A Debt A Genuine Gratitude

A Debt of Genuine Gratitude

Introduction: There is perhaps no worse feeling than to feel unappreciated. Truthfully, we don't want people to disregard the things we do for them, especially if its something that took much time and effort. Things we have toiled with or made significant sacrifices to accomplish for others; when they are overlook or taken for granted can cause some serious problems.

As we look at verse three we find that it begins what is one sentence which goes ll the way to verse fourteen.

FCF: We take the gifts of God for Granted.

Proposition: We are in-debt to God. Though we can not repay Him monetarily we can offer Him Genuine Gratitude, through our praise.

Transition: Paul continues his theme of God by immediately pointing to the necessity of every believer to praise God.

I. We Owe God Praise for Whom He Is (3a)

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ"

The paragraph begins in the form of a Jewish benediction. In the New Testament the word blessed (eulogētos) is used only of God. He alone is worthy to be blessed. People are blessed when they receive his blessings; God is blessed when he is praised for all that he freely bestows on humanity and on his world.

Blessed - worthy of praise or blessing; in the NT only of God and Christ blessed, to be praised ()

Praise is really the chief object of all public acts of worship. We all need to examine ourselves at this point. We must remember that the primary purpose of worship is to give praise and thanksgiving to God. Worship should be of the mind and of the heart. It does not merely mean repeating certain phrases mechanically; it means the heart going out in fervent praise to God. We should not come to God’s house simply to seek blessings and to desire various things for ourselves, or even simply to listen to sermons; we should come to worship and adore God. ‘Blessed be the God and Father’ is always to be the starting point, the highest point.

This new description of God is one of the most important statements in the New Testament. Go back to the Old Testament and you will find God described as ‘the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ God also speaks of Himself as ‘the God of Israel’, but now we have ‘the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.’ This is in order to teach us that all the blessings that come to us come in and through the Lord Jesus Christ

a. He is the orchestrator of our salvation

-It couldn't happen without His say so

- God loved us so much He sacrificed His own Son for us.

b. Paul emphasizes Christ as Lord because of our necessity to accept Him as Savior of our Lives.

ILLUS:

Praise is a natural and necessary response to fully enjoy the object that is praised. For example, when watching a football game on television, it is a natural response to praise a tremendous play. To shout WOW! after an acrobatic catch in the end zone is not only natural, but necessary to fully enjoy the spectacular play. If you do not believe that it is necessary, the next time you watch a football game try to not express yourself at all. You will quickly find that you do not enjoy the action nearly as much as you do when you have the freedom to express yourself in praise and excitement.

Application:

Praise God for Jesus!

II. We Owe God Praise for What He Has Done (3b)

"who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ"

God has blessings for all sorts and conditions of men. For instance, the Sermon on the Mount gives our Lord’s teaching that God ‘maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good’ (). But for the Christian there are some special blessings which we are entitled to.

a. He has given us all spiritual blessings

1. in heavenly places

2. in Christ

- He is the only channel; there is only ‘one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus’ ().

ILLUS:

Application:

Praise God for His blessings!

Conclusion: