Thank God For Salvation

“THANK GOD FOR SALVATION!”

Luke 9:23-27

Well, this week marks the 31st Thanksgiving that I’ve celebrated. Probably the 26th or 27th time I’ve been able to actually verbalize what I’m thankful for. And that list should be so long for each of us. Especially for us because we are American, and not a nation in the world can touch us when it come to being blessed.

We are so blessed here that we have a Statue that stands in a harbor and reads,

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses

yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your

teeming shore, Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed,

to me: I lift my lamp beside the golden door."

And eventually everyone found out that yes the USA is the best and now we are over run with people from other countries wanting to call America home. And I don’t care what side of the immigration issue your on, you can’t blame them!!!

Right now we can list so much to be thankful for;

• Be thankful we have food on your plate, we aren’t constantly hungry, we don’t see our house pets as meals!!

• Be thankful if you enjoy freedom of speech, you can be a complete idiot and your free to prove it to the whole world

• Be thankful if you have an unlimited supply of water, if your plants are never thirsty, even your dog can drink from a bowl, sometimes one that you don’t flush.

• Be thankful if you have freedom of worship, whether want to attend a church, a temple or a mosque, you can

• Be thankful you can see a doctor, usually when you need to

• Be thankful you got up today, and no one had to dress you, or wheel you in to church

• Be thankful if you have a job, even if it doesn’t have the best benefits, or if its not the best pay

• Be thankful if you have a roof over your head, and if that roof is wide enough to cover your whole family, and the floor is more than the ground below that roof

Do you see what I mean? This list could go on and on this morning if I wanted it too! Your family, your clothes, your friends, air condition, a furnace..so on.

But I want to tell you what I am most thankful for today. And what should be at the top of everyone’s list. And if it is not, it should only be because you do not have it, but you should be quick to get it today.

That is SALVATION!!!!!

There is nothing in the world as valuable, nothing more important, nothing I need more, and nothing I want more. I thank God for SALVATION!!!!

Read with me Luke 9:23- 27....

Now zone in on a key verse here...verse 25,

“What good is it if a man gains the whole

world, but loses his soul.”

You know you may be thankful for a lot of things today, but what do they amount to if you don’t know that you will not lose your soul.

It is very simple, you might have plenty of food, a great home, a wonderful family, nice car, yada yada yada, but that means nothing if you don’t know Christ!!! I said it, it means nothing if you don’t know Christ. That is exactly what Jesus was saying in

verse 25 that we read!!

In these words Jesus is trying to give us some perspective...but apparently many of us missed the lesson. We still get so caught up in materialism, in our wants, what others have and we don’t, on climbing the social and work ladder. Having more and more, having everything that is bigger, better and brand new!

And please realize, I know as a pastor I could easily be teaching you today to be thankful and content with what you have! But I don’t want you to be content unless you have salvation. And you never will be. You were created to have fellowship with God, and you have no idea what being thankful is until you experience salvation!!!

Without salvation, I don’t know what you do have to be thankful for.

• Your money is not going with you.

• Your house will be someone else’s home.

• Your food will soon be gone and you’ll have to go buy more, and chances are, doctors will tell you what you just ate is gonna give you cancer.

• Your clothes will either become too small, go out of style, or you get to pick one outfit to wear in your casket

I’m serious!!! If you don’t know Christ, what

exactly are you thankful for???

And some of you are thinking about your kids, and your spouse and you think, whether I know Christ or not, I’m still thankful for them!!!!! I’m thankful to be alive!!