REASONS TO GIVE THANKS TO GOD

THE TREASURES OF CHRISTMAS: THE LORD’S BLESSING

THE NATURE OF THANKFULNESS

THANKFULNESS MUST BE DIRECTED

Responsive Reading: (Congregation read bold)

Psalm 136

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,

for his steadfast love endures forever.

Thank you, God of gods,

Your steadfast love endures forever.

Thank you, Lord of lords,

Your steadfast love endures forever;

You alone do great wonders, and

your steadfast love endures forever;

and your steadfast love endures forever; You, by understanding made the heavens, and your steadfast love endures forever; You spread out the earth above the waters, and your steadfast love endures forever; You who made the heavenly bodies and your steadfast love to us endures forever; You made the sun to rule over the day, the moon and stars to rule over the night, and your steadfast love to us endures forever; You have led us through our wilderness, because your steadfast love to us endures forever; You have remembered us in our low estate, because your steadfast love to us endures forever;

You, by understanding made the heavens, and

your steadfast love endures forever;

You spread out the earth above the waters, and

and

your steadfast love endures forever;

You who made the heavenly bodies and

your steadfast love to us endures forever;

You made the sun to rule over the day, the moon and stars to rule over the night, and

your steadfast love to us endures forever;

You have led us through our wilderness, because

your steadfast love to us endures forever;

You have remembered us in our low estate, because

your steadfast love to us endures forever;

You rescued us from our foes, sin, Satan, and death because

your steadfast love to us endures forever;

You give us the Holy Spirit, for the good of our flesh, Because

your steadfast love to us endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven,

for his steadfast love endures forever!!

THANKFULNESS WILL BE DIRECTED

Towards Someone.

Proximate: Those whom God’s goodness is mediated through.

Ultimate: The Source of all goodness.

Luke 1:10–14 NASB95

10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering. 11 And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense. 12 Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John. 14 “You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.

We thank the Lord because He

Hears our prayers.

Answers us personally.

We can count on Him to meet our

Needs, not always our wants.

We can trust He will always be

Kind to His children.

And I can hardly imagine how different my work would be, how hard my job would be if God were not good. • What would I say to the person whose doctor tells him to put his affairs in order because he’s probably got only a few months to live? “Good luck”? • What could I offer the widow standing beside the grave of her saintly husband? “There’s always a chance God might let him into heaven”? • What could I say to the sinner desperately seeking God’s forgiveness? “Go ahead and ask, maybe God will forgive you and maybe He won’t”? • What could I share with the lonely person in a broken marriage who just wants to know that God will be there for her? “I hope God will be there for you, but who knows? You better not count on it.” If God were not good, the best I could do is encourage wishful thinking instead of hope, raise doubt instead of faith, offer maybes instead of promises. V The goodness of God is a very big deal. Something we so often take for granted is so very critical to our present and our eternity. No wonder the psalmist calls us to pay attention to it and say thanks for it: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. For his steadfast love endures forever.” Maybe the bottom line virtue in God’s goodness is that we can trust Him to keep His promises and to keep us in His never-ending love. • When God says, “I will never leave you or forsake you,” He means it … all the time. • When God says, “I am working for good in your circumstances when you love me and are called according to my purpose,” He means it … all the time. • When God says, “If you confess your sins I am faithful and just to forgive your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness,” He means it … all the time. • And when God says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live,” He means it … all the time. And when life gets dark, when circumstances are overwhelming, and when it feels like all is lost, being able to trust God in the darkness, even when we don’t feel His presence or His help … well, it just means everything. It’s the difference between despair and hope. It’s the difference between anxiety and peace. It’s the difference between giving up and going on. “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. For his steadfast love endures forever.” God is good. His love endures forever. But don’t misunderstand the goodness of God. God’s goodness doesn’t mean that He’ll answer every prayer the way we want it. It doesn’t mean trouble will never pay us a visit. It doesn’t mean life will be easy. We live in a fallen world full of trouble and woe, and sooner or later we’re going to face our share of it or maybe even more than our share. Sometimes we’ll make decisions that bring problems on ourselves. Being a wise and loving Father, God may even put us under the pain of His discipline for a greater purpose than we can understand in the moment. Sometimes God’s goodness doesn’t look like a Christmas present; sometimes it looks like a cross. So don’t misunderstand the goodness of God. God’s goodness doesn’t mean life is one big strawberry sundae. But it does mean that even when we’re getting brussel sprouts instead of ice cream, God is with us—leading, working, helping, loving, keeping, and empowering us to be more than a conqueror through Christ who loved us. “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. For his steadfast love endures forever.”

Luke 1:16–17 NASB95

16 “And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. 17 “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Luke 1:

We can thank Him because he provides

Salvation to all who turn to Him.