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Don’t Forget to Say “Thank You”
by Bryan Gibson
October 8, 2009
One thing is for sure—when we do forget, Jesus notices. Jesus once healed ten lepers, and when only one returned to say “thank you,” Jesus asked him, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?” (Luke 17:17). Could it be that Jesus is asking the same question about us? Perhaps we’ve forgotten to come back and say “thank you.” Here are some ways we can say “thank you” to Jesus, and to our heavenly Father.
By proper observance of the Lord’s supper. “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26). We eat the Lord’s supper every week in remembrance of Jesus (1 Corinthians 11:24-25), and so by properly “discerning the Lord’s body” (1 Corinthians 11:29), we can let Him know how much we appreciate what He did. And if we don’t...we “will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 11:27).
In prayer. Thanksgiving should always accompany the requests we make of God (Colossians 4:2; Philippians 4:6). Let’s be sure to give thanks for Jesus—for His life, His death and resurrection, and His present work as our intercessor (Hebrews 7:25). And while we’re thanking Him, let’s also give thanks for the many spiritual blessings that we have through Him (Ephesians 1:3).
In song. “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:18-20; see also Colossians 3:15-17). Many of the songs we sing in worship are designed to give praise to Jesus, to thank Him for His wonderful love. Let’s make sure we honor Him with more than just our lips. Unless we sing from the heart, our worship is vain (Matthew 15:8).
By living for Him. “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). This is the big test, the one that really reveals the depth of our gratitude. It’s easy to say that Jesus means a lot to us, but the best way to prove it is by living for Him—not just occasionally, but every day.
By telling others about Him. If we like our doctor, we tell others about him. If we like our mechanic, we tell others about him. If we truly appreciate Christ and the life we have in Him, it’s going to be awful hard to keep it to ourselves. The early disciples sure couldn’t, because they “went everywhere preaching the word” (Acts 8:4). The ideal attitude was expressed by Paul when he appeared as a prisoner before King Agrippa: “I would to God that not only you, but also all who hear me today, might become both almost and altogether such as I am, except for these chains” (Acts 26:29). Paul sure was thankful for what he had in Christ, and he wanted everyone else to have it, too.
“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).