And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.
Paul's words express a willing, generous love that gladly gives both means and self for the good of others, even when greater love is met with less love in return. To spend and be spent is to pour out strength, life and God-given powers in sustained, earnest and cheerful labor, hardship and self-denial, without sparing self or seeking ease, even to being worn out in service. That loving service is still given freely when it brings little love or gratitude in return, and such self-denial brings blessing because it reflects Christ's love. It is a life patterned after Christ, who laid aside His glory to live and suffer for others, calling believers to give heart, energy, voice and affection wholly to saving sinners. This spending of self is not sullen drudgery but cheerful work together with God, joined with gratitude and joy both in the worker's heart and in heaven over souls won.
Paul's Self-Sacrificing Love
The verse expresses Paul's willing and generous love for the believers in Corinth, for he was gladly ready to spend his strength and his resources and to be spent himself for their good. His more abundant love for them was met with less love in return, yet he continued to give himself fully for them. His working with his hands and his refusal to burden them were the practical expression of that self-sacrificing care. That willingness meant continuing in ministry despite inadequate financial support and, when necessary, doing manual labor to support the work rather than pursuing personal security, giving both resources and strength for the people served.
His manual labor did not hinder his ministry but gave him opportunities to witness, to help others, and to teach his fellow workers. In this way his labor showed that ordinary work can honor God and that practical skill is a gift to be used wisely. The apostles likewise were willing to give themselves fully for Christ's people, enduring hardship and spending their lives in service. Their efforts were driven by responsibility and love for Christ, and not by regard for their own lives.
Spent in Saving Souls
To spend and be spent is to gladly give both one's means and oneself — strength, life, and God-given powers — in sustained, earnest, cheerful labor, care, hardship, mental toil, and privation, without sparing self or seeking ease, even to being worn out and losing life in service, offered gladly where strength is granted. Such willingness flows from love for Christ and desire to save souls, spending all entrusted powers wholeheartedly to win others. Loving service of this kind is given even when it is not returned with love, as workers gladly spend time, strength, life, and resources for the good and salvation of others though they receive little love in return. Their self-denial brings blessing and reflects Christ's love, and the joy of seeing people saved becomes their reward.
The verse means consecration to God as a missionary, placing oneself on the altar of service, moving forward step by step and letting God use one as His helping hand because there is a world to labor for. The love of Christ touches and transforms a person so that for Christ's sake he is willing to do and dare. A minister must have this willingness in order to bring souls to Christ, girding on the whole armor and enduring hardness as a good soldier of the cross with perseverance, courage, and energy. Instead he must not become faint-hearted, distrustful, and discouraged, dropping the work, desiring ease, and letting a possible increase go down so the golden opportunity for ingathering passes. Without willingness to sacrifice ease to save souls one should give up the profession of minister and choose some other calling.
Humble workers, including the uneducated and children, moved by the Holy Spirit, may leave ordinary work to proclaim the final message of mercy, spending themselves in the Master's service to bring gospel light to people in darkness. Laboring sincerely in trust in God, they bear fruit through the Spirit's help to the joy and reward of seeing souls brought to Christ. Fellow believers should encourage, respect, pray for, and bid Godspeed to such simple, humble workers who trust God, rather than hindering, disparaging, or discouraging them. The verse calls for a life patterned after Christ, who placed Himself on the altar of service as a living sacrifice, laid aside His glory to live for others as the poorest, suffering hunger and having nowhere to lay His head. Believers are to ask God for a heart wholly given to the Redeemer's service in saving sinners, spending energy, voice, faith, and affection in earnest, untiring labor and supplication, resisting selfish inclinations and following His example.
It means spending all powers and being spent in doing God's will from the heart, watching and praying while serving. Every entrusted capability is to be carried as a sacred treasure to impart to others the knowledge and grace received, which answers the purpose for which God gave them, because life is not one's own but Christ's and all is His, so self is to be sunk in Christ and all glory given to God. Every true, self-sacrificing worker loves God supremely and his neighbor as himself, works with the constant realization that he is a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men, makes God's will his will, reveals in life the transforming power of Christ's grace, and takes Christ's example as guide in all circumstances. He shows love by earnest, thoughtful efforts to help where help is needed, with the certainty that when Christ comes to gather His jewels he will find his life again.
