S1: Because God gave the best of heaven. Jesus for the
S1: worst of earth us. And so he begins to tell him.
S1: He says, listen, Jesus was rich and he became poor
S1: for you and for me.
S2: You're listening to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James
S2: Ford Jr, senior pastor of the Christ Bible Church in Chicago.
S2: I'm Steve Hiller, and I'm glad that you're with us today. Now, pastor,
S2: we've been taking a look at Second Corinthians chapter eight,
S2: where the Macedonian Church is giving us a tremendous example
S2: of a giving spirit because they love God and they
S2: want to be a part of the work that he's doing.
S2: I'm guessing that they maybe got that because they truly
S2: understood what God did for them, and how Christ in his,
S2: in all his glory and all his richness, decided that
S2: he was going to Who give sacrificially for us. I mean,
S2: what a model to hold out there.
S3: Well, I mean, it makes sense, doesn't it? Yeah, because
S3: Jesus did die for our sins, you know? The word
S3: redemption is a financial term in the Greek. Yeah. It
S3: literally means to buy someone out of the slave market
S3: of sin. If you're listening to me right now, how
S3: dare you devalue yourself when God placed such a high
S3: value on you? I know we're talking about money. I'm
S3: talking to somebody right now who has a crisis esteem problem.
S3: I don't call it self-esteem that you don't esteem yourself
S3: the way you ought to. You are not your own.
S3: You've been bought with a price. Here's what Peter said.
S3: He said, for as much as you know, then you've
S3: not been redeemed by corruptible things from your vain conversation,
S3: received by tradition of your fathers, but with the precious
S3: blood of Jesus Christ as of a lamb without spot
S3: and without blemish. And listen, if you don't know him
S3: today and you're listening, I need you to make a
S3: phone call. 1888. Need him, uh, because you will go
S3: from poverty, uh, in your sin to the righteousness of
S3: Jesus Christ, who was poor because he divested himself of
S3: his riches to accept us. Mm.
S2: No greater thing that we can do than to say
S2: yes to the offer of that redemption that Christ really
S2: has extended to us. And so, as you said, if
S2: you don't know Jesus, keep listening and make that phone
S2: call one 888 need him right now. I want you
S2: to open your Bibles to Second Corinthians chapter eight, as
S2: we bring you the conclusion of the Macedonian mindset, here
S2: is Pastor Ford.
S3: Henry Perry Kroll. Uh, you know, I went to Moody.
S3: Taught there 17 years, all that kind of stuff. And, uh,
S3: the main building is called Kroll Hall. It's named after
S3: Henry P Kroll. Now, Henry P Kroll, as a young man, uh, was, uh,
S3: had tuberculosis. And, uh, he'd gone to hear Dwight Moody preach.
S3: And he said, I can't be a preacher, but I
S3: can be a good business man. He prayed a prayer.
S3: He said, Lord, if you will help me flourish in business,
S3: I will give most of the money to you. He
S3: worked outside for seven years because his doctor told him.
S3: That's the way you can deal with that tuberculosis. And
S3: God healed him. He bought a little place in Ravenna, Ohio.
S3: That was a little rundown Quaker mill. He began to
S3: build it up and to work in it and have
S3: products in ten years. Millions and millions of people knew
S3: his name because he's the founder of Quaker Oats and
S3: Kroll Hall. He donated the money to build Kroll Hall.
S3: He's dead and gone, but the part that his family
S3: gets in his trust still today, more than 60% goes
S3: to missionaries, mission organizations, Bible colleges. See, that's one of
S3: the things that I learned when I was working with
S3: the people of a lighter hue. I was on the
S3: board of World Missions. I was the only African American.
S3: And they start talking about bequests. I said, what's that?
S3: What's a bequest? And they said, that's when somebody knows
S3: that eventually they're going to die. So what they do
S3: is they get a policy and they leave it for
S3: our denomination. I was on the board of Moody Bible Institute,
S3: and I found of the $63 million that came in
S3: that year while I was on, over half of it
S3: was from dead people. So, you know, me and my wife,
S3: did I have a policy just for this church? Amen.
