11/20/2016
Thanks Be To God!
1st Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!
Why Should You Be Thankful To God?
God Will Judge Ingratitude
William Shakespeare —How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child. Ingratitude thou marble hearted fiend!
Romans 1:21-24 …although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to Him, their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. They claimed to be wise, but they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.
Revelation 16:10-11 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. Men gnawed their tongues in agony and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.
It is God’s Will For You
1 Thessalonians 5:18 …give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
It Relieves Worry & Anxiety
Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
It Allows You to Be at Peace
Philippians 4:7 …and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Thankfulness Gives Glory to God
Luke 17:12-16 …ten men who had leprosy met Him, they stood at a distance calling out loudly, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed. One of them seeing that he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked Him…God’s glory and thanksgiving are inseparable.
It is the Antidote to La Vida Loca!
Ephesians 5:18-20 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It Allows God’s Sovereignty Into My Life
The single, greatest act of worship you can render to God is to thank Him. It’s the epitome of worship because through gratitude, we affirm God as the ultimate source of both trial and blessing—and acknowledge our humble acceptance of both. With a thankful heart, you can say in the midst of anything, “God be praised.” That kind of attitude looks beyond the circumstance to the plan of God. It sees beyond the pain to the sovereignty of God.
It Allows Thanksgiving Into My Life
It remembers, “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28.
An attitude of thankfulness enables us to deal with those who wrong us, saying with Joseph, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good” Genesis 50:20.
Thankfulness Is An Act of Eternal Worship
Revelation 4:9-10 Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to Him Who sits on the throne and Who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him Who sits on the throne, and worship Him Who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and by Your will they were created and have their being.”