Ephesians 5:20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, (ESV)
People may have one of three possible attitudes about thanksgiving.
1) The first is that it is Unnecessary.
Some people are not thankful simply because they think they deserve every good thing they have—and more. The rich firmer of Jesus’ parable in Luke 12, who was presumptuous about his future prosperity was also ungrateful for his past prosperity. As he looked around and realized his land was so productive that he did not have enough room to store all his crops, he decided to build bigger and better barns. After that he would say “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink, and be merry” (Luke 12:19). He did not take God into consideration. Because he gave God no credit for his blessings, he saw no reason to give Him thanks. And because of his thankless presumption, God said to him, in verse 20: “You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?”. Within that judgment lay the truth that the farmer could no more protect his possessions by his own power than he had produced them by his own power. The Lord gave, and the Lord took away. Shakespeare wrote in King Lear, “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child!” True! Ingratitude in children wounds and sometimes kills. But how much more unnatural and repugnant is ingratitude in those who have become sons and daughters of the living God. It is so unnatural that a person may wonder if such a one has actually become a Christian in the first place. (Boice, J. M. (1988). Ephesians: an expositional commentary (p. 189). Grand Rapids, MI: Ministry Resources Library.)
• Not feeling the need to thank God is much worse than ingratitude; it is rank unbelief. This attitude is a form of practical atheism that fails to acknowledge God.
2) A second attitude about thanksgiving is that of the Hypocrite.
In another parable Jesus told of a self–righteous Pharisee in Luke 18 who stood in the Temple and “was praying to himself, ‘God, I thank Thee that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax–gatherer. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get’ ” (Luke 18:11–12). As Jesus made clear in the words “praying to himself,” although the man used God’s name, his thankfulness was to himself and for himself. The Pharisee used God’s name only to call further attention to his false piety. And because God had no part in that prayer it was totally worthless. The humble, penitent tax–collector “went down to his house justified,” whereas the proud, self–righteous Pharisee did not (v. 14) Like the rest of his life, the Pharisee’s prayer of thanksgiving was hypocritical sham and pretense.
3) The third attitude about thanksgiving is that of the Truly Thankful Person.
Of the ten lepers Jesus healed on His way to Jerusalem in Luke 17, the only one who returned to thank Him was a Samaritan. But his thankfulness was genuine, and Jesus said to him, “Rise, and go your way; your faith has made you well” (Luke 17:19). The other nine lepers had sought Jesus’ healing only for their own benefit. The Samaritan also sought it for God’s glory (v. 18). His thankfulness was an expression of his trust in Jesus, his recognition that he was helpless in Himself and that his healing was undeserved and entirely by the Lord’s grace. As a result, he received salvation. That is the thankfulness, the only thankfulness, that pleases God and that the Spirit–filled saint will offer. The perpetual accompaniment of all these outlets of the Spirit in the Christian life is thanksgiving. (Wood, A. S. (1981). Ephesians. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Ephesians through Philemon (Vol. 11, p. 73). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
In Ephesians 5:20 the Apostle Paul tells 1) When (Ephesians 5:20a), 2) For what (Ephesians 5:20b), 4) To whom (Ephesians 5:20c), and finally 3) How the Spirit–filled believer is to be thankful (Ephesians 5:20d).
1)When are we to be thankful?—always.
Ephesians 5:20a giving thanks always (and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ) (ESV)
To be thankful always is to recognize God’s control of our lives in every detail as He seeks to conform us to the image of His Son. To be thankless is to disregard God’s control, Christ’s lordship, and the Holy Spirit’s filling. Nothing must grieve the Holy Spirit so much as the believer who does not give thanks. Just as there are three attitudes toward thanksgiving there are also three levels of thankfulness. The first is to be thankful when we are blessed. When things are going well or God grants an especially welcome benefit, we are happy and grateful. When getting a job, being delivered from sickness, being reconciled with our spouse, or experiencing other such pleasant things, it is easy to be grateful to the Lord. The fullness of the Spirit rules out a grumbling, complaining, negative, sour spirit. No one can be Spirit-filled and traffic in these things. In (North) America we, as a people, have so much. Yet we characteristically mourn what we do not have: another’s house, car, job, vacation, even family! Such thanklessness indicates a life missing the fullness of the Holy Spirit. (Hughes, R. K. (1990). Ephesians: the mystery of the body of Christ (p. 176). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.)
