2 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse
9. For ye know the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes
he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich. In the eighth and ninth chapters
of this second epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, the apostle
stirs up the minds of the saints at Corinth. that they might be
made willing to give of their abundance to the poor saints
at Jerusalem. He would provoke them, as it
were, unto love and to good works. And he sets before them the example
of the churches of Macedonia from where he writes this epistle.
See the opening verses of this chapter. Moreover, brethren,
we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches
of Macedonia. how that in a great trial of
affliction, the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty
abounded unto the riches of their liberality. For to their power
I bear record, yea, and beyond their power, they were willing
of themselves, praying us with much entreaty that we would receive
the gift and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering
to the saints. And this they did, not as we
hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto
us by the will of God, insomuch that we desired Titus, that as
he had begun so he would also finish in you, the same grace
also." It sets before them the example then of the churches
of Macedonia, and we notice from that first verse that it was
the grace of God which produced these good works, these works
of charity, or love, this liberality. Theirs, you see, was not a dead
faith, but a true and living faith. It was a faith which worketh
by love. And that faith was not of themselves,
it was the gift of God. It is all of God, you see, it
is all of his grace, both the faith and the fruit. For it is
God which worketh in you, both to will and to do, of his good
pleasure. In setting forth before them
the example of the churches of Macedonia, the apostle would
encourage the Corinthians, and he would spur them on. Verse
7. Therefore, as ye abound in everything,
in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence,
and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.
I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness
of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love. The Corinthians excelled in so
many Christian graces, in faith, and utterance, and
knowledge, and in all diligence, and in their love to the apostles,
and their doctrine. Paul commends them. He commends
them in these things. But he also reminds them that
unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required.
the Corinthians excelled in these graces. Should they not excel
in this grace of liberality also? It would prove the sincerity
of their love. And the sincerity of their love
would prove the reality of their faith. And so John says, doesn't
he? Beloved, let us love one another
for love is of God and everyone that loveth is born of God and
knoweth God. Paul reminds the Corinthians
of their willingness a year ago to perform this deed, this act
of giving. Verse 10 He says, and herein I give my
advice, for this is expedient for you, who have begun before,
not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago. Now therefore perform the doing
of it, that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance
also out of that which ye have. Now the opportunity had come
for them, to accomplish that which they were so willing to
do and which they had begun to do a year ago. This is what Paul
is saying. And then he insists that it was
not his intention to burden the church at Corinth that others
might be eased but rather that there might be this mutual benefit. Verse 12. For if there be first
a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath,
and not according to that he hath not. For I mean not that
other men be eased and ye burdened, but by an equality, that now
at this time your abundance may be a supply of their want. that
their abundance also may be a supply for your want that there may
be equality as it is written he that had gathered much had
nothing over and he that had gathered little had no lack this then is the context but right at the center of the
exhortation the apostle sets forth the supreme example of
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In the words of our text in verse
9, For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though
he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through
his poverty might be rich. Many times throughout the New
Testament, Gospel precepts are enforced and reinforced by the
example of the Lord Jesus Christ. We've seen it before in Philippians
chapter 2. Philippians 2 verse 3, there
is this exultation, but see how it's enforced, the example is
put before the Philippians. Let nothing be done through strife
or vain glory, but in loneliness of mind. Let each esteem other
better than themselves. Look not every man on his own
things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this
mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in
the form of God, thought he not robbery to be equal with God,
but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of
a servant, and was made in the likeness of men and being found
in fashion as a man he humbled himself and became obedient unto
death even the death of the cross and again in 1 Corinthians chapter
5 at verse 7 Paul says purge out therefore
the old leaven that ye may be a new lump as ye are unleavened
for even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us therefore
let us keep the feast not with the old leaven not with old leaven
neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness but with the unleavened
bread of sincerity and truth we are not under the law but
under grace And grace compels us and constrains us to follow
the Lord Jesus Christ. This is what it is, you see,
to walk according to gospel rule. We are not under the covenant
of works. But we are under law to Christ.
