GRATITUDE
“It is not just our sinning that hurts God.
It is that we do not care that our sinning hurts God.” -Michael L. Gill
It is not just the sinning we do that hurts God, it is our apathy. What has happened to our hearts? Every day of our lives it is God who rewards our labors. We earn nothing, build nothing, and hold nothing, unless God rewards us and favors us and protects us. How easily we say, ”Thank you.” without genuine gratitude!
An anxious mother feels gratitude when rescue workers restore her nearly lifeless child. A father feels gratitude when his only son returns safely home from a war. The abused and battered child is grateful for safety and love. The forgotten old woman residing in a nursing home is immeasurably grateful for a kind touch and listening ear. Financial inability to pay brings fear of the phone and dread of the mail. I can tell you how wonderfully grateful such a one is when a friendly call or encouraging note is received!
Gratitude is drawn from the deepest well of the hurting heart, the lonely heart, the broken heart, the fearful heart, and the hopeless heart, by the selfless kindness of a benefactor who cannot be repaid. What price could that mother pay equal to the value of her restored child? What price could that father pay worthy of the safety of his son? Gratitude is a whole heart response to undeserved blessing that could never have been produced by the one who receives it. What a remarkable thing it is to be honestly grateful for each bite of food and for every breath of air and for every moment when we might hold our child or parent or spouse just one more time!
Here is something that pulls from my heart a silent awe, an ecstatic rejoicing, and a wondering gratitude. Luke 1:26-38 tells more than I can comprehend.
An angel was sent. Angelos is the ancient Greek word for “messenger”. We know from other references to them that they lead and act as a rear guard as in Exodus 14:19. They are responsible for us to protect us wherever we go as in Psalm 91:11. They deliver the innocent from certain destruction as in Daniel 6:22. They liberate Christ’s witnesses to witness yet more as in Acts 12:7. They communicate God’s assurances through danger as in Acts 27:23. They are ministering spirits sent to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation as in Hebrews 1:14.
An angel was sent to Mary. Mariam is the ancient Greek for “Mary”. The Hebrew is “Miriam”, which means both “rebellion”, and “bitterness”. We encounter the word at the undrinkable waters of Mara, which were made sweet when Moses cast a branch into the waters in Exodus 15:23-26. We find it again when a woman named Naomi, which means “pleasant”, lost her husband and both her sons to death and wished to change her name to “Mara” as in Ruth 1:19-20. We know that Hebrew children were often named for the circumstances of their parents. That is why the mother of Jabez said, ”Because I bare him with sorrow.” That is how Ichabod was named in I Samuel 4:19-22 when the Ark of God was captured by the Philistines, for “The glory of the Lord is departed from Israel.” Now this young girl of Nazareth grew up with a name that commemorated some great disappointment suffered by her parents.
An angel was sent to Mary to announce that she would birth Jesus. His name means “Savior”. He shall be great and be called the Son of the Highest and shall have David’s throne and His kingdom shall never end! It was explained to Mary that the Holy Ghost would come upon her and the power of the Highest would overshadow her, so that holy thing which would be born of her would be called the Son of God!
Look at this again. Such a messenger as Gabriel was sent to so lowly a girl as Mary with an undeserved blessing to humanity which humanity could not produce for it’s self! We must have a Savior because we cannot save ourselves! This Savior could not have a human father from whom he would inherit the condemnation brought by the disobedience of the First Man, Adam. The only One who could save us must be truly human as being born of a woman and able to die. He must also be truly divine as having no beginning, no ending, and no sin of His own!
“For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” I see those words better now. Don’t you see them better now? Christmas and Easter are about how God said to us, “I love you.” These should also be about how we answer back to God, “We love you.” However, the distance between the two declarations is astonishingly large, measured in units of gratitude! The powerful voice of God animates all of creation when He declares His love for us! Our response is as a hollow and distant echo that seems to mock the source!
Are my statements presumptuous? Do I unfairly assume that all of us are ungrateful and unloving of God? Consider a comparison.
Look into the heart of God. Look into the feed trough of Bethlehem, at the refugees fleeing into Egypt, upon the humble carpenter-preacher gathering fishermen and tax collectors and prostitutes, and look upon the Cross of Calvary! DOES GOD LOVE YOU? Never doubt it!
Now look into your own heart. Is there a secret sin or two? DO YOU LOVE GOD? Remember that it is not just our sinning that hurts God. It is our apathy. It is that we do not care that our sins hurt God! It is that we are no longer moved at the enormity of the gift of His Son! It is that we gladly accept all of His benefits and then take credit for gaining them!
It is not true that our hard work produces our gains. It is true that God rewards hard work. God honors diligence. God gives and then blesses wisdom. What a liberating and joyous understanding that we are not burdened with our success, we are blessed with it!
Here is a concept for you to study. God was willing to pay whatever it would cost to draw profoundly close to you. Isaiah said of our Jesus that He is Emmanuel, “God With Us”. Jesus Himself sent the Holy Spirit to abide, to dwell, and to reside within us! The apostle Paul declared that anyone who is joined to the Lord is one spirit, even as a husband and wife are considered one flesh. It would appear from all of this that God really only has one desire, to be lovingly close to you forever!
Today, make Jesus great in your eyes. Adore Him as the Son of the Highest. Give Him the throne of your heart. Let Him reign over all your life forever. Do it just now. In the thoughts of your mind, think the words, “Jesus, I adore you. I give you the throne of my heart. Reign over all my life.” Even if you have lived for Jesus a long time already, let this day mark a fresh commitment to Him. Now let your lips repeat the words of your heart. “Jesus, I adore you. I give you the throne of my heart. Reign over all my life.”
Come to Jesus.
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