Winning souls in this spirit requires searching the heart and pleading for the power of the Holy Spirit to break Satan's snare upon a brother, speaking kindly and disinterestedly with a heart broken by the love of Christ, which saves a soul from death and hides a multitude of sins, while seeking the Lord while He may be found. Those sent as lambs among wolves to meet opposition must not be spiritless and feeble but exercise every proper means consistent with their commission and use up their strength to win souls. Love is kept up by still clinging to, praying for, and treating tenderly those who are being plainly reproved. Giving self fully to win souls in obedience to the great commission means going forth to warn people in the highways and byways, moved by the Spirit under the ministration of angels, laboring in humility and simplicity without trust in personal gifts but with constant trust in God. Sharing the Saviour's joy as persevering prayer brings souls to the cross, workers harmonize with unseen heavenly instrumentalities as workers together with God while sowing gospel seed in rough places, with Christ present, angels cooperating, and the Spirit moving hearts so God works miracles in conversion. This gathers people into fellowship, builds meeting houses and establishes schools as trees of the Lord's planting bearing fruit equal to the apostles, with reward in this life and a glorious reward in the future life.
This spending of self is no sullen drudgery but work done cheerfully through Christ as a laborer together with God, rejoicing in the God of salvation, with enough to do for all who desire to work for Jesus. God's Spirit braces the worker, the Lord is by his side to nerve his spirit for all that is done, and the Saviour is acquainted with every chapter of his experience. Workers who willingly give all and exhaust themselves to save perishing souls labor as those who must give an account, baptized with a measure of the apostolic spirit, true and firm in faith, refusing to sell their Lord and acknowledging divine supremacy. They give fully of means and strength to win many souls to Christ and truth, which hastens the day of Christ's coming, and God prepares the way before them, greatly blesses them to represent His goodness, love, and mercy, with the righteousness of Christ going before them and the glory of God guarding behind them as their rereward.
Their self-sacrificing labor is joined with joy, gratitude, and thanksgiving, and God's grace is revealed in souls won to Christ. There is joy in the heavenly courts and pure, holy joy fills the workers' hearts. The consciousness of God's love purifies and ennobles their experience, enriching and strengthening them, and the joy of seeing people saved is their reward.
Paul's words express a willing, generous love that gladly gives both means and self for the good of others, even when greater love is met with less love in return. To spend and be spent is to pour out strength, life and God-given powers in sustained, earnest and cheerful labor, hardship and self-denial, without sparing self or seeking ease, even to being worn out in service. That loving service is still given freely when it brings little love or gratitude in return, and such self-denial brings blessing because it reflects Christ's love. It is a life patterned after Christ, who laid aside His glory to live and suffer for others, calling believers to give heart, energy, voice and affection wholly to saving sinners. This spending of self is not sullen drudgery but cheerful work together with God, joined with gratitude and joy both in the worker's heart and in heaven over souls won.
Paul's Self-Sacrificing Love
The verse expresses Paul's willing and generous love for the believers in Corinth, for he was gladly ready to spend his strength and his resources and to be spent himself for their good. His more abundant love for them was met with less love in return, yet he continued to give himself fully for them. His working with his hands and his refusal to burden them were the practical expression of that self-sacrificing care. That willingness meant continuing in ministry despite inadequate financial support and, when necessary, doing manual labor to support the work rather than pursuing personal security, giving both resources and strength for the people served.
His manual labor did not hinder his ministry but gave him opportunities to witness, to help others, and to teach his fellow workers. In this way his labor showed that ordinary work can honor God and that practical skill is a gift to be used wisely. The apostles likewise were willing to give themselves fully for Christ's people, enduring hardship and spending their lives in service. Their efforts were driven by responsibility and love for Christ, and not by regard for their own lives.
Spent in Saving Souls
To spend and be spent is to gladly give both one's means and oneself — strength, life, and God-given powers — in sustained, earnest, cheerful labor, care, hardship, mental toil, and privation, without sparing self or seeking ease, even to being worn out and losing life in service, offered gladly where strength is granted. Such willingness flows from love for Christ and desire to save souls, spending all entrusted powers wholeheartedly to win others. Loving service of this kind is given even when it is not returned with love, as workers gladly spend time, strength, life, and resources for the good and salvation of others though they receive little love in return. Their self-denial brings blessing and reflects Christ's love, and the joy of seeing people saved becomes their reward.
The verse means consecration to God as a missionary, placing oneself on the altar of service, moving forward step by step and letting God use one as His helping hand because there is a world to labor for. The love of Christ touches and transforms a person so that for Christ's sake he is willing to do and dare. A minister must have this willingness in order to bring souls to Christ, girding on the whole armor and enduring hardness as a good soldier of the cross with perseverance, courage, and energy. Instead he must not become faint-hearted, distrustful, and discouraged, dropping the work, desiring ease, and letting a possible increase go down so the golden opportunity for ingathering passes. Without willingness to sacrifice ease to save souls one should give up the profession of minister and choose some other calling.
Humble workers, including the uneducated and children, moved by the Holy Spirit, may leave ordinary work to proclaim the final message of mercy, spending themselves in the Master's service to bring gospel light to people in darkness. Laboring sincerely in trust in God, they bear fruit through the Spirit's help to the joy and reward of seeing souls brought to Christ. Fellow believers should encourage, respect, pray for, and bid Godspeed to such simple, humble workers who trust God, rather than hindering, disparaging, or discouraging them. The verse calls for a life patterned after Christ, who placed Himself on the altar of service as a living sacrifice, laid aside His glory to live for others as the poorest, suffering hunger and having nowhere to lay His head. Believers are to ask God for a heart wholly given to the Redeemer's service in saving sinners, spending energy, voice, faith, and affection in earnest, untiring labor and supplication, resisting selfish inclinations and following His example.
It means spending all powers and being spent in doing God's will from the heart, watching and praying while serving. Every entrusted capability is to be carried as a sacred treasure to impart to others the knowledge and grace received, which answers the purpose for which God gave them, because life is not one's own but Christ's and all is His, so self is to be sunk in Christ and all glory given to God. Every true, self-sacrificing worker loves God supremely and his neighbor as himself, works with the constant realization that he is a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men, makes God's will his will, reveals in life the transforming power of Christ's grace, and takes Christ's example as guide in all circumstances. He shows love by earnest, thoughtful efforts to help where help is needed, with the certainty that when Christ comes to gather His jewels he will find his life again.
Winning souls in this spirit requires searching the heart and pleading for the power of the Holy Spirit to break Satan's snare upon a brother, speaking kindly and disinterestedly with a heart broken by the love of Christ, which saves a soul from death and hides a multitude of sins, while seeking the Lord while He may be found. Those sent as lambs among wolves to meet opposition must not be spiritless and feeble but exercise every proper means consistent with their commission and use up their strength to win souls. Love is kept up by still clinging to, praying for, and treating tenderly those who are being plainly reproved. Giving self fully to win souls in obedience to the great commission means going forth to warn people in the highways and byways, moved by the Spirit under the ministration of angels, laboring in humility and simplicity without trust in personal gifts but with constant trust in God. Sharing the Saviour's joy as persevering prayer brings souls to the cross, workers harmonize with unseen heavenly instrumentalities as workers together with God while sowing gospel seed in rough places, with Christ present, angels cooperating, and the Spirit moving hearts so God works miracles in conversion. This gathers people into fellowship, builds meeting houses and establishes schools as trees of the Lord's planting bearing fruit equal to the apostles, with reward in this life and a glorious reward in the future life.
This spending of self is no sullen drudgery but work done cheerfully through Christ as a laborer together with God, rejoicing in the God of salvation, with enough to do for all who desire to work for Jesus. God's Spirit braces the worker, the Lord is by his side to nerve his spirit for all that is done, and the Saviour is acquainted with every chapter of his experience. Workers who willingly give all and exhaust themselves to save perishing souls labor as those who must give an account, baptized with a measure of the apostolic spirit, true and firm in faith, refusing to sell their Lord and acknowledging divine supremacy. They give fully of means and strength to win many souls to Christ and truth, which hastens the day of Christ's coming, and God prepares the way before them, greatly blesses them to represent His goodness, love, and mercy, with the righteousness of Christ going before them and the glory of God guarding behind them as their rereward.
Their self-sacrificing labor is joined with joy, gratitude, and thanksgiving, and God's grace is revealed in souls won to Christ. There is joy in the heavenly courts and pure, holy joy fills the workers' hearts. The consciousness of God's love purifies and ennobles their experience, enriching and strengthening them, and the joy of seeing people saved is their reward.