We are under the law of the Lamb. Seeking to follow the Lamb, whithersoever
he goeth. We are under gospel motives,
and that's what we see here. For ye know the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes
he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich. Well,
as we come to the words of our text, I would consider with you,
I trust with the Lord's gracious help and blessing, these three
things. Firstly, Christ's riches. And
secondly, Christ's poverty. and thirdly the purpose of Christ's
poverty. So let us consider firstly then
Christ's riches. For ye know the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, but though he was rich, though he was rich,
now this implies his pre-existence and indeed his eternity, for
we read that he became poor. He was rich, we read, but we
know that The whole of his earthly sojourn, here upon this earth,
was spent in poverty. So it was not that he had riches
in this world at some point, and then he gave them away, and
so made himself poor. No, he never had any riches in
this world. When was he rich then? Well, it was before the incarnation.
He was rich as God. who, being in the form of God,
thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself
of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and
was made in the likeness of men. Or he was rich as God, but he
became poor as man. All the attributes of deity who
long to our Lord Jesus Christ, who, as the Confession of Faith
says, only have immortality, dwelling in the light which no
man can approach unto, who is immutable, immense, eternal,
incomprehensible, almighty, every way infinite, most holy, most
wise, most free, most absolute, working all things according
to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will for his
own glory, most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant
in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin,
the rewarder of them that diligently seek him, and with all most just
and terrible in his judgments, hating all sin, and who will
by no means clear the guilty." Paul says In Corinthians, he
speaks of Christ, in whom are hid all the riches, sorry, all
the treasures, all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And again there in Colossians,
he says, for in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead,
bodily. all Christ is as fully and as
equally God as the Father is and as the Holy Spirit is as
God he was the creator of all things by the word of the Lord
were the heavens made and all the host of them by the breath
of his mouth we read in Psalm 33 in verse 6 and in John's gospel
in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and
the word was God The same was in the beginning with God. All
things were made by Him. And without Him was not anything
made that was made. Again, there in Colossians, Paul
speaks of Christ. Colossians chapter 1 verse 16. For by Him were all things created. that are in heaven and that are
in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions
or principalities or powers, all things were created by Him
and for Him and He is before all things and by Him all things
consist. The Holy Scriptures bear a consistent
and a constant testimony to Christ as the Creator of this world
and of this universe. And as Christ is the Creator
of all things, so He is the Preserver and Upholder of all things. By
Him, all things consist. In other words, by Him, all things
are held together. That's what the word there means.
Paul says in Hebrews that God having these last days spoken
unto us by His Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things,
by whom also he made the worlds, who being the brightness of his
glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding
all things by the word of his power." That which we read in the Confession
of Faith concerning God and his providence is equally applicable
to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. God,
the good creator of all things in his infinite power and wisdom,
doth uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and
things, from the greatest even to the least, by his most wise
and holy providence. Every breath we take is given
to us by the Lord Jesus Christ. Every beat of our hearts is given
to us by the Lord Jesus Christ, the Creator and the Sustainer
of all things. I shudder when I hear the name
of the Lord Jesus blasphemed. He is the one that gives them
the breath by which means they blaspheme his holy name. It is
a most solemn offense against God, the creator. And as Christ is the creator
and the sustainer of all things, so all things are his. All things
belong to him. All things were created by him
and for him. as it is written in the Psalms,
in Psalm 50. Verse 10. For every beast of
the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know
all the fowls of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field
are mine. in Psalm 24, the earth is the Lord's and the
fullness thereof the world and they that dwell therein for he
hath founded upon the seas and established it upon the floods such are Christ's riches There
is no limit to the extent of his dominion. There is no limit
to the amount of his possessions, for all things are his. All things are his. Now there are those of course
who deny that Christ is God. We don't hear much these days
about the Sassinians. Sassinianism is so called after
two Italian humanist theologians called Sottini or Sottini as
it is in the Latin. They denied the deity of the
Lord Jesus Christ and the reformers, the Puritans and those who came
after them would often mention the Sassinians and they would
write against them. We never hear of them these days.
