First Baptist Church Litchfield
November 23, 2025

      • Psalm 107:1ESV

  • Be Unto Your Name
  • Jesus Thank You

      • Philippians 4:4–7ESV

  • Goodness Of God
  • Holy Holy Holy
  • Worthy Is The Lamb

  • No Such Thing as a Surprised Stingy Farmer

    No farmer walks out to a barren field confused as to why nothing grew when he never opened his seed bag. And no sane farmer sows sparingly. When planting season comes, he scatters his seed with confidence, because he knows that the more he sows, the more he can expect when the harvest comes. The harvest always reflects the seed.
    Paul reaches into that familiar agrarian truth to teach us about generosity. Generosity is not about your finances; it is about your heart. Your giving is a window into what you treasure most. And when your heart has been shaped by the gospel—reshaped by the generosity of God Himself—it begins to resemble His heart. That’s why Paul can say with such warmth, “God loves a cheerful giver.” A generous heart is a God-shaped heart.
    If that is the case, we do we still find it hard to be generous? The short answer is we battle our flesh. In our fallen condition, our hearts don’t naturally open—they close. We clutch the very things God calls us to release. Why do we cling to our possessions and wealth? We fear lack, we fear loss, and we fear that giving generously will leave us empty. In our sinful nature, we white-knuckle what God designed us to sow.
    And this is exactly where Jesus meets us. He shows us what our Father is like—a God who gives lavishly, abundantly, joyfully. A God who did not spare His own Son but graciously gave Him up for us all (Romans 8:32). And by His Spirit, He transforms our stingy hearts into generous ones that resemble His own.
    In 2 Corinthians 9, Paul is encouraging the Corinthian church to be generous with a love offering for the suffering believers in Jerusalem. He commends their readiness, stirs up their zeal, and reminds them that generous sowing produces a generous harvest because God is generous with His grace. He tells them that their giving will supply real needs, strengthen real believers, and overflow into thanksgiving to God. And at the end of it all, he can’t help but lift his eyes to heaven and say, “Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!” (v. 15).
    At the very center of our passage this morning is verse 8: “God is able to make all grace abound to you…” Not a trickle of grace. Not a drizzle of grace. All grace. Abounding grace. Grace so amazing it generously poured out on you as “inexpressible gift” in His Son (2 Cor 9:15), so you can be generous.
    In light of this gospel reality,

    Christian, I want you to sow this world’s goods generously because God’s abounding grace produces an abounding generosity in His people.

    This morning, as we walk through verses 6–15, Paul is going to show us three gospel-shaped ways to live a generous life—a life that reflects the generosity of Jesus Himself.

    I. Sow Bountifully So You May Reap Bountifully

    (2 Corinthians 9:6–7)
    Paul begins,
    “6 The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” 2 Corinthians 9:6–7
    In this passage, Paul is not speaking about sowing in some vague spiritual sense, nor is he primarily addressing the tithe. The context makes it unmistakably clear: sowing refers to material giving, the sacrificial sharing of worldly goods—especially wealth—for the sake of suffering believers. The Jerusalem church was being crushed by persecution and poverty. Their affliction was so severe that the apostles themselves reached out to the surrounding Gentile churches for help. Paul wasn’t asking the Corinthians to divert their tithe from their own congregation; he was calling them to give above and beyond—to enter into the sufferings of their brothers and sisters with open hands and generous hearts.
    He reminds them in verse 1 that he didn’t even need to persuade them. They were already eager. “It is unnecessary for me to write to you about this ministry for the saints,” he says, “for I know your readiness.” Paul had even boasted about them to the Macedonians, telling them that Achaia—Corinth’s capital region—had been prepared for this gift since the previous year. Ironically, the Macedonians, who were far poorer and under severe affliction, became the very ones who inspired Corinth by their extraordinary generosity (cf. 8:1–5). Now Corinth, a far wealthier congregation, was ready to respond in kind.
    But Paul is a seasoned pastor—he knows the heart of man. He knows how quickly good intentions drift when comfort anxiously whispers and the flesh grows weak. So he wisely sends brothers ahead of him to help the Corinthians follow through (vv. 3–4). You can almost feel Paul’s fatherly concern: What shame would it bring if the Macedonian believers—who gave out of their extreme poverty—arrived with Paul only to find the wealthy Corinthians unprepared or unwilling? Paul wants Corinth’s readiness to match their promise so that their generosity will testify to the grace of God.
    In light of this, Paul says decide in your heart to be generous with your money. If we work this backwards, we can see the motive for your generosity. In verse 7, Paul says,“7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
    Why is Paul concerned with their heart? Because your heart is the well-spring of your life from which everything flows (Proverbs 4:23). Your heart exposes who you really are and what you really care about in this world. Jesus says your heart reveals what you treasure, and your words reveal what is in your heart. If you truly love Jesus, then your heart will reflect whom and what he loves in word and deed. Jesus loves to be generous, and the Father is a generous God who is so generous that he redeemed sinners so he could share his kingdom with them.

    Why does God love a cheerful giver?

    Because cheerful generosity is exactly what God is like. God never gives reluctantly. He never gives with clenched fists. He never gives begrudgingly. He is the God who so loved the world that He gave His most precious Son (John 3:16).
    Augustine captures the plight of the reluctant giver when he says, “If you grieve when you give bread you lose both the bread and the merit.” God is never grieved in giving, and neither should we be grieved. Let your heart rejoice at the opportunity to be generous.
    With that motive in mind, Paul gives us the harvest principle—you reap what you sow. If you sow sparingly, you should not expect much in return, and frankly, you are not reflecting the generous heart of God. But if you sow bountifully—if your giving mirrors the lavish generosity of Jesus—then you will reap bountifully. Your life will look like the God who generously saved you. But the question naturally rises: What exactly will you reap?
    Paul’s answer includes both earthly and heavenly blessings. In verse 8, he tells us God is able to make you abound in everything you need in this life—something we will explore in the next point. Yet Scripture also teaches that God eternally rewards His people for every work done in faith. Jesus says the Father sees every act of hidden generosity and rewards what is done in humility (Matt. 6:4; Mark 9:41). Solomon adds that giving to the poor is nothing less than lending to the Lord Himself, and God will repay in His timing and His wisdom (Prov. 19:17).
    Jesus further promises that no gift given in His name is ever wasted, but is stored up as treasure in heaven—an investment that cannot rust, fade, or be stolen (Matt. 6:20; 1 Tim. 6:19). From Genesis to Revelation, the pattern is clear: faithful giving is tied not to merit but to grace—grace that rewards, grace that multiplies, grace that shapes us into the image of Christ.
    In the end, when the gospel transforms your heart, God-shaped hearts inevitably become God-reflecting hands.
    Living in the Midwest, we know stingy farmers who hoard their seed makes no sense. Imagine a farmer walking out to his field, clutching his seed as if he’ll never get more, tossing out one kernel at a time. His fearful hoarding becomes his famine.
    That is exactly how fear shapes your giving:
    —“What if I don’t have enough?” —“What if generosity hurts me later?” —“What if I lose what I give?”
    —“What if people are not thankful for what I give?”

    “Fear clutches seed. Faith casts seed.”

    But where does such a generous heart come from? Surely not from us. And that is why Paul moves next to the fountainhead of generosity—the God who supplies everything.

    II. Sow Faithfully, Trusting God Will Supply All Your Needs

    (2 Corinthians 9:8–11)
    “8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. 9 As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” 10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.” 2 Corinthians 9:8–11
    What does Paul mean when he says, “God is able to make all grace abound to you”? What is this grace? In this context, Paul is not speaking of saving grace but of material, earthly provision. The word grace here includes—and especially emphasizes—God’s earthly blessings, God’s ability to provide what you physically need in order to give generously. Wherever God produces a spirit of generosity in the heart, He will also supply the practical means to be generous. God never commands what He does not also empower.
    Notice how Paul reinforces this with the rhythmic repetition: “always having all sufficiency in all things, you may abound in every good work.” It is Paul’s way of saying that God’s provision always matches God’s calling. The grace that moves your heart to give is the same grace that fills your hands with what you need to give.

    This is the backbone of Christian generosity. You give, not because you have much, but because your God does.

    The CEV (Contemporary English Version) captures this central thought beautifully: “God can bless you with everything you need, and you will always have more than enough to do all kinds of good things for others.”
    When I was a boy, my uncle Jimbo used to slip me a couple of dollars so I could buy a Coke in a glass bottle and a Moon Pie. We’d walk into the little general store, he’d grab his Coke and Moon Pie, and I’d grab mine. When we got to the counter, he would set his things down, and I’d say, “I’ll pay for it,” pulling out the wrinkled dollars he had just given me. Of course, I wasn’t paying for anything. Uncle Jimbo paid for it all. He had the means to give and be generous, and so he gave generously. But he also delighted in letting me pay for his treat with the very money he gave me. It brought him joy to watch me give him something back.
    Paul says that’s exactly what God is like. He is the One who “supplies seed to the sower and bread for food” (v. 10). He supplies the seed and He supplies the harvest. He supplies the grace and the strength. He supplies the joy and the means. And then—astonishingly—He takes joy when His children give from what He has supplied.
    Verse 11 reveals the purpose of God’s abundant provision:

    “You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way…”

    God enriches you—not so you can increase your comfort, but so you can increase your giving. This generosity is not meant to land in your bank account, and remain in your possession. It is meant to ripple outward, strengthening the church, nourishing the saints, and magnifying the name of God. Which leads to Paul’s final movement.

