PAUL’S LIST OF THANKS
1 Thess. 5:18
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Did you hear about the Redneck who called Butterball’s Thanksgiving Turkey Talk-Line to tell the operator he’d cut his turkey in half with a chain saw and wanted to know if the oil from the chain would adversely affect the turkey.
2. A disappointed woman called Butterball’s Thanksgiving Turkey Talk-Line wondering why her turkey had no breast meat. After a conversation with an operator, it became apparent that the woman’s turkey was lying on the table upside down.
3. A toll booth operator answered the phone one Thanksgiving Day. The woman on the line wanted to know the road conditions on the turnpike. After the operator said everything was A-okay, she told him that a friend was coming for dinner. Then came the stumper. “If my friend just left from exit twelve,” she asked, “what time should I put the turkey in?” (Turkey Timer!)
4. “Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie.”—Jim Davis.
B. TEXT
“In everything give THANKS: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” 1 Th. 5:18.
C. THESIS
1. There are at least 5 areas that Paul thanked God about in his letters. Those are: salvation, Pentecost, power to overcome, believers, and the Lord’s Supper.
2. Follow along as we go over “Paul’s List of Thanks.”
I. THANKFUL FOR SALVATION
A. SCRIPTURES
1. “THANKS be unto God for His unspeakable gift” 2 Cor. 9:15.
2. “But God be THANKED, that you were the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness” Rom. 6:17-18.
3. “Giving THANKS unto the Father, which has made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light” Col. 1:12.
B. ARE WE THANKFUL THIS WAY?
1. Paul was not only thankful for his own salvation, but he was thankful the salvation of other believers. He rejoiced to see them progress in their salvation and become genuine servants of Christ.
2. May God give us such an evangelistic heart that we are more thrilled for someone’s salvation that we are for a worldly benefit for ourselves!
II. THANKFUL FOR PENTCOST
A. SCRIPTURE
1. “I THANK my God, I speak with tongues more than you all” 1 Cor. 14:18.
2. Paul thanked God that he was Pentecostal – in fact, Paul was glad, and believed, that he was more of a Pentecostal than all the believers at Corinth! And that was saying something, because the Corinthians were said to not be lacking any of the gifts of the Spirit (1 Cor. 1:7).
B. A PRESENT-DAY EXPERIENCE
1. There are many churches where the expression of spiritual gifts, especially tongues, is outlawed, contrary to the command of Paul (1 Cor. 14:39).
2. This is usually due to the fact that people think that IF THEY haven’t experienced it, then it must not exist. I was one of those, but I had an open mind, especially since the Lord Jesus told us we should be baptized in the Spirit, the apostles and early believers all experienced this and spoke in tongues, and the experience is taught about in the N.T.
3. So I sought the Baptism in the Holy Spirit with evidence of speaking in other tongues – and received it when alone in my apartment. It has been life-changing. I can now say with Paul that I thank my God that I speak in tongues more that all (or most) of you!
III. THANKFUL FOR POWER TO OVERCOME
A. SCRIPTURES
1. “But THANKS be to God, which gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” 1 Cor. 15:57.
2. “Now THANKS be unto God, which always causes us to triumph in Christ, and makes manifest the savor of his knowledge by us in every place” 2 Cor. 2:14.
B. WHAT TRIUMPH LOOKS LIKE
1. I am glad that Gospel of Jesus doesn’t come in ‘word only’ but also in the power of God. It’s a power that delivers us from the control of sin. We are set free to the liberty of sons & daughters in God.
2. In the Book of Revelation, chapters 2 & 3, Jesus made many promises of eternal spiritual blessings to His church. But those promises were made to those who overcame, i.e., who persist until they complete the race victoriously.
3. The Greek word “overcomer” doesn’t mean that a person always wins the spiritual contest. In fact, overcomers may lose more than they win, but the decisive factor is that they keep persevering until they cross the finish line on God’s side.
IV. THANKFUL FOR FELLOW BELIEVERS
A. SCRIPTURES
“We are bound to THANK God always for you, brethren, as it is meet, because that your faith grows exceedingly, and the charity of every one of you all toward each other abounds” 2 Thess. 1:3.
B. THANKFUL FOR THE WORK OF GOD
1. Paul’s most frequent thanks was for his fellow believers (Rom. 16:4; Eph. 1:16; Col. 1:3; 1 Th. 1:2; etc.)
2. Paul was like a gardener who rejoices every time he sees a new shoot of a plant emerge from the soil. Paul delighted to see the miracle of God’s transformation taking place in people’s lives.
3. Growing Christians were a constant source of encouragement to him, and to some degree, they were what helped him to keep going in the gospel work – despite persecutions, beatings, defections, and hardships. Every time he saw Jesus’ work in a believer he would stop and praise God! We should focus on that too, instead of our troubles.
V. THANKFUL FOR THE LORD’S SUPPER
A. SCRIPTURE
1. “...and when He had given THANKS, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me” 1 Cor. 11:24.
2. One word for “thanks” that Paul mentioned is the Greek word eucharisteo, which came to be an exclusive reference to the Lord’s Supper. If you look up “eucharist” in an English dictionary you’ll find it means the Lord’s Supper.
B. RELIVING JESUS’ SACRIFICE ON CALVARY
1. Paul and all Christians are thankful for the Lord’s Supper because it is a sacred occasion – not only to remember the Lord’s suffering – but to relive it.
2. The Israelites were told, in latter generations (which had never been in Egypt), to SAY to their son as they ate the Passover, “I do this because of what the Lord did for ME when I came out of Egypt” Ex. 13:8. Later generations were to RELIVE the Exodus by eating unleavened bread, sacrificing the Passover lamb, and eating bitter herbs – to relive what their forefathers had experienced in Egypt.
3. The Lord’s Supper is the extension and fulfillment of the Passover. In it WE RELIVE the night when the eleven ate the last supper with Jesus before He was betrayed. We remember their tears and sadness, but afterward, their joy as well!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: PREACHER COMPLAINING
1. James Snyder made the mistake of complaining out loud. The somebody who heard him was the Mistress of the Parsonage.
2. "What are you complaining about," his wife said. “All I could say at the time was, ‘Did I say that out loud?’ What I was complaining about were all the crazy people, particularly on television. Since my wife asked me, I let go on a very eloquent rant against crazy.”
3. “You, in particular,” my wife said, “ought to be quite thankful about all the crazy people in the world.”
I finally broke down and asked her what in the world she was talking about.
4. She looked at me, paused as if she was collecting her thoughts, then said, "You should be thankful there are so many crazy people out in the world. The more crazy people there are, the more you are going to fit in. If for some reason, we could eliminate all the crazy people in the world, you would be a very lonely person." [James Snyder]
B. THE CALL
1. As we approach Thanksgiving, let’s join with Paul in his five areas of thanksgiving: salvation, Pentecost, power to overcome, believers, and the Lord’s Supper.
2. Let’s go to God now and thank Him for all the ways He’s blessed us. PRAYER.
3. Lord’s Supper.
