Thankfulness as a Way of Worship
Nov. 20, 2011 / 8:30
Luke 17:11ff - When a leper believed that he had indeed recovered from his disease and was well, he was to go the priest and there was to be a purification ceremony to assure that was in fact was the case. Then he could recirculate among the people. And so Jesus said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, it says, they were cleansed.
They started out in an act of faith heading for the priests. Nothing had happened before they started in that direction, it started as they were going.
Ten got healed, one got saved. It's a wonderful story for the one, it's a tragedy for the other nine. It illustrates how ugly ingratitude is and how hard to understand how unthankful people could so quickly forget the very one who was the source of their cleansing.
Rom. 1:21 - It is right at the top of God's list of damning sins...ingratitude. It so characterizes fallen men, it certainly shouldn't characterize God's people. We can understand how nine lepers who didn't know God could be thankless. We can understand a world of thankless people. I cannot understand a thankless Christian when we understand what the Lord has done for each of us. Nor can God understand a thankless Christian.
1 Thess. 5:18 - "In everything give thanks." And that's all we need to look at, obviously this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. In everything give thanks, God desires this. That little phrase at the end of verse 18 actually follows all three commands, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing and in everything give thanks," all three of those sum up God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
In the O.T. there were various offerings that the people were to bring to the priests to sacrifice- sin offering, burnt, trespass, etc.. One offering was called the Thank Offering, which was associated with the Peace Offering (Lev. 7:11-14). This type of offering was to remind the people of their need to be thankful to God for all of His merciful and gracious provisions for their needs. Even today as a church since our Lord Himself ordained it, we have a ceremony as Christians we communion or the Lord's table or the Lord's supper and it combines both the elements of the sin offering in terms of its memorial character and elements of the thank offering into one. We remember Christ the sacrifice for our sins, and we offer up thanksgiving for all that Jesus’ sacrifice has accomplished for us. So when you come to the Lord's table you come to what is a table of thanks.
2 Tim. 3:1-2, 13 - And as I noted for you, thanklessness is a sin that characterizes the unregenerate, those who know not God.
And what Paul is saying there is that in the last days ingratitude will characterize people. Down in that same chapter in verse 13 he said that evil men will get worse and worse. The closer we get to the coming of Christ, the more wicked men become; the more wicked they become, the more thankless they are. Thus we are not surprised to see unsaved people going through life complaining, bitter, angry, thankless, without any gratitude, expecting everything good that comes their way and a lot more. The unregenerate man in our culture, in our time, views life as moving along a path of manipulation and luck combined.
1 Tim. 4:1-5 - We ought to be thanking God for every blessing, every small blessing, every small goodness, every large goodness, every little thing that God provides for us.
1 Cor. 14:13-17 - The early church made thanksgiving an actual part of their fellowship. Now the thing I want to point out here is it must have been a common part of worship when the people of the Corinthian assembly came together for public thanks. They were singing, they were praying and we do that, and they were saying thanks. Verse 17, "You are giving thanks well enough but when you do it in a way that people can't understand, the other person is not edified." So the point to draw there is that part of the church's celebration of worship involved a time of giving thanks.
We should be doing this in our prayers, in the songs we sing, and by the way we greet and communicate with others in the church.
Two levels of thanksgiving:
Level 1 – 1 Thess. 5:18 – In Everything give thanks
Level 2 – Eph. 5:18-20 – Giving thanks for everything
From the 10:30 Service
HOW TO TURN THANKSGIVING INTO THANKSLIVING
Nov. 20, 2011 / Psalm 107:21-22
Outline: On this Thanksgiving Sunday, I want to pass on to you
five spiritual sacrifices -- sacrifices that you can offer all this week and the rest of your life as unto the Lord. I'm going to call these the Sacrifices of Thanksgiving
1. Your Person - Romans 12:1: Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Notice the emphasis on being a living sacrifice as oppose to a dead one. A dead sacrifice is used once, but a living sacrifice can be used continually.
God puts Paul on his knees and through Paul, God tells us, “I urge or beg you by My mercies, offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to Me, this is your true and proper manner of worship.”
Imagine if you will, Jesus coming to you, getting on His knees before you (which is not hard to imagine since He had done that when He washed the disciples’ feet), and looking up into your face says, “I beg you. . .” Would you do it? And what is the basis of asking this? “The mercies of God.”
Now, how are we to offer ourselves to God?
First – We must do so VOLUNTARILY. You see the word, “present” there in verse 1? That’s a word used of a person who joins an army voluntarily. God loves when His people come to Him with hearts of Thanksgiving and worship Him voluntarily. If it is forced worship, then it does not mean much.
