Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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Christian Giving
1 Our brothers, we want you to
know what God's grace has accomplished
in the churches in Macedonia.
2 They have been severely
tested by the troubles they went
through; but their joy was so great
that they were extremely generous
in their giving, even though they are
very poor.
3 I can assure you that
they gave as much as they could,
and even more than they could. Of
their own free will
4 they begged us
and pleaded for the privilege of having
a part in helping God's people in
Judea. note
5 It was more than we could
have hoped for! First they gave
themselves to the Lord; and then, by
God's will they gave themselves to
us as well.
6 So we urged Titus, who
began this work, to continue it and
help you complete this special service
of love.
7 You are so rich in all
you have: in faith, speech, and
knowledge, in your eagerness to
help and in your love for us. noteAnd so
we want you to be generous also in
this service of love.
8 I am not laying down any rules.
But by showing how eager others
are to help, I am trying to find out
how real your own love is.
9 You
know the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ; rich as he was, he made himself
poor for your sake, in order
to make you rich by means of his
poverty.
10 My opinion is that it is better for
you to finish now what you began
last year. You were the first, not
only to act, but also to be willing to
act.
11 On with it, then, and finish the
job! Be as eager to finish it as you
were to plan it, and do it with what
you now have.
12 If you are eager to
give, God will accept your gift on the
basis of what you have to give, not
on what you don't have.
13
14 I am not trying to relieve others
by putting a burden on you; but
since you have plenty at this time, it
is only fair that you should help
those who are in need. Then, when
-- --
you are in need and they have
plenty, they will help you. In this
way both are treated equally.
15 As
the scripture says, “The one who
gathered much did not have too
much, and the one who gathered little
did not have too little.” note
Titus and His Companions
16 How we thank God for making
Titus as eager as we are to help you!
17 Not only did he welcome our request;
he was so eager to help that of
his own free will he decided to go to
you.
18 With him we are sending the
brother who is highly respected in
all the churches for his work in
preaching the gospel.
19 And besides
that, he has been chosen and appointed
by the churches to travel
with us as we carry out this service
of love for the sake of the Lord's glory
and in order to show that we want
to help.
20 We are being careful not to stir
up any complaints about the way we
handle this generous gift.
21 Our purpose
is to do what is right, not only
in the sight of the Lord, but also in
the sight of man. note
22 So we are sending our brother
with them; we have tested him many
times and found him always very
eager to help. And now that he has
so much confidence in you, he is all
the more eager to help.
23 As for Titus,
he is my partner and works with
me to help you; as for the other
brothers who are going with him,
they represent the churches and
bring glory to Christ.
24 Show your
love to them, so that all the churches
will be sure of it and know that we
are right in boasting about you.
Good News [1976], GOOD NEWS BIBLE WITH DEUTEROCANONICALS / APOCRYPHA Today's English Version (AMERICAN BIBLE SOCIETY, New York) [word count] [B15000].
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