What does 2 Corinthians 8:11 mean?
Paul is urging the Corinthians to follow through on a previous commitment to give to meet the needs of suffering Christians in Jerusalem. He is not commanding them to do so. He wants them to give as an act of grace and love. This is typified by the actions of the Macedonian believers, who gave generously despite their own poverty (2 Corinthians 8:1–5).Now, though, Paul sounds more forceful. A desire to give, even a sincere readiness to do so, is not meaningful if it never results in actual giving. There is a wide gap between "wanting something to happen" and "being willing to make something happen." Verbally agreeing to help others is one thing, but that agreement is hollow until we take steps to make good on our promise.
With that in mind, Paul urges the Corinthians to demonstrate that their original desire to give was sincere. He asks them to demonstrate that it was a meaningful desire to demonstrate God's grace and love by following through now that the time has come to actually provide funds to the collection.