This could, perhaps, be a
summary of the Lord’s teaching but is much more likely to be an
actual saying. As John intimates (John
21:25), Jesus did and said a great deal more than
we have preserved for us in the Gospels. Even the most detailed
biography of a man’s life cannot hope to cover everything that has
gone on. It should be no surprise to us, therefore, that there are
acts and sayings not included in the Gospels. Perhaps what is
surprising is that this was a well known saying in Ephesus and yet
has only been preserved here. No doubt written or oral
collections of Jesus’ sayings were circulating at this early date
(about 57 AD). ‘Have we lost other well known
sayings too?’ we wonder. A number
of independent sayings can be found in ancient literature but this is
the only one we can be completely sure is genuine.
Roots
As
with certain other sayings of Jesus you can find parallels to this
one from other sources. For example, Aristotle said ‘It is more
becoming for a free man to give where he must than to receive where he must.’
As with other sayings of
Jesus its roots can better be traced to biblical proverbs such as
these:
11:24-26 One man gives
freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to
poverty. A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will
himself be refreshed. People curse the man who hoards grain, but
blessing crowns him who is willing to sell.
14:21 He who despises
his neighbour sins, but blessed is he who is kind to the needy.
14:31 He who oppresses
the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the
needy honours God.
19:17 He who is kind
to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has
done.
22:9 A generous man
will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor.
28:27 He who gives to
the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them
receives many curses.
It is reminiscent of
another sayings found in Luke 6:30, 35, 38 Give to everyone who
asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it
back … But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them
without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be
great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to
the ungrateful and wicked. … Give, and it will be given to you. A
good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be
poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be
measured to you. Of course, the very word blessed was one
our Lord often used. J A Alexander says of the saying ‘The words
themselves are exquisitely simple, but embody an important truth and
principle of action.’
Meaning
On the
face of it the saying seems wrong. ‘Silly the giver, lucky
the receiver’ is more in tune with the world’s attitude. We
instinctively question it. No doubt it is put in this way to give it
force. Jesus is not saying ‘There is no blessing in receiving’.
Of course, there is. Around this time of the year most of us receive
gifts of one sort or another. Perhaps some of them are not ‘just
what we always wanted’ but even then we can often appreciate the
thought at least. To receive is a blessing and that is not denied
here. It makes you happy, it encourages and pleases. It is, more
often than not, an advantage to receive from others.
However,
the argument is that it is more blessed
to give. We do not find it difficult to
see the advantages in receiving, but Jesus wants us to see that there
are greater advantages in giving. The chief reason
this is so is because it reflects the character of God himself. He is
the God who gives. This reminds us of
Jesus’s saying (preserved in Mark 10:45) that he himself came
not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for
many. As Simon Kistemaker puts it ‘When
man follows God’s example, he receives a divine blessing because he
demonstrates that he is one of God’s children’.
John Gill helpfully speaks of the
blessing as marked by greater comfort, honour, pleasure and profit.
- Greater comfort because the giver obviously has ‘an abundance or at least a sufficiency and something to spare’
- Greater honour as ‘honour is reflected upon the giver, both by the receiver, and others; when to receive … carries in it, among men, some degree of dishonour’.
- Greater pleasure, whereas ‘to be in such circumstances, as make it necessary … to receive from others, and be dependent on them’ cannot be pleasurable.
- Greater profit ‘both in this world, and that to come’.
Another writer says it is more blessed
to give because
- It delivers us from ourselves – especially from selfishness and excess
- It unites us with those we give to, who are thankful and who pray for us if they are believers
- It brings us nearer to God as we imitate him, share in his delight and wait for out reward
This is a lesson we need
to learn – not only at this time but for always. We must help the
weak. It is a command. We ought to be motivated both by obedience to
Christ and hope of blessing. Who gave more than any other? It is
Christ. And who is more blessed than he? If we want to know God’s
blessing we will be generous hearted, giving people who like the
Apostle Paul are willing to do anything that the gospel may go out.
This article first appeared in Grace Magazine
This article first appeared in Grace Magazine
