Thanksgiving for What?

Introduction: The Duty and Definition of Thanksgiving in Private Prayer

0:03 Now, we are presently thinking together concerning the broad subject of biblical prayer as we engage in prayer, particularly in our closets. We are not thinking primarily of prayer in our public prayer meetings, for which the Word of God gives some very helpful directions in passages such as 1 Timothy chapter 2, but we are thinking more particularly of the kind of praying in which we are engaged when we are alone with God, when according to the words of the Lord Jesus, we have entered our closet, that is, the place where secretly we shut the door and are shut in with our God. Thus far, we have established that in those times of prayer, we ought self-consciously to seek to govern our prayers by the principles and precepts, the scriptures. Secondly, we have established that there are various kinds of prayer, and it is our responsibility to seek to engage in all of those kinds of prayer. And now, presently, we are trying to come up with some working definitions or descriptions of these various facets of prayer, which we have illustrated in terms of the pie. All of the slices put together make the pie, that is, biblical prayer.

1:27 And then we have looked at the various facets of prayer. And I have suggested that it is helpful in organizing or collating, gathering these biblical concepts together under some headings to think in terms of the hand. The hand full, bringing something to God. The hand defiled, needing cleansing from God.

1:48 And then the hand empty, seeking blessings from God. And under the concept of coming with hands full, we have established, first of all, the privilege and duty of worship and adoration. And now we are presently working on the second aspect of hands full, namely, the privilege and duty of thanksgiving. Last week, we established the duty of thanksgiving from, oh, six or seven key passages in the book of the Psalms, and then six key passages in the New Testament.

2:23 In everything, give thanks. By him, therefore, let us offer to God the salvation. By him, therefore, let us offer the salvation. The sacrifice of praise continually.

2:32 And we have seen that just as adoration and worship is the lifting up of our spirits to God for what he is, thanksgiving is primarily the lifting up of our hearts and spirits to God for the gifts he has graciously and freely granted.

Functions of Thanksgiving: Glorifying God, Strengthening Faith, Securing Submission, Preventing Indifference

2:54 Now, having established the duty of thanksgiving, a definition of thanksgiving, we closed our discussion or in the midst of we were in the midst of discussing the primary functions of thanksgiving and we established that in thanksgiving God is glorified, whoso offereth praise glorifieth me and several other things that we didn't mention that I'll just mention briefly in reviewing as we pass into new material our faith is strengthened when we specifically thank God for specific mercies our faith is strengthened to believe God for similar mercies in times of similar need and then thirdly a spirit of submission is secured when we thank God even for our trials it is a wonderful way of having the heart brought to the place of sweet submission to God for those trials and for those testings and the fourth function of thanksgiving is this that it keeps us from becoming indifferent to God's gifts one of the most difficult things in the Christian life is the maintenance of a spirit of gratitude for gifts continually conferred it's not difficult to have gratitude for a gift that comes as the exception to our case for instance

4:20 if you and I lived in some of the cultures of the world today where people by the thousands even by the millions go to bed hungry every night I mean with conscious hunger pangs every night who have maybe a half a bowl of rice as their diet for the entire day they live constantly haunted with annoying pangs of hunger now if to a person in that setting someone were to come with a fully balanced meal and he was able to partake of it for three times in one day can you imagine how much he would overflow with gratitude to God at the end of the day for having had three square meals now the question is this is the gift of three square meals a day any less a gift of God when God gives it day in day out week in and week out as when he would give it as the rare exception to someone in that other cultural situation now the answer is obvious of course not for every good and every perfect gift cometh down from above from the father of lights with whom is no variableness nor shadow cast by turning but what's the problem the problem is it would be relatively easy to thank God for the three squares that were the radical exception to the rule of our experience but if you're

5:48 honest you'll acknowledge there are many times when after you've bowed your head over your cup of coffee and your eggs or whatever you have for breakfast when you've bowed your head to give thanks for your lunch or your supper you know and I know that there really has been no deep spirit of gratitude to God you have simply gone through your evangelical ritual of bowing your head but you know in your own conscience even now smites you as I utter the words there was no real sense of deep gratitude to God why because the blessing had become commonplace now here's the function of thanksgiving that when we are brought to that place of consciously acknowledging that everything that we have comes from him it will help us or greatly assist us in the maintenance of a true spirit of gratitude to God so that we will not take lightly nor despise the gifts particularly the gifts that he bestows upon us with any degree of consistency and it seems that the Christians who maintain that sense of of unworthiness the fact that they are the worthy recipients of God's mercies the Christians who maintain that are so few and if that spirit is in our hearts it's unthinkable that we'd grumble when we wake up and see a little bit of rain we'd thank

