In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessolonians 5:18).
The sin of ingratitude, must be, alongside disbelief, some of our most offensive work as human beings. Consider this:
Is there anything more offensive to God than when we entertain the thought that the mountains He created were an accident, marginalize the Crucifixion with indifference, and watch our neighbor suffer because we want more than we have? Is there anything more offensive to God when we decide to save time by not worshiping Him on Sunday morning, when we take a breath of morning air without acknowledging the source, when we pick up our child without the total marvel of de novo life? And even worse -- when we complain.
We complain about our ankle and don't give gratitude that we can walk and, some, run, at all; we complain about our workloads and our hours and don't give gratitude that we can work or think or initiate and coordinate extraordinarily complex actions, at all; we complain about the mother who shows favortism to a different sibling, the illusiveness of finding "the one" in our life, the conditional love we seem to only find in this life, yet we don't give gratitude that we can even love at all; we complain about the theology of other believers and even condemn them yet we don't give gratitude that we will be in harmonical eternity with these fellow believers; we complain about traffic and headaches and not having as much free time and money as others to "enjoy life", when we don't give gratitude every moment of every second of life that we have been given.
Forget about relativity to other humans and all that non-sensical basis for any complaint -- our relativity as humans is this: we were but nothing once, and now we have been formed, created and breathed into by the giver of Life. And our relativity as Christians: we were doomed to (maybe) enjoy this life for a short time, and destined to die forever, or worse, and now we have the free gift of life and joy eternal because of the obediance and love of Jesus Christ -- yet, and I can speak for myself, walk in constant ingratitude.
I read once about a Christian who had some terribly debilitating neurological disease. First, she lost control of some of her fingers. Then her hand. Then her other hand - her toes, her foot, her other foot, her mouth, her ears, her eye. She had lost everything except control of one of her eyes. And what did she do. She praised God for allowing her to see the beauty around her that He created! This is how every Christian should live.
I have been reflecting on Phillipians 4:4 the last week. When i do this with Scripture, I like to write it down and read it throughout the day. Usually, I get little to nothing out of it, until, in one moment or another, it speaks.
In Phillipians 4:4 Paul writes to the believers in the Phillipi Church -- "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"
May we rejoice for the fellowship of His Body, all believers, through the Holy Spirit, the sealer of Life; may we rejoice for creating out of nothing everything; may we always rejoice for He showed us what Love was -- by Loving us first ( 1 John 4:19). May we rejoice for our suffering which brings perseverance, character and hope (Romans 5:2). And may we rejoice because we can, as regenerated believers, be full of God's joy and love for eternity, because of the Love He chose to bestow on us (1 John 3). Whatever our lack of comfort in this world at any moment, or cumulatively is, no matter how much regret or pain we may live in this world at any moment, or cumalatively, let us rejoice. And let us rejoice in Him -- for we have a mediator in Christ Jesus and He knows all that we go through by His perfect suffering (1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 2:17-18). And let us rejoice in Him because when we are found in Him when we die, we will be blameless and pure, in perfect, fearless love (1 John 4:18).
Whatsoever our circumstances in this world are or become, whatever our scars and bruises may be, a healthy body or one working eye -- let us rejoice in Him, the One who has began us, maintained us, and, ultimately, can save us from ourselves. Rejoice in Him, while we still can, while the kingdom of God is still at hand, while the door of eternal life is still cracked open. Rejoice in Him for every sense, every sunset, every smile, every breath. And, most of all, rejoice in Him for He has given us the choice not to, He has offered us every chance to live life without Him, outside of Him, and in gratitude of something much different than Him. Rejoice in Him for this freedom of choice -- perhaps the most perfect expression of unconditional love one can conjure up -- and He will give us an eternity through Jesus Christ, to thank Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment