Thank God For Man Series

Edward R. Morrow once told of the commencement speaker who was a Yale graduate. He

used the 4 letters of YALE for his speech outline. Y was for youth; A was for ambition; L was

for loyalty, and E was for energy. After his tedious trip through these four points one of

the board graduates turned to another and said, "I am so thankful he went to Yale." "What

do you care where he went?" replied the equally unenthused victim. "Because," he

responded, "Imagine what we would have had to endure had he gone to the Massachusetts

Institute of Technology."

You have to give him credit for seeing the brighter side and finding the silver lining in

the dark clouds. It is always there somewhere, or how else can be expected to obey Paul's

command in I Thess. 5:18, "In everything give thanks." In every situation there is

something in which to be thankful. But let's be honest as Paul was. There are days and

circumstances when it is mighty hard to find. We find Paul in just such a tough time in his

life in Acts 28. Most all commentators agree that Paul was in a state of depression. There

was good reason for it. He was a prisoner on his way to Rome. He had more freedom than

most prisoners, but he was still a captive heading for a very uncertain future, and it brought

him down.

He was not thankful that he was down, but you and I can be thankful that he was, for that

is more than likely where we would be if we were in his shoes. Paul's idealistic advice would

be a burden rather than a blessing if we did not see that he too had to struggle to make it

real. It is good for us to see the best of people at the bottom, and see that even heaven's

heroes are not always on the mountain top. Thank God for biblical reality where we see the

best of God's servants in their weakness, for this gives us hope, even as their strengths give

us motivation to press on. Peter's many blunders make us realize we need not despair for

our follies and mistakes, for like him we can be forgiven and welcomed back into the Savior's

love. Thank God for Peter's multiple blunders, for they reveal that God's grace is sufficient

for any of us.

Thank God also for Paul's depression for it reveals his sensitive human spirit that makes

him easier to identify with than does his perfectionist sounding theology. Here is the man

who says to give thanks in everything and to rejoice always, but now he is dragging. He is no

robot, but a real man just like us. But notice what happens in verse 15. Christians in Rome

heard that Paul was coming and so they sent out a delegation to meet him. It was 40 miles

from Rome, but they traveled this distance to encourage this brother they had never met.

The text says, "When Paul saw these men he thanked God and was encouraged."

Notice that Paul was thankful to God, but it was for these men that he was thankful. This

does not seem like a very startling revelation until you begin to examine Paul's thinking all

through the New Testament. You discover that man is the primary means by which Paul is

made thankful. He is constantly thanking God, not for angels, or theology, or for high and

exalted ideals, or for things. Paul's thanksgiving focus is on people. Look at the evidence:

Rom. 1:8, "First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is

being reported all over the world."

I Cor. 1:4, "I always thank God for you..." Then he goes on to describe how they have been

enriched by the grace of God.Eph. 1:15-16, "For this reason, ever since I heard about your

faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you.."

Phil. 1:3-5, "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I

always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel.."

Col. 1:3-4, "We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for

you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the

saint."

I Thess. 1:2, "We always thank God for all of you.."

II. Thess. 1:3, "We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because

your faith is growing more and more, and the love everyone of you has for each other is

increasing."

Paul is constantly giving thanks to God for man. He is thankful to God, for God is the