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Desiring & Doing

2Corinthians: Paul's Most Underappreciated Epistle

Feb 2, 2020


by: Jack Lash Series: 2Corinthians: Paul's Most Underappreciated Epistle | Category: Giving | Scripture: 2 Corinthians 8:10–12

(We apologize that this sermon is not available on audio.)

  1. Introduction
     A. I want to begin this morning with a warning. I’m going to say some pretty strong things in this sermon. They will apply to some more than to others. They certainly apply to me! I don’t mean to think the worst of anyone, or to be disrespectful. Some of you are so much better at this than I am.
      1. So, if the shoe fits, wear it! If it doesn’t fit, thank God for His work of grace in your heart, and pray for those of us who really struggle with these things. 
     B. 2Cor.8:10-12 And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who a year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. 11 So now finish doing it as well, so that your readi-ness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. 12 For if the readi-ness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he doesn’t have.
     C. Paul talks here about the desiring and the doing. And he says that the desiring and the doing are not the same thing. Wanting to do something is different than actually doing it.
      1. In a sense they belong together, but they do not always occur together. 
       a. You can desire but not do. 
       b. You can do but not desire. 
      2. Why would you ever desire but not do?
       a. There may be undesired consequences of doing. 
       b. You may not have the ability to do, no matter how much you desire it.
        (1) I would like to eliminate the national debt, but I don’t have the ability to do so.
       c. There may be something else you desire more.
        (1) Prov.19:24 “The sluggard buries his hand in the dish & won’t even bring it back to his mouth.”
      3. Why would you ever do without desiring? 
       a. To look good to others
       b. To feel better about yourself 
       c. Because the reward is great: You know how much those guys who change the light bulbs on the tops of towers get paid?! 
     D. This relationship between desiring and doing is one of the themes of these two chapters. We see this theme in at least four ways:
      1. Not only does Paul specifically mention it in v.10 and 11.
      2. The word earnestness (sometimes translated readiness or eagerness or even good will) is used five times in the whole NT. Four of them are here in these two chapters, all referring to the eagerness to participate in the collection for the Jerusalem church. 
       a. In 8:11 he urges them to complete their earnestness by giving.
       b. In 8:12 he says that if one gives eagerly, it is acceptable to God, even if the person’s gift might  be limited by his resources.
       c. In 8:19 he says Titus has been appointed by the churches to go with Paul to deliver the collection in order to show the earnestness of the Gentile churches to help the church at Jerusalem. 
       d. In 9:2 he says that he knows how eager the Corinthians are to give to the collection.
      3. We’ve already seen the generosity of the Macedonians described as very eager in 2Cor.8:
       a. 2 their abundance of joy overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 
       b. 4 they begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints
      4. 9:7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 
     E. All of these make reference to desire in conjunction with the actual act of giving. Paul lays a lot of emphasis on this notion of desire. He is not merely wanting to gather a lot of money from among the Gentile churches for the poor in Judea, he clearly also is very anxious for the money to be given eagerly, enthusiastically, wholeheartedly.
      1. This morning we’re going to see two lessons we learn from what Paul says here about desire.
    II. God doesn’t want us merely desiring to do good without actually doing. 
     A. Paul commends the Corinthians for the desire they have had for a year to help out in the offering for the churches of Judea. Now he urges them to bring their good desire to completion by fulfilling their stated intention to give to the offering. 
     B. It is not enough to want to do good. We must do the thing, not just desire to do it. Good desires need to be brought to completion by actually doing the good thing. 
      1. Here is the principle of follow-through. It is not enough to have good desires or even intentions.
      2. We must follow through on things or our good intentions are all in vain. So much good is left undone because people never followed through on their good intentions. 
      3. The reason desire sometimes doesn’t result in doing is because the desire is not strong enough.
      4. God wants us to be “doers of the word” (James 1:22) because He wants our desire for Him to be stronger than our desire for anything else.
      5. He wants our desire to be strong enough that we don’t just think about it or talk about it, but do it.
       a. 1John 3:18 “Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”
      6. We are created in Christ Jesus for good works that we should walk in them” not merely desire to do them. – Ephesians 2:10 
      7. If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? – James 2:15–16 
      8. It’s not enough to feel compassion. It’s not enough to wish them well. That’s just a cop-out if we have the ability to help. 
      9. “If anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?” – 1John 3:17 
      10. It’s one thing to desire something. It’s another matter to desire it enough to do it, to pursue it enough to make it happen. 
      11. So, God doesn’t want us merely desiring to do good without actually doing it – if it’s within our power. 
    III. God doesn’t want us merely doing good without having the desire.
     A. “God loves a cheerful giver.” God wants us to give not under compulsion but because we believe in what we’re doing. God wants our attitude in giving to correspond to the attitude of Jesus when He gave Himself. He gave Himself freely and willingly and wholeheartedly. And we must do the same.
     B. Now obviously, we can’t give to everything. We can’t be burdened with every need. Today there is a world of need and a plethora of worthy causes. Even multi-millionaires cannot give to them all. 
      1. But though this is true, it can also be used as a cop-out. The issue isn’t whether we give to everything. The issue is: Are we enthusiastic, passionate givers?
      2. You can’t burn with desire for every ministry, but do we burn with desire for ANY ministries?
      3. You can’t invest your heart in every opportunity, but do we invest our hearts in ANY?
      4. You can’t be a prayer warrior for every kingdom cause, but are we prayer warriors for ANY kingdom cause? 