Please turn to Revelation 15
It is right to be thankful for blessings, as the Bible continually commands us to be. The song that Moses and the children of Israel sang after being delivered from Egypt (Ex. 15:1–21) was a beautiful and genuine expression of gratitude that pleased the Lord. That song will one day be partly repeated in heaven as a testimony of thanksgiving to Jesus Christ, the Lamb, for delivering His people from the beast (Rev. 15:1–4). John cites it in Revelation 15:
Revelation 15:1-4 [15:1]Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished.[2]And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire--and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. [3] And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! [4] Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed." (ESV)
• As difficult as the present time may be, when we consider how much more difficult it is to maintain just physical distancing in places with over a billion people, our ability to protect ourselves and get access to care is relatively easy. In considering this and so many more benefits, thankfulness for blessing is easy and requires little maturity.
• Nevertheless, attention upon benefits, causes them to stand out more clearly, resulting in increased thanksgiving. While it lasts, worries tend to disappear, complaints vanish, courage to face the future increases, virtuous resolutions are formed, peace is experienced, and God is glorified (William Hendriksen: Baker New Testament Commentary. 2004. p.241).
The second level of thankfulness is that of being grateful for the hope of blessing and victory yet to come. The first level is after the fact, the second is in anticipation of the fact. Thanking God before a blessing is more difficult than thanking Him afterward, and requires more faith and spiritual maturity. This second level is where faith and hope begin, because it involves the unseen and the yet unexperienced. The believer at this level of thankfulness looks forward to victory before it is achieved, knowing that we will “overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37). Believers look forward even to their own death or the death of a loved one and give thanks to God, knowing that His grace is sufficient for every sorrow and every testing (2 Cor. 12:9) and that glorious resurrection awaits those who die in the Lord. Believers are to live in hope. This is why this is a directive to always give thanks is presented as a PRESENT ACTIVE PARTICIPLE. … The Spirit-filled believers know that God is for them and that circumstances are not the source of joy and peace. (Utley, R. J. (1997). Paul Bound, the Gospel Unbound: Letters from Prison (Colossians, Ephesians and Philemon, then later, Philippians) (Vol. Volume 8, p. 128). Marshall, TX: Bible Lessons International.)
The third level of thankfulness is thanking God in the midst of the battle, while we are still undergoing trouble or testing—and even when it looks like we are failing or being overwhelmed. When Daniel heard that King Darius had signed the decree forbidding the worship of any god or man but the king himself, Daniel immediately “entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously” (Dan. 6:10), Though his life was at risk, Daniel thanked God because God deserved his thanks, regardless of his threatening circumstances. The injunction to give thanks always and for everything ‘presupposes a deep underlying faith that God can produce good out of even the most unpromising situation, and that thankfulness, therefore, can be felt because of the confident hope that in some wonderful way God will make even disaster and suffering an occasion for later blessing’ (Foulkes, F. (1989). Ephesians: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 10, p. 157). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.)
Even the prejudiced and disobedient Jonah ended his prayer from the stomach of the fish with these words: “But I will sacrifice to Thee with the voice of thanksgiving. That which I have vowed I will pay. Salvation is from the Lord” (Jonah 2:9). Nowhere in the prayer does the prophet ask for deliverance. Instead he praises God for past deliverance, acknowledges his own sinfulness and unfaithfulness, and closes with a declaration of thanks for the Lord’s goodness. Under the divine control even painful experiences, calamities, etc., must bring us spiritual benefits such as driving us closer to God to seek his protection, making us search his Word more earnestly for comfort, etc. (Lenski, R. C. H. (1937). The interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistles to the Galatians, to the Ephesians and to the Philippians (p. 622). Columbus, O.: Lutheran Book Concern.)
After Peter and some of the other apostles in Jerusalem had been flogged and ordered not to speak again in the name of Jesus, “they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name” (Acts 5:41). To be thankless is to disregard God’s control, Christ’s lordship, and the Holy Spirit’s filling. Nothing must grieve the Holy Spirit so much as the believer who does not give thanks. God’s people, both corporately and individually, are to have a thankful attitude of mind and heart which comes to expression regularly in thanksgiving and praise. Gratitude to God, which permeates (our) whole being, will be obvious as (we) express (our) praise of Him constantly. (O’Brien, P. T. (1999). The letter to the Ephesians (p. 397). Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.)
• If we can only thank God when things are going well, our thankfulness is on the bottom rung of faithfulness. If we can thank Him in anticipation of what He will do in the future, we show more spiritual maturity. But to thank God while we are in the midst of pain, trials, or persecution shows a level of maturity that few Christians seem to know but that our heavenly Father wants all His children to have.
