“THANKSLIVING OR LIVING A THANKSGIVING LIFE”
Psalm 100 W. Max Alderman
INTRODUCTION: A person cannot be truly thankful unless he is Spirit filled. Ephesians 5:18-20 teaches us this: 18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
When one lets the “Word of Christ dwell in you richly” by being a Spirit filled person, then that person will have a spirit of thanksgiving, as well.
I. BE THANKFUL AMONG THE SINNERS (2 Samuel 22:50)
Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name.
A. So That the Sinners May Witness Your
Thanksgiving by the Way That You Are Different
We live in a world of indifference and ingratitude. For sinners to witness a spirit of thanksgiving in those who profess to be Christians is a strong testimony. Everywhere that we go as believers and with each person that we come in contact with should be an opportunity for us as believers to show how thankful that we really are to the Lord. Few people can be thankful for more than an extended period of time, as this humorous illustration suggests:
ILLUSTRATION: The story is told of two old friends bumped into one another on the street one day. One of them looked forlorn, almost on the verge of tears. His friend asked, "What has the world done to you, my old friend?"
The sad fellow said, "Let me tell you. Three weeks ago, an uncle died and left me forty thousand dollars."
"That’s a lot of money."
"But, two weeks ago, a cousin I never even knew died, and left me eighty-five thousand free and clear."
"Sounds like you’ve been blessed...."
"You don’t understand!" he interrupted. "Last week my
great-aunt passed away. I inherited almost a quarter of a million."
Now he was really confused. "Then, why do you look so
glum?"
"This week... nothing!"
B. So that the Sinner May Witness Your Thanksgiving by the Way That You Delight (Psalms 37:4)
Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
I remember telling my daughter all that it takes to complain is a mouth and then she would answer back, “and something to complain about”. Sinners should see that we have much to be thankful for. If they never hear words of thanksgiving from our lips, as it applies to the Lord’s generosity to us, how should we expect them to want what we possess?
C. So that the Sinner May Witness Your Thankfulness for Your Destination (2 Corinthians 5:6-8)
Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
Paul not only delighted in knowing where he was going when he died, but looked forward to the blessed event. Sinners ought to hear that we have the same blessed hope that Paul did of soon being with the Lord. They should know by our testimony how thankful that we are…
II. BE THANKFUL AMONG THE SAINTS (1 Chronicles 16:8)
Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people.
Thanksgiving should characterize our worship services. Sins that have not been confessed can rob one of his joy and cause that person to forget just how blessed he is. The accumulative effect of sin in the church can do the same. The members need to express their thanks to the Lord publically, “make known his deeds among the people. That is what good testimony services are all about.
A. This Will Enlighten the Church (Ps 35:18)
I will give thee thanks in the great congregation: I will praise thee among much people.
To publically offer thanks before the church will cause the church to be enlightened as to the way that the Lord is blessing throughout the congregation. If God is blessing you and you know that He is, then enlighten the fellow members to the ways that you are being blessed and it will encourage someone as you praise Him.
B. This Will Edify the Church (Romans 14:19; 1 Thess. 5:11)
Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.
To have a thankful Spirit for what God is doing for you, you will build up others by having that spirit. It will involve your provoking others to good service and it will strengthen the church to stand. Many times I have had people stand up and give a testimony of the way the Lord helped and strengthened them only afterwards for someone to say: “That is just what I needed. I needed to hear that someone else went through what I am going through and that God helped them through it; I too, will be helped…”
C. This Will Encourage the Church
Nothing encourages the church more than encouragement. That may almost sound redundant, yet I feel that we spend such little time trying to be an encouragement. What better way to encourage than by publically and continually showing thanks to the Lord in the church.
III. BE THANKFUL UNTO THE SAVIOR (Psalm 100:4)
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
A. For Him Letting You Be Saved
Anyone who is under the blood of Christ’s forgiveness should always be living a life of thanksgiving. Every day we should offer our thanks to him for saving us!
B. For Him Letting You Serve
Also, even as we should offer our thanks to Him for saving us, we should also offer our thanks for letting us be servants. We should willingly serve Him for all eternity…
