16:1
The collection mentioned here was for the church in Jerusalem, and Paul will give greater mention to this in 2 Corinthians. The church there was going through a hard time, so Paul was organising a collection of funds for them from the Gentile churches. We see here that the Galatian churches are explicitly mentioned.
16:2
Notice the ordered way in which things are done.Of course, order has been a theme of much of Paul’s teaching in this letter, particularly with regard to the work of the Holy Spirit. When something is Spirit led it may well be a very orderly thing. So at the start of each week people were to set aside a certain sum of money. The amount is not specified, but the more someone earns, the more they should give. So when Paul arrived there would not be a “Gift Service”, but all the money would have already been collected. This is not to say that gift services are wrong, but there is nothing superior to a church or an individual giving a one-off large sum, to someone else or a church regularly giving a lesser amount.
16:3,4
Now see that all things are done properly. Obviously, financial regulation and charity laws etc did not exist in those days as they do now! However, steps were taken to ensure that everything was done in an open and proper manner. Notice also that the Corinthians themselves would choose the men that would go with the gift. Money can be a very contentious matter. It is also a matter in which a church will be often attacked. So it is essential that we do things in an open and transparent manner.
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