Thank God for the Gospel.

Steve Gentry

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[0:06] Go ahead and have a seat. [0:08] Welcome to Village Church. [0:09] This is your first time here. [0:10] My name is Steve, one of the pastors here at Village Church. [0:13] And as always, I’m thankful and grateful to see each and every one of you. [0:17] If you have a Bible, go ahead and open it to Colossians chapter three.

[0:20] We’re going to be starting in verse 15 this morning, but we’ll be in a few other texts as well. [0:25] Last Sunday, we started a short two part series on the Bible. [0:29] We’re going to be talking about Thanksgiving, often a forgotten holiday, but for the Christians, a vital holiday. [0:35] But more than that, it is a vital posture that we take in life. [0:40] And this Thursday, we will set aside a day to give thanks for all that we have, all that God has given us. [0:46] And we as followers of Jesus understand that Thanksgiving itself, the very idea of it necessitates a God to whom we are thankful.

[0:55] And that if you do not live in the reality that there is a God who created, that there is a God who works in our lives, [1:03] then what exactly can you be thankful for that doesn’t just terminate on some transient aspect of creation itself. [1:11] But with God, you have true Thanksgiving. [1:14] You have the source from which, to which and for which everything in life flows from, Romans chapter 11 tells us. [1:21] Therefore, we can thank God for everything because God is sovereign over absolutely everything. [1:27] And this is a principle element of what it means to submit to his lordship over your life.

[1:34] God, though, is not solely a transcendent being removed from the reality that he created and governs. [1:40] Rather, we know because of Jesus Christ that God is personal, that he’s revealed himself to us and wants to be known by us, [1:48] wants to be worshiped by us. [1:51] So to thank God for everything this week, we’re going to see that it ultimately begins with faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. [1:58] A God has ultimately revealed himself to us through his son. [2:02] And that because of the work of Jesus, we do not have to live in fear of a sovereign God.

[2:08] Rather, we can live and delight in his existence and delight in the power that he works in this world and through our very lives. [2:15] We can live a life of thankfulness to that God because he has done a work in the world to save us from all that should condemn us under his judgment. [2:25] But rather than facing his wrath for our sin, we face his favor because of the work of Jesus. [2:31] So a holiday like Thanksgiving gives Christians the opportunity to showcase just how thankful we are for the work of God through the gospel of Jesus Christ. [2:40] I want to take a look at Colossians, Chapter three, Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae, [2:45] which is really focused in on the supremacy of Christ and all things.

[2:50] It’s kind of the theme throughout the book. [2:52] But then in Chapter three, starting in verse 15, he focuses in on really three things about our relationship with Christ and then triples down on his Thanksgiving throughout the text. [3:02] So start reading with me and let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body and be thankful. [3:11] Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. [3:22] And whatever you do in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. [3:33] And so you see his response to those realities is be thankful, be thankful, be thankful.

[3:40] It’s all about thankfulness. It’s all about Thanksgiving. [3:43] And he mentions three realities for the follower of Jesus Christ. [3:46] He mentions the peace of Christ. [3:48] Then he mentions in the second and excuse me, in verse 16, the word of Christ. [3:54] And then in verse 17, ultimately, he’s talking about the name of Christ. [3:59] Three realities that are true of every follower of Jesus Christ, but only followers of Jesus Christ.

[4:05] And he says all three times you have the peace of Christ. [4:08] Be thankful. You have the word of Christ. [4:10] Be thankful. You have the name of Christ that you can act in. [4:14] So what should you do? You should be thankful. [4:17] Therefore, number one, this morning, I want you to understand thankfulness for the gospel should be obvious. [4:23] Thankfulness for the gospel should be obvious.

[4:25] And I mean that in two ways. [4:27] First way that I mean that is it should be obvious to you that you need to be thankful. [4:32] God has done a great work. [4:33] The greatest gift that you could ever receive is the redemption that’s only available in Jesus Christ. [4:39] And if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, if you have received the forgiveness of sins, [4:43] if you received the new life in Christ, then you should know.

[4:47] And it is an obvious reaction instinctively. [4:51] And because of the gospel, you should be thankful. [4:55] But there’s a second thing that I also mean by that. [4:58] It should be obvious to others that you are thankful. [5:03] So not just inside of you, but outside of you. [5:05] People who see you, people who know you, whether they are close to you, whether they have just met you,

[5:11] there should be a life defining thankfulness that is obvious to others by the way that you live your life. [5:19] But the reality is that it’s not always obvious.

