It is a great and very precious thing, beloved, in the Lord's sight, when Christ's whole people engage together in the same duties, and all ranks and degrees of either sex co-operate with the same intent: when one purpose animates all alike of declining from evil and doing good; when God is glorified in the works of His slaves, and the Author of all godliness is blessed in unstinted giving of thanks. The hungry are nourished, the naked are clothed, the sick are visited, and men seek not their own but "that which is another's," so long as in relieving the misery of others each one makes the most of his own means; and it is easy to find "a cheerful giver ," where a man's performances are only limited by the extent of his power. By this grace of God, "which works all in all," the benefit and the deserts of the faithful are both enjoyed in common.
Leo I, Sermon 88
