Scripture: Romans 1:20-25, Philippians 4:4-7, Matthew 26:26-28, 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18
In this, our 4th week of considering the
attitudes and call that John Wesley places on us through his tract “The
Character of a Methodist”, we come to his thoughts on the necessity
and extent of having a heart filled with thanksgiving. For many in our nation, Thanksgiving is a
holiday in late November, and for the rest of the year, thankfulness is
something that we have for only a few, major events and gifts that come into
our lives.
But Wesley wrote “From him therefore he
cheerfully receives all, saying, Good is the will of the LORD:
and whether the LORD giveth or taketh away,
equally blessing the name of the LORD.” In more contemporary words, we might say that
we are being called to be thankful for all that comes into our lives, whether
we appreciate them or not.
Of course this isn’t always easy! But 2 Corinthians4:15 tells us “All this is for your benefit, so
that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to
overflow to the glory of God.” That word “ALL” is the key, and if we give thanks
for all, that will certainly be a lot of praise lifted up to
the LORD!
So why should we ever be expected to give
thanks for the bad stuff, like the betrayals, the pain, the loss, the struggle,
the darkness that comes into our lives?
Does God really expect us to thank Him for the terrible things that “try
men’s souls”?
Thomas Payne wrote those words during a time of
great distress, as an encouragement to the American colonists to take a stand
for what was right, in spite of the consequences, and to be thankful for the sacrifice. The quote continued
with this – “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer solder and the sunshine patriot
will, in the crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands
it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” It is a very short step, indeed, to move this
into a scriptural context with the words “Don’t let your faith be shallow - give
thanks to God in all things, regardless of what may be happening”.
So today, we will consider what some other biblical
passages would have us know about the constantly thankful heart.
Read Romans 1:20-25
Paul begins by saying that no
one has any excuse for not experiencing and understanding that the existence of
creation is all the evidence that we will ever need to know that God deserves
all the praise we can muster. For it is
the proof that the LORD’s infinite power and perfect nature is an unavoidable
truth.
Unfortunately, all too many
believe that if you can’t see it, and can’t easily prove it, it probably needs
to be questioned! Paul isn’t suggesting
that this recognition will be our salvation, but instead proclaims the
acknowledgment that God is who He says He is, and rightfully demands our
allegiance.
And for this reason, the
unavoidable evidence deserves our thanksgiving!
But God never forces us to praise Him for all that is, and even allows
us to make our own way in this world.
The apostle tells us that when we choose to go our separate way, and to offer
our gratitude to the things of creation, instead of to the One who did
the creating, we accept futility and foolishness for the way of the life that
we claim.
But futility and foolishness
isn’t some new chain of thought in Paul’s day – it all began in Eden when the
two people chose to not only ignore God’s ways, but to make their attempt to
mimic them on their own behalf! This is
equivalent to humanity’s patting themselves on the back for being so smart and
capable, instead of giving God the glory and admiration for doing so much for
us. And when we do, our very lives turn
out to be a lie instead of praise for the truth of our Almighty God.
Putting creation, which
includes ourselves, above the Creator can never be a good idea, and yet, the
masses of earth do it every moment of every day! So much for living in covenant with God! Free will is one of His great blessings, but
it is also one that we sometimes turn around to produce our very own curse!
Read Philippians 4:4-7
Interestingly, Paul’s
phrasing makes the point that the presence of gentleness in our life, as well
as the absence of anxiety, is the reason for our praise and glorification of
the LORD. The apostle
also tells us that whenever we pray, regardless of the overriding issues we
lift up, we must do it thankfully.
Now this doesn’t mean that a
heart that is troubled, or fearful, or anxious over some impending trial has
lost hold of their faith! Remember that
in Matthew 26:39, as Jesus was praying in the Garden, He fervently asked
the Father that if it was at all possible, to remove the Cup that He would be
facing at Calvary.
This does mean, though, that
if we honor the LORD in spite of our struggle, and give praise for all
that will come because of the trial that is before us, the peace of
Christ, the same peace that He knew on the cross, will sustain us and enable us
to bear the trial with a thankful heart and soul.
Read Matthew 26:26-28
This passage will be familiar
to everyone who participates in Communion.
It occurred but a few hours before Jesus would be arrested and condemned
to die by crucifixion. The central theme
here is actually the thanks that Christ was offering to the Father for the
opportunity to be the source and means of our salvation!
He knew that He would not
only be taking on sin, but it would be the sin of the entire world for all time,
for this was the only way that we could ever know God’s forgiveness. He knew that His 3 days of death, and subsequent
resurrection to life, would be the only thing that could stand against our
eternal condemnation, and that by His great gift, we could, in turn, know life
everlasting.
His words of thanksgiving
were for the opportunity to serve His Father in this new way, as well as for
the divine blessing that would come to all who gave thanks for the commitment
that Jesus was about to make on our behalf.
I pray that we will always
see this means for our thanksgiving every time we receive the
sacramental gifts of Body and Blood, given in thanksgiving by our LORD
and Savior.
Read 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18
This passage is not intended to be individual
guidance in our efforts of faith, but for the church as a whole. It is calling us to be united in faith, to
reach out to all whose faith is marginal, especially to those in the church,
and to be a Christian example in all that we do. And Paul reemphasizes His call to be gentle
and never anxious, regardless of what we may be facing.
John Wesley wrote similar thoughts in his tract
about the characteristics that each and every methodist should exhibit. “He is therefore careful (anxiously or
uneasily careful) for nothing: As having cast all his care on Him that careth
for him, and in all things resting on him, after making his request known to
Him with thanksgiving.”
John Wesley and the Apostle Paul were certainly in
tune with each other, as well as with Jesus when they call us to live our life
in Godly, consistent, and faithful ways, and to give thanks for whatever that
might come our way – for joy, for a divine relationship, and for all that our
Almighty God will do for us, and through these humble and
grateful lives we have been given.
“give thanks in all circumstances; for this is
God’s will for [each of us] in Christ Jesus”. This is the Christian character that all
methodists are called to live by. May it
be so for both you and me.
Amen.
