Thankful in all things
Part 2
Salvation
November 2018
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
Today we are going to begin a short series on thankfulness
November is the month of the year when the bulk of the American people stop to give thanks for al they have received
Unfortunately
Thanksgiving
A day set apart
To give thanks, honor and glory to God
Has become just as commonly called
Turkey Day
A day to gorge on delicious food
A day to sit and watch game after game on the boob tube
Or a day to begin the insane sport of combat Christmas shopping as the retailers host unusually low prices
In an effort to get back to the basics of Thanksgiving
In this series which will run the entire month of November
We will look at various scriptures on thanks
We have so much to be thankful for
In fact, everything we have
Everything we will ever have
Comes from God
The Blood in our veins
The air in our lungs
The life in our bodies
Are a gift from God?
Who created us
Loves us
And has shown mercy on us
I encourage each of you over the next month
To consider your blessings
To reflect on God’s kindness
And to remember to give him the thanks he deservers
As I told you last week
In an effort to mold this series into a manageable offering
I have chosen through prayer and study to focus on 4 areas of Thanks that we should all have and have in common
The first area that we looked at last week was thankfulness for God’s love and mercy and grace
We saw how all of God’s creation is a recipient of God’s love mercy and grace
Although those that have not accepted Christ as savior are receiving Temporary Mercy and Grace
But as long as there is still life in our bodies we have the chance to receive
Eternal mercy and Grace through Jesus
The next area we will study is thankfulness for our salvation
That is the topic for today
Next is thankfulness for deliverance
And the last week we will look at thankfulness in blessings primarily in the people God places in our lives
With that being said
I am deviating from my normal operating procedures
And have asked specific people to give a testimony that directly relates to each topic of thankfulness
As you listen to these true stories
Let the Love of God wash over you
And remember what he has done for you
And give thanks
Sissy Green Testimony
I asked Sissy to speak to you today
Because she understands grace
As you heard she was once lost
Living apart from the God who created us
And let me tell you a secret
So was I and so were you
Jesus came to earth on the greatest rescue mission in the history of the world
And He
Gave his life to buy us back from Satan
To buy us back from our sin
To pay the penalty for our sin
So that when God
Looks at us
He sees his son
Jesus
And on top of that he assures us that we cannot lose the gift he gave us
It is ours for eternity
I was asked a question this week about God’s inability to be in the presence of sin
You see
God cannot be in the presence of sin
So
When we sin
And we all do
We could not
Can not
Approach a Holy God
On our own that is
You see sin separates us from God
But
One we have accepted the free gift of salvation
When God looks at us he no longer sees our sin
Or better stated, he no longer sees our sin as a cause for condemnation
He sees that the debt has been paid
So, the question was
How can someone claim to be saved?
And continue to live in sin
Unfortunately, that is the human condition
We are all sinners
Saved only by grace
And when we take our focus off of God
When we give into our own desires
Or the temptations of the Devil
We can easily
Begin living a life that is not pleasing to God
Or easily go back to the sin of our pre- saved selves
Listen to me
The question was specifically concerning a Christian who struggles with Homosexuality
And returns to that lifestyle
I need you to hear me and hear me well on this
There are levels of sin in man’s eyes
We have a tendency to categorize sin in groups
Place them in neat little boxes
Of little sins
Big sins
And the like
We do that to justify, rationalize, normalize, or minimize our own sin
And When we do that
We can be a bit like the Pharisee who prayed on the corner
Saying
Thank you Go that I am not like that sinner—over there- that Guy
Listen to me
Sin is sin in God’s eyes
He does not have levels of sin
He does not consider any sin a small sin
And none shock him
He sent Jesus to cover the sins of all who believe
So, it is unfortunate if someone falls back into sin
It is sad that they lose the blessings that God has for them by their disobedience
But
If they are saved
That is, if they placed their faith in Jesus for salvation
They are just as saved as anyone else
Let me get on a soap box for a moment
Homosexuality is not pleasing to God
Read God’s word
He is clear on that
But neither is Adultery
Sexual immorality
Which includes many things including sex before marriage
Living together as man and wife without being married
Pornography
And the like
But wait
Before you start felling high and mighty
Gossip
Slothfulness
Gluttony
Addictions
Anger
Bitterness
Complacency
Dishonesty
Greed
And so many hundreds or thousands of other sins are Just as bad in God’s eyes
Fortunately for us who have believed in Jesus
Our sins are forgiven, but we still need to turn from them
Fortunately
For those who are still lost
There is still time if you are still alive this morning and hearing these words
I need you to hear me on this
We are not the judge
We are not the jury
God and God alone has that authority
But
We have the rule book
We have a responsibility to follow it
And
We have the responsibility to teach it
But we do not have the right to pass judgment on anyone
Ok let me get off the soap box
And get into the scripture God laid on my heart today
Please turn in your bibles to Isaiah chapter 12
The Prophet Isaiah was God’s voice to the nation of Judah while they were struggling with disobedience
He preached God’s word faithfully for more than 80 years in the good and bad times
And much of his message was about Judgement for disobedience
Not a favorite subject of his listeners or us
But every once in a while, in his book
He lets a little light shine though
Chapter 12 is just a bit of that light
Isaiah 12
12 In that day you will sing:
“I will praise you, O LORD!
You were angry with me, but not anymore.
Now you comfort me.
2 See, God has come to save me.
I will trust in him and not be afraid.
The LORD GOD is my strength and my song;
he has given me victory.”
3 With joy you will drink deeply
from the fountain of salvation!