But you know, they're still with us. Only these days they go under
the names of Jehovah's Witnesses, Christadelphians, and so on. The Sassanian interpretation
of this verse is that Christ was rich, in power, and that
he was full of the Holy Ghost. Which is true. But it is not
true that he ever laid aside his power or that he emptied
himself of the Holy Spirit and so made himself poor. Even in his poverty, there were
the clearest demonstrations of his power, as when he stilled
the wind and the waves, when he healed the sick, when he opened
the eyes of the blind, when he opened the ears of the deaf,
when he cast out devils, when he raised the dead. We read of Christ that God, that
is the Father, giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him. And
never do we read of the Holy Spirit ever being taken from
him, or leaving him. What does Christ say to those
who deny his deity? What does the Lord Jesus Christ
say to those Jews, those Unitarians, those Sassinians, those Aryans,
those Jehovah's Witnesses, so called, and all the other heretics
who deny that He is Lord. What does the Lord say to them?
I said therefore unto you that ye shall die in your sins if
ye believe not that I am. For if ye believe not that I
am, ye shall die in your sins that's the literal rendering
of John chapter 8 verse 24 I said therefore unto you that ye shall
die in your sins for if ye believe not that I am he ye shall die
in your sins and the he there is in italics it's been supplied
by the translators it's not there in the original Greek literally
it is I said therefore unto you that ye shall die in your sins
for if ye believe not that I am ye shall die in your sins. What a solemn thing it is to
deny the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. Those who deny the deity of the
Son of God, they do not and they cannot glorify God the Father. Wherefore God also hath highly
exalted him. and given him a name which is
above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of things in heaven and things in earth and things under
the earth, that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ
is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Let us consider in
the second place Christ's poverty. For ye know the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes
He became poor. He who was the King of Glory,
laid aside that glory for a season, that glory which he had with
the Father before the world was. He who was the King of Angels
was made a little lower than the angels. That is, he was made
a little, for a little season, for a little time, lower than
the angels. We see Christ's poverty then,
in the incarnation. who being in the form of God,
thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself
of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and
was made in the likeness of men. Matthew Paul says in his commentary
that he stripped himself of his robes of glory and clothed himself
with the rags of flesh. And his life in this world, as
a man, was one of poverty. He was born in a stable, laid
in a manger, an animal's feeding trough. He had no place that
he could call home, foxes have holes, and birds of the air have
nests, but the son of man had not where to lay his head, he
said. He was dependent on the arms
of others, those few friends that he had, which ministered
unto him of their substance, as we read in Luke's Gospel.
Even as he entered Jerusalem, as Zion's king, he sat upon a
borrowed ass, an occult, the foal of an ass. His only possessions
were the clothes on his back, which were divided by the soldiers
at his death. His grave was a borrowed sepulcher. How different to that man of
sin who presumes to sit in the place of Christ in the professing
church, the temple of God, calling himself the vicar of Christ. The Greek word Antichristos literally
means in the place of Christ, which of course is the same meaning
as vicar of Christ. Yes, the Pope of Rome himself
declares himself to be the very Antichrist. Christ and Antichrist
are polar opposites. The Pope has exalted himself
above all that is called God, all that is worshipped. Christ
humbled himself. He made himself of no reputation. But we see the extreme poverty
of the Son of God supremely in this. that being found in fashion
as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross. Paul says in Hebrews, but we
see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the
suffering of death. Why? He who was and is the Prince
of Life suffered death. In him was life, and the life
was the light of men. He is the source of life and
the sustainer of life and yet he divested himself of his own
life. His human soul was separated
from his human body and so as a true man he suffered a true
human death. And it wasn't that his life was
taken from him. No. I laid down my life for the
sheep, he said. And again, therefore doth my
Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take
it again. No man taketh it from me, but
I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down,
and I have power to take it again. See the extreme of poverty, which
he was willingly brought to. He emptied himself even of his
own life. He had poured out His soul unto
death and He was numbered with the transgressors. Oh, there
is a depth of poverty here that we cannot fully comprehend. The
Holy Jesus was numbered with the transgressors. For He hath
made Him to be sin for us who knew no sin. that we might be
made the righteousness of God in him. Or as Paul says here
in the words of our text, Though he was rich, yet for your sakes
he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich. Well
let us consider thirdly and finally the purpose of Christ's poverty.
