Liturgy and the question of how to worship are receiving a great deal of attention today—for better or for worse. That we should have and follow the proper guidelines for this is of the utmost importance. In this issue, Rev. Jerome M. Julien, pastor of the First Christian Reformed Church of Pella, Iowa, presents the sixth in a series of eight articles on the topic: The Sacrifice of Praise.

“Now concerning the collection . . .” So Paul writes as he moves from the stirring and blessed 15th chapter of I Corinthians with its precious teaching on the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and its challenging: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (I Cor. 15:58). Then comes, “Now concerning the collection . . . .”

These words introduce us to what is perhaps the most controversial part of worship—the gathering of the collection on the Lord’s Day. And yet the gatherings of offerings can never be considered an unimportant part of the worship service. The collection has a definite role to play in worship. True, the over-pious might object that money is not really related to the spiritual. Money is the root of all evil, they often remind us as they misquote Scripture.

   

Others might like to forget the subject of the collection since to speak of it is to touch the most delicate of all nerves.

Still, you notice that Paul, after he has been discussing the grand and glorious truth of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and our resurrection, too, does not hesitate to mention the collection. He has been speaking of the resurrection, pointing out that “we all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (I Cor. 15:51, 52). He goes on to write, “O death, where is thy sting? The sting of death is sin; and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ . . . . Now concerning the collection . . .” (I Cor. 15:55–16:1).

Paul’s reference to a collection grew out of a need. There was great distress in the church at Jerusalem, and it was one that was unrelenting. It was not just a passing experience. It brought constant agony to the saints.

Just why there was distress at Jerusalem can only be guessed. We really don‘t know. Some have said that this financial distress, this great need in Jerusalem, was the inevitable outgrowth of having all things in common. You remember, that for a period of time, the church at Jerusalem was communistic in the sense that they had all things together. The inevitable result of that kind of living, according to some, was this distressing condition at Jerusalem. Others say that the need at Jerusalem was the result of long periods of famine. That’s a possibility because that part of the world has often had that experience in the past. Whatever the reason was, the distress at Jerusalem was very great. It was Paul’s conviction that certainly the Christians could help the household of faith, whatever nation they be from.

So he writes, “Now concerning the collection . . . . ” That word “collection” is a rather interesting one. It is found only here in the whole New Testament. Since it is used only once in the Greek it is rather difficult for us to understand exactly what the word meant. Ordinarily we take the various uses of the word in the New Testament and from them see what a word means. However, here there are no other passages which we can look at. How are we going to understand this word “collection”? Our only help comes from Greek inscriptions found in Egypt. By studying those inscriptions it becomes evident that this word “collection” had reference to religious collections taken for the sake of a pagan temple. Now, that’s the word Paul uses here, but of course, not with that pagan meaning, by any means. What he is saying is that we are taking a collection with a religious significance.

Therefore, the collection that Paul refers to in the text is not the kind of a collection that might be gathered in a container on a store counter, nor in a political rally for a particular cause. Nor is it even the kind of collection that you might take in your neighborhood because one of your neighbors has special needs. It’s not that kind of collection. The kind of collection that Paul is speaking about here is one with a religious significance.

Now, while at first glance, it appears as if Paul is writing to Corinth alone, let us not forget that these words are for us, too. There is a principle that lies behind these words in these first two verses of I Corinthians 16, and this principle still lives. There is a need for collections of this kind. One of the requirements for the Lord’s Day according to the Heidelberg Catechism, Lord‘s Day 38, is that on that day we “give Christian alms.” On the Lord‘s Day, collections are to be gathered—offerings are to be gathered. If we understand this word for collection as meaning a spiritual exercise, then the gathering of collections will not be just an orderly way of gathering money which is necessary for the ongoing work of the church. If it‘s merely a necessary –not meaningful—exercise, then near the doors there should be collection bins. Tnto them you ought to place your offering. There ought to be no offerings gathered in worship. But we do receive collections in worship, and we do that for a reason.

Therefore, again we need to be instructed in the Biblical teaching concerning the offering. The passage before us suggests two thoughts as we consider this important part of our worship service.

How the offering is gathered

Notice what the passage says in verse 2, “Upon the first day of the week let each one of you lay by him in store, as he may prosper, that no collections be made when I come.” In these words, we are told something about the how of gathering the offering, though it may seem somewhat remote to you at first glance.

First of all, without question, the offerings, Paul says, are to be gathered on the first day of the week. That’s the Lord‘s Day. They’re to be gathered on Sunday. In fact, if we would give the sense of the original language here, the idea would be “Sunday by Sunday,” or “Lord‘s Day by Lord‘s Day, gather the offerings, the collections, for the saints at Jerusalem.” On the Lord‘s Day, then, this collection is to be gathered.

Though the first day of the week was not yet known as the Lord‘s Day, it means much to the Christians. It was the day that the resurrection of Jesus Christ had taken place. By that resurrection they were reminded that God had received the work of Christ on Calvary, and that now there was justification. This day told them that there was new life in Christ. This was the day when Jesus appeared several different times to His disciples to prove that He was alive and to teach many things concerning the Kingdom. Further, on this day the Holy Spirit came to apply the work of the Lord Jesus to the hearts of those who are God’s people.