7:15 God we aren't living in a situation where they've been blasted with drought you see we'd thank God that we have raincoats to put over us and umbrellas and we can come to heated buildings we'd let everything that the world grumbles about simply be the occasion of more praise but so often we're infected with that spirit of the world which is the spirit of ingratitude they glorified him not as God neither were they thankful well these are some of the practical functions of thanksgiving to God and we closed our session while we were discussing what are some of the specific things that we ought to give thanks to God for or better English for which we ought to give thanks to God someone suggested we should take the hundred and third song and let our praise to God in its specifics follow the channels cut for us by a passage such as Psalm 103 bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me bless his holy name forget not all his benefits who forgive all thy iniquities and specifically to thank God for the forgiveness of sins who healeth all thy diseases specifically to thank God for the restoration of health that has come to us time after time who redeemeth thy life from destruction to thank him for his preserving grace

Specific Objects of Thanksgiving from Scripture: Salvation, Daily Provisions, Victory Over Death

8:43 in all of the experience of life and that's where our time ran out and I gave you a little homework assignment I said will you please try to find some scripture passages which indicate what we are to give God thanks for and you remember Solomon closed our time or Mr. Clark bailed Solomon out Solomon said you ought to thank God for salvation and I asked him for chapter and verse and Mr. Clark gave him 2nd Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 9 or 9 8 thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift no it's not 9 it's 2nd Corinthians 9 14 9 15 thank you Solomon thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift alright now if any of you have done your homework or if you haven't maybe even do a little quick homework right here what are some of the other things for which there is precedent in the word of God as being the specific object of thanksgiving to God even our thanks must be regulated by the word well how in what ways along what channels does the word of God direct the thanks and the praise of the child of God alright some other things we've had

10:05 Psalm 103 thanking God for the gift of his son what else yes there's a reference to what alright the whole concept in Matthew 6 that your heavenly father knows that you have need of food and raiment and the inference clearly being that when these things are given just as the father closed the grass of the field he cares for the sparrows of the air so he cares for us and though that isn't an explicit reference to thanks certainly the whole context would indicate we ought to give thanks to God for our food for our raiment alright alright in the context there it's the victory over death and the apostle says thanks be to God who gives us that victory do you think often of death well maybe we ought to think a little bit more about it because the only thing certain about the whole bunch of us here is that we're not going to be here forever the only certain thing that you can predict of that little child who cries his first cry in the delivery room is that he's going to die you can't predict whether he'll be wealthy intelligent ignorant a pauper

11:34 you can't predict a thing but one thing you can predict with absolute certainty barring those that are alive at the return of the Lord is that that child is going to die and as we face the grim awesome reality of death we ought continually to give thanks to God that we have the victory over death in the grave in the Lord Jesus alright there's someone else yes John God's loving kindness in the morning and his faithfulness in Psalm ninety-two alright Psalm ninety-two we are to show forth his loving kindness in the morning and his faithfulness every night as general attributes of God but now what specific things do his loving kindness and faithfulness bring in their train for which we ought to praise him Dennis alright will you give us a couple of examples alright won't you and you love for all the saints that God will not cease to give thanks for you... happens試 year jadi yes, yes, yes bırakia tiara All right, here the apostle is giving specific thanks for a specific body of people based upon specific reports of specific spiritual growth.

Thanksgiving for Spiritual Growth in Others and God's Electing Grace

12:54 You see, there's nothing vague about this. Here's a group of people to whom a letter comes. And he says, I give thanks to God for you, hearing of your faith and of your love. Another passage in the same ballpark, Dennis?

13:06 You have another one?

13:09 All right, Philippians chapter 1.

13:12 Let's look at it together. You want to read it for us, please? All right, he says, I thank God upon every remembrance of you. Every time in the midst of his labors and prayers, the Philippian church came before his mind, it triggered praise.

13:38 He said, I can't think of you without praising God. And then he goes on to show or to give us some of the specific things which caused him to render thanks to God. This concept of their fellowship in the gospel, which is a broad concept. Their oneness in Christ.

13:55 Their oneness in desire. To see the gospel spread. Their oneness of desire to manifest the gospel. All of that is bound up in his thanks to God for their fellowship in the gospel.

14:05 All right, some other things. Yes, Greg?

14:12 All right, where do you find that?

14:16 All right, 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, verses 12 and 13. Now, verse, really, 13 and following.

14:29 Yeah, verse 13, okay? We are bound to give thanks. That's a strong word, isn't it? It's a word.

14:36 It's a word of indebtedness, a word of obligation, a word of constraint. We are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, for that God chose you from the beginning unto salvation. Now, isn't that interesting? The very thing that some people curse is a doctrine of demons.

14:55 The apostle Paul finds the occasion of praise to God. He says, we're bound to give thanks to God that he chose you from the beginning to salvation. He magnifies God for his electing grace manifested, how? In the effectual calling of the people, in sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto he called you through our gospel.

15:21 So that when we even think of our fellow believers, we should look beyond even the present manifestations of their grace or God's grace to them and trace it to its source. Give thanks to God. Give thanks to God that they were chosen of God. All right?

Thanksgiving for Civil Authorities and a Critique of Christian Revolution

15:36 Some others. Yes? On the next page, 2 Timothy 2. 2 Timothy 2.

15:42 Give thanks to all men and for kings that are in high places that we might be tranquil and quiet in life and all godliness and grace. All right. 2 Timothy chapter 2. I'm sorry, 1 Timothy chapter 2.

15:56 I will that prayers, intercessions, thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all that are in high places. Did you imagine anyone developing an unchristian attitude to civil authorities when he's giving thanks to God for those authorities?

16:13 And I'm just amazed as we've been, all of us who have any part in this forthcoming missionary conference in Carlisle, as we've been wrestling afresh with trying to grapple with biblical principles. I was doing some reading of a recent statement by some people who gathered together to consider the interest of world missions. And one of the statements they made was, that responsible missionary activity will explicitly cry out against all of the ills in society in the name of Christ and demand that they be changed. Well, I went again to the scriptures and said, something's not right here.

16:49 And I'm amazed. The apostle Paul nowhere cries out against the abuses of totalitarian rule. He says, I am the king.

16:59 Isn't that what he says? Jesus said, give to Caesar what Caesar demands in his role as Caesar. He nowhere said, and you Christians must actively campaign and work and if necessary, picket and scheme and even carry out revolutions to establish a democratic society. You won't find that in the word of God.

17:19 And I read again the book of Philemon. If ever the apostle was going to attack the institution of slavery, that was the time to do it. Because here a runaway slave has been converted under his ministry. But what does he do?

17:31 He sends him back to his master. And he even says, if he's got me back, I'll have debts, I'll pay them. And then in the most masterful way, he appeals on Christian principles for a treatment of this slave that would in essence dry up the roots of slavery. But he nowhere comes with the axe to chop down the institution.

17:52 You just can't support that mentality from the scriptures. And I'm convinced when we read passages like this. You see, how can you have an attitude of bitter, violent, revolutionary spirit if you're giving God thanks for kings and those in authority over you? How can you do it?

18:10 I think it's psychologically impossible, let alone spiritually impossible. So we're to give thanks for kings and rulers and those that are over us. We're to pray that God will move upon their hearts and govern their decisions and their perspectives to the ends that the gospel and godliness might advance. Those are the things we are warranted to pray.

18:31 But there's not a shred of evidence to my present understanding of the scriptures that warrants the Christian to say in the name of Christ, I will become a revolutionary, a Christian revolutionist. I just can't see it there. Now, when you begin to work that into our own political history as a nation, that has some pretty serious implications. And you know, there were many godly people who could not take the stance of joining in the revolution.

18:57 They were loyalists on Christian principles. And I think some of us have got to maybe rethink some of our blind patriotism. That's all I'll say. Because I don't want to dabble in politics.

19:07 But I do want to bring the scriptures to bear upon our political perspectives because we must do this. Well, so much for that little digression from 1 Timothy 2. All right, other things that show us what we're to give God thanks for. Jean, and then up here, Edie.

Thanksgiving for God's Attributes and Grace in Imperfect Congregations

19:24 Now, where do you find that? All right, good. Go get some Old Testament passages. 1 Chronicles chapter 29.

19:37 1 Chronicles chapter 29. And what are the verses, Jean? 10 to 13. Wherefore David blessed the Lord before all the assembly, and David said, Blessed be thou, O Lord, the God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever.

19:56 Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, the majesty. For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is thine. Thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head over all. Both riches and honor come of thee, and thou rulest over all.

20:10 In thy hand is power and might, and in thy hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all. Now therefore, our God, we thank thee and praise thy glorious name. This is more in what ballpark, Jean? Yeah, but it's even more in the realm of thanksgiving.

20:29 It's in the realm of worship and adoration, isn't it? What God is in himself. Thine is the kingdom, the power. So this is a good passage.

