I have a huge oak tree in my backyard. Every fall, it drops millions of acorns onto my lawn. They are everywhere, and they hurt when they fall on you. The acorn is the way the oak tree reproduces. I end up raking up most of them, but every spring, I have to pull up a sprout where an acorn got pushed into the soil. There wouldn’t be as many oak trees if the oak tree didn’t sow this many acorns. Paul encourages his readers to sow bountifully with their money.
2 CORINTHIANS 9:6
“Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.”
Sowing and Reaping
The principle of sowing and reaping is threaded throughout the Bible. Everyone understood back then because they were primarily farmers or grew their food. Today, we live in a world where you drive down to the grocery store and purchase whatever you need. The idea of planting so that you can harvest it later is a little foreign. Still, most people get the point. In order to harvest food to eat, you must plant the seeds so that they can grow.
Giving Sparingly
Paul applies this principle to other areas of life. Here he uses it towards your finances. If you give sparingly to the Lord, don’t expect it to multiply. God knows when you are stealing from Him. If you give bountifully unto the Lord, you will also reap bountifully. No farmer plants a few seeds and expects a bountiful return. Instead, they plant as much as is possible to get the best return.
Sow Bountifully
God doesn’t need your money, but He does want your faithfulness and obedience. One of the last areas people surrender to the Lord is their finances. They want the blessings that come with following Jesus but don’t want to make the sacrifices. If you find yourself in a financial bind and look to the Lord to bail you out, don’t be surprised if the response is in accordance with your giving.