There is even more significance to the first day of the New Covenant. In the Old Testament, the people gathered on the seventh day, the end of the week. Now they gathered on the first day of the week. There was a transition. They moved from that which seemed so final into that which speaks of newness of life. Now they would worship the Lord on the first day of the week. On this day of the week they praised God for His wonder of grace.

This meant that this first day of the week was a day of thanksgiving, a day when they would raise their thanks to God in corporate unity, even as we do in formal worship. The offering that was commended by Paul was a religious act, an act that fit into that expression of gratitude. The offering that he says they are to receive and gather is an offering that expresses their thanksgiving for the newness of the covenant, for all that God has done for His people.

Today, offerings are still gathered on the Lord’s Day. Of course, we also gather gifts for special causes as we meet together to worship the Lord during the week. We contribute, then, because we are thankful people. We love the Lord and we want to express in a physical way our thankfulness. But doing it on the Lord‘s Day reminds us of this command that Paul gave to Corinth and the earlier command that had been given to Galatia. He writes, “I gave order to the churches of Galatia, so also do ye.” This was a command that the churches were to follow. It was a good rule for the churches because it focused on  a principle. It focused on the idea of thankfulness. For that reason, it’s a good rule for the church today, too.

But you notice that Paul does not just say that you bring it on the first day of the week. He goes on to say that this giving has to be systematic. “Let each one of you lay by him in store,” he writes.

Now there is an honest difference of opinion as to what this actually means. For some, “lay in store” means that the people at Corinth were to put money away at home so that it could be gathered together when Paul would come to visit. They reason that this is the meaning because they say that in that day there was no central treasury in the church. The church was not organized as it is today. But others—and they are correct—understand the words here, “lay in store” as meaning not a private collection but a bringing into a treasury. They understand Paul as writing, “where all of the money is put, there your money is to be put as well.” After all, if the money is laid aside at home there would still have to be a collection made when he would come. This, Paul says, he doesn‘t want. Instead, that money must be brought together systematically on the first day of the week.

What we are being taught here is a systematic method of giving out of gratitude. The offering is not jllSt a time to gather some money. It is the time when we give systematically out of gratitude to God for all that He has done. If it’s only a gathering of money, just to make it convenient for us to give, then it is as if we were afforded an opportunity to pay our dues, or to give what we feel something is worth, so to speak. Some see it that way, you know. But they don’t see the offering as a meaningful part of worship. It is just a time for an organ interlude, when the deacons walk up the aisle with plates for offering. No, it’s not that! It is an opportunity for a systematic showing of gratitude.

Week by week, we give, because week by week we are grateful. Week by week, we want to express our thanksgiving. And actually, though some disagree saying that it is far better to put in one big contribution at the end of the year, this systematic giving usually comes to a lot more than is received from the one or two big gifts that some congregations receive from members during the year. Lay it in store, do it systematically.

How are we to give? “As he may prosper.” Now you will notice that Paul, as he writes these words, avoids any hint of a legalism concerning the offering. In spite of the Old Testament injunction to tithe. he doesn‘t mention it. Perhaps this is so that a legalism does not develop. That he does not want in Corinth. There were far too many problems in Corinth, as it was. Also, perhaps he does not mention it so that Christians will realize that those who can give more than a tenth, should certainly express their gratitude in that way. Well, Paul doesn’t give the opportunity to be bound by a legalism. He points out that we are to give as the Lord prospers us.

Yet, realizing the unity of Scripture, realizing what God has said in the Old Testament concerning tithing, it’s hard to see how tithing can be laid aside. Of course, there are those who disagree saying that it had an Old Testament meaning. It did, of course. However, one who would easily lay aside the Old Testament command to tithe had best ask himself why he does it. Is he giving out of gratitude, or out of selfish motives. Maybe he will have to admit that he has too many desires so that the money is all gone before God‘s portion is set aside.

If that’s the case then the words of Malachi must ring loud and clear, “Will a man rob God? yet ye rob me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with the curse; for ye rob me, even this whole nation. Bring ye the whole tithe into the store-house, that there may be food in my house, and prove me now herewith, saith Jehovah of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (3:8–10).

And really, if all of God’s people would tithe from the Lord‘s prospering there would be very few struggling congregations. There would be more missionary outreach because there would be money. The Lord‘s work would seem to grow and increase.

You and I must ask ourselves how we meet that collection plate. Do we see it as a part of worship? Do we see it as something that belongs in our worship service as an opportunity of giving gratitude in a very physical way? Do we approach that plate with system, realizing that we are to lay by us in store, that we are to bring regularly, Sunday by Sunday, into the treasury? Do we realize that when that plate comes, we are to give as the Lord has prospered us?

