Have you ever given or received a Thank You note, or a card? It’s a simple way to express your gratitude and appreciation for something, or just someone being there for you. Maybe you just simply told someone face-to-face “Hey, thanks for being my friend.” or “Thanks for helping out.” A simple thank you can go a long way and mean a lot to someone. It can create a sense of closeness and strengthen the bonds of friendship, and simply let the person know that you value them.
There are many believers who want to thank God, genuinely, but they don’t know how to… or worse they have been taught the wrong ideas on how to thank Him (typically through legalism or a works-mindset), which leads the person into a deep pit of bondage, all stemming from a simple desire to express thankfulness. So the desire can be quite innocent, but can lead to great destruction.
Well the scriptures do not leave us guessing about how we can genuinely thank God , and it might surprise you to learn that it is really not any different than how we would thank any person. More on that in a bit… but first we need to establish a few things.
To begin with, there are a few ways that it is not appropriate to thank God. People generally try to thank Him in these ways due to a lack of understanding, wrong teaching and wrong believing. The first of which is trying to thank Him through performance, Law-keeping, or striving. I have talked to many people who have this idea that God is somehow more pleased with them if they “do better” to keep the Law of Moses. And every single time, I must simply tell them that it is not true! We studied this in-depth previously, so I will not spend much time on it here, only to say that if you believe that there is anything that you can do to make God love you more, or to be more pleased with you, then what you are really admitting is that Jesus did not do enough. The reality is that Jesus has made you fully accepted in Him (Ephesians 1:6), and since we know that according to Matthew 3:17, the Father is well-pleased with Jesus, and you are in Him, we can conclude that the Father is also well-pleased with you also! There is nothing that needs to be added to that – and nothing could be added to that anyway! Jesus has done a complete work; not an unfinished work – and because of that, He sees you today as completely blameless and totally unreprovable (just as Jesus is!), and that’s in Colossians 1:21-22.
Another way in which it is not appropriate to thank God, is by debasing yourself. There are groups of people who think that the lower they push themselves, the higher God gets raised, and they do this as a service to Him. However, continuing from what we have just read, to debase yourself today as a New Creation in Christ Jesus, is to in-essence deny the finished work which He did to make you that New Creation! Today in Christ, you are not an object worthy of debasement; you are in-fact seated with Christ, far above all principality and power. (Ephesians 1:20-2:6). So by debasing yourself, you are not thanking God, in-fact you are doing quite the opposite!
The third way in which it is not appropriate to thank God, is by trying to “give your way into His grace”, many people usually try to do this by tithing to a church building (which by the way, tithing is not even actually giving at all… it was an ordinance, it was a command in the old Covenant) but that is outside the scope of this study. However, suffice it here to simply say that the people who try to give their way into God’s grace, well, they have it backwards. The grace of God is not about anything which you can give, but it is instead about what He has given to you, and it’s not even a what but a whom. He gave His Son, Jesus, so that you can have your identity and fellowship and relationship completely restored with Him.
These three methods, are the main ways that people try to thank God, and they are all based on some kind of misunderstanding of the nature of God, the character of God or what He has done for us.
If you take a moment to honestly look at them, you will notice that each of the items mentioned, either lessen the finished work of Christ, negate the finished work of Christ in some way, or nullify the finished work of Christ completely. And they are more about people trying to attain godliness or impress Him, rather than thanking Him, at their core.
So how then can we thank God? Well the scriptures actually tell us, and it starts with the foundation of Jesus Christ, and who we are in Him. I have mentioned this plenty of times before, but in Exodus 19:8, all of the people say in one prideful chorus “All that the LORD says, we will do” – or at least that’s the way it usually reads in English translations. In Hebrew it is much more telling… they say: All that God has said we will produce.
The people were boasting in their own ability to produce all of the obedience that God would require of them. This did not please God, nor did it show Him any appreciation. Apparently the people did not learn the lessons of history, because back in Genesis 4, both Cain and Abel brought offerings to God. Cain brought the produce of the ground, while Abel brought blood. God rejected Cain’s offering of the produce of the ground, the works of his hands, ability, sweat and strength; but God accepted Abel’s offering of the blood of the firstborn of his flock. Cain’s offering centered around what he could work to produce, while Abel’s offering centered around a blood sacrifice of the firstborn, representing Jesus Christ.
Of-course the ultimate firstborn blood offering has already been given, which is Jesus Christ Himself, and this is the first key point in our study today. There is simply no way to acceptably thank God without Jesus Christ being the center of it. Everything else, no matter how well-intentioned it might be, ends-up being a work of man’s efforts, and dead before God. I know that a lot of people don’t like that statement, because it is crushing to the pride of man, but it is essential to understanding the foundation of Christ and our identity in Him.