For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though
he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that ye through
his poverty might be rich. It was for your sakes, O ye Corinthians,
that ye might be rich. Or do we not see here that men
in their natural unregenerate condition are spiritually impoverished? We lost everything in the fall
of our first parents. We lost our original righteousness
and we forfeited our very lives. We are under the sentence of
death, every one of us, as we are born into this world. The
soul that sinneth, it shall die. Adam, when he was created, was
under the covenant of works. There was one simple command
which he had to obey. And the Lord God commanded the
man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely
eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not
eat of it. For in the day that thou eatest
thereof thou shalt surely die. And all who are in Adam are under
the covenant of works. A perfect obedience to the whole
law of God is required of all those who are created in the
image of God, who are created to be his image bearers. Let us hear the conclusion of
the whole matter, says the preacher in Ecclesiastes. Fear God and
keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. A perfect obedience is required. A perfect obedience is required
which sinful man cannot render. For all have sinned and come
short of the glory of God. We are spiritually bankrupt by
reason of our fallen Adam. Pay me that thou ow'st, the law
says. but sinful man cannot pay what
he owes for he is by nature a transgressor of the law we are deep in debt
and we have not the wherewithal to pay now there are some who
try to dig themselves out of debt and out of the pit of their
own corruption by their good works but you know all that can
proceed from a sinful heart is sin But we are all as an unclean
thing and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. And we all
do fade as a leaf and our iniquities like the wind have taken us away. Yes, even our righteousnesses,
not just our sins, even our righteousnesses are as filthy rags in the sight
of a holy God. Tobias Crisp says, there is not
one act of righteousness that a person doth, but when that
is finished, there is more transgression belonging to him than before
he had performed it. How true that is. The more we
try to dig ourselves out of debt by our own good works, the deeper
we fall into debt. We sang it just now in our hymn. Once I was enveloped in debt,
my poor mind was burdened with sin, and strove hard to make
matters straight, that I the Lord's favour might win. But,
ah, my soul laboured in vain, and only the debt did increase,
which greatly increased my pain, and filled me with shame and
disgrace. Yes, the more we try to dig ourselves
out of the pit of our corruption by our own good works, the deeper
we fall into debt. there is more transgression. Our righteousnesses are as filthy
rags. The law demands a perfect obedience
and it demands satisfaction for breaching that covenant, that
covenant of works and that satisfaction which the law demands is death. But the good news of the Gospel
is this, that Jesus Christ in the eternal and everlasting covenant
of grace was appointed to be the surety of his people. Now
what is a surety? A surety is one who accepts legal
responsibility for another's debt or behavior. One who undertakes
to be liable for or responsible for another's default. We have all defaulted in Adam.
But our Lord Jesus Christ has the surety as that one who has
undertaken to pay all his people's debts. He has rendered a full and perfect
obedience to all the holy law of God. And he has satisfied
the strict justice of the law in dying in the sinner's place. The instead of me sacrifice. The law then can have no claim
on those who are in Christ Jesus, those for whom he stood as a
surety. The righteousness of the law
is accomplished. The righteousness of the law
is kept, maintained and established in the person of the Lord Jesus
Christ as the divine surety of his people. And the penalty for the default
of his people has been fully paid because Christ has died. And so the debt is cancelled.
The debt is cancelled in the blood of the Redeemer. Complete
atonement thou hast made and to the utmost farthing paid whate'er
thy people owed. How then can wrath on me take
place if sheltered in thy righteousness and sprinkled with thy blood?
If thou hast my discharge procured, and freely in my room endured
the whole of wrath divine, payment God cannot twice demand, first
at my bleeding sure at His hand, and then again at mine. Here, then, is the purpose of
Christ's poverty. It is that sinners might be made
rich in Him, And here are the true riches. Here are the true
riches. A saving interest in the Lord
Jesus Christ. That which is written of wisdom
and understanding in the Proverbs may fitly be applied to that
saving interest in the Lord Jesus Christ and in his death and resurrection. This is the true wisdom and understanding. Proverbs 3 in verse 13. Happy is the man that findeth
wisdom. Oh, how happy we are when we are made wise unto salvation
through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Happy is the man that
findeth wisdom and the man that getteth understanding. Oh, to
understand that he is a sinner and yet Christ has endured all
the wrath of God in the sinner's place to understand these things.
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth
understanding. For the merchandise of it is
better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof
than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies.