Now, I don’t know how you meet the plate, of course, but you do. And God does! Is there money for everything else? Is there money for all the pleasures that this life can hold, and all of the material aspects of life? Is there money for everything but the collection? Does our prosperity serve the God of materialism? Or is our prosperity an opportunity of praising that God whom we confess?

Young people, many of you have jobs, and you work very hard at your jobs, and you bring home a small paycheck. But it’s a good opportunity for you, right now, as you bring home a very small amount of money, to remember that from that, you are to give in gratitude because of what the Lord has done.

It is something that each one of us should learn. We should teach our children when they are very young and they receive their first allowance, that some of that is to be put in the offering plate. Let‘s not teach them to be selfish. Let’s teach them that there is a gratitude that we show to the Lord as the collections are received.

Why the offering is gathered

Now, why is it that we make so much of the altering? Well, the Biblical and historical context of these verses give us the answer.

Historically, there was need—and still is. The Jerusalem Church was languishing. She didn‘t have the money needed to live. There were hungry stomachs. There were crying children. Food and the other daily essentials of life were very precious, in· deed. Many were very poor, to say the least. There were saints in Jerusalem who simply could not exist without help.

There is shll a need, today. There is a need to care for the welfare of God‘s own, and not just in a benevolent way. Most of us have all that we need, and many of us have much more than we need. There are other needs, however. The people of God need to grow in the Word of God. There has to be money provided so that the education of our Covenant youth may be continued. There has to be money so that the lights are on and the organ is running for worship. There must be finances so that the Word of God is proclaimed in all the world as Jesus Christ commanded. There is a need for the gathering of the collection.

The Biblical context tells us that there is, also, another reason for the gathering of the collection. Actually, when we look at the text it seems as if there is a whole new subject to be developed as Paul begins the 16th chapter. But in moving from chapter 15 to chapter 16 we are not plunging from the exalted, grand and glorious truth of the resurrection down to the mundane, everyday things of life.

What we’re doing here in the 16th chapter is learning an application of the glorious truth of the resurrection. This is an application of the doctrine that God has already taught us in I Corinthians. We‘re alive. We are new men in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have a new hope; we have a new name; we have a new song. All things are new, and we live in that newness. Because we‘re new men, we have a new view of money, too. The offering is a working out of this new view of money and of our possessions. We give because we‘re born again. We are concerned for the needs of the saints.

But Scripture teaches us further about the offering. In other passages, Scripture tells us something of the character of the collection. All of life, you know, according to the Word of God, is a sacrifice for the Christian—a sacrifice of praise. We turn to Romans 12 and after reading through the book of all that God has done, there we read, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.” In Hebrews 13:15 and 16, we read, “Through him (i.e., the Lord Jesus) then let us offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips which makes confession of his name. But to do good and to communicate, forget not: for with such sacrifices, God is well pleased.” Life for a child of God is a sacrifice of praise. Obviously, then, . . . our hearing, our praying, our worship, and our giving, too, are included in this sacrifice of praise unto God.

In Second Corinthians, chapters eight and nine, we read more about these offerings. We are told that they are a way for us to act as priests. Every time that offering plate goes down the row and you put money into it, you are acting in a special way as a priest before the Lord. The offering is a way of ministering.

What does this tell us, then, about the offering? It tells us that the offering is a sacrifice unto God. It‘s a thank offering. It’s not a sacrifice so that we will know salvation. There are those who dislike intensely an emphasis on the offering. They feel uncomfortable because to speak of the offering as related to salvation sounds like buying salvation to them. Not sol That idea is condemned in Scripture.

Instead, an offering is an expression of gratitude for what God has already done. It is a way of saying “thanks” to the Lord. It’s priestly service unto God a priestly service that we are to give as new men to the Lord Jesus Christ. Through these offerings, we are worshiping the Lord. Think about that next time as the deacons collect. Through that action we are worshiping the Lord. Only then do they become “ministerings,” or helps, to the church of Jesus Christ at large.

Now let’s also be careful that we understand this: giving in the collection plate is a testimony.

We have not done all when we have put money into the plate. Some actually give with that idea in mind! They give with the idea that that gift is really a great thing and would give them place before the Lord. Of these, we often say that they are trying to buy their way into heaven. Some even give very large gifts with that idea.

The offering is only a token of our gratitude. Through it, we are saying that all our deeds—all our life will be a confession of praise.

Through that offering we are affirming the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We know Him. He is our heavenly and great King. Before Him we bring our gifts just as the people had to come to the thrones of the kings of the Near East centuries ago bringing their gifts.

We are expressing that we are thankful that He is our King and our God, and that we know Him by grace. When the deacons come we give a sign and proof of our subjection. We are saying that all we have is not ours, but His. He‘s our King, and we‘re His servants. We’re saying we’re grateful that we know the privilege of the covenant relationship through Jesus Christ. We’re saying that He’s our Lord.

Is that the way we view the gathering of the collection? Do we prepare to give with that in mind?

How important are these words: “Let each man do according as he hath purposed in his heart: not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” (II Cor. 9:7).