For Your Sake He Became Poor

The Pauline collection for the poor in Jerusalem is the most famous example of financial support for geographically distant groups in early Christianity. Recent assessments of the Pauline collection have focused on patronage to explain the social relations between Jerusalem and the Pauline groups and the strategies adopted by Paul. Through a comparison with the Greco-Roman world and a close reading of the texts, this study challenges the recent approach and proposes that other factors shaped Paul’s stance. Paul was interested in reassuring the Corinthians about the financial outcome of the collection and dispelling doubts that he might take advantage of them. The collection was an action modeled on divine generosity and an exchange within a reciprocal relationship between Christian groups. This study also surveys intergroup support between Christian groups in the first three centuries CE. This practice involved churches from most of the Mediterranean Basin and was known even outside of Christian circles. Transfers of money were organized according to a consistent pattern modeled on local charitable practices. The Pauline collection had similar characteristics and can be seen as part of this widespread economic practice.

2 Corinthians 8:9 "For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich." There is much controversy in the church today, about the "prosperity gospel." There are those who promote it to the extreme, and there are those who are against it in its entirety. Each side tends to accuse the other, of teaching error. As with most doctrines in the bible, where there are two opposing views taught, invariably the truth of God's word, is found somewhere in the middle. This book examines just what God's word says on the subject of prosperity, particularly for those under the new covenant, for that is the covenant that we partake of.

David Servant has been ministering to Christian leaders in conferences around the world for over three decades. From his experience of speaking to tens of thousands of pastors in over forty countries, he has complied biblical teaching in this book that addresses the most important issues that Christian leaders are facing today. Servant covers topics such as church growth, spiritual warfare, divorce and remarriage, biblical interpretation, house churches, women in ministry, church government, spiritual gifts, evangelism and many more. He often questions the prevailing opinion, always considering what Scripture says. His conclusions may sometimes surprise you. Servant's foundational condition is that every Christian leader should be making disciples who obey all of Christ's commandments. Translated into many languages, The Disciple-Making Minister is helping Christian leader around the world be more effective in fulfilling the Great Commission.

Known as the "Prince of Preachers," Charles Haddon Spurgeon was among the most prolific and influential pastors of the 19th century. Characterized by profound insights and a passionate call for personal relationships with Christ, Spurgeon's work has stood the tests of time. Beloved even today, Spurgeon's sermons offer you the opportunity to grow in your own faith in a conveniently digital format, designed for your busy life on the go! Updated into modern language, with helpful explanatory footnotes, the text has been carefully proofed to ensure the highest quality and accuracy. Brought to you by the editors who translated the landmark work, Annals of the World, this first series of digital releases from the Spurgeon sermon collection is for the years 1855 and 1856 in one convenient digital file at an unbeatable price! All sermons are unabridged and include references to make it convenient for you to extend your Spurgeon studies. Easy to read and hard to forget, these are sermons of substance that will impact your life today!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." When the Reformers of the sixteenth century turned to this biblical text, originally written by Paul to the first-century church in Corinth, they found truths that apply to Christians regardless of their historical context. For example, Reformed theologian Wolfgang Musculus wrote, "To be a Christian is to be in Christ. If anyone is outside of Christ, he is not a Christian. It is easy to partake of the sacraments and to be of the name and profession of Christ, but that is not what it means to be in Christ... The largest part of Christians is still an old creature for they have not yet been regenerated and renewed by the spirit of Christ. To know a Christian, therefore, we should not so much examine his external profession, but his life." In this volume of the Reformation Commentary on Scripture, Reformation scholar Scott Manetsch guides readers through a wealth of early modern commentary on the book of 2 Corinthians. Readers will hear from familiar voices and discover lesser-known figures from a diversity of theological traditions, including Lutherans, Reformed, Radicals, Anglicans and Roman Catholics. Drawing upon a variety of resources—including commentaries, sermons, treatises, and confessions—much of which appears here for the first time in English, this volume provides resources for contemporary preachers, enables scholars to better understand the depth and breadth of Reformation commentary, and seeks to encourage all those who would be newly created in Christ.