Now let's repeat it one more
time, 2 Corinthians chapter 8 verse 9. You got it there? Let's read
this verse one more time. I must confess this is one of
my favorite verses because it tells us so much about the gospel. You know, for you know, and believers
do know this. We're not ignorant of this. We
do know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. We've experienced
His grace. And it describes this grace of
our Lord Jesus Christ to sinners. Though He is the rich, almighty,
everlasting God, yet for your sake, He became our substitute. He became our savior. He became
poor. He impoverished himself with
our humanity and with our sin that you, that you through his
poverty, we might be truly blessed of God and made, made rich. Now who's interested in a subject
like this? Who's interested in the grace
of God? Who's interested in being made
whole, being made alive, being made a new creature in Christ? You know who's interested in
those things? Those who are in need. I need His richness. I need His grace. Because I am
an impoverished beggar at the throne of mercy. This verse, like many other verses
in the Word of God, gives us the central theme of the Gospel
in a nutshell. In a nutshell. It reminds me
of this verse, just one page over, 2 Corinthians 5, 21. Martin Luther called these little
Bibles in a verse. Little Bibles in a verse. Second
Corinthians 521 tells us, for he had made him, that is God
Almighty, had made him, the Lord Jesus Christ, sin for us. You notice the two words there,
to be, have been added. God made him sin for us. He stood in our room and in our
stead. And he knew no sin. Scripture said he did no sin.
That we might be made the righteousness of God. Now the righteousness
of God is that righteousness that justifies the guilty sinner
before God. That we might be made the righteousness
of God in him. In Him. Oh, that we might win
Christ and be found in Him. In this chapter, 2 Corinthians
8, the apostle is encouraging believers at Corinth to abound
in the grace of giving. He says, as you abound in other
things, see that you also abound in this, in giving. Look at verse 7. Therefore, as
you abound in everything, they abounded in faith. Faith is a
gift of God. Saving faith is abounding faith
because it comes from the hand of God who is plenteous in mercy. You abound in everything in faith,
in utterance, that is the ability to preach the gospel. You abound
in knowledge. This is eternal life that they
might know thee, the only true God. Eternal life is knowing
God in Christ Jesus. We have an abundant knowledge
of Him. He's given us an understanding that we may know Him. And in
all diligence, they were zealous of good works. They were zealous
of the glory of God. And in your love to us, We love
him and we love one another only because he first loved us. The
love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.
He says, see that you also abound in this grace. And he's talking
here in the context of what's being said, he's talking about
the grace of giving. See that you also abound in this
grace of giving. He seeks to motivate them by
three things. By the example of others, He
said these other churches in Macedonia, and it includes those
of Berea, those of Thessalonica, those of Philippi. He says in
verse 3 of this chapter, I bear record, yea, beyond their ability,
they were willing of themselves to give generously, liberally,
above what they had means to do so. That is, they gave sacrificially. Not only that, by asking them
to prove the sincerity of their love, He seeks to motivate them. Look at verse 8 in our text.
I speak not by commandment, that is, I'm not putting you back
under the law, but by the occasion of the forwardness or the zealousness
of others. And to prove, prove the sincerity
of your love. He seeks to motivate them by
the example of others. He seeks to motivate them by
asking them to prove that they really love the gospel and really
love the Lord Jesus and others by giving. And then by the supreme
example. And here's the motive of everything
that the believer looks into. The supreme example of giving
of the Lord Jesus Christ. What did He give? I mean, consider
what He could have given. Universes, worlds, heavens, the
gold, the silver, it's all His. He could have given all those
things, but He didn't give any of those things. He gave Himself
for our sins. He gave Himself for our sins. So when we consider giving, consider
how He gave. Fully, freely, sacrificially,
didn't He? And it's a blessing to be able
to give to give to others and to support the gospel by our
free giving. There is no stronger motive to
serve the Lord Jesus Christ than that of love and gratitude for
all that He has done for us. How can we not serve Him and
give when we consider how much He has given unto us? Look back
at 2 Corinthians chapter 5. This is a true motive, love for
Christ. Love for Christ. Look at verse
15, rather verse 14, 2 Corinthians 5 verse 14, For the love of Christ
constraineth us, because we thus judge that if one died for all,
that is, all his elect, then were all dead, that they, and
that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live
unto themselves but unto him which died for them and rose
again." We don't live unto ourselves, we live for Him, His glory. Believers are not motivated by
promise of reward nor fear of punishment but rather Like the
willing, loving bond slave who serves his master because he
loves his master. We serve the Lord out of gratitude,
