Breaking financial hardship through grace

Text: 2 Corinthians 9:1-14
Key Verse: 2 Corinthians 9:14, “And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you” (KJV)
The Grace of God is one of the vital mysteries for provoking supernatural breakthroughs on earth. What is Grace? Grace is the tangible and undeniable hand of God on a man’s life and in all his affairs. Grace is God’s disposition of kindness, compassion, goodwill and enabling power for us to be perfected in His love. Ephesians 2:7: ”That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.”

Grace is the only thing that can do everything because it is the only sufficient thing. Everything is possible when grace is available. 2 Corinthians 12:9: “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee…” Grace when provoked and released breaks financial hardship and difficult times in our lives.

One of the ways through which we can contact God’s Grace is by giving. Grace empowers us to give and to receive. In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul in writing to the Corinthian Church informed them about the Grace of God that was bestowed on the churches of Macedonia that enabled them to give generously towards God’s work.

Paul challenged them with the giving lifestyle of the Macedonian Church towards God’s work in Jerusalem. The Macedonian Church was extremely poor and its members were living in deep poverty but they broke hardship by giving. The Macedonian Church was going through severe difficulties just as many of us today are going through hard times. As a result of their generosity, Grace was released and their poverty was terminated. 2 Corinthians 8:2, “How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.”

When the Macedonian Church understood the mystery of giving and the blessings that follow it, they pleaded with Paul to accept their gifts. They came to the understanding that their abject poverty can be broken by their liberal giving. The Bible says, “Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints” (2 Corinthians 8:4).

It was knowledge of the power of giving that saved them from their deep poverty. They say, “Knowledge is power.” This confirms the Bible verse that says, “Good understanding giveth favor” (Proverbs 13:15).

Ignorance keeps you under perpetual slavery and bondage. Ignorance is broken by the power of knowledge. When Philip met the Ethiopian Eunuch, he was reading the book of Isaiah in his Bible and Philip asked him, “Understandest thou what thou readest?” (Acts 8:30). The eunuch replied, “How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.”

You can be religious without knowing Jesus Christ who came and died for your sin so that you may receive salvation from your sin. Without knowing Jesus, it makes you unproductive. But today, is the acceptable day of salvation, come to Jesus and your life will become productive.

Today’s Nugget: Grace changes your giving and receiving level.

Prayer: Lord, as I give in support of your work, may lack be broken in my life in Jesus Name, Amen.
Prayer lines: 09078154261.
E-mail: evangelgospel@yahoo.com
Dr. Chidi Okoroafor, General Superintendent, Assemblies of God Nigeria