¹⁸ And we have sent with him the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches, ¹⁹ and not only that, but who was also chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift, which is administered by us to the glory of the Lord Himself and to show your ready mind,   

8:18

And we have sent with him

Paul and certain churches sent a man in this verse with another person (v. 22) and Titus to collect and deliver the funds for the Jerusalem church.

the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches,

The identity of this “brother” is not known. The Corinthian church knew him and his reputation in preaching the gospel. The choice of this individual signaled Paul’s intention to handle the offering with integrity. This unknown brother carried the confidence of many churches.

8:19

and not only that, but who was also chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift,

Paul would send with Titus another man chosen by churches to deliver the funds to the Jerusalem church. The task was a churchwide effort. This man was chosen by churches to go with Titus to Corinth then later to Jerusalem with the entire group. The idea that churches chose this man rather than Paul indicates that he was not under the apostle’s thumb.

The word “chosen” in older Greek meant to raise one’s hands to appoint. This implies some sort of voting. In the New Testament, the idea was to appoint by laying on hands.

which is administered by us to the glory of the Lord Himself

God’s glory was at stake in making sure the collection arrived in Jerusalem.

and to show your ready mind, 

The Corinthians had an attitude of readiness to give to the poor. Their “ready mind” indicates that no one coerced them to share. All genuine giving should come from a soul that wants the cause of Christ to advance.

PRINCIPLE:

All contributions to God should be for His glory and from a ready mind.

APPLICATION:

Giving to a ministry should not come from the motivation of gimmicks. All giving to the Lord is because we love Him. We do not contribute to Him to gain brownie points from Him. That is an attempt to bribe God for our welfare. We should give to God with no strings attached. We contribute because of His love for us and what He did for us.