Second – Not only do we offer ourselves to God voluntarily, but also COMPLETELY. Notice what is being offered to God – your body! Not members of your body – hands, feet, but the whole thing.
Note: Here is a passage I need for you to see – Psalm 118:27 - The LORD is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us.
Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar!
Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar!
Did you know that when an animal was killed as a sacrifice, they would cut the meat and tie it to the altar? Why? Because fresh meat is slippery and if not tied down, it will slide off.
Have you ever made a commitment to the Lord and then tend to slide off the alter? I mean, I've told the Lord, I have bowed and declared and said, "Lord, that's the last time I'll ever do that," or I've said, "Lord, from now on I'm going to do this everyday. God, you can count on me," and I just kind of slide off the alter. Do
you ever slide off the alter? You see, we need to be bound to the alter if we're going to be a living sacrifice.
Here are two ways to keep you bound to the altar so as not to slide off:
1. Devotion – Your love for Jesus
2. Discipline – Your commitment to Jesus
2. Your Praise – Heb. 13:15: Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
Now listen to this: This will amaze you – God would rather have your praise than your money. Your praise is of more value to God than whatever you put in the offering. See Ps. 69:30-31: I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving. 31This will please the LORD more than an ox
or a bull with horns and hoofs.
or a bull with horns and hoofs.
Do you know how much an ox was worth in this day? That
would be like saying, "I'm going to give my car. I 'm going to give my Cadillac. I'm going to give my Mercedes." An ox was extremely valuable. A man who had an ox was a wealthy man, but God says here that your praise, your psalm of thanksgiving will please the Lord more than your material gifts.
Now, I want to tell you that praise is no substitute for your
material gifts, but to show you that your praises to God blesses His heart so much more than what you possess. Why? Because when you put money in the offering, you do it once for the whole week. But praising God ought to be a way of life.
Now look at Heb. 13:15 again and notice this: “Let us CONTINUALLY offer up. . .
Remember this: You do not come to church to praise the Lord. You bring your praise with you to church.
3. Your Prayer - Ps. 141:2 - Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!
This verse says that our prayers to the Lord ought to be like two things: Incense and like an evening sacrifice. What does this mean? “Incense” is perfume. At home, I use incense sticks, which are really perfume sticks. When I light them, the smoke gives off a sweet perfume smell that permeates the room, and when it does, the smell pleases me. So it is with your prayers. When you pray, God smells the perfume and sweetness of your prayers and it pleases Him.
What is meant by the evening offering? Prayer is a sacrifice, right? Well, prayer isn’t something that should be done once a day and that’s it. It is something we should be doing throughout the day. Ps. 55:16-17: But I call to God, and the LORD will save me. 17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.
4. Your Possessions – Heb. 13:16 - Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
When we share with others our resources, that’s a pleasing sacrifice to God. When you open up your home for church gathering or bible study. . .when you bless someone financially. . when you share your clothes, food, or other material items, God is pleased with your sacrifice. If you are serious in turning your Thanksgiving into Thanksliving, then show it by your giving.
One major issue that Christian struggle with is giving to God their first fruits, i.e. their best. This is how we usually give to the Lord – we get a paycheck, we then pay the bills. . .and whatever is left we take a percentage from that and put it in the offering. So what we are basically doing is tipping God.
But giving in the bible has to so with receiving from the Lord a paycheck, giving him what is His, and then using the rest for our needs. You see, we often think, “How much should I give?” When a better question to ask is, “How much should I keep?” We talk about seeking the kingdom of God first until it deal with money and then Matt. 6:33 is the furthest from our minds.
Prov. 3:9-10: Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; 10then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.
Now, folks listen, we don't give to the church because the church needs it. It's a sacrifice to God. Friend, if there were not a need in this world, and if we just took the money that was given on Sunday and burned it up, it would still be a blessing to give it because giving is an act of worship.
That's what they did with the Old Testament sacrifices, they
burned them up. They weren't given to meet a need, they were given to God. It was put on an alter and it was consumed. It didn't serve any utilitarian purpose. We give to God as a sacrifice of His goodness to us.
5. Your Purity – Ps. 51:16-17: For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
17The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
17The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
David, who wrote this Psalm had sinned. This is why he wrote in verse 1 - Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
Because David sinned, he had to get right with God. And no amount of religious activity will do it. What God wants to see is a heart that is truly repentant and broken before Him.
But do you know what led David back to God? It was not David’s badness, but God’s goodness. He understood God to be gracious, merciful and compassionate.
This thanksgiving season, why not turn your Thanksgiving into Thanksliving – Offer to God your Person, Praise, Prayer, Possessions and Purity. These are the things that God is after. These are the things that really impress Him the most.