Summary: We may think that expressing gratitude is easy. But think again. It might turn out to be a difficult task. And there is a reason for that. And there is a solution for that. Let us look at the solution.

Gratitude in Action: Catching People do the Right Things!!

One of our (Leslie and I) constant prayers is to enable us to bring up Arvi and Aarav (our grand children) in the fear and knowledge of God. Towards this, we recently tried asking them to list of a few things they want to thank God for before we let them retire to bed. I don’t know about you, but for us and the children , it turned out to be a very difficult task than what we thought it would be. Have you experienced this feeling? Have you found that practicing Gratitude is not very easy, as it sounds.

That is what the Lord prompted me to speak about today. I have titled my message “Gratitude in Action: Catching People do the Right Things!!”

Let us start with a short bible quiz, shall we?

What is the first time Thanksgiving is mentioned in the Bible? Actually this came as a surprise to me personally. The books of Genesis and Exodus are full with miraculous signs and wonders and great deeds of God. You would naturally expect that the concept of Thanksgiving is mentioned in these two books many times. However, it is not so. First mention of Thanksgiving in the Bible is in the book of Leviticus. (Leviticus 7:12-15). Isn’t it interesting to note that throughout the book of Genesis and Exodus, the concept of Thanksgiving is not mentioned or recorded. Adam and Eve did not thank God for the beautiful creation that God entrusted to them. Abraham does not seem to have thanked the Lord for giving him a son at his ripe old age. The families of Isaac and Jacob contended with the blessings of God, rather than thanking Him for the same. Joseph’s brothers do not thank him or the Lord for the way God made him a big man in Egypt and thereby saved them all from certain death. Not even after the Spectacular miracles of crossing the red sea, or provision of Manna did the Israelites think of thanking.

Let us not forget the full picture. In all these instances that I pointed out, Offerings are mentioned, worshipping is mentioned. But not thanksgiving. Actually I went to extent of doing a Hebrew word study to confirm this. The Hebrew word for thanksgiving is “Todah”. This word Todah is used first time in Leviticus 7:12. The Hebrew term used for offering in Gensis is “Minchah” which is the term used for offerings where blood is not involved. This is the terms used for the offerings of Cain and Abel. The other terms used for offerings are “olah” for burnt offering, and “zevach” for slaughtered or Passover offering. All the terms for offerings get consolidated into Qorban later in Leviticus, when the system got codified. And for worship, the common Hebrew term used is “shachah”. There are other terms used for worship like Avad, Barak and Halal. There is an interesting bit about the term halal. We all know the Islamic food term halal. That is an Arabic word meaning lawful, and has no relation with the Hebrew term halal, which is used for praising God. Actually the term hallelujah is a derivative of halal. On the other hand the hebrew word Qorban and the similar Arabic word both have same meaning, offering.

I don’t want to put you to sleep with Hebrew lessons this morning. The message I want to convey is this. It is very interesting to note that the concept of Thanksgiving appears first time in the Bible as a law, as a mandatory sacrifice that the Israelites were required to offer. It appears as if God knew about the ungrateful nature of mankind and wanted to institute this concept among mankind through the mosaic covenant of the law.

Come to think about it, we can trace it to basic human nature. If you go shopping with a shopping list of 23 items and come back with 22 items, what do you get picked out for? The one item you did not bring isn’t it? When your child brings home her marks card, where do our attention go first? Let us be honest, we look for the one item where she got a B and talk about it not withstanding the fact the brilliant girl has scored a+ in five other subjects. This is human nature, we are wired to catch people do the wrong things.

But should that be the case? Can we develop a mindset of catching people do the right things? What do we need to do to reach there?

Let us continue with the statistics, shall we? The next one should be easy. Which book is Thanksgiving mentioned last? Of course it is in Revelation, we cannot go beyond that right? Altogether, Thankfulness appears about 370 times in the NIV version of the bible. Which book of the Bible talks about this most? Again , a no brainer, it is the Psalms. (about 78 times). There are about 8 Psalms that are specifically Thanksgiving Psalms. But here again, if we actually leave out David, there are very few places where Thanksgiving is mentioned in Old Testament. Interestingly, after Leviticus the first Bible verse giving thanks is by David in 2 Samuel 22:50. So basically, with the notable exception of David (Chronicles and Psalms) the concept of Thanksgiving is not a popular topic in the Old testament.

In contrast, once we shift to the New Testament, we can actually see this concept becoming more prevalent and the expressions of Thanksgiving increase. Almost all books of the New Testament speak about Thankfulness or gratitude. This should not come as a surprise, because as a true leader, Jesus led by example when it came to Thanksgiving. He Thanked the Father before he fed the multitudes. He gave Thanks before he raised Lazarus from the dead. He gave thanks before the last supper. Paul follows Jesus example and gives thanks many times for many things. Most of Paul’s letters start with Thanksgiving.

To me, it means one thing. An attitude of Gratitude is a very Christian thing. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 sums it up for me. “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” I want you to read it along with the first time thanksgiving is mentioned in the Bible, Leviticus 7:12. Here Thanksgiving is given as a law under the category of Peace offerings. The Thanks offering is given in thankfulness for some special mercy received, such as recovery from sickness, preservation in a journey, deliverance at sea, redemption out of captivity, all which are specified in Psalm 107, and for them men are called upon to offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving, Psalm 107: 22. What Paul is telling us 1 Thess 5:18 is that this law is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, and hence as Christians we have to give thanks in all situations. We have received grace, we have received mercy, we have received deliverance, we have received healing, we have received wealth, we have received protection, we have received provisions, all because of the finished work on the cross. This is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

David gave thanks for all the mercies that he received. He gave thanks for saving him and his people from sickness, war, flood, wild animals etc. You and me have a lot more than that. Yes we also have all the normal reasons to Thank god. There are stars in the sky, the sun and the moon. There are muscles in our bodies, there is a ability to hear, that brings this message to us. There is our breath that we take every moment that keeps us alive. There are multiple areas of protection that we get from various dangers out in the world. There is healing available to us, there is food on our tables, there is a shelter that each of us can go to, there are loved ones who we can go back to. Yes there are a zillion reasons for us to thank god. All that we need to do is to count our blessings.

And there is something beyond all that. All religions teach worship, all religions teach prayer. So what is different in Christianity? What difference did Jesus Christ make to our access to God? Jesus Christ removed the separation between Man and God. Jesus Christ made the Holy of Holies accessible to us. Jesus Christ on the cross tore down the curtain that separated the holy of Holies from the common man. Jesus Christ gave us the right to call God our daddy. Jesus Christ made our relationship with God personal. Jesus Christ has promised us a mansion in heaven (John 14:2) . Jesus Christ gives us eternal life. For Christians, Thanksgiving is not a ritual, it is very personal discussion with God. Even our prayers are seasoned with thanksgiving. Paul advises Christians; Philippians 4:6 (NKJV) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God

So this morning, can we shed our natural tendencies to be ungrateful, shall we know that true worship happens with Thankfulness. Shall we accept that an attitude of Gratitude is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us.

And when it comes to our relationships with others, let us break our mindset of finding fault, or catching people do the wrong things, and reverse it to catching people do the right things. That is exactly what Paul exhorts us to do.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Philippians 4:8

Let us pray.