We believers in Jesus Christ must remember that our hope isn't in this world nor is it in anyone in this world. Our hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ. We have a lot to be thankful for. This coming Thursday we will be celebrating Thanks Giving here in the United States of America. This is the day we celebrate to give thanks to the Lord our God for all that He provides for us. We usually gather with family and friends. Many people celebrate with a large meal that includes several varieties of food.
We are thankful for the food and family of course, but we should also be thankful for all that the Lord has done for us. We should be thankful for the love that the Lord demonstrated to each of us by sending Jesus Christ into this world to save us sinners. Jesus took the punishment for our sins upon Himself. It is through the shed blood of Jesus Christ that we are saved. We are saved by His grace through faith in that finished work that Christ accomplished for us on the Cross.
We need to repent of our sins and receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior. That means we must come humbly to the Lord acknowledging that we are sinners and can't save our selves. There are no amount of good works that we can do that can make us right with God. We need to trust Jesus Christ and Him alone for our salvation. Then we must allow the Holy Spirit to work in and through our lives.
I like what the Apostle Paul writes in Colossians 3:12-17 which says,
"12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.
17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Once we know Christ as Savior we ought to clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. That means we believers should act like Jesus acted and we do that by submitting to the Holy Spirits lead in our lives. We should also bear with one another and forgive one another as the Lord Jesus has forgiven us.
Most importantly the believer needs to put on love. We are called to love the Lord with all of our hearts, minds, bodies, and souls and we are to love our neighbor as our selves. We also need to be thankful. Sometimes it is hard to find things to be thankful for.
There have been many times that I have stood before congregations if anyone has a joy they would like to share and n one says anything, how sad. Sometimes people don't like to speak up in front of people. I understand that, but shouldn't we believers proclaim praises to the Lord for what He has done and is doing in our lives. If we are breathing we have something to be thankful for. The Lord blesses us everyday. Sadly sometimes we fail to see His blessings in our lives and we become ungrateful.
May we remember the message that Christ brought to us and may we stir one another on with encouraging words of the hope that we each have in Jesus Christ. May we lift our voices in songs of praise and worship with gratitude in our hearts to our God who loves us so very much.
What ever we do may we do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus and give thanks to God the Father through Him.
Lord,
Thank You for Jesus.
Thank You for this day that You blessed us with.
Thank You for this life that You gave to us.
Thank You for forgiving us our sins through the shred blood of Jesus Christ.
Help us to be more thankful for all that You do for us.
In Jesus Name we pray,
Amen.
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