[5:25] I mean, I don’t know about you, but there’s a lot that’s wrong with this world. [5:29] There’s a lot that’s wrong in your life. [5:31] There’s a lot that’s wrong with you. [5:33] If you don’t know what it is, let’s have lunch. [5:35] I’ll tell you all about it.

[5:41] We are overwhelmed oftentimes by the negative of life, [5:45] by the things that we don’t have, that we wish we had, by the things that we do have, that we wish we didn’t have. [5:50] I spent about 30 minutes last night complaining to my wife [5:54] because someone parked in a place on our street that I didn’t personally appreciate. [5:58] It wasn’t even in front of my house, yet I found 30 minutes as to complaining about where they parked, how dare they. [6:04] But they left their lights on.

[6:07] The mystery of God’s will.

[6:12] Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord, and so are dead batteries.

[6:19] I have a spiritual gift of complaining.

[6:23] If you’re looking through your Bible, you’re not going to find it. [6:26] It’s not there. That was a joke. [6:28] It’s not an actual spiritual gift. [6:31] But it’s something that does come natural to some of us, [6:34] and I think for all of us, even if you don’t vocalize it, [6:37] complaining about things that are wrong, about things that heard, about things that you wish were different,

[6:43] it oftentimes comes natural to us because of the curse of sin in this world, [6:48] because of the corruption to the image of God that sin has caused in our very lives. [6:53] And so kind of being thankful more than complaining or being negative [6:58] is not necessarily going to be something that comes natural to you. [7:04] Rather, it’s a gift of God into your life because it’s a work of the Spirit in you [7:08] to be thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ.

[7:13] I mentioned that he talks about three different things that are simply true of you. [7:19] If you’re a follower of Jesus Christ, I mentioned the peace of Christ there in verse 15. [7:25] The peace of Christ is something that we often overlook. [7:27] It’s often something that we just kind of pass over. [7:30] We’re like, yes, I have the peace of Christ. [7:31] That is true.

[7:32] But let me talk about all the unpeaceful things in my life. [7:35] We very quickly go from peace to unpeace fast. [7:38] But the fact of the matter is, is that this peace of Christ is the most amazing reality that could ever be true of you. [7:44] And this alone should well up a thankfulness in you that overshadows any negativity in your life. [7:52] That you are a sinner. [7:55] God has told you, live this way, and I’ve not lived that way.

[8:00] You’ve not lived that way. [8:01] You’ve disobeyed him. [8:02] You’ve rebelled against him. [8:04] You’ve sought satisfaction in things that God says, don’t seek it there, seek it in me. [8:09] You’ve sought to give the glory that God wants for himself. [8:13] You’ve sought to give it to yourself or to other things of this world.

[8:16] And because of that, you deserve wrath. [8:20] You deserve judgment. [8:22] You deserve an eternity of condemnation under the fiery wrath and as we saw last week, the fury of God.

[8:33] But in love, Jesus Christ came, lived the perfectly obedient life that you’ve not lived so that he could die as a substitute for you and take the penalty for your sin on to himself. [8:46] And you are on the outs with God. [8:48] He’s offended by you. [8:50] God isn’t looking at any of you saying, man, you’re great. [8:55] Not apart from Christ. [8:56] No, God is looking at you and saying you are dead in your sin.

[9:00] You can’t please me. [9:01] You can’t worship me. [9:02] You can’t connect with me. [9:04] You can try, but it’s only in Christ that it’s promised. [9:09] So you are on the outs with God, but at great cost to himself. [9:13] He has done everything necessary so that he could set your sin aside, so that he could put the penalty for that sin on Jesus Christ, that he could find justice for your sin, which must happen for him to be holy.

[9:27] He’s put it all on his son. [9:29] And so at great cost to himself, even though you were the offender, he was the offended. [9:36] He did everything that needed to be done to bring the relationship back together. [9:40] That’s what reconciliation means. [9:43] God has reconciled his relationship with you, even though you were the one that did something wrong. [9:49] And the peace of Christ means you will never face his wrath.