out of thanksgiving unto the Lord. You know the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Paul writing to believers and
to us this day with words that are God breathed declares unto
us that believers have experience as it says there, you know the
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know about it firsthand. We
have experienced the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Where
sin abounded, grace does much more abound. Believers have no
doubt in their heart about the wonderful graciousness of our
blessed Savior, His wonderful love, compassion toward His own,
having loved His own which are in the world, He loved them unto
the end. We know that our salvation is
by His sovereign grace alone. You see, we've been made objects
of His grace, objects of His mercy. We believe according to
the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know something of the grace
of God because we have received the grace of God. We know that
the Lord is gracious. We have received His grace. And
we also have been justified by His grace. We know that He justifies
freely by His grace. We've experienced this. We've
tasted that the Lord is gracious. You know this because you've
been justified freely by His grace. You know this because
you believe and trust Him and have experienced His grace in
your life. You can say with the Apostle
Paul, I know whom I have believed. We know of this grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ. We glory not merely in the doctrine
of grace, we glory in the grace or the Christ of the doctrine,
the Christ of the doctrine. We glory in the Lord who is sovereign. We don't just merely glory in
His sovereignty, we glory in Him who is sovereign, who is
gracious, who is merciful, who is loving and kind unto His own. Our Lord Jesus Christ declared
unto Moses in Exodus 34. Remember the words? Let me just
read it to you. The Lord, the Lord God, merciful, gracious,
long-suffering, abundant in goodness, keeping truth, keeping mercy
for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin. God says
of himself that he is gracious, long-suffering, abundant in goodness
and in truth. You know, don't you? The grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ. You've experienced it. You've
tasted that the Lord is gracious. That He saves sinners by His
grace. So, look at verse 9 again. You
know. You know of the grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ. And then He mentions three things.
Three things here. in verse 9. Let me give these
three things to you then we'll come back and look at these three
things. We see first of all a wonderful
truth and reality Though he was rich, a wonderful truth and reality,
Christ's eternal riches. Secondly, a more wonderful truth,
yet for your sake he impoverished himself, he became poor. And then thirdly, a most wonderful
truth, that you through his poverty might truly be made rich in Christ
Jesus. Rich in redemption, for He's
obtained it with His own blood. Rich in righteousness, for He
freely imputes that unto us. Rich in all spiritual blessings,
for He's blessed us with all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies
in the Lord Jesus Christ. You really are looking at right
now the world's richest man. Right now. Me. I'm talking about
myself. I am the world's richest man,
for in the Lord Jesus Christ I possess all spiritual blessings. And that's true of you too. If
you're believing Him and resting in Him and trusting in Him for
all things, in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily,
and in the Lord Jesus Christ every believer stands complete,
complete in Him. Now, a wonderful truth. his eternal
riches, that though he was rich." rich. The Lord Jesus Christ being
the eternal Son of God or eternally God the Son has and possesses
all riches, all power, all might, all dominion. He is infinitely,
eternally rich and much more than that word can explain. He's eternally rich for He is
very God of very God. None can be compared with Him
who has boundless wealth and eternal riches. You see the Scriptures
teach of Him there's none like Him. He is the eternally rich
God. Rich in all things. We read in
Isaiah 45, I am the Lord. There is none else. There is
no God like me. There's none beside me. There's
none rich like Him. What is King Pharaoh? Well, he's
a pauper compared to the riches of God Almighty. Just how rich
is the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, He's rich in possessions,
for He created all things by the word of His power. As such,
He owns everything. Now, I know you have a deed to
your property. And you've signed it, and they've
recorded it over the courthouse. But is it really yours? No, because
all things belong to God. He created all things. And as
such, He owns all things He created. Listen to this scripture in Colossians
1. For by Him are all things created that are in heaven, that
are in the earth, visible, invisible, whether it be thrones or dominions,
principalities or powers. All things were created by Him
and for Him. You see, in Him all things consist. Psalm 24 says this, "...the earth
is the Lord, the fullness thereof, the world, and they that dwell
therein. For He hath founded it upon the seas, and established
it upon the floods." He says in Haggai 2, "...the silver is
mine, the gold is mine." You see, everything belonged to the
Lord. He's rich, isn't He? He's rich. He's rich in possessions. But
not only that, He's rich in the perfection of His divine nature.
When He was manifested in the flesh, He never stopped being
God. Did He? The Word was made flesh
and dwelt among us. But we see that He's rich in
the perfection of His divine nature. For in Him dwelleth all
the fullness of a Godhead. Finally! He's rich in holiness. Isn't He? Listen to Scripture.
When they came through the Red Sea, Moses and the children said
this, Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? Who is
like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders? He's rich in holiness. Holy,
holy, holy Lord God Almighty. He's rich in holiness, isn't
He? Not only that, He's rich in power. As a God-man mediator,
He has all power in heaven and in earth, because He is God.
Our Lord prayed in John 17, Father, you've given me power over all
flesh that I should give eternal life to as many as thou hast
given me. When he ascended to glory, he
reminded the apostles, he said, all power is given to me in heaven
and earth. Go and preach the gospel knowing
that I'm in charge. I have all power. that He does
according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the
inhabitants of this earth, and none can stay His hand, and none
can say unto Him, Lord God Almighty, what art thou doing? He's rich
in power, beyond description. He's rich in holiness, beyond
description. He's rich in His love. It is
love to us. Herein is love, John said. Here
it is. Herein is love, not that we love
God. That's not where it is. We do
love Him because He first loved us, but when we talk about love,
let's not talk about how much we love God. I'm ashamed. I don't
want to use that because I want to talk about how He loves us.
Hearing His love, not that we love God, but that He loved us
and that He sent His Son to be the sacrifice for our sins. God
committed His love toward us while we were yet sinners He
saved us by His grace. You see, He's rich in holiness.
He's rich in power. He's rich in love. Bring up whatever
attributes you might about God and you can add this adjective
to it. He's rich. Rich. How about mercy? You remember Ephesians chapter
2? But God who is rich in mercy for His great love wherewith
He loved us even when we're dead in sin. So He's rich in the excellency
of His divine nature. He's rich in all possessions.
Thirdly, He's rich in the excellency of His character. The Lord Jesus
Christ is the very express image of God. He is the righteous God. He is the holy God. He was tempted
and tested in all points like as we are yet without sin. The
scripture says of Him, He was manifested to take away our sin
and in Him is no sin. He had no sin. He knew no sin. He did no sin. He perfectly obeyed
God's law in every jot and every tittle. It says in Isaiah 42,
the Lord is well pleased for His righteousness sake, He will
magnify the law and He will honor it. And think about this, as
He's obedient unto the law, obedient even unto death, His obedience
is not for Himself alone, for He's not doing that as a private
man. He's doing that as a public representative
man for His covenant people. His obedience is my righteousness. Think about that. His faithfulness
is my righteousness. Blessed is the man whom the Lord
imputeth righteousness without works. He didn't come to destroy
the law. He came to honor the law of God
and He did so. You know what? I have perfectly
obeyed God's law in every jot or every and in every tittle.
I have, as a sinner, obeyed God's law perfectly. How can that be? Because my substitute did that
for me and He reckoned or imputed and countered that to my account.
You see the blessedness we have in Christ? His character without sin. Such a high priest became us
who was holy, harmless, separate from sin, made higher than the
heavens. He is the Lord our righteousness.
Abraham was called a friend of God, wasn't he? But not without
sin. Read the record. Moses was the
meekest man, but not without sin. God said, speak to that
rock. And he did the first time, but
the second time he smoked that rock, didn't he? David, the king
of Israel, who was a man after God's own heart, but not without
sin. We're going to study that in
2 Samuel, on Wednesday evening. John the Baptist, the Lord said,
the greatest man born of woman. But you know what? He was a sinner,
wasn't he? But not without sin. Paul was
the greatest apostle. But not without sin. Well, He
says Himself, O wretched man that I am, who can deliver me
from this body of death. Mary, the mother of the Lord
Jesus Christ, the mother of His humanity, was a believing woman,
but not without sin. She says, I do rejoice in God
my Savior. God my Savior. What is she saying?
I'm a sinner who needs a Savior. God says of the Lord Jesus Christ
at His baptism, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. He had no sin. The Lord Jesus
Christ is the Lord our righteousness. If we have any righteousness
before God, It will be because of that union by faith with Him. It will be as God considers us
and accepts us and receives us and regards us in the Lord Jesus
Christ who is the Lord our righteousness. No wonder the Apostle Paul said,
I count everything else as nothing. He used a very strong word. He
said, I count everything else, I count all my righteousnesses
as a pile of manure, dung, what we used to shovel out the barn
after we got through milking in the morning. We shovel out
the manure. All our righteousnesses are in God's sight are filthy
racks. No wonder the Apostle said, I
count everything else lost that I might win Christ and be found
in Him. in Him who is our righteousness
before God, that justifies the ungodly before God. He is the
Lord our righteousness. We are accepted in the Beloved. You cannot press into this word
rich all that the Lord Jesus Christ is. He's more than rich. He's more than great. He's more
than grand. Because He's God Almighty. He's
rich. In every way, in every aspect,
He's rich in holiness, power, sovereignty, eternal glory, and
He's rich in mercy. Rich in salvation. Now, watch
this. That's a wonderful truth, isn't
it? His riches. But look at this. Here's something more wonderful.
