Fighter Verses

Weekly Fighter Verse & New City Catechism (2021.09.17)

“9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. [10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.] ”
— 2 Corinthians 12:9 [10]

Devotional - Luke Humphrey

Often, when we pray we, we expect God to answer our prayers in exactly the way that we prayed. We pray for a new job and expect God to provide one. We pray for a spouse and expect God to provide a suitable partner. We pray for healing and expect God to provide complete and full recovery. Anything else we would call an “unanswered” prayer.

The Apostle Paul prayed that a thorn in his flesh would be removed. Three times he pleaded with the Lord for this exact thing to happen. But did God answer his prayer?

Yes! But not in the way that Paul expected.

Paul prayed for the thorn to be removed, but God answered with sufficient grace and perfected power to be able to endure the thorn. In God’s wisdom he did do what Paul asked but gave him something better: the ability to boast in his weakness.

Our strength often blinds us to God’s strength. When we are strong we fail to see our need of others. But in our weakness we can see more clearly the strength of God and the grace of Jesus. He came not for the “healthy” but for the sick; he does not empower the “powerful” but the weak.

In his mercy, God often sees fit to answer prayers in the way that we expect. But he also answers prayers with something better: patience in our current jobs, contentment in our singleness, and boasting in our weakness.

“How many persons are there in God?

There are three persons in the one true and living God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They are the same in substance, equal in power and glory.”
— Question 3 (The New City Catechism)

Fighter Verses
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New City Catechism
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Weekly Fighter Verse & New City Catechism (2021.09.10)

“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. ”
— 2 Corinthians 9:8

Devotional - Luke Humphrey

In the verses right before this, Paul writes that believers should give bountifully, freely, and cheerfully. But you can almost hear the questions that arise when we someone calls us to give our money away.

What if my salary seems too low to give anything?   

What will happen if there’s an emergency in the future?  

What about my plans for building a home or saving for my children’s education in the future?  

These aren’t necessarily bad questions, and we should consider it. But Paul doesn’t address every potential difficulty for happily generous giving. Instead, he points to the God that we serve and that power that he possesses. When we give for his glory, God takes care of us. God possesses all riches and power and authority and he is able to use these for our eternal good.  

Look at the way that Paul motivates us: present giving is motivated by future grace. You will always have what you need to be able to obey and glorify God: from his sufficiency he is able to make you abound in every good work.

When we are tempted to disobey what we know we should do because we wonder at what it will cost us we can remember this: our God takes care of his children. We can trust him to provide the present grace that we need to empower our obedience and the future grace he will lavish upon us on account of our obedience.

“What is God?

God is the creator and sustainer of everyone and everything. He is eternal, infinite, and unchangeable in his power and perfection, goodness and glory, wisdom, justice, and truth. Nothing happens except through him and by his will.”
— Question 2 (The New City Catechism)

Fighter Verses
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New City Catechism
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Weekly Fighter Verse & New City Catechism (2021.09.03)

“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

Devotional - Luke Humphrey

Many people ask whether or not the New Testament teaches that we should give a “tithe.” In the Old Testament, the people of Israel were required to give 10% of their “income (harvest, flocks, etc.) to the Lord. This money went to support the Levites and the sacrificial system that was wrapped up in the Old Covenant. This tithe functioned like a tax—directly tied to both the civil and ceremonial life of the nation of Israel.

The Old Covenant tithe is no longer required in the New Covenant. But the New Testament actually teaches something far more demanding: give bountifully, give freely, and give cheerfully.

Give Bountifully

Paul motivates us to give by showing us the reward that comes through bountiful—generous—giving. If we love our money and hold onto it, then we will miss out on the true reward that comes from God. But if we give abundantly, then will reap abundant reward from God. This isn’t financial reward—though God may bless us with financial provision—but reward that is kept in heaven where neither moth nor rust destroy and where thieves cannot steal. For some people, giving 10% of their income may not be bountifully at all, for others it might be quite a sacrifice.

Give Freely

We should give to the Lord and not under compulsion. This means that we should not be forced into giving either by a sense of “earning God’s favor” or by a sense of peer pressure that really wants to impress those around us. Instead, our giving should freely flow from the free grace that we have received in Christ.

Give Cheerfully

Finally, we should give cheerfully, not grudgingly. Giving should be a joy not a burden. And notice the reason that Paul gives: for God loves a cheerful giver. We give not to earn God’s favor but to glorify God and because we have enjoyed God’s favor. God is far more concerned with the motivation behind the gift than with the amount of the gift.

In the New Covenant we are not commanded to tithe, but by the Spirit we are commanded to something far greater: bountiful, free, cheerful giving. Because of the grace of Christ the love of money has lost its grip on our hearts and so we are willing to give everything away for the sake of Christ.

“What is our only hope in life and death?

That we are not our own but belong, body and soul, both in life and death, to God and to our Savior Jesus Christ.”
— Question 1 (NCC)

Fighter Verses
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New City Catechism
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