S3: I'll take care of my family. And when I die,
S3: my family's well taken care of and abundantly. That's why
S3: when my wife works at night, I wake up to see,
S3: you know, what's what's what's what's happening here. You know,
S3: it's like, well, why are you moving so suddenly, woman?
S3: You know what I'm saying? You know. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
S3: And why? So that whenever I go goes to the kingdom,
S3: it goes straight to the kingdom. That's it, man. That's it.
S3: It's like. It's like, man, you know, they gave liberally. See,
S3: most of us get from our surplus. Not never from
S3: our poverty. Mother Teresa said, if what you give is
S3: something you don't need, then you didn't really give. They
S3: did it generously. Liberally. Listen, listen. Let me just say
S3: this real quick because I gotta move on. I've told
S3: you the story over and over again about when my
S3: wife and I were getting ready to celebrate our anniversary.
S3: Versuri y'all tired of hearing it say we are tired
S3: of hearing it. And so you remember those of you
S3: who never heard it. Uh, one of our members said,
S3: what are you going to do for your anniversary? We said,
S3: we're going downtown. He said, no. Would you like to
S3: go to Puerto Vallarta? He put $3,000 in our pocket.
S3: He put us in first class. He sent us to
S3: his condo in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Oh, praise the name
S3: of Jesus. But let me say something I didn't tell you.
S3: The next year, he said, about a month before our anniversary.
S3: What are you guys going to do for your anniversary? Said, well,
S3: we probably going to do what we were going to
S3: do last year, go downtown, get us a little place
S3: and just enjoy each other's company. You want to go
S3: back to my condo in Mexico? Show you right, baby.
S3: Show you right. So he said he did the same thing.
S3: Put $3,000 in my pocket. Put us in first class.
S3: Flew us down. But before we left, he said, give
S3: me the keys to your house. now. I ain't always
S3: been saved. And I'm thinking to myself, you know, whenever
S3: I was unsaved, if I could get your keys. When
S3: you were gone. When you came back. Everything be gone.
S3: So that's what I was thinking, brother Ronnie, I was thinking,
S3: but then, you know. No, no, this man not going
S3: to do that. So I gave him the key. So
S3: we come back from Mexico and he picks us up,
S3: and he comes and lets us in our house. He
S3: opens the door and my wife starts crying because this man,
S3: while we were gone, had brought us brand new furniture.
S3: And we looked. And the dining room now the dining
S3: room table we had. You remember it, Jay? We would
S3: we would have our Thanksgiving dinner and all that. But
S3: we have trays all around because you couldn't put the
S3: food on the table, The chairs were rickety. This man
S3: brought us. And so I had to call him. I said,
S3: you know what? I want to describe it to the
S3: people today, and I need you to tell me what
S3: it was. Uh, well, it was cream colored. And he said, well,
S3: you need to understand that both the table and the
S3: what you call that thing, uh, with the glasses in
S3: it and all that China cabinet. Yeah. China cabinet. He
S3: said it's not made of one wood. It's made of three.
S3: It's made of birch. It's made of walnut, and it's
S3: made of maple. Now I want to ask him what
S3: it cost, but, you know, you don't do stuff like that.
S3: And since there was no tag on any of it,
S3: I just googled I went on the I went on
S3: the internet and I put in, you know, picture of blah, blah, blah,
S3: and I saw my picture and guess what? There were
S3: about 3 or 4 and the cheapest one was nine grand,
S3: the cheapest one, cheapest one. And I said, wow, man,
S3: this man is generous. But then guess what? The next
S3: year he came to me and he said, what are
S3: you going to do, you and your wife for your anniversary?
