Giving Thanks for God's Goodness
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Happy Thanksgiving!
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Giving Thanks for God's Goodness
"O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever." Psalm 118:1
Several times do we find the above words and similar in the Word of God. They express to us the importance of thanking God for what He is and not just for what He does for us. In fact, we see here that the good things He does for us flow out of the very goodness of His infinite, holy character.
So many times I hear other preachers and myself trying to remind us that we should give thanks in the midst of what we perceive to be the negative or bad things in life. And well we should, for we are commanded, "In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." (I Thessalonians 5:18). However, if we have a proper reason and motivation for giving thanks we will be much better able to give thanks properly whether our situation in life seems good or bad.
A Perfect Reason to Give Thanks: God's Goodness
The Goodness of God
One main reason why we should give thanks to God is that He is good in Himself and by Himself. He is so good that He hasn't the slightest speck or hint of badness in His character. Goodness is one of God's moral attributes. Since He is also eternal and unchanging, we therefore know that He has always been good and will forever continue to be just as good.
His Goodness Revealed to Us through Mercy
Out of God's eternal goodness He shows mercy to mankind who have despicably sinned against Him. It is this wondrous mercy that helps us to see His goodness and love. The practical means by which God could show us mercy and still be consistent with His justice is the sacrifice of His Son to redeem us. Since we needed mercy and He has given it, we then have a special reason to take notice of His goodness and to thank Him for it.
A Proper Response to God's Goodness: Giving Thanks
It is our Duty
We owe God a great debt and should give Him thanks. Through all that He has done for us we see that have a great responsibility to give Him thanks for His goodness.
It is our Delight
However, our motive for giving of thanks to God should go much deeper than the sense of duty. Notice that the psalmist said, "O give thanks" -- the O is an interjection which shows the emotion of the psalmist as he proclaims what should be done as though he also very much desires that it be done.
God, by being so good and kind to us by loving us at such great cost to Himself, is attempting to enter into a personal love relationship with each one of us. He desires that we love Him in return. If we truly love Him, our giving of thanks will naturally, willingly and readily spring out of that love back to God.
"By him", Jesus "therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name." (Hebrews 13:15)
Martin Overfield
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