20:38 One that we shouldn't have overlooked when we were in the area of worship and adoration. More so than even explicit thanksgiving for specific gifts received. All right? Edie?

20:49 God thanks for the gifts God conferred upon a very, very needy and less than ideal congregation. Now, when's the last time you thanked God for the measure of grace he's given to a congregation that you know is very deficient in grace? Now, here the apostle has some very, very tacky issues to deal with at Corinth, and I can't believe he just sat down without any notes to do this. When he says as he goes through, now concerning this problem, now concerning this, I imagine he did what I will do sometimes when I have a thorny issue to deal with in a letter. I write a little outline and I keep it before me. Or if someone has raised a number of questions, I have their letter in front of me and I underline the issues to which I must respond. Well, here the apostle has got all these broad issues to deal with.

21:50 The divisions at Corinth, believer going to law with believer, immorality, the problem of singleness, the problem of false teaching in chapter 15, the problem of profaning the Lord's table. Man, if ever, if ever, the thought of a given church would conjure up nothing but groans and heaviness and complaint, it would be thinking of the Corinthian bunch. And yet he starts out by saying, I thank my God concerning you. Now, notice he doesn't say, I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.

22:26 I doubt he could say that when it came to the Corinthians. He could have the Philippians. Now, but with the Corinthians, he could say, I still thank my God concerning you. Now, he doesn't tell us proportionately how much there was thanks upon every remembrance and how much there was groaning and tears.

22:43 But he says, I thank God. And what does he thank God for? All of the evidences of God's gifts and grace conferred upon an assembly, shot through with problems. Now, there's a great lesson here.

22:56 Those of us who are parents, there are times when in seeking to rear our children, it seems that the problems just accumulate and become so great that we forget to thank God for the evidences of his working in their lives, the areas where we have made some progress. You see? And there's a principle here that can carry over into so many areas that we are to look for those things which evidence the working of God, even in a context where there is much contrary evidence and much positive evidence of the working of Satan and of the flesh. All right?

Thanksgiving for Answered Prayer and God's Open Ear

23:34 What else are we to give God thanks for, please? Yes, this makes an interesting study. I went through it this week to try to find every instance in the Gospels where it mentions that Jesus Christ gave thanks to the Father. And this is one of them.

23:55 Here in John chapter 11, I thank thee that thou heardest me. Jesus Christ the Son, who takes the position of voluntary weakness, of voluntary dependence, received the strength and wisdom to do the will of God the same way you and I have received it. A loving, trustful submission to the Father in seeking supplies of grace from the Father in prayer. And he thanks God that the Father's ear is open to his cry.

24:29 It's a tragic thing when we lose the amazement of the reality of God's open ear. I mean, when you think of it, Almighty God, maker of heaven and earth, sustainer of the universe, it's as though he suspends every other activity when he hears the slightest whimper of his most infant child. But he doesn't, like us, need to do that. I mean, but picture it that way.

24:57 Here's a mother trying to get a pie and it's got ten more minutes in the thing and maybe she's sitting down and this is fresh in my mind because this is what I'm reproducing my wife's activity over the past couple of days. She's trying to get a dress together for one of her daughters, for a Christian, for a Christmas program at school, and she's anticipating three missionaries coming in the home and then trying to put up with a preacher that shares his problems with her and all the rest. In the midst of all of this, some of you mothers can appreciate this. Now, suppose we had a baby.

25:26 Now, we don't, and there are no plans to have a baby, but suppose we had a baby. This is not a subtle way of announcing that we're going to have a baby, but just for the sake of illustration now. In the midst of all of that, there's a whimper in the bedroom where the baby is put away in its bassinet. What happens?

25:42 Well, there's a sense in which at that point the mother doesn't care about pumpkin pie, doesn't care about dress, doesn't care about missionaries. There's one thing that matters. She must respond to the whimpering of her offspring. See?

25:55 Now, the wonder is, God can go right on with his pumpkin pie and his dress and his missionaries and give himself completely to the whimperings of his children. We should never cease to be amazed at that. Amazed that the ear of the Lord is open to the cry of the righteous. And think how many are crying into those ears right now.

26:16 Millions across the face of the earth. And God never gets confused. He never has to say, uh-oh, I'm giving answer A to child B. No, no.

26:25 It's all just as though there was one child and one infinite God giving all that he is as God to that child. That's an amazing thing. And we ought to give God thanks for the reality of that, even as Jesus did. All right?

Thanksgiving for the Spread of Faith and Victory Over Indwelling Sin

26:39 What else do we give thanks for? Yes? All right, Romans chapter 1 and verse 8. Read it for us, if you will, please.

26:47 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ that your faith is proclaimed throughout the whole world. All right. He gives thanks to God for the faith of the believers at Rome. And also, it seems, doesn't it, that he's giving God thanks that the knowledge of that faith is spread.

27:04 That this thing has not been able to be contained. That people are becoming aware that there are some folk there at Rome who have come to the faith of Christ. All right? Some other things.

27:17 Yes, Jeff? All right, so in the context, we see the Apostle Paul giving thanks to God that the final story has not been told about this whole issue of this constant conflict that goes on in the heart and life of every true believer. The conflict between what I am as a new man, a new woman in Christ, and the remains of what I was when I was in a state, in a state of nature. Indwelling sin, remaining corruption, and the terrible conflict. But thanks be to God who gives the victory. And we should consciously thank God.

28:13 What do you do when you're struggling and wrestling and when you're most painfully aware of the presence of indwelling sin? That's the time to thank God that this isn't going to go on forever. Say, Lord, thank you. A day is coming when this struggle will be gone.

28:29 A day will never come when I'll not praise you for who you are. A day will never come when I will not worship you and magnify you for all that you are to me in Christ. But a day is coming when I'll grow no more. A day is coming when I'll no more carry about with me this awful weight of indwelling sin.

28:49 It's going to be gone. And we're to thank God for it. All right? Yes?

Thanksgiving for Submission to the Word and Gifts in Others

29:02 A little louder if you will, please. 1 Thessalonians chapter 2 and verse 13. Read it for us if you will. All right, so what is he giving thanks for here?

29:27 All right, he's giving thanks for a people who have submitted to the Word. Now, do you give God thanks for that? As you come today, have you given God thanks? Say, Lord, thank you.

29:37 There's a place where people receive the Word of God not as the Word of men, but as it is in truth, the Word of God. Lord, this is your work. Left to ourselves, we'd sit as judges over the Word. It's only because of your grace that we sit as disciples of the Word.

29:54 Mr. Clark, and then back to you. I long for the activity. We have other Christian workers.

30:00 All right, passage? 2 Corinthians 8 and verse 16. If you'll read it, please. All right.

30:16 Here's Titus, all stirred up about the situation there at Corinth and particularly in the context here with reference to this collection for the poor saints in Judea. And Paul says, seeing that concern in Titus, I know who the author of that concern is. And he says, we give thanks to God that he's put this on the heart of Titus. Now, what's one of the practical effects of giving God thanks for the evidences of gifts and graces in others?

30:46 All right, it's one of the most wonderful antidotes to jealousy. If you find yourself reluctant to praise God for gifts or graces given to others, you've got a foul spirit at work in you that doesn't come from the Lord. And it's a tragic thing that some of the cruelest, most vicious jealousy is evidenced in the work of God and in the framework of the visible church of Jesus Christ. People are fine if someone is blessed of God from a distance.

31:18 But let that individual's life and ministry be owned and blessed of God in proximity to themselves so that people might possibly make a comparison. And then suddenly the eye becomes jaundiced and they become filled with a foul spirit of jealousy. Well, you see, you can't really be thanking God for gifts and graces and usefulness of other brethren and be jealous toward them. You just can't do it.

31:48 So this is one of the practical effects. It will keep us from jealousy. Did someone think of another? That's the one I was thinking about.

31:55 Yes, Greg? All right, a little louder if you will, please. We should put the same earnest care for you into the heart. All right, so for the specific grace that was there in the heart, which was that of tender pastoral concern.

32:33 All right, very good. It's amazing how many things we can give God thanks for. Yes, sir, Mr. Dixon, I see the hand.

32:39 Yes, I know, you're pointing to that one over there. And I'm looking at you and I see the hand and I see you pointing. Very good. He's my helper back there so I don't overlook any of you.

32:47 Yes, all right. Yes, giving thanks for all things. And that was one of the texts we used in the introduction. But we said we're so constituted that if we just say, well, give thanks for everything and don't flesh it out with some of these specifics, it's amazing how few things we really think we can give God thanks for.

33:25 And I hope what is happening to me is happening to you as you begin to bring all these things. You say, where in the world have I been all my life with my thanksgiving? I haven't thanked God for these things. Well, that's how the Word effects our sanctification.

33:38 It shows us what we haven't been doing, what we ought to do. And then as we look to the Lord for grace, then by degrees we are able to have our thanks, this part of the pie, more conformed to the norms of Scripture. Yes. All right?

Thanksgiving for Tribulation and Divine Interception from Sin

33:55 Giving thanks for tribulation, rejoicing in tribulation. Why? What does he say? Read the passage for us, all right?

