In Everything Give Thanks

IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS

1 Thess. 5:18

INTRODUCTION

A. HUMOR

1. Josh: Why did the farmer run a steamroller over his potato field on Thanksgiving Day? Phil: Why? Josh: He wanted to raise mashed potatoes.

2. Biff: Why did the turkey cross the road? Bob: I don’t know. Biff: It was Thanksgiving Day, and he wanted people to think he was a chicken!

3. Danny: Why did the cranberries turn red? Jake: Beats me. Danny: Because they saw the turkey dressing!

B. TEXT

“In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” 1 Thess. 5:18.

C. THESIS

1. As we all approach the Thanksgiving holiday, it seems appropriate that we think for a few moments about why Thanksgiving is a distinctively Christian holiday.

2. We know people who perhaps are not saved, but are people we would characterize as thankful people. They are appreciative of their families and seem cheerful in the face of difficult circumstances.

3. So what is different about a Christian’s giving of thanks? – is it the joyful and thankful attitude the Scriptures encourage us to have? 1 Thess. 5:18 outlines 3 ways a Christian’s thanks-giving is different from a non-Christian’s.

4. Paul here tells us WHAT WE NEED TO DO: “In everything give thanks.” WHY WE NEED TO DO IT: “For this is the will of God for you.” Then he tells us HOW (WHAT GIVES US THE ABILITY) TO DO IT: “In Christ Jesus.”

I. WHAT WE NEED TO DO: ALWAYS GIVE THANKS

A. EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE? IMPOSSIBLE!

1. Paul tells us that in every circumstance of life, we’re to be thankful! I can hear someone saying, “Well, that sounds nice, Pastor John, to say that we ought to be thankful in everything, but that just can’t be done.”

2. Thanksgiving is easy to do when the blessings are flowing, but it’s very difficult when troubles are cascading all around us.

3. The key point is: if our thanksgiving is derived only from good circumstances, then it will be impossible to ‘always’ give thanks. Therefore, our thanksgiving must be derived from some other source than circumstances, in order that we might be able to give thanks in every circumstance, whether they be good ones or even tragic ones!

B. NOT “FOR,” BUT “IN” EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE

1. Notice that Paul does not say we’re thankful “for” everything, but be “in” everything. There are some circumstances in our lives for which it would be improper to give thanks. If evil befalls us, God is not asking you to give thanks for the evil.

2. Paul is not saying to the people who lost loved ones on 9/11 say, “Thank God that your loved one was murdered.” But Paul is saying that IN every circumstance, no matter how catastrophic, you are to give thanks.

C. ILLUS. OF HELEN KELLER

1. Many of you know the story of Helen Keller. She was born in 1882, and when she was 19 months old – a beautiful, precocious little girl – she caught a fever that so ravaged her and that left her without sight and without the ability to hear.

2. She was locked into a world of darkness and silence; but she was determined and she was extremely smart. When she wanted a piece of bread she would make a hand motion as if she were cutting a piece of bread to let her family know.

3. When she wanted ice cream, she would wrap her arms around herself and she would shiver. And she developed about 60 different motions to communicate, but it took years of feeling in the dark before she could communicate and find God.

4. Helen Keller once said, “For three things I thank God every day of my life. Thanks that He has vouchsafed me knowledge of His works; deep thanks that He has set in my darkness the light of faith; deepest thanks that I have another life to look forward to—a life joyous with light and flowers and heavenly song.”

5. Helen Keller may not have been thankful FOR the circumstance that God had dealt to her, but she was thankful IN that circumstance.

II. WHY WE SHOULD GIVE THANKS

A. REASONS TO BE THANKFUL

1. Now, why in every circumstance are we to give thanks? The Bible gives many reasons we're to be thankful to God;

a. Because God is good. He’s not a tyrant with a bad sense of humor. He's a loving God that is good and cares for us.

b. Because He watches over us; He protects us; He spares us. The Psalms thank God because He redeems us, and because He loves us.

c. Thank God because He gives us good gifts, and He establishes justice, and He shows mercy.