FORGET NOT HIS BENEFITS

Introduction

An atheist was walking through the woods, admiring all the "accidents" that evolution had created. "What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals! All by chance!" he said to himself.

~As he was walking alongside the river, he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. Turning to look, he saw a 7-foot grizzly bear charge towards him. He ran away as fast as he could up the path.

He looked over his shoulder and saw the grizzly was closing. Somehow he ran even faster, so scared that tears came to his eyes. He looked again, and the bear was even closer. His heart was pounding, and he tried to run faster. He tripped and fell to the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up, but the bear was right over him, reaching for him with its left paw and raising its right paw to strike him.

~At that instant the atheist cried, "Oh God!"

Time stopped. The bear froze. The forest was silent. Even the river stopped moving.

As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky, "You deny My existence for all these years, teach others that I don't exist, and even credit creation to a cosmic accident. Do you expect Me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?"

~The atheist looked directly into the light and said, "I would feel like a hypocrite to become a Christian after all these years, but perhaps you could make the bear a Christian?"

"Very well," said the voice.

~The light went out. The river ran. The sounds of the forest resumed. Then the bear dropped his right paw, brought both paws together, bowed his head, and said: "Lord, for this food which I am about to receive, I am truly thankful."

-This crazy story makes me question: when is it that we give thanks to the Lord----many times it is around the dinner table, we say grace and thank God for food----sometimes on Thanksgiving we may give God thanks, usually for family, food, and football

-Now that I think about it, a lot of the thanksgiving we give God seems to revolve around food (which definitely proves we’re Southern Baptist)----but has God done anything for you or given you anything that doesn’t revolve around food? There is no doubt about it? So why don’t we spend time to thank God for all of it? God took the time to give it…

-We try as parents to teach our kids to be polite and say thank you when they receive something or somebody does something for them—but then we adult Christians turn around and can’t even spend a few minutes thanking God for pretty much everything we have?

-I want to see a show of hands—WHO HERE HAS RECEIVED SOME SORT OF BENEFIT FROM THE LORD?—for those of you who didn’t raise your hands you are either not listening to me or maybe you have just forgotten that God is the One working in your life, providing for your every need

-The psalmist tells us not to forget His benefits—don’t ever forget what God gives and does—and then He goes on to list several benefits, some of which I want to touch on today, if anything, to joggle your memory about what exactly it is you have received, and maybe to give you something to think about this Thanksgiving

Psalm 103 ESV

Of David. 1 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. 6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. 7 He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. 8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. 10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 13 As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. 14 For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. 17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children, 18 to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. 19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. 20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! 21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will! 22 Bless the Lord, all his works, in all places of his dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!

I) He Forgives All Your Iniquities

-v. 3a—Let us not forget we are forgiven sinners

-God is a perfectly holy and just God who, by His own character, has to judge sinners for the sins they commit—yet God offers forgiveness through Jesus Christ who took God’s justice on Himself so those who believe on Him do not have to face judgment

-That right there ought to give you enough daily ammo for prayer—if you are in Christ you do not get what you deserve

-And it isn’t only a matter of not getting what we deserve, it is receiving other benefits in the process—I mean, look at vv. 8-12:

8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

9 He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever.

10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

-I want you to put your thinking caps on----just think about all the sins you had in the past year and what miserable state you would be in had God given you what you deserve—and even think about your whole life, what God could have done to you; and yet He didn’t

-You sinned, you spit in His face, you blasphemed His name—and what did He do to you? He loved you; He showed you mercy; He showered you with compassion----did you forget this benefit?

-I don’t know if you have ever heard the name of Marghanita Laski. She was a famous secular humanist and novelist. She was doing a television interview in 1988 not long before she died. She said one of the most amazing, yet haunting, things ever. She said to the host, "What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness; I have nobody to forgive me."

-She was in awe that Christians receive and give forgiveness—yet in denying Christ she could not get it herself—she was in awe of something that we take for granted

-So Christian, thank God for the forgiveness He gives, because every single sin of yours has been taken away from you as far as the East is from the West

II) He Heals All Your Diseases

-God has power and ability to heal us from any disease that is on this earth—however, unlike what the health and wealth folks say, this is not blank check that you will never get sick----when I last looked at the statistics, the death rate is still 100%==even the supposed faith healers and health/wealth folks still die (when a health/wealth guy/gal lives to be 200 yrs old, then come talk to me)

-But, I believe also that the context points back to word soul in v. 1—God heals the diseases of the soul-- God can heal despair and loneliness and anger and discouragement and bitterness and anxiety, etc.

-You know, something we rarely talk about is depression—there is some sort of nonsense of people going around saying that Christians never get depression {like all Christians do is go around and smile all the time and are always happy go lucky}

-To deny that Christians can get depression is a hurtful, dangerous thing—God’s people have dark nights of the soul—I think of Elijah, the great prophet, who had a great spiritual victory when God defeated the false prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel—but then Elijah found out Jezebel was after him, so he ran, and he was in a state of depression, saying things like: “I’m all that’s left of God’s prophets, and now they’re trying to kill me”

-What did God do to Elijah? Did God ridicule him? Did God say, “Get over it!” No, God ministered to him and did a healing work in his life----God treated his body, soul, and spirit, and that’s what depressed people need

-But the thing is you have to accept the healing God is offering—sometimes God uses His Word, sometimes God uses family, sometimes God uses professional counselors—so we have to be open and willing to receive the healing

-Yes, God can heal physically, and we have seen some of that, and we thank God for that—but God can heal spiritually and emotionally, and when He does, we need to thank Him for that too

III) He Redeems Your Life from the Pit

-some versions say “he redeems your life from destruction”—the word means corruption—it refers to living a life of destruction and darkness and corruption—for the most part lost people are in a dark pit, but sometimes us Christians can get ourselves into some pits—and God can and will deliver us from them, and we thank Him for it

-Psalm 40:2

He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.

-Some of you were saved when you were children and you’ve kept with the Lord, so it may be hard to relate to a life in the pit—but some like me, were saved as adults—and I can tell you right now that my life was in the pit; there is no doubt it was a life of destruction: the music I listened to, the language I used, the jokes I would tell, the things I did—but Jesus redeemed me, bought me back to Himself, He got me out of the pit and placed me on the solid rock—did same for you too if you have trusted Christ—you were headed for destruction, living in a pit, and He brought you out

About 20 years ago wide receiver Irving Fryar was named the Miami Dolphin’s most inspirational player. Turning his back on a licentious and abusive lifestyle that left him contemplating suicide, the born-again star now preaches a gospel of hope.

Fryar preached one time saying “Oh, yes! I Know I was lost! I was driving the bus straight to hell and takin’ a bunch of fools with me! Football did not give me peace! Football did not give me joy! Football did not put love in my heart! Football did not get me off drugs! Football did not stop me from drinking! But you know who did it? Jeeeeeeeeesus!”

-Irving could say with thanksgiving that God got Him out of the pit of destruction when he was redeemed, bought back, by Jesus Christ--and all who are born again are on the solid rock of Jesus—that’s something to be thankful for

IV) He Crowns You With Steadfast Love and Mercy

-Think about the words used in that phrase—you are treated like royalty because you are a child of the king—so He crowns us—with what?

-We are crowned with steadfast love=chesed=faithful love—God made certain promises through Jesus Christ, and you can read throughout the NT what they are—each and every one of them is laid on our heads like a crown, a gift of a king for a king

-Mercy=rachamim=compassion—comes from a root that can mean motherly feelings, a love that comes from a deep bond between 2 people (like a mother and child)—the mothers here know what I’m talking about when speak of the compassions of a mother, how the heart yearns for the children, so God’s heart yearns for us, a compassion rooted in His free love and grace

-but not just mom’s, because in v. 13 uses same word, but for Fathers--Psalm 103:13

As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.

-and as I so often speak about the limitless God, His lovingkindness and compassion are just as limitless: Psalm 103:11

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love (chesed) toward those who fear him;

Psalm 103:17

But the steadfast love (chesed) of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children's children

-have you ever thanked God for His faithful love and compassion

V) He Satisfies You With Good Things

-It literally says He satisfies your ornaments with good things, so your youth is renewed like the eagle’s----everyone experiences desires of the soul that need satisfying, and only God can satisfy----many people try to satisfy their souls with many things, but nothing compares to the Lord Jesus Christ----the hunger and thirst that is within you is for Him, and He graciously and abundantly and generously gives of Himself to us so we are satisfied

-Here is how Chuck Swindoll comments on this verse: The idea is that he provides what is enjoyable and satisfying so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. Study the eagle. One of the few creatures of the sky that seem to grow stronger with age. And often in the Old Testament, the eagle is used with reference to the old life becoming fresh and vital all over again, and frequently with the word "renewed."

-Whether you are 3 or 103, satisfy yourself in the Lord and He renews your vigor—no, you may not be able to get around as good as you used to, but your soul, the inner man, is stronger and more vital than it ever has been—that is something to be thankful for

Conclusion

-Alexander Whyte loved this passage of Scripture and put it together in a neat little nutshell. He said this, "in these verses, we have the law court. 'He pardons all your iniquities.' We have the hospital. 'He heals all your diseases.' We have the slave market. 'He redeems your life from the pit.' The throne room. 'For he crowns you with loving kindness and compassion.' And the banquet hall. 'For he satisfies your spirit with good things.'"----David really hit a lot of areas in this thing called life, the benefits God gives—are we beyond just thanking God for just our food and matured enough to thank Him for these?

-A Grandmother babysat her three-year-old grandson for the weekend. The first night at dinner the grandmother said, "Let's thank God for our food." Not used to this practice at home, the grandson said, "No! I don't want to!" The grandmother calmly replied, "Well, at Grandma's house, we do say thank you before we eat." "You can't make me," protested the grandson. Determined to win this battle, his grandmother said more emphatically, "If we don't pray, we don't eat." "Well," the youngster replied, "I’d say it if you would have made mashed potatoes."

-I wonder if we get picky like that, concentrating on what we don’t have instead of thanking God for the benefits we do have----so, even if there aren’t mashed potatoes, let us be thankful for all the many benefits that God has bestowed upon us, not just in this season, but all year long

-Christian, come to the altar and give Him thanks

-But some here have nothing to thank God for because you don’t know God and don’t realize what He has done for you—He has given Jesus, who will save you from your sin if you come to Him…