    III. Sow Generously, Knowing Your Gift Produces Thanksgiving to God

    (2 Corinthians 9:12–15)
    Paul says the Corinthians’ generosity accomplishes two great works:

    1. It meets real needs (v. 12)

    Pauls says, “12 For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints…(2 Corinthians 9:12a)
    The Jerusalem church was a congregation under immense pressure. Geographically, Jerusalem was not a wealthy city. It sat off the major trade routes and had limited economic opportunities even in the best of times. But for Christians, the situation was far worse. Once they confessed Jesus as Lord, they were cut off from the temple economy and shut out from the financial life of Israel. Many faced economic persecution—losing employment, losing social standing, even losing access to family networks. The church was largely made up of pilgrims who had come to faith at Pentecost and never went home, along with Jewish believers who were rejected by their communities the moment they were baptized into Christ. On top of this, they bore the ongoing burdens of hospitality: caring for traveling teachers, providing for the apostles, hosting older widows and believers with no family, and surviving repeated famines that struck the region in the 40s.
    Layer onto that the weight of persecution. In A.D. 44, Herod Agrippa I launched a violent campaign against the believers, imprisoning Peter and executing James. Many leaders had to flee, and the church became scattered and fragile. Peter became a visitor rather than a resident, and James—the Lord’s brother—carried the weight of leadership in a bruised and battered congregation. Yet despite all these challenges, the Jerusalem church remained the spiritual center of early Christianity. It mattered that they survived. It mattered that the gospel had a presence there. That is why Paul organized the collection among the Gentile churches—to uphold, support, and strengthen these brothers and sisters who were suffering for the name of Christ.
    The money the Corinthian church gave put food on the tables of hungry believers, clothed families who had lost everything for the name of Christ, upheld pastors and missionaries in Jerusalem, and helped preserve the dignity of men and women determined to joyfully advance the kingdom of God. Entire households in Jerusalem were committed to making much of Jesus, but they needed the basic necessities to continue. Their ability to remain faithful in ministry depended, in part, on the generosity of the Corinthian believers.
    Brothers and sisters, the same is true for us. Your generosity matters to the ministry of First Baptist Church of Litchfield. We cannot joyfully advance the kingdom with clenched fists holding the very gifts God supplied for generosity. Yes—your giving keeps the lights on. But it does far more than that. Your generosity supports my family so I can shepherd yours. It fuels the outreach of Litchfield Christian School. It strengthens the training and equipping of the saints through our Cross Groups and biblical counseling ministry. Your giving allows us to address real needs—poverty, substance abuse, fractured family dynamics, impaired learning, and the spiritual emptiness of the unchurched. Every dollar given becomes a declaration that you reflect the heart of a God who cares deeply for His image bearers. Your generosity is kingdom work, and it matters eternally.

    2. It leads others to worship God (vv. 12–14)

    2 Corinthians 9:12–14 “12 … but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. 13 By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, 14 while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you.”
    Paul says that the generosity of the Corinthians would overflow into many thanksgivings to God. Their obedience would lead believers everywhere to glorify God, and those who received their help would pray for them and long for them with genuine affection. In other words, their generosity became a testimony—a sermon without words. It preached. It proclaimed to a watching world the surpassing worth of Jesus Christ.
    In a culture drunk on materialism and consumed by greed, sacrificial generosity is a megaphone for the gospel. It declares that Christ is better than comfort, better than wealth, better than hoarding what we cannot keep. Your giving becomes a demonstration that Jesus is worthy—and when the church lives this way, God gets the glory and we get joy.
    Think of a domino chain. One small tap sends ripple after ripple, pushing forward one domino after another. Generosity is like that—your gift today triggers thanksgiving in another believer tomorrow, which strengthens their faith, which yields more worship, which yields more mission.
    You may never see all the fruit of your generosity. But God does—and He delights in it.
    Paul ends with the greatest Gift of all: “Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!” (v. 15)
    Every act of Christian generosity echoes the generosity of God in Christ. The Son who gave His life. The Father who gave His Son. The Spirit who gives new hearts. The greatest gift produces the greatest givers.

    Returning to the Field

    We began with a farmer in his field—clutching seed in fear or casting it in faith. Which one will you be?
    Paul’s message is simple:

    God loves a generous heart because a generous heart is a heart like his own heart.

    Fear clenches your giving, grace opens your hands. Where self protects, Christ provides. Where the flesh hoards, the Spirit pours out. God does not ask you to give from emptiness. He asks you to give from abundance—His abundance.
    So sow bountifully. Sow faithfully. Sow generously. And trust that the God who gave His Son will surely supply everything you need. The field is ready. The seed is in your hand. The grace of God is abounding toward you. So go, and give with the joy of a heart shaped like His.

      • 2 Corinthians 9:6–7ESV

  • Gratitude
First Baptist Church Litchfield
pastorjason.fbcl@gmail.com
217-324-4232
http://www.firstbaptistlitchfield.org/
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