The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1868-12-09
FoR TIE CENTRAL PRESBYTERIAN.
A Strange Sort of Beggars.

leyond their power, they were willing of them
selves; praying us with much entreaty that we
would reeeivethe gift andtake upon us the f. low
ship Of the miuistering to the saints. And this
they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their
own selves to the Lord and unto US by the will
of God" - Cor. viii: S-5.
This is a description of very strange
sort of beggars. They are not the poor,
begging for their daily bread. They are
not the comfortable, begging for " free
Gospel" that is, Gospel which will
cost them nothing, such a Gospel as one
of the glori6ed preachers might afford to
come down from heaven to preach
They are not preachers, begging people
who profess to have consecrated them
selves and their all to Christ, for the
means of advancing His cause. Such
beggars are common enough. But, won
derful to tell, these beggars that Paul
describes beg ham to reeeige their gifts
they beg the privilege of giving.
If we examine the passage a little
more narrowly our surprise will be in
creased.
1. These believers of Macedonia, who
prayed Paul 10ith much eRtreaty to re
ceive their gifts, were in much "aflic'
tion." They we're a suIjagated people.
Conquered by the Romans nearly two
centuries before, their country had been
subsequently the scene of the civil wars
between Caesar and Pompey, then of the
civil wars between Brutus and Cassius
and the Triumvirs, and lastly between
Augustus and Antony; not to mention
its suferings at the time that Sylla was
disputing the possession of it with Arche
laus, the General of Mithridates. In
addition to all the miseries of conquer
ed people they suffered persecution for
their religion.
2. As a natural consequence of their
political condition, they were very poor.
Their conquerors loaded them with taxes,
and host of greedy officials plundered
them. So grievOus was the burden, that
they were obliged to petition the Empe-
ror (Tiberius, for relief; and that re-
morseless tyrant was compelled to grant
it. The Apostle says their poverty was
deep, or, as the expression is in the
Greek, poverty down to the depth.
3. Notwithstanding this afliction and
poverty, their JOY abounded, JOY in the
Holy Ghost, joy in the great salvation
through Jesus Christ. This joy pro-
duced rich and free hberality, which,
in its turn, caused their poverty to seem
to abound, or to be greater than before.
t. Their hberality was not only ae-
eOrding to their ability, but beyond it.
5. 1t was spontaneous they were
"willing of themselves" "
5. Stranger still, it was liberality Of
Gentiles towards JeWs How glorious
the proof Divine power working in
their hearts, that such love had taken the
place of hatred and contempt These
Gentiles approximately beg the itinerant
Jew, Paul, to give them the privilege of
contributing to the necessities of his
poor brethren in Judea Thus would it
be now, if we felt the power of the COM
munion of saints as these Macedonian
Christians felt it. The people not the
preachers, would be the beggars.
According to the modern critical edi-
tions of the New Testament, the above
passage is somewhat different from the
text used by the translators of our Bi-
bles. The meaning, however, is essen
tally the same. The difference between
the two readings is mainly this that
while our common text makes these Ma
cedonians to pray that Paul would re-
ceive their money aud disburse it, the
amended text makes them pray that they
may be made partakers of the grace and
privilege of the communion of saints, by
contributing of their substance, Either
way, they were strange sort of beg
gars. The Lord make more such
HALF OUR VIRTUE arises from our be-