"How Are we to be Thankful-in the Name of Jesus Christ" (Eph. 5:20)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 7/31/2019 10:10 AM

 

My Worship Time      Focus: PT-2 “How are we to be thankful?—in the name of Jesus Christ”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Eph. 5:20

 

            Message of the verses:  “always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;”

 

            We spoke about the fact that if a person is not a true born-again believer that they really have nothing to be thankful for.  That may sound a bit strange, but as far as eternal things an unbeliever only has a future without Christ, which of course means hell, and so why would a person be truly thankful in this life without Christ.  The unbeliever “does not have the promise of heirship in God’s family and citizenship in God’s kingdom –or any other of the wonderful promises of Christ.  He does not have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and cannot have the filling.  He cannot be thankful for everything because for him everything does not give a reason for thanks.  He sees only the present, not eternal glory” (MacArthur).

 

            The total opposite is true of the child of God as he is indwelt by Christ, and is a joint heir with Him, and also does have the Son interceding for him at the Father’s right hand.  That is truly something to be thankful for.  And as the Holy Spirit fills the believer, he is cleansed from sin and made more and more into the conformity of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

            I believe that one of the aspects of being filled with the Spirit can be seen in things that Christ did while on earth for He was continually in contact with His Father through praying.  We can see for example, in Matthew 15:36, similar to Mark 8:6 the following “and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and giving thanks, He broke them and started giving them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.”  Another example of His thankfulness is seen just before He brought Lazarus back from the dead “41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised His eyes, and said, "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42 “I knew that You always hear Me; but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me’” (John 11:41-42).  Luke 22:19 is another example “And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’”

 

            John MacArthur writes “Jesus was ridiculed, despised, scorned, rejected, spat upon, blasphemed, beaten, and finally crucified.  Yet because of His great humility He always gave thanks in all things.  He deserved glory but received humiliation, deserved love but received hate, and deserved honor but received dishonor.  He deserved praise but received scorn, deserved riches but received poverty, and deserved holiness but was made sin on our behalf.  Yet He never lost His thankfulness to His heavenly Father, because He ‘Emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, that being made in the likeness of men.  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross’ (Phil. 2:7-8).

 

            “Because Jesus emptied Himself to the point of giving His own life, He is able to fill us with everything of which He emptied Himself, including life.  We deserve humiliation, but in Christ we receive glory.  We deserve to be hated but instead are loved, and deserve dishonor but receive honor.  We deserve scorn but are given praise, deserve poverty but are given riches, and deserve sin’s curse of death but are given righteousness and eternal life.  For what can we not give thanks?”

 

            I have to say that what I have just quoted is a lot to digest, and so perhaps it is something we all need to meditate on.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I have to say that the Lord is truly teaching me things about humility, and even thought there has been some spiritual struggles I am going through, the teaching of humility is worth the struggles and I believe that the enemy does not want me to learn what the Bible teaches me about humility.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  To trust the Lord to continue to teach me humility.

 

Matthew 6:14-15 are the verses that go along with yesterday’s quotation from Thomas Fuller:  “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

 

7/31/2019 10:49 AM