Gratitude is not Thanksgiving

Gratitude is not about who we like or don’t like

This evening we are going to pick back up where we left off Wed. Night where we began talking about gratitude is not thanksgiving.

When I say thanksgiving I am not talking about giving thanks to God.

Thanksgiving is not just the 4th Thursday where we all try to get together with family and friends and eat a bunch of good food.

Thanksgiving is supposed to be given daily and the word we are looking at for that is gratitude.

We learned Wed. that Gratitude is an expression of our faith that goes beyond how we feel about a particular experience.

But this evening I want us to look at how gratitude is not about who we like or don’t like.

Gratitude should be a reacquiring theme in the heart and on the tongue of every christian.

We are not only created to live in community with each other but as believers we are called to be in community with other believers in the family of God.

We are brothers and sisters in Christ.

Loving every one is one of the identifying marks of being a christian.

John 13:34–35 (KJV 1900)

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.

That is something how Jesus could say many other things as to how people will know we are his disciples.

He could have said by the way you look, by the way you walk, by the way you talk, by the way you dress, by the way you fix your hair, by how much money you give.

But he didn’t he said by our love for one another that is how men will know we are his disciples.

Now God is not just saying we are going to be identified by how we just love our christian brothers and sisters. Jesus is concerned about how we love everyone.

Loving even the ones you don’t like.

We are chosen people.

1 Peter 2:9 KJV 1900

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

We are going to be judged on how we treat other people especially those ones who are different from us.

God has challenged us not to be conformed to this world

Romans 12:2 KJV 1900

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

I want us to look at the last part of V-13 down to V-15.

1 Thessalonians 5:13–18 KJV 1900

And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Living with a grateful attitude helps us relate to other people whether we like them or not with kindness.

Grateful people are gracious people .

The bible says be at peace among yourselves. Here Paul is talking to the church he is speaking directly to believers.

He is calling them to a specific behavior that is different from the world.

Paul is saying we have to be different from the world.

If saved people would constantly remind themselves what Jesus done for them at Calvary. There would be no offense that is to great that we could not find a way to come to a peaceful resolution with any problem we have with someone.

We have peace with God because of what he did for us at calvary.

Grateful people are responsive to the needs of others.

Look at V-14

1 Thessalonians 5:14 KJV 1900

Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.

If we are truly grateful then we will have a gracious response to the needs of other people.

There are 4 things here that Paul said we should give, warn them that are unruly, comfort the febbleminded, support the weak and be patient toward all men.

These are all gracious responses to all people especially those who are lost without Christ.

Paul says first we are to warn them that are unruly, there are people everywhere that have found themselves lost in sin.

We are to lovingly warn them to get off that path that is leading them to a life of destruction.

Then Paul says we are to comfort the febbleminded. These people are trying there best in life but are just facing all kinds of challenges.

They may be depressed we are to encourage them or to comfort them.

This is what Paul tells the people at the church of Thessolonica when they were worried about what was happening to there loved ones and friends that were dying. They were worried that they were going to miss the coming of the Lord.

1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 (KJV 1900)

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

Notice the last part here he says “comfort one another with these words.

Paul is telling us to do the same when we come in contact with a person that is febbleminded, struggling we are to comfort them .

Paul then tells us we should support the weak. we here all the time the statement that “God will help those who help themselves”

The bible does not say that anywhere. In Ishiah 40 the bible tells us that God gives power to the weak.

We who are god’s children should do everything we can to support those that are weak.

The weak are those who fall into temptation very easily, those who are weary from the struggles in life.

No matter what the issue is we are not to abandon those people people who are weak around us. We are to as Paul says we are to help the week along the way and be patient.

Patience is the picture the even tempered response to one that is slow to anger. I had an issue with that this evening when Benz. decided she was just going to take off walking to her mamas house after lunch.

Finally grateful people who are gracious. are reconciling people V-15

1 Thessalonians 5:15 KJV 1900

See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.

Here is the reality we can do our best to be patient and graceful to everyone but there will come a time when people even your brothers and sisters in Christ is going to do something to make you angry.

Then we are going to respond sooner or later in a way that is not Christlike.

We are giving some instructions in this verse. We are not to return evil for evil. If we live with that kind of attitude things are not going to work out well for you or nobody else.

If we are truly grateful for what God has done for us we should be a grateful people we should live in a way where we are always looking for ways to reconsilate with people other that going the route returning evil for evil.

2 Corinthians 5:18–19 KJV 1900

And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

When we think about reconciliation there is the offender and then the offended many times a third party is called in right not to takes sides but to try and mediate between the two.

Most of the time it is the offender who initiates the reconciliation with the offended, but when it comes to us the offenders against God he is the offended.

When it comes to God he doesn’t wait for us to do anything he has took the matters into his own hands. He brings in the third party who is Jesus the mediator.

What does Jesus always do no matter what it is we have done against him. He is faithful and just to forgive us.

To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

When we have sinned and it comes time to settle our sin debt God is so merciful that he chooses not to hold us to account for our sin. He sentJesus to take the sins of this world and die a death that he should have never had to die. So that we could be reconciled with him.

When it comes to those people we don’t like and to those that have offended us we need to always remember what Jesus done for us and show that same grace to our offenders.

We should not be seeking revenge returning evil for evil but we should be offering reconciliation.

Never forget one of the ways we express gratitude towards God is how we relate to others with grace, compassion, kindness and love.