Tuesday, July 27, 2010

An Indescribable Gift

“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift.” (2 Corinthians 9:15)

Paul’s statement in the verse above came in the context of proving our commitment to God through generous giving for the Lord’s ministry. Paul was gathering an offering to take to the Jewish Christians of Jerusalem from the Gentile Christians of Macedonia and Achaia. In this section he focused on the right motivation for giving. Our giving must never be because someone pressures us into it, but purely out of thanksgiving to God for His overwhelming and indescribable generosity toward us in sending us His Son. Giving is a service that must come from and be decided in the heart of each person, and we give trusting God to provide for our need. Giving like this glorifies God and serves further to point to the validity of the gospel in changing lives. And it serves to build up and strengthen relationships.

This giving is the product of the indescribable gift which was given to us. Jesus took the penalty of our sins upon Himself when He died on the cross in our place, and through the power of His cross and His resurrection He has now given us peace with God through faith and forgiveness of sins, ushering us into eternal life as citizens of His kingdom. Our ability to comprehend such grace in light of the absolute holiness and righteousness of the God of all glory is extremely limited. About the best we can do is simply say “thank You” and then demonstrate our gratitude through our service, one of which is giving.

Lord, Help us today to give from our hearts because You did. Amen.

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