Top 7 Reasons to be Thankful

Psalm 100 ESV

A Psalm for giving thanks. Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

Introduction: Charles Dickens said that we are somewhat mixed up here in America. He told an audience that instead of having one Thanksgiving Day each year we should have 364.

"Use that one day just for complaining and griping," he said. "Use the other 364 days to thank God each day for the many blessings He has showered upon you."

Psalm 100 is an owners manual on how to be thankful on a daily basis. It is the only Psalm that is specifically mentioned as a Psalm for giving thanks.

The word gratitude or variations of that word appears 157 times in the Bible. Thanks or thanksgiving appears 72 times. As you know, when the Bible mentions something frequently, we ought to take notice because it is important.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, let’s look at the top 7 reasons why we ought to be thankful at this season of the year.

Number 7 - The LORD is God (v. 3)

I could end the sermon right there and that would be enough to be thankful about.

If you notice, with the exception of a handful of translations, the word LORD is in funny little capital letters. Any time you see it that way in your Bibles, it is the sacred name of God, YHWH. Y H W H - Yohd-we-waw-we

(Ancient Hebrew didn’t have vowels.)

The LSB Translation puts it this way:

Psalm 100:3 LSB

Know that Yahweh, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

YHWH is the self-existing one.

The Jews had such reverence for this name of God that they refused to say the name out loud for fear of taking the name of God in vain. They would substitute the word Adoni (Lord) for YHWH.

Using this word distinguishes the God of the Bible from the gods (little g) of the Canaanites and surrounding nations.

These gods from the surrounding nations are nothing more than dumb idols that have no power to deliver.

Prayers are answered by Him. Their gods can’t.

Protection is provided by Him. Their gods can’t

Forgiveness and eternal life through His Son are granted by Him. Their gods can’t

The assurance "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee" is given by Him. Their gods can’t

Regardless of the challenges in your life today, God is still Lord!

Regardless of who holds power in the White House, the Kremlin, or Buckingham Palace, God remains Lord!

Your feelings aside, God is still Lord!

He maintains constant control.

His authority is supreme.

Nothing eludes His awareness.

He is never caught off guard!

He is YHWH

What should our responses be to the truth that the LORD is God.

We should Shout His praises...

We should Serve Him with gladness...

We should Sing joyfully before Him...

Number 6 - The Lord is Creator (v. 3)

“It is He who made us...”

No one is the product of chance, plus matter, plus time. No one is a cosmic accident. Your great, great, great, great, great granddaddy didn’t swing from tree branches and eat bananas. He didn’t crawl out of some primordial ooze one day and begin walking on land.

To believe that there is no creator or designer is to believe that nothing created everything. All life came from non-life. All matter came from non-matter.

Illus. God is sitting in Heaven when a scientist says to Him, "Lord, we don't need you anymore. Science has finally figured out a way to create life out of nothing. In other words, we can now do what you did in the beginning." "Oh, is that so? Tell me..." replies God. "Well", says the scientist, "we can take dirt and form it into the likeness of you and breathe life into it, thus creating man." "Well, that's interesting. Show Me." So the scientist bends down to the earth and starts to mold the soil. "Oh no, no, no..." interrupts God, "Create your own dirt."

It is far more logical to me to believe that, “In the beginning, God...” than it is to believe in the beginning, nothing became something which became everything.

You know why men are so enamored by the idea of evolution?

The Psalmist says, “We are his...”

In our rebellious hearts, we reason that if we don’t believe God exists, we won’t be accountable to him.

The Bible has a word for that...

Romans 1:18–20 ESV

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.

Number 5 - God is Our Father (v. 3)

“We are His people...”

Romans 8:15–16 ESV

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

John 1:12–13 ESV

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

If you have received Christ as your Lord and Savior, than you can look to him as the perfect Father.

He has promised to be a father to the fatherless.

You were born the first time into an earthly family. You need to born again a second time into the Heavenly family. As part of God’s family, he is your Father and you are his son or daughter.

Christian, your Heavenly Father loves you.

Christian, your Heavenly Father hears your prayers.

Christian, your Heavenly Father corrects you.

Christian, your Heavenly Father protects you.

Christian, your Heavenly Father is looking out for you.