34:07 And not only so, but we also rejoice in their tribulations, knowing that tribulations work in steadfastness. All right? He says we rejoice knowing something. See, the Lord doesn't ask us to be some kind of Christian Stoics who don't feel things and say, well, let's just, you know, in everything give thanks, just rejoice.

34:24 He says, no, rejoice knowing that tribulation does something, that God has a specific end in view. The tribulations are not sent capriciously, nor are they sent without purpose. They are not sent mindlessly. There is a specific intention of God knowing that we can give God thanks.

34:44 All right? Some other things. Yes, Louise, and then L.G.?

35:01 So here was someone in a specific situation that demanded specific wisdom, and there is the acknowledgement that it's God who has given it. Yes, L.G.? He says, bless me, the Lord has given me this car.

35:52 He says, bless me, the Lord has given me this car. He says, bless me, the Lord has given me this car. Because of my reproach from the hand of the Lord this kept me back from receiving it. Yes, this is a great principle, you see.

36:00 Do you praise God for sins you've never committed because God intercepted you? The older I get, you know, I don't know if I've mentioned this publicly. I know I have in terms of counseling from time to time. I thank God for the bad case of acne I had as a teenager.

36:17 I thanked him time after time because I had a real bad case of acne, and because I was doing quite well in sports and in my studies and was otherwise quite outgoing, I would have had a much greater degree of popularity, especially with the young ladies. And I thanked God for all the sins that I was kept from because of the case of acne. I thanked Him that in my senior year of high school I sprained my ankle twice that made me miss six games that absolutely precluded my doing what I know I could have done and what I was able to do my junior year, which may have resulted in some athletic scholarships which would have completely turned the whole course of my life in a different direction. I thanked God for the sprained ankle.

37:01 And who knows how many other sins. There are times when my own spirit has been in a given frame and I was maybe to say something and one of the children came into the room. I thanked God that he arrested me by the presence of one of my own children, maybe from speaking a harsh word to my wife that otherwise I would have spoken. Not being overwhelmed with the sense of the presence of God which ought to be the greatest charge, but sometimes those higher motives aren't operative and God brings a messenger in the person of our own child, in some friend.

37:32 We should thank God for every single thing that we consciously recognize as an interceptor in the course of sin. Do you do that?

37:43 Well, here's a good example that LG has shared with us. All right? Some other things. Pardon?

37:49 The passage was 1 Samuel what, LG? The exact passage? 25.32.

37:54 1 Samuel 25.32. All right? Some other things we ought to give God thanks for.

Jesus' Example in Thanksgiving: Food, Sovereignty, and Answered Prayer

38:00 Well, let me just very quickly give you a few things. Oh, excuse me. Yes, Tom? This comes in the ballpark then of some of these passages that make a very helpful outline for praise.

38:40 And by that I mean if you're on your knees or sitting or standing or in front of the window, however, in whatever posture you pray and praise God, to take the hundredth psalm, as Tom has suggested, and specifically thank God for the things that are out. That line there. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise. Well, thanks and praise for what?

39:03 Well, for the fact that we're his creatures, that he has redeemed us and all of these other things. These are some of the passages that you want to become acquainted with, as I suggested earlier, for adoration and worship. Those revelation passages are tremendous help when there seems to be no fuel for adoration. You open up those passages and you make them your own as you pray them back to God.

39:26 And you will find this a great help. Yes, Ellie?

39:32 All right, Psalm 107 is another one in this ballpark of recounting the various ways that God has intervened for his people. So that the time doesn't get out of our hands, let me just give you a few passages which indicate the things for which our Lord is recorded as giving thanks to God or for which he is recorded as giving thanks to God. We find our Lord very careful always to give thanks to God for food, and in whatever circumstances he receives that food. One of the practical questions that many Christians have is, should I give thanks to God for my food in any situation?

40:10 That's all right at home, but if I'm on the plane or in this situation, well, I've always taken the position without becoming legalistic. If it would first encounter with someone unnecessarily embarrassed and et cetera, God will give us wisdom. But I think, generally speaking, there are few circumstances in which it is not proper for us, to render conscious thanks to God for the provision of our food, and our Lord is found doing this. In the feeding of the 5,000, in the feeding of the 4,000, recorded in John chapter 6, and verse, I think it's verse 11, and then in verse 23, in Matthew 15, 35, we have the record of our Lord giving thanks.