S3: I said, I hope what we did last year. He said, sure,
S3: you're right. You want to go back to Mexico. I said,
S3: you know what? I've never been to Las Vegas. I
S3: know what they say, but I. I heard the food
S3: is nice there all kind of old school shows, the
S3: impressions and all that kind of stuff. So I want
S3: to go. I want to go to Las Vegas. So
S3: he sent me and my wife to Las Vegas, put
S3: us up in the biggest suite in the Bellagio, put
S3: three grand in my pocket, flew us first class, I'm
S3: telling you. And then the next year he sent us somewhere,
S3: and then the next year, and for 11 years straight,
S3: pastor Washington, this man sent us somewhere and put $3,000
S3: cash in this preacher's pocket. God. Generosity. Generosity. You're going
S3: to hear it again. But, you know I wasn't going
S3: to use it for this one. I was going to
S3: use it for another one whenever I come back to it.
S3: But I don't know when the next time I'm going
S3: to preach on money, you know what I'm saying? But
S3: do you know, when we were building this sanctuary, the
S3: largest single gift came from the person who built it.
S3: He built it free. It was $3.75 million. He was
S3: supposed to get $375,000. He put all of that back
S3: into this building. That's why we have Marlboro out there.
S3: That's why we have brass here. That's why we have
S3: have a pit here. All that stuff. He just put
S3: it in. That's why our bathroom looks like it should
S3: be out at Willow Creek. That got 10,000 members because
S3: he did it. Amen. The second largest gift came from
S3: one of our keen agers on a fixed income. I
S3: almost fell, I was going to give a, you know,
S3: get a picture and put it up there for you,
S3: but the name was on it. I couldn't obscure it,
S3: and I didn't want to mess it up because it's
S3: the only copy I have. But she said, here, pastor,
S3: this for the new sanctuary. I said, okay, mother. Praise
S3: the Lord for you, sweetheart. And she said, oh, pastor,
S3: it's the least I could do. And I'm thinking, okay,
S3: she's on a fixed income. Maybe she's giving 100, 200, 300.
S3: She gave me a check for $100,000. 100,000. I got
S3: the copy. I got the copy. The $100,000 on a
S3: fixed income. I ain't ask her even today. I wish
S3: I would have. She went home to Jesus, but I
S3: didn't ask her because there wasn't none of my business. Generosity.
S3: Didn't notice willingly. It said, here it is. Here it is.
S3: Let me. Bottom line it. Say bottom line it. Paul
S3: wasn't going to ask them. Giving is catching. Amen. Mm.
S3: So so so they weren't coerced. Here's what. Let me
S3: read it. Praying us with much entreaty. Wait a minute,
S3: wait a minute. Let me, let me, let me let
S3: me get this real quick. He says uh, playing. What
S3: does that mean? Listen to what it says here, begging
S3: us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the
S3: relief of the saints. They begged him. Now. No, no, no.
S3: You going to take this?
S2: How about you? But every time I hear that passage,
S2: or I read that section of second Corinthians eight, what
S2: was at least a little bit convicted, when was the
S2: last time that I begged for an opportunity to give
S2: away some of my money, some of what God has
S2: entrusted to us? But yet that is the mindset, the
S2: Macedonian mindset that we are called to have, isn't it?
S2: Or you're listening to a message called the Macedonian Mindset
S2: from second Corinthians eight, and we're going to continue this
S2: teaching in just a second. You ever miss a program?
S2: Listen online at Treasure Truth Radio. Back to the message.
S2: Here is Pastor Ford.
S3: Maybe they understood that. Lost beatitude of the Lord Jesus Christ,
S3: the 13th beatitude. It is more blessed to give than
S3: to receive. You know that's not recorded. But Paul says,
S3: Jesus said it, and it's in red letters in my Bible,
S3: so you know what that means. Jesus said it. See,
S3: too many of us are like little Ray. Ray. Remember
S3: him and his brother Joey? There was one cookie they
S3: were arguing over. Who's going to get the cookie? Mother
S3: came in. She wanted to give him a lesson. She
S3: says okay, he she says she says boys. And she
S3: looks at Ray. Ray because he's the oldest. You know,
S3: Jesus would give the cookie to his brother. So which
S3: one of you are going to be Jesus? And looking
S3: at Ray? Ray? Ray Ray grabbed the cookie, bit it,
S3: and said, Joey, you be Jesus. And that's most of us.
S3: It's like willingly not coerce. Let me give you these
S3: real quick, then enthusiastically. Look at. Look what it says.
