Pastor Stephen Gibson
November 2022
What is the first record of giving thanks in the Old Testament? Genesis 29:35 recounts the context for the name Leah gave to her fourth son: Judah. His name means ‘I will praise the Lord’ or ‘I will thank the Lord.’ The names of Leah’s previous sons indicate how she was desperately attempting to win her husband’s affection. With the coming of Judah, it seems she was looking to the Lord for affirmation and vindication. Of course that is the best place to look for a true picture of one’s value. Judah became the tribe through whom the promised Redeemer was to come. Jesus was to be born as a descendent of the tribe of Judah.
So it is only fitting that when we come to the New Testament book of Matthew, it is Jesus who is giving thanks (14:19). That day He was giving thanks for the loaves and fish which He was about to share with the group gathered to hear Him share the good news of the kingdom of God. There were likely more than ten or fifteen thousand who benefited from the meal after Jesus gave thanks.
Jesus had a particular way of giving thanks for a meal. It was when Jesus was asking the blessing that Cleopas and his wife or friend recognized it was really Jesus alive and well (Luke 24:30-31).
Jesus set an example of expressing thanks. He appreciated the attitude of thankfulness. When the Samaritan leper returned to give thanks, Jesus commended his action. He equated giving thanks with giving glory to God (Luke 17:18).
Do you give glory to God? Have you cultivated a thankful spirit? Do you make a list of reasons to give thanks from time to time? This is a wonderful season to implement a plan for living with intentional thankfulness. One way to exercise your thankful muscle is to make a list of ten things/reasons for giving thanks. Repeat the process the next day and the next for ten days. You will have 100 reasons to give thanks when you reach day ten, and may realize you have just begun to scratch the surface when it comes to finding out what God has done for you lately.
One of the ways we will invest our energy in eternity is in giving glory and thanks to God. So we can safely spend some time now in that endeavor and know it is part of living in heavenly places while we still must deal with the challenges of a sinful world.
Why not take a few moments today to celebrate God’s goodness by having a thanksgiving party? Invite someone in your family to join you and share the joy of fulfilling your purpose in creation. Thanks be to our gracious God!