40:52 And it was not until he had given thanks to God, acknowledging him as the giver, even of that, that meager portion, which he then multiplied by his own power, that the food was broken. And then in private, when he has his own disciples in the upper room, we read in Matthew 26, 26, when he had given thanks, and that's picked up by the apostle in 1 Corinthians 11, when he had given thanks, he broke the bread. Then we find our Lord not only giving thanks again and again for food, but we find him giving thanks for divine sovereignty in Matthew 11, and verse 25. He's returned from having to upbraid those cities where unbelief was evident in their response to his ministry.

41:37 And on the heels of that, it says, at that season, he gave thanks, saying, I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thou hast hid these things from the wise and the prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes, for even so, Father, it seemed good in thys. John 17, he thanks the Father that power was given him to execute the electing purposes of God, that I should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given me. And may I say for any of you who may be wrestling with the whole issue of election and divine sovereignty, be careful what you say in the heat and passion of a moment of wrestling. Be careful. Be careful, lest you be found opposing and blaspheming that which your Savior made the occasion of gracious thanks to his Father.

42:38 I'm not saying don't wrestle. I'm not asking you somehow to just obliterate all of your struggles. No, my own struggles were too long to ask you to do that. But I thank God that in the midst of all those struggles, he gave me sense enough not to blaspheme that which I knew not of.

42:57 Be careful. Jesus makes this the occasion of thanks to God. And then, as Louise has pointed out, he gives thanks that God's ear is open to his cry in John 11 and verse 41. Yes.

Comprehensive Scriptural Overview of Thanksgiving and Its Characteristics

43:12 Oh, Don, you're just scratching. I thought you were pointing me to someone else. All right. Let me then just read very quickly an excellent little paragraph on this that I came across in my preparation.

43:25 This is an excellent book. If you don't have it, it would be a good addition to your home library. Baker's Dictionary of Theology. Very, very helpful.

43:33 Little thumbnail sketches of basic biblical and theological terms. And under thanksgiving, this article, and I'll read it in its entirety. It'll only take me about four minutes. The two Hebrew words, yada and todah, and two Greek words, eucharisteo and eucharistia, are the principal terms expressing thanksgiving.

43:55 In addition, ex homologeo is used in Matthew 11.25. The presentation here will deal with the New Testament words exclusively. Our Lord expressed thanks for physical food, John 6.11 and verse 23.

44:09 For answered prayer, John 11.41. I could have saved myself some work if I'd turned here first, but it is good to find them on my own. And for the bread of the Lord's Supper, Luke 22.17.

44:21 Among the physical blessings calling for thanksgiving, the following are mentioned. Healing, Luke 17.16. Food, Acts 27.35.

44:30 Romans 14.6. Peace, Acts 24.2.

44:34 Deliverance from dangers, Acts 27.35. Paul frequently expressed thanks for blessings bestowed on the churches. We note the following.

44:44 Proclamation of the faith, Romans 1.8. Colossians 1.3.

44:48 1 Thessalonians 1.2. Ephesians 1.5.

44:52 Almost all the passages you've mentioned. You see, you could have written this article if you'd only gotten together in time and you might have gotten a few royalties. He thanked God, 2. For grace bestowed, 1 Corinthians 1.4.

45:04 Acceptance of the word priest, 1 Thessalonians 2.13. Fellowship in the progress of the gospel, Philippians 1.3-5.

45:13 Growth in grace, 2 Thessalonians 1.3. Knowledge of election, 2 Thessalonians 2.13.

45:20 So you were reading the same Bible, that's why it's all coming out right. Spiritual blessings, Colossians 1.2. Liberality in giving, 2 Corinthians 9.11.

45:29 Now you didn't, I didn't mention that one. That's one we as elders constantly give thanks to God on your behalf. Your liberality in giving, Paul says we give thanks to God for this grace that was bestowed upon you. Joy over his converts, 1 Thessalonians 3.9.

45:46 The apostle also gave thanks for personal benefits such as deliverance from bondage, Romans 7.25. The sacrificial labor of others, Romans 16.4.

45:57 The non-commission of certain acts, 1 Corinthians 1.14. Let's look at that. That's a strange way of stating it, isn't it?

46:05 The non-commission of certain acts, 1 Corinthians 1.14. I thank God I baptized none of you save Crispus and Gaius.

46:17 In other words, he says, it was a kind providence that when I preached at Corinth, I let others do the dunking so that now when I have to deal with the problem of divisions, I can use this as a lever. You weren't baptized by me, let alone unto me, you see. So he thanks God even for the providence that guided the details of his ministry as an apostle. And then, 4, for gifts bestowed upon him, 1 Corinthians 14.18.

