In Everything Give Thanks

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; NKJV)

To give thanks is to express gratitude. Thankfulness is gratefulness expressed to another. Thanksgiving is the expression of gratitude. Tis the season of thankgiving. Our Heavenly Father is to be the recipient of our thanksgiving.

Our GOD created us in His image (Genesis 1:26-27). We share in His likeness. He is worthy of praise because He is the Creator: “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created” (Revelation 4:11; NKJV). Thank Him!

Our GOD sustains us (Colossians 1:17). In Him we “live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28). Apart from Him there is no life or breath (Acts 17:25). He upholds us “by the word of His power” (Hebrews 1:3). Thank Him!

Our GOD has redeemed us through His dear Son (Revelation 5:9-10; Ephesians 1:3-14). Created in His image with the ability to think, reason and choose, each of us has defaced that image by falling short of His glory (Romans 3:10-18, 23). Sin defaces the image of GOD in our lives. Love compels Him to restore His image in each of us: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8)! Christ Jesus has “redeemed us to God” by His blood (Revelation 5:9). Thank Him!

Indeed, “Every good and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17; NKJV). It is all about Him, it is all from Him, it is all returning to Him! Thank Him!

Tis the season, therefore, let us thank Him!

Jason

Jehovah Gives

“A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven” (John 3:27; NKJV).

The GOD Who Gives. Our GOD is giving. Need wisdom? Ask of Him “who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5; NKJV). GOD “gives us richly all things to enjoy,” not just wisdom (1 Timothy 6:17). We can pray in faith that our Father in Heaven will give “us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11; NKJV). We rejoice that through “the LORD’S mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22; NKJV).

GOD Gave His Son. Is there a blessing our good Father will withhold from us? Look to Calvary and ask the question of Romans 8:32: “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Our Father “gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16; NKJV).

The Son Gave His Life. Jesus “gave Himself for our sins” (Galatians 1:4; NKJV). He “gave Himself” for the church, the people of GOD (Ephesians 5:25; NKJV). In truth Jesus of Nazareth is “the good shepherd” who gave His life for the sheep (John 10:11).

The Spirit Gave the Word. We know that GOD is giving thanks to the work of the Holy Spirit. The things of GOD have been revealed to us “through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:10; NKJV).

GOD’S Will for Us. Our Father is giving. Our Savior is giving. The Holy Spirit is giving. GOD longs to transform each of us into givers! He would have us work that we “may have something to give him who has need” (Ephesians 4:28; NKJV). To have the heart of GOD is to love “in deed and in truth,” to give in order to meet needs (1 John 3:17-18).

The Heart of Christianity. Giving is the heart of Christianity. The Father gave His Son. The Son gave His life. The Spirit gave the word. The key to giving: “And not only as we had hope, but they first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God” (2 Corinthians 8:5; NKJV). Give yourself to GOD and allow Him to mold you into His image!

Jason

Hidden in My Heart

"These all wait for You, That You may give them their food in due season. What You give them they gather in; You open Your hand, they are filled with good." (Psalm 104:27-18; NKJV)

Sunday Morning Starters

Look for the good.

Assume the best.

Help the lowliest.

Hope for the noblest.

Aspire to worthiest.

Think on the purest.

Work on the hardest.

Jason Moore

Glorifying God and Thanksgiving

Perhaps our chief end is to glorify God. King Herod was struck by an angel of God “because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died” (Acts 12:23). To glorify God is to honor Him, to acknowledge His attributes, and to praise Him for His perfections. It is to recognize His glory and extol Him for it. It is God’s will that we glorify Him in all things (1 Peter 4:11).

“For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:15; NKJV). How am I doing? How are we doing as a local church?

Jason Cicero

Christ Gave Thanks

“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6-7; NKJV).

Thanksgiving is the expression of gratitude. Thankful people express gratefulness to GOD, the source of all blessings. Jesus gave thanks.

To GOD the Father for the revelation of His will. “At that time Jesus answered and said, ‘I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes’” (Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21; NKJV). Jesus expressed gratitude for the revelation of GOD’S will.

To GOD the Father for food. “And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks…” (John 6:11). When Jesus fed the 5,000 He gave thanks for the food. He also expressed thanks for the food that fed the 4,000 (Matthew 15:36).

To GOD the Father for hearing His prayer. “Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, ‘Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me…’” (John 11:41-42; NKJV). Jesus expressed thanks to the Father for listening to His prayers.

To GOD the Father for the unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine. “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, ‘Take eat; this is My body.’ Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they drank from it” (Mark 14:22-23; NKJV). Jesus gave thanks for the emblems that symbolized the sacrifice He was about to make for all mankind.

Jesus came to do GOD’S will (John 8:28-29). It is GOD’S will for His people to give thanks (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). To be this man’s disciple one must deny self, take up His cross, and follow Him (Luke 9:23). Follow His lead. Give thanks for the revealed word of God (Ephesians 3:3-5). Give thanks for the food you eat (Romans 14:6). Give thanks for the hearing of prayer (1 John 5:14-15). Give thanks for the body and blood of Jesus (1 Corinthians 11:26). And above all else, give thanks to the Father for “His indescribable gift,” the one who will deliver us: “I thank God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25).

Jason

Thankful in Deed and in Truth

"My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth" (1 John 3:17; NKJV).

We should be thankful for God's blessings, not only in word but also in deed. Being thankful - truly thankful - is more than a matter of words. It should be apparent by the way we live our lives that we appreciate God's goodness and His grace.

Are we thankful for our families? Let's show it by treating them more lovingly.

Are we thankful for our material possessions? Let's be good stewards of them by using them in the Lord's work.

Are we thankful for our friends? Let's demonstrate it by being a better friend to them.

Are we thankful for the gospel? Let's prove it by sharing it with everybody around us.

Perhaps it is not going too far to say that every sin we commit is a failure of gratitude in some way or another. If we could properly keep in mind the blessings of our Creator and adequately be thankful for them, we would never even think about violating His loving will. Let us be thankful!

Jason Cicero