Having made the appeal to the Corinthians to financially support the needy in Jerusalem, Paul now made arrangements for the collection and disposal of the gift. For effective accomplishment of the task, he sent three people to do it. So he wrote to explain why he was sending three of them. He didn’t want them to be taken by surprise when the trio came with his letter asking for the money. The Corinthians already knew Titus, one of Paul’s co-worker who had visited them. The other two were not named. Titus who shared the same earnestness as Paul for the Corinthians, accepted the appeal of Paul and even went further. He went to the Corinthians on his own accord.
Verse 18 refers to one of the other two unnamed people he had sent. This person was well-recognized concerning the work of spreading the gospel throughout the churches. Verse 19 tells us that he was appointed by the church to assist in the collection. He could have been appointed either by the group of churches in Macedonia, Asia or Galatia. While we may not know which of the groups had appointed him we know that like Paul, he was involved in preaching the Gospel. More importantly, Paul was not involved in his appointment.
Aware of the risk of being accused by people on the way they handled the fund, Paul made sure that the right people were involved in handling the gift so generously given. Paul was very careful regarding this for he had prized honor highly whether it was before the Lord or before the eyes of people. Paul obviously knew that there were philosophers and teachers in his days who would use their position to swindle others to gratify their own greed. We will learn later from 2 Corinthians 12:14-18 that he had to defend himself of this very same accusation that he was trying to prevent.
Verse 22 tells us that the third person of the three sent to Corinth came from among Paul’s group of co-workers. Paul called him and the other unnamed brother messengers. The word messengers in the original is the same word translated as apostles. This word simply mean one who is sent. It is here used in a broader sense. They were sent to help with this commission of handling the fund.
As for Titus, Paul re-iterated to the Corinthians that they already knew who he was. Paul’s wish for the Corinthians was that they would give generously, so that as the two unnamed brothers who travelled regularly could report favorably to other churches of their generosity. Paul urged them to prove their love for the needy of Jerusalem and to prevent him from looking foolish for making empty boast about their generosity.
We should learn to give wisely. Seek to know where and who you are giving to. Make sure that the people who are handling our giving are trustworthy. Always give to God out of love not out of guilt. We should be able to give confidently, cheerfully and willingly to honor the Lord. We should excel in the grace of giving. Let’s seek to be exemplary givers for His glory.
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