Quote: Being thankful is not a Christian option, a high order of living that we are free to choose or disregard. As Joni Eareckson Tada, a quadriplegic author, has observed: “Giving thanks is not a matter of feeling thankful, it is a matter of obedience.” It is a striking thing for a person to always be thankful. Matthew Henry, the famous scholar, was once accosted by thieves and robbed of his (money). He wrote these words in his diary: “Let me be thankful first, because I was never robbed before; second, because, although they took my (money), they did not take my life; third, because, although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed.” (Tan, Paul Lee: Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and Christian Workers. Garland TX : Bible Communications, 1996, c1979)
1)When are we to be thankful?—always.
2) For what are we to give thanks?—for all things.
Ephesians 5:20b (giving thanks always and) for everything (to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ) (ESV)
The greatest gift we can give to God is a thankful heart, because all we can give to Him is simply grateful recognition that all we have is from Him. We give Him thanks for everything/all things because He has given us everything/all things and because giving thanks in everything “is God’s will … in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:18). (We can) be thankful during times of trial and suffering as we endure them patiently, not because we have lost all feelings of moral sensitivity or because we can no longer distinguish between good and evil. Rather, we humbly and gratefully submit to (God’s) sovereignty, knowing that He works in everything for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28). This is not to claim that God is the author of evil or that we are praising him for what He abominates. But we recognize that He uses even the suffering which comes upon us to produce character, perseverance, and hope (Rom. 5:3–5) (O’Brien, P. T. (1999). The letter to the Ephesians (p. 398). Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.).
Please turn to 2 Corinthians 4
The spiritual believer sees God’s wise and loving care in the difficulties and trials as well as in blessing and prosperity. We are to thank God for a job even if it is demanding and unfulfilling. We are to thank God for health, even if it is far from being what he would like it to be. We are to thank God even when our dearest loved ones die, saying with Job, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21).
Paul explained to the Corinthians how to give thanks in all things/circumstances:
2 Corinthians 4:7-15 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you. 13 Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, 14 knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. 15 For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God. (ESV)
• The ultimate goal is the glory of God, the means of giving Him glory is thanksgiving, and the reasons for thanksgiving are all the things He has done in the believer’s life. To glorify God is to thank Him no matter how much we may hurt or be disappointed or fail to understand. The Spirit–filled Christian is “overflowing through many thanksgivings to God” and continually gives thanks to Him “for His indescribable gift” (2 Cor. 9:12, 15).
As God’s children we are to be thankful first of all for the Lord Himself, for His goodness, love, grace, salvation, and every other blessing He gives. We are to be thankful for blessings and difficulties, for victories and defeats. The only person who can genuinely give thanks for everything/all things is the humble person, the person who knows that they deserve nothing and who therefore gives thanks even for the smallest things. Lack of thankfulness comes from pride, from the conviction that we deserve something better than we have. Pride tries to convince us that our job, our health, our spouse, and most of what we have is not as good as we deserve. Pride was the root of the first sin and remains the root of all sin. Satan’s pride led him to rebel against God and try to usurp God’s throne. The pride of Adam and Eve led them to believe Satan’s lie that they deserved more than they had and that they even had a right to be like God. This ability to give thanks for all things stems from joy. Joy in Paul’s letters is a basic mark of the Christian (Rom. 14:17) and a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). It is often associated with the firm hope of the Christian (e.g., Rom. 5:2–5; 12:12) (Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 2311). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.).
Illustration: A city missionary in London was called to an old tenement building where a woman lay dying in the last stages of a terrible disease. The room was cold and she had nowhere to lie but on the floor. When the missionary asked if there was anything he could do, she replied, “I have all I really need; I have Jesus Christ.” Deeply moved, the missionary went home and penned these words: “In the heart of London City, Mid the dwellings of the poor, These bright and golden words were uttered, “I have Christ. What want I more?” Spoken by a lonely woman dying on a garret floor, Having not one earthly comfort, “I have Christ. What want I more?”
1)When are we to be thankful?—always. 2) For what are we to give thanks?—for all things. And now:
3) To whom are we to be thankful?—God the Father.
Ephesians 5:20c (giving thanks always and for everything ) to God the Father (in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ) (ESV)
The thanks that we give always, for all things, are given to God the Father. We thank our heavenly Father just as our Lord Himself did on earth. The giver of “every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift” (James 1:17) is the Receiver of every genuine and heartfelt thanksgiving. The beneficent Father is to be thanked for all things because He has given all things. Even those things that come through others come from God. We should be grateful for what anyone does for us, and we should thank them for it. But thankfulness to others will likely be little more than flattery if we do not acknowledge that the true source of the gift is God. The word gratitude comes from the same root word as grace. If we have experienced the grace of God, then we ought to be grateful for what God brings to us (Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Eph 5:20).
