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In All Things Give Thanks
In All Things Give Thanks
Ephesians 5:20 instructs us to always give thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father. Turning to Colossians 3:15 we are told to let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts and be thankful. Moving to 1 Thessalonians 5:18, the instruction once again is to in everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Being thankful is not dependent on all being well with us. We must be thankful whatever our lot in life happens to be whether it is a time of happiness and prosperity or be it a time of adversity, affliction, a time in which the burden may seem too heavy to bear.
Being thankful to God for all things is without a doubt one of the great witnesses to our faith in God. We should be thankful that we live in the greatest nation on earth even with all the problems that now beset it. Thankful for spouses who love and fear God; thankful for children who love and are faithful to God; thankful for loving families and even though we have so many aches and pains, thankful for the reasonable health we enjoy.
Then there are the spiritual blessings. It is here that I think about the love of God (1 John 3:1-2); the love of Christ (Rom. 5:8) and the church (Matt. 16:13-19; Acts 2; Matt. 6:33). And then there are all the blessings of being in Christ: redemption (Rom. 3:24, Col. 1:12-14); Forgiveness (Eph. 1:7, Col. 1:14; salvation (Acts 4:12. 2 Tim. 2:10); support (Heb.4:16); comfort (2 Thess. 2:16-17); peace (Phil. 4:16-17), along with a place of refuge with hope as an anchor for our souls (Heb. 6:18-19). Our hearts should be filled with praise and thanksgiving for all the physical and spiritual blessings we enjoy not just once or twice a year or only on certain occasions. Every day of our lives, we should be on our knees with a grateful heart thanking God for his abundant blessings bestowed upon us daily.
Of all the sins committed by people today, I doubt that there is one more common than the sin of ingratitude (Luke 17:11-18). God’s people of old, Israel, had trouble remembering and being thankful to the God who had delivered them from bondage, who had provided food and water to sustain them, who had fought battles and given victory over their enemies. They often murmured, complained, grumbled, fell into idolatry and were guilty of the sin of ingratitude (1 Corinthians 10:1-13). We had better be good students of God’s word here and learn well the lesson that ingratitude, not being thankful in all things will destroy (Romans 15:4).
We are the recipients of so many blessings from our God both physical and spiritual. As we sometimes sing, “count your blessings, see what God has done; count your blessings, name them one by one; count your many blessings, see what God has done.” To God be the glory forever and ever, Amen.
Charles Hicks, Gallatin Tennessee
