Sermon Tone Analysis

Ps 96

Introduction

Thanksgiving as a holiday has almost ignored commercially (except for grocery stores) and the focus is the frenzy of the consumerism

I am grateful for the reminder Thanksgiving is for me...

What am I thankful for?

Why?

It is good for me to pause and consider what God has given me

This morning I would like for us to consider together what Scripture has to say regarding “The Necessity of Gratitude”

Thankfulness and Grace

The English words thanksgiving, thanks, thankful, grateful, gratitude all have their root in the same Greek word

The words gift and grace also have the their origin from the very same Greek word

The word εὐχαριστέω (eucharisteo) is used thirty-eight times in the New Testament and means to be thankful

The root word is charis (grace) which is also the root word for charisma (gift)

I find it striking that the terms Gift and Gratitude originate from the word Grace

Grace and Gift is something we receive from another source

Gratitude is something we give in return for something we have received

“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”

- G.K. Chesterton

Gratitude may be the single most defining characteristic of true believers

Christian gratitude involves

Christian gratitude involves

Recognizing the many blessings we receive from God and others

Acknowledging God as a the ultimate giver of every good gift

Expressing appreciation to God and others for those gifts

Gratitude is so much more than the secular “positive-thinking” or “stay optimistic” or “glass is half full” mentality

It recognizes and acknowledges God’s involvement in every aspect of life

Gratitude is a choice — each one of us choose every single day how we respond to life

The Outrageous Cost of Ingratitude

Sixteen times during that day did young Spencer brave those fierce waves, rescuing seventeen persons.

Then he collapsed in a delirium of exhaustion.

Ed Spencer slowly recovered from the exposure and exertion of that day, but never completely.

With broken health he lived quietly, unable to enter upon his chosen lifework of the ministry, but exemplifying the teachings of Jesus Christ in his secluded life.

He died in California, aged eighty-one.

In a notice of his death, one paper said that not one of these seventeen rescued persons ever came to thank him.

Having been banished, Cyprian suffered martyrdom in Carthage in 258.

When the sentence of death was read to him he said, “I heartily thank Almighty God who is pleased to set me free from the chains of the body.”

— Tan, P. L. (1996).

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 787).

Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.

Tan, P. L. (1996).

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 787).

Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.

The words gift and grace also have the their origin from the very same Greek word

εὐχαριστέω (eucharisteo) is used 38 times in the New Testament and means to be thankful

The root word is charis (grace) which is closely linked to charisma (gift)

Recognizing the many blessings we receive from God and others

Acknowledging God as a the ultimate giver of every good gift

Expressing appreciation to God and others for those gifts

Gratitude is so much more than the secular “positive-thinking” or “stay optimistic” or “glass is half full” mentality

It recognizes and acknowledges God’s involvement in all of life

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The Outrageous Cost of Ingratitude

In order to fully understand the necessity of gratitude we need to step back and consider the implications of ingratitude

Andrew Carnegie was a multi-millionaire who left $1,000,000 for one of his relatives, who in return became angry and bitter toward him because Mr. Carnegie had left $365,000,000 to charitable causes.

The poor relative was angry because he only got 1,000,000 of those dollars.

Rather than being thankful for what was given, he had expectations of having more — he was ungrateful.

What does Scripture have to say about ingratitude or being unthankful?

(ESV) 1 But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4 treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.

Avoid such people.

This is quite a list of characteristics that will be evidenced in the last days… yet, in the middle of this list is “ungrateful” (unthankful in KJV)

Why? Paul writes that these kinds of people are not “lovers of God” and we are to avoid these people

We are to turn away from, don’t have anything to do with ungrateful individuals

2

We may ask why “unthankful” is included in this list of sins in the last days

We are also told to avoid those kinds of people

We are to turn away from, don’t have anything to do with unthankful individuals

We are not to let them influence us and certainly don’t become one of them

We tend to categorize some sins as greater or lesser than other sins

We would likely place “unthankful” in a lesser category… lesser than the brutal, reckless, proud, abusive, not loving good

However, God does not seem to make any distinction

(ESV) 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.

22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Ingratitude is one of the first steps away from God

Ingratitude is one of the first steps away from God

Being unthankful is fertile soil from which many other kinds of sins will sprout and grow

shows a progression of moral decline, wickedness, and corruption almost unimaginable

It all starts in Verse 21… with an unthankful heart

The unthankful heart is the first step down the slippery slope of moral decline

What triggers ungratefulness?

We have expectations

We compare with others

We are greedy

We forget God’s blessings

We forget we are debtors

We believe we are owed something

We believe we deserve more

We focus on what we want versus what we have

We focus on what we don’t have

We define wants as needs

What triggers ungratefulness?

Unrealistic expectations

Forgetfulness

Entitlement mentality

Comparison to others

Blindness to God’s grace

Scripture makes it clear we are to be content (thankful) with the most basic necessities of life … (ESV) But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.

Scripture makes it clear we are to be content (thankful) with the most basic necessities of life … (ESV) But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.

We want a certain kind of house

However, we want a certain kind of house

We want a certain kind of car

We want certain kinds of friends