The second thing is this. That though he was rich, yet,
yet, for you, for you, your sake, for your salvation, he became
poor. He impoverished himself. Here
we learn something of his deep poverty. Here we see something
of what the old timers call condescending grace. The grace of our God and
Savior when He was manifested in the flesh. He took our humanity
into union with His divine and perfect nature. Without controversy,
great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. The Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us. Although He never stopped being
God, He became what He was not, flesh, and dwelt among us. For your sake He became poor. He became poor. Don't turn back,
but let me just read this to you. "...who, being in the form
of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made
himself of no reputation." Poverty. "...took upon himself the form
of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men, and being
found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross." That's poverty. Poverty. Poverty. The difference between the richest
man, naturally speaking, could be Bill Gates or somebody, Warren
Buffet or somebody like that. The difference between the richest
man among men and the poorest man in this life is nothing compared
to the difference between Christ in glory in his Godhead and Christ
in his humiliation as a real man. The difference is altogether
immeasurable. It's an unspeakable gift. Now
you listen to this. I just read a moment ago that
He created all things, He owns all things, possesses all things,
created all things for His glory, for His own delight, and yet
when He was manifest in the flesh as God in human flesh, the Scripture
says the foxes have holes, The birds of the air have nest, the
son of man hath nowhere to lay his head." He was a homeless
man. A poverty stricken man. Born
not in a palace, but born in a barn. Put in a cow trough for
a bed. You see something of his poverty?
You cannot fully describe his riches nor fully explain his
poverty. We cannot fully comprehend how
high he is as God, nor how low he became when he cried upon
Calvary's cross, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Forsaken of God? Forsaken of
his disciples? Forsaken of men? Betrayed of
a friend? You see, He is the Mighty God. He is the Everlasting Father.
He is the Prince of Peace. And yet, He's the God-Man Mediator. Turn over to Hebrews chapter
2. Let's read something about it. He became poor. For your sake
he impoverished himself, took upon himself our humanity apart
from sin. In Hebrews chapter 2 verse 14,
For as much then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood,
he also himself likewise took part of the same, that through
death he might destroy him that had power of death, that is the
devil, and deliver them who through fear of death are all their lifetime
subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him
the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham.
Wherefore in all things it behooved him to be made like unto his
brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things
pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of his people."
That's his poverty. Reconciliation for the sins of
the people, atonement for the sins of the people. For in that
he himself suffered being tempted, he is able to succor, help them,
save them that are tempted. He took not on Him the nature
of angels, but He took on Him the seed of Abraham. He became
identified not only with our humanity, He knew weariness of
body, didn't He? He sat upon that well there in
Jacob's well recorded in John chapter 4, being weary in body. We read about He was hungered,
He thirsted, He knew pain, grief, sorrow. He was tempted and tested
in all points like as we are yet without sin. He was a real man, impoverished
Himself with our humanity. But not only that, He became
identified with our sin. And this is the good news of
the Gospel. All this is good news, but this is particularly
the good news of the Gospel. He not only identified with our
humanity, but He took our sin to Himself. That is, our sin
was laid upon the Lord Jesus Christ. The sin of a certain
people, God's covenant people, were laid upon Christ. God made
Him that particular sacrifice for sin as the Lamb of God. This is God's appointed Lamb.
Peter writes of it and said, who his own self bear our sins
and his own body on the tree. Peter again writes about it in
1 Peter 3 verse 18. For the Lord Jesus Christ has
suffered once for our sin, the just for the unjust, that he
might bring us unto God. I read a moment ago in 2 Corinthians
5, God made him sin for us. who knew no sin, that we might
be made the righteousness of God in him. Behold his poverty,
as he hangs upon Calvary's cross, for the sin of God the elect
laid on him. Stripped of all possessions,
he hangs naked upon that tree, forsaken of God, forsaken of
his disciples." Why did God forsake him there upon Calvary's tree? because He was made sin, God
too holy to look upon sin with favor and cannot, bearing our
sin in His own body on the tree. It's not just that He was carrying
the load of sin in a mere legal way, but in reality our sin was
so laid on Him and so reckoned and imputed to Him that the Lord
Jesus Christ called our sin, the sin of His elect, He called
them His own. For we read in Psalm 40, "... innumerable evils have encompassed
me, mine iniquities have taken hold upon me." He became the
load of sin. He became the mass of sin. He justly died under the weight
and guilt of our sin. Wounded for us, bruised for us,
the chastisement of our peace was laid upon Him. The Lord laid on Him our sin. actually and really He bears
our sin in His own body on the tree. It says in Galatians 3,
Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made
a curse for us. You see something of His richness,
and yet we see something of His poverty as He bears our sin in
His own body. Yet for your sake, for your sin,
he became poor. That's deep poverty, isn't it? Now here's the third thing, in
closing. We talked about a wonderful truth,
his riches. We talked about a More wonderful
truth, His poverty, and then the most wonderful truth, that
you through His poverty might be made rich. His sacrifice, His righteousness,
His merit, His obedience unto death, that you might be richly
justified, richly redeemed, and richly made righteous in God's
sight. Now, this is not talking about
physical and material riches, is it? Or temple riches? But every believer... has durable,
eternal righteousness, eternal riches, the riches of God in
the Lord Jesus Christ that are everlasting, everlasting in Him. He's given us eternal life. We've
been made heirs of God. Think of it, heirs of God and
joint heirs with the Lord Jesus Christ. Everything that He possesses
is mine. As I'm in Him, and complete in
Him, nothing lacking in Him, God who spared not His own Son,
but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also
freely give us all things? Notice carefully, we are blessed
with the abundance of blessings because of His poverty. You see
that? It's always salvation because
of Him, by Him, through Him, and in Him. You see, salvation
is a person. a person. It's you being found
in Him. It's you looking unto Him by
faith. We have this union by faith looking
to Him. He's the object of saving faith.
His willingness to become what He was not, sin, in order to
make us what we are not by nature, righteous, and to redeem us from
all salvation. That's grace. That's grace. That's love. He appeared once
in the end of the age to put away sin by the sacrifice of
himself. The believer in Christ was lifted
up, has been lifted up so high because the Lord Jesus Christ
came down so low, obedient unto death, even the death of the
cross. We've been filled because He was emptied. We live because
He died. We're blessed because He was
cursed. We're made righteous because
He was made sin. We've been set at liberty because
our sin and guilt bound Him to God's law. We're made nigh by
the blood of Christ because He was forsaken for our sin. You see, we've received all spiritual
blessings as mercy beggars before God's throne. We don't deserve
any blessings. We don't deserve His grace, His
merit, His favor. He freely gives. Of His fullness
have we all received grace for grace. What's the reason for
grace? Grace. That's it. Grace. Grace. It made heirs of God. He said, Come boldly unto the
throne of grace, that you may obtain mercy, and find grace
to help in time of need. I'm going to take my place as
a mercy beggar at the throne of grace, knowing that He never
turns away a mercy beggar. I never read one time in Scripture,
when anybody ever sought Him for mercy, that the Lord Jesus
Christ didn't show mercy. You see, in Christ we have an
inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that fadeth not away, that you
through his poverty might be rich, rich, incorruptible, inheritance,
undefiled, that does not fade away. There's not one blessing,
not one spiritual blessing that we enjoy that does not have his
blood mark upon it, is there? It's the blood that maketh atonement
for our soul. We are redeemed not with corruptible
things, but with the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. May we always be mindful of these
things that God has done for us. Not only what He's done for
us, but what He's doing right now in us. Christ in you is the
hope of glory. Look at that verse one more time.
You see why that's my favorite verse? You know, I've always
heard that people like to be told what they already know. He said, you know the grace of
God. I'm telling you what you already
know. You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. That though
he was rich, yet, yet, get a hold of that, for your sake, for you,
he died for the ungodly. This is a faithful saying and
worthy of all acceptation that the Lord Jesus Christ came to
save sinners. For your sake, he became poor.
that you through that poverty, His sacrifice, the shedding of
His blood, the putting away of sin by His sacrifice, that you
might be truly rich before God. Rich before God. I'm a mercy
beggar. But in the Lord Jesus Christ
I possess everything that God has determined to give His people,
I have that in Christ. Wisdom, righteousness, sanctification
and redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ. Okay. May the Lord bless
His Word to your heart.