Please turn to Philippians 6
Genuine thankfulness to God is a powerful uniting force for believers. When a dispute broke out in Philippi amongst two women, Paul discussed the testimony of the Gospel through the unity that was at state. It was through prayer and thanksgiving that would overcome disagreements for the cause of Christ. All prayers of thanksgiving to God are made by people who acknowledge Christ as Lord and themselves as his disciples; it is because of this relationship that they offer their prayers to God. (Bratcher, R. G., & Nida, E. A. (1993). A handbook on Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (p. 136). New York: United Bible Societies.)
He explained this relationship to the Philippians in Philippians 4:
Philippians 4:1-7 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved. 2 I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. 3 Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (ESV)
• Believers are to be “overflowing with gratitude” (Col. 2:7) and continually offer “up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name” (Heb. 13:15). The word gratitude comes from the same root word as grace. If we have experienced the grace of God, then we ought to be grateful for what God brings to us (Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Eph 5:20).
Illustration: 6577 Thankful For Unusualness
Dr. Alexander Whyte of Edinburgh was famous for his pulpit prayers. He always found something to thank God for, even in bad times. One stormy morning a member of his congregation thought to himself, “The preacher will have nothing to thank God on a wretched morning like this.” But Whyte began his prayer, “We thank Thee, O God, that it is not always like this.” (Tan, Paul Lee: Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and Christian Workers. Garland TX : Bible Communications, 1996, c1979)
Finally,
4) How are we to be thankful?—in the name of Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5:20d (giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father) in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (ESV)
To give thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ is to give thanks consistent with who He is and what He has done. We can give thanks always and for all things because no matter what happens to us it will turn out not only for our ultimate blessing but, more importantly, for His ultimate glory. Putting everything that we have seen up to this point together is this last statement. We are not to thank God for things that He despises. When a drunker driver kills another person, we praise God for His presence in the midst of such terrible events and for His redeeming purposes which can bring light out of darkness. This has all occurred and been enabled though our Lord Jesus Christ. (R.C. Sproul. The Purpose of God: Ephesians. Christian Focus Publications. 2002. p. 128).
Were it not for Christ, it would be foolish to be thankful for everything, because apart from Him all things do not turn out for good. That is why a person who is not a Christian does not have Christ interceding on their behalf at the right hand of God or indwelling their life. They do not have the promise of heirship in God’s family and citizenship in God’s kingdom—or any other of the wonderful promises of Christ. They do not have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and cannot have His filling. They cannot be thankful for everything because everything they do, they do not give a reason for thanks. They see only the present, not eternal glory. The mature Christian, the Christian who is filled with the Spirit, becomes thankful as Christ Himself was thankful. Jesus was continually saying thanks to His Father. Before He multiplied the loaves and fish to feed the four thousand, “He gave thanks and broke them, and started giving them to His disciples to serve to them” (Mark 8:6; cf. Matt. 15:36). Even as He instituted the Lord’s Supper, in anticipation of His soon–coming crucifixion, He thanked His Father for the bread that would become a memorial of His sacrificed body (Luke 22:19). For those in Christ, the good things and the things we think are bad, all have a part in God’s conforming us to the image of His Son. Thank and think come from the same root word. If we would think more, we would thank more (Wiersbe, Warren W.: The Bible Exposition Commentary. Wheaton, Ill. : Victor Books, 1996, c1989, S. Eph 5:20).
Please turn to John 11
Jesus was ridiculed, despised, scorned, rejected, spat upon, blasphemed, beaten, and finally crucified. Yet because of His great humility He always gave thanks in all things. He deserved glory but received humiliation, deserved love but received hate, and deserved honor but received dishonor. He deserved praise but received scorn, deserved riches but received poverty, and deserved holiness but was made sin on our behalf. Yet He never lost His thankfulness to His heavenly Father. For us, His Name is then the sphere that surrounds all our gratitude and its expression (Lenski, R. C. H. (1937). The interpretation of St. Paul’s Epistles to the Galatians, to the Ephesians and to the Philippians (p. 622). Columbus, O.: Lutheran Book Concern.)
Even in a time of great anguish, at the death of His dear friend Lazarus, Christ gave thanks. Notice the account in John 11
John 11:38–44 38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” (ESV)
• We best emulate Christ as we are thankful, even in trying times. Through this miracle and public demonstration of faithfulness, “many of the Jews … believed in him” (i.e., Jesus) as a result of seeing this miracle (Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 2046). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.)
We deserve humiliation, but in Christ we receive glory. We deserve to be hated but instead are loved, and deserve dishonor but receive honor. We deserve scorn but are given praise, deserve poverty but are given riches, and deserve sin’s curse of death but are given righteousness and eternal life. For what can we not give thanks?
(Format Note: Outline & some base commentary from MacArthur, John: Ephesians. Chicago: Moody Press, 1996, c1986, S. 255)