And all the things that thou canst desire are not to be compared
unto her. Length of days is in her right
hand. Yes, eternal life! Eternal life is the gift of God
through our Lord Jesus Christ. Length of days is in her right
hand, and in her left hand riches and honour. for her ways are
ways of pleasantness and all her paths of peace. She is a
tree of life to them that lay hold upon her and happy is everyone
that retaineth her, a saving interest in the Lord Jesus Christ. Albert Barnes in his commentary
tells the following story. Do you see yonder extended fields? Said the owner of a vast plantation
to a friend. They are mine, all is mine. Do
you see yonder poor cottage? Was the reply of his friend.
As he directed his attention to the abode of a poor widow.
She has more than all this. She has Christ as her portion.
And that is more than all. She has Christ for her portion
and that is more than all. Yes, those who are made rich
in and by the Lord Jesus Christ have the riches of grace now
and the riches of glory, the plenitude of heaven hereafter.
They are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. They are heirs of salvation and
heirs of the kingdom. How can my beloved brethren have
not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith and heirs
of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? What immeasurable riches belong
to the believer in Jesus! For all things are yours whether
Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or
things present or things to come all are yours and ye are Christ's
and Christ is God's so who are they who are made
rich by Christ's poverty? well they are those who are made
to feel their own spiritual poverty. Blessed are the poor in spirit
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. They are brought to fill their
spiritual poverty, they are the poor in spirit. He has filled
the hungry with good things and the rich he has sent empty away. Who are the rich? Who are the
rich who are sent empty away? Well, they are those who feel
no spiritual want. They feel no spiritual need.
They are the self-satisfied. They are self-righteous. They
feel no need of Christ. They feel no need of righteousness.
They're not sinners! They don't need forgiveness!
They are rich in themselves and such are sent empty away. This
gospel is for sinners. This is a faithful saying and
worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners, of whom I am chief. Who is the worst sinner? Can
you answer this question? Who is the worst sinner who ever
lived on the face of this earth? What would your answer be? I'll tell you what mine would
be. It's me. I am the worst sinner that ever
lived on the face of this earth. You see, that is the faithful
saying and worthy of all acceptation. It's not just that Christ Jesus
came into the world to save sinners. No. It's that Christ Jesus came
into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief. Now have
you been brought to that? To feel that you are the very
worst of sinners? We sang it again in our hymn
earlier. Free grace is the joy of my heart,
its glories with wonder I trace. To me it does freely impart rich
blessings just suited to my case. No monster more wretched could
be, nor less of God's favour deserve. Yet such is free grace
to me. I never, no never, can starve. Have you been brought to that?
Jesus said, I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance. Those who feel their need of
him, those who feel their poverty and their emptiness and their
shame, their unrighteousness, they are the ones whom he fills
with good things. They are the ones that he makes
rich. And the Lord Jesus bids all such
spiritually impoverished sinners to come to him. If any man thirst,
let him come unto me and drink, he said. The Christian religion is a feeling
religion in this sense. Something must be known and felt. For ye know the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes
he became poor that ye through his poverty might be rich this
is the gospel we preach it's a gospel for sinners it's the
gospel of the grace of God it's the only gospel that will do
sinners any good And this gospel will be received by sinners,
sinners convinced and convicted of their sins, humbled on account
of their sins. Ah, but it will be despised and
rejected by the self-righteous. It is by the means of this preached
gospel that God will gather and draw all his dear elect to himself. And it is by means of this preached
gospel that the saints of the Most High will be provoked unto
love and to good works for ye are not under the law but under
grace Paul says in Romans and here he sets forth the grace
of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Corinthians motivation to consider
their brethren to remember the poor saints at Jerusalem and
to minister to them for ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that
ye through his poverty might be rich. You see, this doctrine,
received and experienced in the heart by the gracious operation
and teaching of God the Holy Spirit, will not be unfruitful,
and neither will it lead to licentiousness, but rather it will provoke unto
lust. and to good works. Well may the
Lord bless his word to each of our hearts and may we know by
gracious experience the truth and the power of it and may we
be enabled by the grace of God working in us to prove the sincerity
of our love and the reality of our faith. For ye know the grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich Yet for your
sakes ye became poor, that ye through his poverty might be
rich. Amen.