46:47 Fifthly, a friend's spiritual growth, Philemon verse 4. As to its characteristics, thanksgiving is acceptable according to God's will, 1 Thessalonians 5.18. This is the will of God.

47:00 Its neglect is always sinful, Luke 17.16, Romans 1.21. It will always be a dominant feature of heaven's praise.

47:10 And then he gives the Revelation passages, Revelation 4.7 and 11. Christians should render it continually, Colossians 4.2, under every circumstance, Philippians 4.6, and to God through Christ, Colossians 3.17, and as an antidote to sin, Ephesians 5.4. So it's interesting, almost every passage mentioned in this good little succinct article you have given us as we've looked at this.

Pastoral Application: Teaching Children and Disciplining Ourselves in Thanksgiving

47:39 Well, I trust this has challenged you to realize that as with many of these other areas, left to ourselves, our prey falls so far short of biblical norms, particularly the exercises of the full hand. It's pretty easy to come with the empty hand, gimme, gimme, but the Lord would have us come with the full hands, thanking Him, praising Him, magnifying Him for all the gifts that He has bestowed. And I hope what this study has done this morning is to make your eye a little more keen to pick up those things that will be found in your regular systematic reading through the Word of God which are an index of what your praise ought to be, of what my praise ought to be. And may I speak a practical word to those of us who are the heads of our houses, we need to teach our children how to praise God. By nature, they are gimme, gimme's. They're born with clenched fists and they live with clenched fists.

48:42 Give me and what I've got I'll hold. And it's just not natural to open the hand in praise. We need to train our children. I remember the experience we had on Thanksgiving Day.

48:53 As far as I can remember, the first Thanksgiving since we've been married and had our family that we've been to ourselves as a family. We usually go down the mine folks as most of you know and yet I was laid out with a bug and one or two of the kids were sick. So as we had a time of our family worship I said to the children now I want you to give God thanks. Not to ask him for one thing but just give him thanks for the things that you ought to be grateful for.

49:20 Well, one of the children halfway through the prayer started asking and then remembered my stricture and backed off and shut up his petition so I gave away who it was. And started praising and afterward he said to me he says, you know daddy it's hard just to thank God and not ask for anything isn't it? I said it sure is because we've got that natural spirit of gimme-itis and so to discipline yourself it may be helpful sometimes to say well I'm going to look at the clock and for five minutes I'm not going to ask God for a thing and I'm just going to sit here and meditate upon the things for which I ought to give him thanks for which there is precedent in the world in the word of God because certainly there's at least five minutes worth of God's gifts for which I can give him thanks and you may have to actually bind yourself in the beginning by some stricture like that to learn how to praise. Now don't go out and say Pastor Martin said if you don't praise for five minutes you're sinning. Pastor Martin said no such thing for he would have no grounds to say such a thing. All I'm saying is that one way and it's only one way there may be twenty ways but one way that you can you may help yourself to engage more in biblical praise is to block out the specific measure of time and refuse to ask God for a thing in that time until you begin to learn how to praise him and thank him for his gifts.

50:48 Well we've got about three minutes anything else questions you want to ask or further contributions you want to make if not we're going to leave the matter of the open hand and then the Lord will in a couple of weeks from now next week is Missionary Sunday a couple of weeks from now we'll touch just for one session on the defiled hand and the prayers of confession and repentance and cleansing and then move to a broad outline of the matter of petitions alright yes Mr. Brown yes amen amen you get the point Mr. Brown is making

51:59 you see that Christ is our righteousness and that he fully kept the law of God in every area one of which was the matter of praying as he ought we look at this dimension of our praying and we've had to confess sin but we look to our Lord and we see that he praised and gave thanks to perfection and therefore he is our perfect righteousness and resting in him as such then we accept him as our valid example and you see Christ is both those to us but always in that order if you say well I'll make him my standard and I'll press to be like him without first of all resting in him as your righteousness and you'll drive yourself to despair but if you simply say well I'm resting in him as my righteousness but you're not pressing to attain unto him as your standard you're guilty of antinomianism and you're probably not a Christian but embracing him as the Lord our righteousness and then seeking to be like him as the Lord our example is true biblical Christianity Christ is central both as the ground of our acceptance and as the pattern of our walk amen so that's a good note on which to close yes Louise yes seeing what the Lord had already done

53:28 in preserving him through this recent trial his courage is strengthened and that's one of the points we mentioned earlier remember that faith is strengthened in the very act of thanksgiving shall this God who changes not do this this and this for me only to drop me midstream what a terrible thing to say about God and our faith is strengthened as we give him thanks well let's thank him for our time together and for his presence with us