, or goals. But the bottom line is almost always a desire to please ourselves. The quest for happiness is a universal journey. But that is not how God created us, as we know from Genesis 1:27, “So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them”. So, comparing ourselves to God (if that were even possible!), Do we think He would be so selfish as to focus solely on himself? We know otherwise, because he sent His Son to die a sinner’s death, but even more, he took on the sins of the world, from everyone who has ever lived, past, present and future. Would we have been so concerned by the plight of others that we too would forget ourselves and instead shift our thoughts and actions to them and their needs? Being made in God’s image perhaps highlights where our true focus should be.

So, giving ourselves to God means adopting His ways in living our lives. It is said that within us is a God-shaped hole that has to be filled by God Himself. The French philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every person, and it can never be filled by any created thing. It can only be filled by God, made known through Jesus Christ”. As we said earlier, human beings are more interested in filling this “hole” or “vacuum” with created things, human relationships or ineffective and useless philosophies. There is a plethora of “things” available for those who seek self-gratification, such as alcohol and drugs, pornography, and similar dark devices, but we mustn’t forget sports and hobbies, all of which can attempt to fill the void inside. Others seek a remedy on a psychiatrist’s couch or pursue religions and philosophies that pander to the ”me” inside us, rather than look upwards to God Himself. It is amazing the lengths to which human beings will go to avoid contact with their Creator. 

The Shorter Westminster Catechism starts with the question, “What is the chief end of man?”, to which the answer is “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever”. Paul wrote, “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). This immediately shifts the human focus to God, but provides a problem for those who do not believe that He exists. They continue to live with a vacuum inside that can never be filled, no matter how hard they try. Some people dream of unimaginable wealth, believing it would make a difference, but research shows that lottery winners are among the unhappiest people in the world. Nothing in this world can get close to what God intended.

When we come to the place of recognising life is not about ourselves, we are ready to stop running from God and allow Him to take over. The only way any of us can have a relationship with a holy God is to admit that we are sinners, turn away from that sin, and accept the sacrifice that Jesus made. There is no other way. Picture an altar dedicated to the only true God. Then imagine crawling onto it, lying down, and saying, “Here I am, God. I’m a sinner, but you love me anyway. Thank you for dying for me and rising from the dead so my sin could be forgiven. Cleanse me, forgive me, and make me your child. Take me. All of me. I want to live for you from now on”. 

Paul wrote, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:1-2).

Before the Corinthians could give to the poor, they had to give themselves to God. There are nominal Christians today who go through all the motions and even generously give of their money to their church and its ministries, but without first having that relationship with God, it is all pointless. Following a liturgy won’t get them to Heaven. A pass to gain entry through the pearly gates cannot be purchased with human gold. There is only one way to Heaven, and that is to believe in Jesus. Simple but profound. We pilgrims today perhaps are looking inwards instead of upwards, but there is a remedy: once again, we turn our eyes upon Jesus and look into His wonderful face. We then find that all the created objects and methods come to nothing “in the light of His glory and grace”. 

Dear Father God. Our lives are here to provide You with the glory You deserve. Please forgive us for our waywardness, as we dip into the things of the world rather than into the things of Your Word. We worship You today. Amen.