4 In that wonderful day you will sing:
“Thank the LORD! Praise his name!
Tell the nations what he has done.
Let them know how mighty he is!
5 Sing to the LORD, for he has done wonderful things.
Make known his praise around the world.
6 Let all the people of Jerusalem[a] shout his praise with joy!
For great is the Holy One of Israel who lives among you.”
These words were written long before Jesus came to deliver us
Long before his birth
Long before his death on the cross
But
These words describe for us
How we should view our salvation
Verse 1a
In that day you will sing:
“I will praise you, O LORD!
If you have been forgiven of your sin
If you have been redeemed
You should want to jump for joy
Sing at the top of your lungs
Or at least sing in your hearts
God has given you a priceless gift
One you can’t buy
Or earn
One you don’t deserve
But many that are saved
Or call themselves saved
Never give the gift a thought
Listen to me
Jesus
My savior
Suffered and died
He was beaten beyond recognition
Abused
Mocked
Spit on
And nailed to a cross
To pay for my sin
And your sin
I think we owe him a thank you
Daily
I think we should sing and praise him
And give him the glory
But instead we often act like spoiled brats at a birthday party
And quickly forget the gift and the giver
Looking for the next present
Listen to me
Jesus took the shame, so we would not have to
He took my guilt, so I could stand tall
He delivered me and you from our own selfishness
Our own complacency
Our own stupidity
And often we say
What have you done for me lately Jesus
We should be ashamed
I once did not understand the gift I had received
I once took it for granted
But now
I know who my redeemer is
I know what he did
I know what he delivered me from
And I have no choice but to thank him
And to praise him
If you don’t feel thankful for the salvation you have received
If you don’t feel the need to praise God for it
I plead with you
Search your heart
First make sure you know Jesus
And if you do
Remember where you were
Where you were headed
And get over yourself
And give him thanks and praise
Verse 1b
You were angry with me, but not any more.
Now you comfort me.
In our unredeemed state
We were an enemy to God
He loved us
That’s why we were able to live long enough to receive his gift
But
He could not
Would not
Embrace us
He could not
Would not let us into his family, into his presence
We were separated from him by a great canyon of sin
And there was only one way across it
Jesus died to take us across that canyon
He died to give us the ability to receive the comfort that God so wants to shower us with
Yet another reason to give him praise and thanks
Verse 2a
2 See, God has come to save me.
I will trust in him and not be afraid.
God came to save us
God in Human body
Fully man
Fully God
The second person of the trinity
Came from heaven
A place of majesty
To this wicked sin filled world
To rescue us
From hell
But to also comfort us
Get rid of our fear
And so much more
Imagine that you are in an great storm
Floating in the ocean
And afraid you are going to drown
No hope
And suddenly a life preserved appears
And you are saved
Jesus is that life preserver
If you have accepted him
You are saved
If not
Reach out now
And thank him
And praise him
Verse 2b
The LORD GOD is my strength and my song;
he has given me victory.”
Many people confuse the meaning od the word victory in the bible
Some claim we have defeated sickness and injury
I hate to tell you
This is not the case
We are humans
Made of flesh and bone
And Gods never promised that we would not get sick
Or hurt or die
There are some verses in the bible that give that idea when taken out of context
But we must read in context
Or we are in danger of believing good sounding false teachings
God does promise us victory though
He tells us we will overcome the grave
That we will overcome the penalty of sin
That we will receive a place in heaven for all of eternity
When we know him
Heaven later and help for today
God is our strength
He is our song
He is worthy of our thanks and praise
And he has given us victory
Verse 3
3 With joy you will drink deeply
from the fountain of salvation!
Jesus is that fountain
He is the living water
Remember when he told the Samaritan woman in John that the water he would give her would quench her thirst forever?
That’s what this means
We
When we know Jesus
Will never thirst spiritually again
He has given us all we need for eternal life
Enjoy that deep drink
Bask in it
Reflect on it
And thank him for it
Verse 4a
4 In that wonderful day you will sing:
“Thank the LORD! Praise his name!
In that wonderful day means on the day of our glorification
But
Don’t wait till you get to heaven to thank him
Don’t wait to praise him
He has rescued you
Today
And everyday
Is the day to thank him
Verse 4b-5
Tell the nations what he has done.
Let them know how mighty he is!
5 Sing to the LORD, for he has done wonderful things.
Make known his praise around the world.
How do we give him thanks?
There are many ways
Tell the world about him
Give others the chance to receive what you have received
Obey him
Live for him
Praise him
Give to him
Everything
Everything had, have or will ever have is a gift from God
Blessings
We call those
Thank him by making him known
Thank him by letting people see Jesus in you
Thank him verbally in prayer
Thank him physically in service
Thank him spiritually in growth
Thank him always
Verse 6
6 Let all the people of Jerusalem[a] shout his praise with joy!
For great is the Holy One of Israel who lives among you.”
Let the people of Jerusalem shut his praises
A better way to understand this part is this
Replace the people of Jerusalem with
All God’s people
That is what Isaiah means
If you are a child of God
Shout with Joy
Sing to the rafters
Let him know you are thankful
Because
You were once lost
But now your found
Blind but now you see
And we have a gift the Isaiah’s audience did not have
God was with them
He is in us
When Jesus saved you
You received the Holy Spirit
He is your guide
Your comforter
Your counselor
He is God in you
You cannot be saved apart from the Holy Spirit
Thank him
Thank him
Thank him
Close from the heart
Pray