S3: It says they pray with much entreaty. You receive our group,
S3: the fellowship of Ministering. On, on and on. On. Second
S3: Corinthians chapter nine says that they gave hilariously. It says,
S3: For God loves a cheerful giver. The word means hilariously.
S3: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!
S3: And so here you have. You have. Let me read
S3: Wesley's comments on this. He says it's possible to give generously,
S3: but not to give enthusiastically. The preacher says I should
S3: give until it hurts. And a miserly church member said,
S3: but for me, it hurts just to think about giving.
S3: The Macedonian churches needed no prompting or reminding, as did
S3: the church at Corinth. They were more than willing to
S3: share in the collection. In fact, they begged to be included.
S3: How many times have you heard a Christian beg for
S3: somebody to take an offering? Their giving was voluntary and spontaneous.
S3: It was of grace, not pressure. They gave because they
S3: wanted to give and because they had experienced the grace
S3: of God. This is the part I want you to hear.
S3: Grace not only frees us from our sins, grace frees
S3: us from ourselves. That's a great line. Yeah. And so
S3: the grace of God will first open your heart, and
S3: your heart will open your hand. Wow. Wow. Yeah. They're giving,
S3: they're giving. I was at a church and I was preaching,
S3: and this is the first time it ever happened. So
S3: I'm sitting up in the pulpit and the worship leader
S3: got up and said, it is now time to worship
S3: the Lord in our giving. And I, I was like,
S3: because people were. Yeah. Amen. Clapping. Yeah. And and everybody start.
S3: Everybody grab your envelope and start waving there. Yeah. Praise
S3: the Lord. It's the firstfruits. It's a way. And it
S3: was like there was more noise during the offertory than
S3: there was during the music. And they they they they
S3: had a kick and choir, too. He said, well, you
S3: look surprised, pastor. I said, But I've never seen people
S3: of God respond like this to giving. So I came
S3: back the next Sunday and I said, hey, what do
S3: you say we make some noise whenever it's time for offertory?
S3: That's right, that's right. That's exactly right. That's exactly right.
S3: You're looking like you look right now. Like. Like are you.
S3: Are you crazy? Who's going to be happy about giving
S3: money away? And then personally, first Corinthians 16, each one
S3: of you, every one of you, let me just say this,
S3: and I'm going to shut it down. It's not equal money,
S3: but it is equal sacrifice. We may not all give
S3: the same amount, but we all are to give with
S3: the same attitude. You mean to tell me you trust
S3: God with your eternal soul, but you don't trust God
S3: with your temporal stuff? Come on, tell your neighbor there's
S3: a dead monkey on the line somewhere. Here's the last one,
S3: verses seven through nine. And I'm not going to go
S3: through the whole thing verses seven through nine. You have
S3: the right motivation, the right method, the right model for giving.
S3: He gave two examples, didn't he? He gave an immediate example.
S3: That's the Macedonians. But we don't ever want to ultimately
S3: model ourselves after people, any person. But there is then
S3: the ultimate example, the Lord Jesus Christ. So let me
S3: cut down to verse nine. Now verse seven and eight
S3: kind of builds the verse nine. How do I know that?
S3: Because it begins with four, which is the explanatory God.
S3: So he says this for you know the grace of
S3: our Lord Jesus Christ. Wait a minute. Now he's talking
S3: about grace, now he's talking about grace of our Lord
S3: Jesus Christ. Grace of God. In other words, they've cornered
S3: the market on grace. Lord. His deity. Jesus. His humanity. Christ.
S3: His sovereignty. See how he brings it in. And so
S3: he brings it all in. Why? Because God gave the
S3: best of heaven. Jesus for the worst of earth us.
S3: And so he begins to tell him. He says, listen,
S3: Jesus was rich and he became poor for you and
S3: for me. Yes. And so what happens here? Let me
S3: let me just say this. This morning I was talking
S3: about Undercover Boss. But let me, let me let me
S3: just tell you something you already know. Coming to America,
S3: Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall. He was a prince who
S3: wanted a bribe. So he left his kingdom and came
S3: to a place in New York looking for a queen.
S3: He was arrayed in splendor and had servants that were
S3: bowing to him and meeting his every need, giving them baths.
S3: And he gave all those things away for the rags
S3: of a McDonald worker. And then he went and found
S3: his bride. She didn't want him, but he wooed her
S3: and courted her. Then he wed her. And then you
S3: know what he did. He took her back to his kingdom,
S3: and he made her richer than she ever could have been.
S3: That's what's in this text. Jesus Christ left the suburbs
S3: of heaven. Came to the inner city called Earth. Yes, he.
S3: He veiled his deity and humanity and and robed himself
S3: like one of us, so he can relate to us.
S3: And then he wed us. He wooed us. He wed us.
S3: And the Bible says one day he's coming back. Hallelujah
S3: to take us to himself. Hallelujah. Now, let me tell
S3: you what I found out about that movie. Did you
S3: know that not only did Eddie Murphy star in it,
S3: but Eddie Murphy wrote it. But not only did Eddie
S3: Murphy write it, Eddie Murphy directed it and produced it.
S3: He did it all. Yeah. Jesus paid it all. All
S3: to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain.
S3: He washed me white as snow. He's a giver. He's
S3: the original giver. What did he give up, pastor for? Well,
S3: let me take my seat. If I was Hooper, I'd
S3: be hooping now. He gave up the splendors of heaven
S3: for the squalor of earth. He gave up limitless deity
S3: for localized humanity. Entity. He gave his body to an
S3: old rugged cross. He gave his back to a whip.
S3: He gave his brow to a crown of thorns. He
S3: gave his cheek to a spider's fist. He gave his
S3: mother to John. And to John his mother. He gave
S3: his side to the spear. He gave his blood for
S3: our sins. He gave his spirit to the father, and
S3: he gave eternal life to everybody who believes that He
S3: is God in the flesh, who died and was buried
S3: and rose again the third day. You can't out give Jesus,
S3: because can't nobody do me like Jesus. Can't nobody do
S3: me like the Lord. Pick me up, turn me around,
S3: place my feet on solid ground. And we need to
S3: have not just the mindset of the Macedonians. We need
S3: to have the mindset of the master. When he said
S3: it's more blessed to give than to receive.
S2: It's a challenging yet encouraging way to wrap up this message.
S2: The Macedonian mindset really helpful. Look at Second Corinthians chapter eight.
S2: You're listening to Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford, and if
S2: you missed any of the previous broadcasts in this series,
S2: I'd encourage you to come to our website and listen there.
S2: Just stop by Treasure Truth radio.org. You know, pastor, we
S2: all face tough times in life, and sometimes that's a
S2: very specific thing that's happening to us. Other times, it
S2: may be something that's happening to our family, our society
S2: in general. And really what we need is just the
S2: hope that we find in God's word.
S3: Oh yeah. Well, you know, I had a listener call
S3: and she said to me, she said, Pastor Ford, I
S3: listened to you faithfully, and I want you to know
S3: you helped me. And I said, I helped. You know,
S3: you helped me. I was feeling hopeless. And after listening
S3: to the Word of God, I got hope. And I said,
S3: you know what hope means in the Bible when it
S3: says hope? She says, well, no, but I believe you're
S3: going to tell me, aren't you? And I said yes.
S3: It literally means outstretched neck. You ever wait for a
S3: bus in the dead of winter and you know it's coming,
S3: but you don't know when. So you step out in
S3: the street and you look up the street with an
S3: outstretched neck to see when it's coming. That's the word hope.
S3: He's coming. He's going to give us relief. And whatever
S3: we're going through, we cast all our care upon him
S3: because he cares for us. And yes, Moody Radio, we're
S3: in the hope business.
S2: You can help us give hope to those who will
S2: come across this program and this station. As you support,
S2: Treasure Truth, give a gift online at Treasure Truth radio.org.
S2: Thanks for doing that and for listening today for Pastor Ford,
S2: I'm Steve Hiller. Treasure truth is a production of Moody Radio,
S2: a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.