     C. It is easy to think that my contributions won’t make any difference. It is the billionaires who can change the world by their generosity. What can I do? 
      1. But that viewpoint leaves God out of the picture.
      2. God can change the world without human resources. He doesn’t need our money, He doesn’t need our effort. 
      3. So, what is He waiting for? “The LORD looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.” – Psalm 14:2 
      4. And what does He say?
       a. “All these my hand has made, and so all these came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.” – Is.66:2 
      5. Remember when Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering, and also a poor widow who put in two pennies? And He said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them.” – Luke 21:1–3 
       a. She put in more than the rich givers! That’s what Jesus said! 
       b. How can that be? It’s because God doesn’t count the way we count. He looks at the heart. He looks at the motivation. He looks at the desire. 
     D. Many people do the right thing for the wrong reason. 
      1. They do it because they are afraid of being disapproved by others. Or they do it because they want to feel good about themselves.
      2. They may be doing good, but it is empty because their heart isn’t really in it. “If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” – 1Cor.13:3
     E. What God cares most about is not our performance, or our knowledge. It’s our desire, our heart.
      1. The problem we have is a problem of desire. 
       a. Sometimes we desire the wrong things.
       b. Sometimes we desire good things – like food, sleep, family, a good reputation – too much. We turn good things into idols.
       c. But mostly, our problem is that we don’t desire the most desirable things nearly enough. 
     F. It’s not that we desire too much. Our problem is that we desire too little; we’re content with too little. 
      1. If our health is good, if our family is being nice to us, if our job is going well, if our finances are in the black, if our tummies are full, we are content enough – even if we aren’t growing in Christ, even if our prayer lives are stale, even if our relationship with God’s word has gone cold. 
      2. If our lives seem lacking, we look for a movie to go to or a vacation to go on. 
      3. But where is our sense of desperation for Christ? 
     G. This issue of desire is so much bigger than giving.
      1. God has given us a book of prayers, the book of Psalms. The psalms are not nice prayers to pray on different occasions. 
       a. You know what’s different between our prayers and the psalms? 
       b. Eloquence? Beauty? Vocabulary? No. The difference is desire. Every psalm is dripping with desire, unlike many of our prayers. The psalms are desperate; they are urgent; they are real. 
       c.  Do our prayers sound like we are praying because we’re supposed to, not because there’s no other place to turn? Do they sound like we’re performing before men, not standing in awe before the living God, crying out for His help? 
      2. To teach us about how we should pray, Jesus told us the story of the importunate widow in Luke 18:2–7. This widow kept coming to the court of a certain judge, even though he neither feared God nor respected man. For a while he refused, but eventually he said to himself, “This woman is driving me crazy! I better give her justice, or she’ll never leave me alone!” And here’s the lesson the Lord gives us from this: “If the unrighteous judge will give this widow the justice she wants, don’t you think God will give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night?”
       a. What do you think Jesus is trying to teach here? 
       b. Is He trying to teach us to be repetitive in our prayers? I don’t think so. Jesus criticized the Pharisees’ prayers which were repetitive, because they were just words spoken – to look godly. 
       c. No, Jesus is trying to teach us to pray with desire. 
      3. And how about worship? 
       a. There are plenty of folks who just don’t come to church to worship.
       b. But what about those of us who do? Why do we come? Are we filled with desire to be with the Lord and His people? 
      4. Do we come to God’s word hungry? Are we willing to devote time and effort in order to hear from Him? Do we desire Him enough? 
      5. What drives our Christianity? Is it our concern for the state of the world? Is it our fear of going to hell? Is it our desire the benefits of Christian community? Or is it because we want Jesus? 
      6. What will we be like on our deathbed? It’s such a beautiful thing to watch a person die who is looking forward to being with Jesus. 
       a. Is that the way we will be? Or will we face death as if it means losing what we truly desire instead of gaining what we truly desire? 
     H. Sadly, the enjoyments of earthly conveniences and pleasures dull our desire for the Lord. We’re too comfortable to desperately long for Jesus. We’re content without Him! We’re intoxicated with earthly comfort, and we just zone out spiritually. 
      1. If our worldly circumstances are ok, we can tolerate spiritual malaise. 
      2. Our lives are so crammed full of GOOD things, we learn to live without the BEST thing.
      3. And so, our hearts are floundering, unfocussed, uncentered. 
      4. Many of our days are profoundly Christless and prayerless, and almost entirely earthliminded.  
      5. Where is “the deep thunder of [our] want and woe” which “cries out to” God?  (Christina Rosetti, “None Other Lamb” in the Trinity Hymnal #157)
      6. We are so tolerant of spiritual slumber. We have little spiritual ambition or kingdom zeal. 
     I. What the world needs is not Christian rule-keepers. It needs people aflame with godly desire. It needs people hungry for God. It needs people passionate about His kingdom. It needs people filled with the hope of eternal life. It needs Christians who obey not because of fear, not because they are rule-keepers by personality. It needs Christians who obey Jesus because they love Him, because they want Him – and they know disobedience moves us away from Him. 
     J. So, “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.” – Romans 12:11 
     K. There was a time in American history when the only book most families had was the Bible. And besides work, there wasn’t much to do besides talk to your family. Boy, has that changed! We have so many things to do, and there is so much fun to be had. 
     L. And all this weighs on our souls. The day we live in is hostile to our relationship with Christ. 
     M. And we need to work together on this. We need to “consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but...exhort[ing] one another every day...that none may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” – Heb.10:24–25 & 3:13