GIVING THANKS

“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  NIV)

Our joys, prayers, and thankfulness should not fluctuate with our circumstances or feelings. Obeying these three commands -- be joyful, keep on praying, and be thankful -- often goes against our natural inclinations. When we make a conscious decision to do what God says, however, we will begin to see people [and circumstances] in a new perspective. When we do God’s will, we will find it easier to be joyful and thankful.

Paul was not teaching that we should thank God for everything that happens to us, but in everything. Evil does not come from God, so we should not thank Him for it. But when evil strikes, we can still be thankful for God’s presence and for the good that He will accomplish through the distress.

-- From the “Life Application Study Bible”

#4979

LETTING OUR COMMITMENTS GUIDE US

"It is the LORD your God you must follow, and Him you must revere. Keep His commands and obey Him; serve Him and hold fast to Him."  (Deuteronomy 13:4 NIV)

When I was a kid I loved playing with a little toy train on the carpet at my grandmother’s home. I would pretend that the patterns in the rug were the tracks. I knew that the train’s power came from the engine. So I would hold onto the engine and pull the multi-car train along the lines in the carpet. If I wanted to back up the train, I would hold onto the engine and push the cars backwards. The only problem was that the caboose kept going all over the place, like the tail of a dog.

Commitments are like the engine that pulls the train. Feelings are like the caboose that follows behind. If we let our commitments pull the train, the feelings will follow. However, If we let our feelings, rather than our commitments, guide us, we may soon be off track. We should never live by our feelings, but rather live by our commitments.

-- David T. Wilkinson


#4583

DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME

“For I received from the LORD what I also passed on to you: The LORD Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me." In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me."  (1 Corinthians 11:23-25 NIV)

I am to show that it is the duty of every Christian to receive the Lord's Supper as often as he can. ... The First reason why it is the duty of every Christian so to do is, because it is a plain command of Christ. That this is His command, appears from the words of the text, "Do this in remembrance of Me:" ... A Second reason why every Christian should do this as often as he can, is, because the benefits of doing it are so great to all that do it in obedience to Him; viz., the forgiveness of our past sins and the present strengthening and refreshing of our souls. ... 

-- John Wesley, from “Sermon 101” 


#4497