Number 4 - Jesus is Our Shepherd (v. 3)

“We are…the sheep of His pasture.”

John 10:27–28 ESV

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Psalm 23 ESV

A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

The shepherd is the one who takes good care of his flock. He provides, he guides, he leads, He gives peace, he heals, he corrects, he protects, he comforts, he prepares us, he anoints us, he pursues us with his goodness and mercy, and he causes us to live with him forever!

If you can’t be thankful for that, then I don’t know what you can be thankful for.

Number 3 - The Lord is Good (v. 5)

When we say, the Lord is good, we mean that there are no evil intentions in Him. He always has the best of intentions toward us. He knows what is right and best for us and will always do that.

Does that mean he will keep you from calamity? Not always. Sometimes we need trials. Sometimes we need correction.

Hebrews 12:6–7 ESV

For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

Contrast that with the gods of the heathen. They were not good. They were capricious and had to be appeased. You never knew when those gods might turn against you.

Your heavenly father is good even though things may be going bad for you.

And, he is the standard by which all good or evils are judged.

Illus. Corrie ten Boom shares some insight with us about the goodness of God. Cornelia “Corrie” ten Boom was a Dutch watchmaker who, along with her family, harbored hundreds of Jews amid the Nazi Holocaust to protect them from arrest during World War II. Her whole family was eventually arrested when the Nazis discovered that they had been helping Jews. This is what she said.

“Often I have heard people say, "How good God is! We prayed that it would not rain for our church picnic, and look at the lovely weather!'" Yes, God is good when He sends good weather. But God was also good when He allowed my sister, Betsie, to starve to death before my eyes in a German concentration camp.

“I remember one occasion when I was very discouraged there. Everything around us was dark, and there was darkness in my heart. I remember telling Betsie that I thought God had forgotten us. "No, Corrie," said Betsie, "He has not forgotten us. Remember His Word: 'For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him.'"

“Corrie concludes, "There is an ocean of God's love available--there is plenty for everyone. May God grant you never to doubt that victorious love--whatever the circumstances."

The Lord is good no matter what happens to us.

Romans 8:28 CSB

We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.

Number 2 - The Lord’s Mercy is Everlasting (v. 5)

There is no limit to the mercy and lovingkindness of our God.

illus. “There is more grace in God’s heart than there is sin in your past.” — Erwin W. Lutzer

Illus. In a small cemetery of a parish churchyard in Olney, England, stands a granite tombstone with this inscription: “John Newton, clerk [pastor], once an infidel and Libertine, a servant of slavers in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the Faith he had long labored to destroy.” You may not remember his name, but all of us know the song he wrote as a testimony of his life: “Amazing Grace.”

Lamentations 3:22–23 ESV

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

The ultimate picture of God’s mercy is seen at the cross.

God’s wrath for sinners was placed on the shoulders of Jesus Christ. When a person believes in Christ, he receives eternal life and shall never perish. If a person rejects Christ, the the wrath of God remains on them.

John 3:36 ESV

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

Illus. Ray Pritchard: The story is told about an elderly country woman named Betty who trusted in Christ for salvation. One of her skeptical friends heard about it, and intending to make fun of her, asked if she had indeed become one of the saints. “Yes, I have,” she replied. “Well,” said the skeptic, “are you now an expert in theology?” “I’m no Bible scholar,” Betty replied. “I’m simply positive that God loves me enough that he’d rather go to hell than have me go there, and that God loves me enough that he’d rather leave heaven and die than for me not to get to heaven to be with him.”

The skeptic insisted, “Is that all you know about it? Can’t you at least explain what being saved by grace means—that is one of your central doctrines, isn’t it?” Betty thought for a moment, then answered with these words: “Jesus stood in my shoes at Calvary, now I’m standing in his.”

Number 1 - The Lord’s Truth Endures Through all Generations (v. 5)

The word translated “truth” here has also been translated as faithfulness. The word carries the idea of steadiness or firmness.

God is faithful to every generation of those who trust Him.

Sometimes we get concerned for our children and our grandchildren because of the increase in wickedness and danger in our society.

But God has given us His promise that He will be faithful to the next generation of believers as he has been to this generation and all generations in the past.

Hebrews 13:8 ESV

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.