Supernatural Math

Some of the New Testament believers were so excited about showing their love for the Lord Jesus and spreading the gospel that they gave sacrificially in the midst of their poverty. Look at what Paul said about the Macedonians in 1 Corinthians 8:1,

“8 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, ²for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. ³For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, ⁴begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— ⁵and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.”

In Verse 2 it says that the Macedonians gave out of their abundance of Joy. Jesus was so valuable to them, they were willing to use their money as an expression of worship to show other people the infinite value of His worth.

The Macedonians gave “beyond their means.” What does that imply? It means that when they added up all the figures, it didn’t work but God still provided. You could call it the Lord’s ‘supernatural math.’ (I’ve experienced this many times in my life.) When we operate in the natural, one plus one equals two. But when we submit our finances to the Lord and act on a faith that God will supernaturally bless what we freely give to Him, 1 plus 1 equals 5, 10, 15, 100 times more.

About the Author: Mark Stafford

Pastor Mark Stafford served on staff at Canyon Bible Church of Prescott Valley for almost 6 years. He and his wife, Lara, felt called to church planting and Canyon of Prescott Valley sent them to plant a new Canyon Bible Church in the Verde Valley. Mark is a graduate of the Biblical Studies department at Arizona Christian University with highest honors and has served for more than a dozen years in full-time pastoral ministry. Mark loves music and is an active musician playing electric and string bass, acoustic and electric guitar, & keyboard. He has served with several professional Christian touring groups and has been nominated for a Dove award. Pastor Mark is currently bi-vocational while he plants Canyon Verde. He owns a small printing and design company called Ablaze Media. When he is not preaching, leading small groups, playing music or designing graphics, you might find him in his F250 cruising around the back roads of the local national forests, cycling with his sons on the streets around the Verde Valley, or running in a 10K. Pastor Mark and Lara have 4 children and have been married for over 15 years.