«When he had greeted them, he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry» (Acts 21:19).
Paul arrived in Jerusalem and shared with his Jewish brethren the offerings the Gentile brethren had sent. They had deprived themselves of many things for a long time to send this offering that represented their loyalty as new converts to God’ s work that was organized on a worldwide level.
However, in The Acts of the Apostles, we are told that not everyone was able to appreciate this effort and the inspiration of these donations (ch. 38,p. 399). What a sad story! How difficult it must have been for Paul to see the reluctance of his Jewish brethren to accept their Gentle brethren and see them scorn their goodwill! And, at the same time, what an example for us of dedicated service by the Gentiles!
I remember that we had proposed, as a Sabbath School class, collecting an offering other than the one that was regularly collected in each class. We had the project of building a school in an African country, buying two dairy cows for the Adventist University in Rwanda, and helping with the expenses of the missionaries in a Central Asian country. Thanks to God and the children ‘s good disposition, we were able to collect enough to carry out all three projects. For several months, we raised extra money every Sabbath by fixing goals, but what would have happened if they had rejected the offering or said that they could not accept it because our country’s dress code was different from theirs?
Today, with a world church so well set up, perhaps that thought seems absurd to us. However, we often have prejudices about worship in other cultures, their ways of evangelizing, and so many other things. Of course, there are immovable principles, but just as happened in the emerging church of that time, there are also prejudices, differences, and distances among us that can be easily overcome with the help of the Holy Spirit and our willingness.
One way of doing this is by selflessly collaborating as best we can to achieve the first and final goal of the offerings: to take the gospel to every nation, tribe, and language.
Beyond an economic offering, how can you join the World Church more today? Show yourself open to different cultures and investigate the reality of the church more in different countries. The act of giving offerings will be more meaningful and mindful.