In 1st Thessalonians 5:18, we are told to give thanks in every circumstance… and people generally assume that means that we need to clench our fist, grit our teeth, put on a fake smile and think and say happy thoughts – even if we are feeling the exact opposite way, and that this false behavior somehow pleases God.
Back in my legalistic days, I thought like that as well. It was how I was taught, and I had no real relationship with God, and so I didn’t know any better. Don’t feel bad if you believe that way either, because that lie is all over the place today.
However, take a look at the verses surrounding verse 18. Let’s read 1st Thessalonians 5:17-19, and we will see something very interesting:
“Pray without ceasing.
In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
Quench not the Spirit.”
Notice that the verse about giving thanks always, is sandwiched in-between praying without ceasing and not quenching the Spirit. My friend, this is no accident or coincidence! These things all go together here. Let me show you how. Turn to 1st Corinthians 14:2:
“For he that speaks in an unknown tongue speaks not to men, but to God: for no man understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.”
Now there is a huge divide in the assemblies of believers today about Tongues, and it’s largely feared, ignored and not taught on, so that’s not too surprising, but here is plainly what the scriptures say about it: He that speaks in an unknown tongue, does not speak to men, but to God!
So what do we see here? Tongues is not mere babbling as some claim it to be. It’s not gibberish. What do we know about it? That we are not speaking to the ears of men, but to God. In the Spirit, he speaks mysteries. Yet the scriptures don’t simply leave it there… hold your place here in 1st Corinthians 14, and take a look at Romans 8:26:
“Likewise the Spirit also helps our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”
This verse is quoted fairly regularly, but not many people truly grasp the meaning here, because of the old English words used. Notice that the Spirit of God helps us, especially in our infirmities (which includes any sickness or disease by-the-way), and the Spirit does this by interceding for us with groanings that cannot be uttered. Now this is the part where our English translations really do us a disservice here. Remember those “mysteries that we speak to God in Tongues” that we read in 1st Corinthians 14:2? This is what they are. The phrase “cannot be uttered” here, means “not of a known language”…. It doesn’t mean that they are unspeakable things. When we typically read that they “cannot be uttered” we have the idea of opening our mouth but not having any words or sounds come out, but that is not the real meaning here; it actually means not of any known language – in other words – it is a language, but not one known to you or me, but to God alone.
Here is why this is important, and in my opinion, it’s the best part! These mysteries that are not of any human language, also convey the idea of speaking love-secrets. As of personal communication between lovers!
So when you pray in the Spirit, and speak in an unknown tongue, you are speaking by the Spirit, to God alone, and you are expressing love secrets directly to God, empowered by His Spirit in you! That is amazing!
And it’s not over yet… go back now to 1st Corinthians 14, because in this chapter, Paul is addressing the different kinds of spiritual gifts and the proper times and places for them. Many of the things here are outside the scope of this study today, but there is one more thing for us to see, very on point of giving thanks to God: verses 14 through 19:
“For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful.
What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.
Else when you shall bless with the spirit, how shall he that occupies the room of the unlearned say Amen at your giving of thanks, seeing he understands not what you say?
For you truly give thanks well, but the other is not edified.
I thank my God, I speak with tongues more than you all:
Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue.”
It is very clear in verse 14, when you pray in an unknown tongue you are not babbling, your spirit is praying! Your understanding can’t comprehend it, but never-the-less you are speaking those mysteries, those love-secrets to God. Paul says in verse 15 that he does both: he prays in the spirit, and in normal language with understanding also. He sings in the spirit, and normal with understanding also. Why? Verse 16, because when you are around other people, your unknown tongue (which is only to God) will not be able to bless the other person, because they will have no idea what you are saying!
Yet notice verse 17, You truly give thanks well though! Even though the other people don’t understand.
The take away is this, verses 18 and 19 make it clear… your praying in Tongues, is for you and God alone, in your private time. It is the Spirit and you expressing love-secrets to God. The intended audience is not other people anyway, it is for God alone; and in verse 18 Paul even says that he speaks in Tongues more than anyone! However in the assembly of believers, he would much rather speak in a language that others can understand so as to encourage and edify them to Christ. That is plain and simple and clear.
In closing today, how do we give thanks to God? Know your identity. Recognize who He has made you to be. You have His Spirit inside of you, indwelling you, and you have access to a private language known only by Him, which you can speak directly to Him and share love-secrets empowered by His Spirit.
As I said in the opening, you give thanks to Him in much the same way as with another person… by simply speaking, by simply telling Him – and one of the best ways in which you can “truly give thanks well” as we have read, is by speaking in your private prayer language, empowered by His Spirit. You can really give thanks always, and pray without ceasing, not quenching the Spirit.
You can give thanks for every moment. Because every moment that you are sound of mind and body to give thanks, is in-fact a reason to be thankful! You can be thankful, for the ability to be thankful! Because it is all because of Jesus Christ!
Be blessed.
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