And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will.It has been said, "The gift without the giver is bare."
(2 Cor. 8:5)
The Macedonian Christians had discovered the secret of true giving. They first gave themselves to the Lord. They had learned that God was more interested in them than in their gifts.
First Corinthians 6:19-20 says, "You are not your own; you were bought at a price."
We are never told to consecrate our gifts to God, but we are told to dedicate ourselves (Oswald Chambers).
It is related of General Gordon, affectionately known as "Chinese Gordon," that when the English government sought to reward him for his magnificent service to China, he declined all money and titles, but accepted a gold medal on which his name and a record of his 33 engagements was inscribed.
After his death the medal could not be found. Finally it was learned that he had sent it to Manchester during a famine, with a request that it be melted and used to buy bread for the famishing poor.
In his diary that day he had written these words: "The last and only thing that I had in this world that I valued, I have given over to the Lord Jesus Christ."
What an honorable example to follow.
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