Saturday, November 25, 2006
Psalm 107:8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness!
GLORIFY HIS LAVISH GRACE
A famous concert pianist refused to play encores in his recitals. When asked about this, he replied that when he heard applause at the end of the piece he regarded it as a receipt, not a bill. He expected his audiences to show their appreciation with applause. But it never occurred to him to show appreciation for his audiences by playing something extra for them. This man did not understand that a true gesture of appreciation is something freely given, not the payment of a debt.
Now we do owe God the thanks we give Him. Every good thing that we have, even our life itself, is a gift from God. It is a gift of pure grace, for He owes us nothing. "Who has first given to Him [God] and it shall be repaid to him?" (Romans 11:35). To refuse to give thanks to God is to rob Him of what is due to Him.
Psalm 107 recites God's great works of deliverance, repeating the refrain: "Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!" (Psalm 107:8, 15, 21, 31). It is a wicked and unbelieving heart that never thanks God.
Yet God does not want our thanks to Him to be a grudging payment of a debt. He delights in the thank offerings of His children who in humility freely acknowledge their own unworthiness and the greatness of His gifts.
True thanksgiving to God is not the mere uttering of a few words or the offering of a few dollars. It is an attitude of the heart that shapes the whole of our lives. It is the work of the Holy Spirit. It is the Gospel which opens our eyes to see Jesus as our Savior who has redeemed us sinners from death and has given us life. It is this that makes the heart sing to God. A life shaped by a thankful heart is a mighty witness of the Gospel.
Look at the Apostle Paul. His whole life after his conversion was an expression of thanks to God who had rescued him from death. All of us are beneficiaries of God's grace in Christ. The more we know of this grace, the more our lives will be an offering of thanks freely and joyfully given to God. The more we grow in understanding and appreciation of what God has done for us in Christ, the more our lives will glorify our Savior-God.
