10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. 12 For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.
Thankful giving is a clear indicator of spiritual understanding and growth. When we give out of thankful hearts, because we have come to understand how much God has given to us in Christ, it gets a big ball of thanksgiving going: those to whom we give are thankful; those who like Paul see what is going on are thankful; even God, who multiplies our gifts is thankful, because He sees we understand what Grace is all about. God gives us what we need, and if we rightly understand what He has done, our response will not be to hoard it, but to pass it on. This covers all sorts of blessings: physical like sharing food and resources, emotional like giving comfort and encouragement, and spiritual like sharing the Gospel and what God has been teaching us with others. A few verses after this passage, Paul blurts out: 15 Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift! May we cry out the same to God today.
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