[9:56] You will eternally be right in your relationship with God. [10:01] You will never know his anger, even though you deserve it. [10:07] You’ll never know his wrath. [10:08] All that you will know because of the work of Jesus Christ is peace. [10:14] All that you will ever know with God is favor. [10:17] All that you will ever know with God because of Jesus Christ, if you have faith in him, is eternal peace.

[10:28] And so what does Paul say your reaction to that should be? [10:31] Look at verse 15.

[10:34] Be thankful.

[10:37] Be thankful. [10:39] The way that Paul writes it, it’s as if it’s just something that he doesn’t even need to say. [10:43] He says, oh my goodness, I have peace with Christ. [10:46] I have peace. [10:48] I shouldn’t. [10:49] I don’t deserve it, but I have it.

[10:52] Gives us a second thing. [10:53] He doesn’t stop. [10:54] It’s not just the peace of Christ. [10:55] You have the word of Christ. [10:57] Verse 16’s focus is the fact that the word of Christ can dwell in you richly. [11:05] He moves on to some actions that you do with the word of Christ.

[11:07] But have you paused even for a moment to realize how amazing it is that you have the word of Christ? [11:13] God could have created the world and just let go, especially after sin entered the world. [11:20] God owed us nothing but wrath, but God could have just separated himself. [11:23] Been a transcendent being. [11:25] So many agnostics think that he is saying he could be there. [11:29] I don’t know if he is there.

[11:30] But instead, God said, I want to be involved. [11:33] Want to be imminent. [11:34] I want to be personal. [11:36] So he’s given us two things. [11:38] John one says in the beginning was the word. [11:41] Jesus Christ says that Jesus is the word himself, his being who he is.

[11:47] He’s the ultimate revelation of God to you. [11:49] God has made himself known through the gospel. [11:52] But he’s also given you the word, the scriptures. [11:59] Second Timothy calls it the Theon Nostos, the breath of God. [12:01] The Holy Spirit literally spoke through men to create the word over many centuries. [12:10] Sixty six books.

[12:12] We have the thoughts of God. [12:14] There are many things that I don’t understand about God because he is infinite. [12:19] I am finite. [12:21] But God in his love has told me everything that he wants me to know about him. [12:28] And this word, everything that I need to know about this world, he’s told me in this book. [12:32] Everything that I’m going to be held accountable to by God is given me in this book.

[12:38] Anytime I want to know what are God’s thoughts about this thing in this world, if I go to the word, I can know it. [12:45] So many of you act as though you are disarmed with many of the decisions that you have to make in life. [12:51] Many of the philosophies that are offered in this life. [12:54] And you’re like, I wish I could have I could know the answers. [12:58] It scared me. [13:01] I said I know it was going to happen.

[13:03] Here it is.

[13:06] But here’s the word of God. [13:07] You have his thoughts. [13:10] So many treat life as though, well, give me this specific chapter and verse. [13:16] It’s not how the word of God works. [13:17] Sometimes it is. [13:20] But what it’s not explicit about, it’s implicit about.

[13:24] Therefore, I don’t have to walk through life so confused about many things because God has given me an overall narrative by which either explicitly he has said, this is how you think. [13:36] This is what you do. [13:38] Or implicitly, I can combine all of the scriptures together and come to the conclusion of what are God’s thoughts on this issue. [13:46] I do not have to walk through life confused.

[13:51] Don’t think that confusion, some sort of some type of virtue, rather, God has been faithful to tell us. [13:59] And he says, let the word you have the word of Christ. [14:04] But here’s the deal. [14:05] So many of you are so absorbed by other things. [14:11] And that’s why you don’t know what the word says.

[14:15] Whether it be social media, whether it be some hobby, whether it be some worry about life, you neglect the word of God so that you can focus on things that ultimately aren’t going to matter in eternity. [14:27] That’s a choice you’re making. [14:29] It’s a choice you can make. [14:30] But don’t lie to yourself and then say down the road, well, if only God had told me he did, but you were ignoring him to your detriment.

[14:42] You need to neglect other things in life so that you can have the word. [14:47] What a grace that God has given us to where he has given us his exact thoughts so that I can walk through my life, knowing what the thoughts of God are. [14:58] And what does Paul say? [15:00] He says, he’s given you the word.

[15:04] So have thankfulness in your hearts.

[15:07] Then he says something that’s fascinating. [15:09] He moves to an action. [15:10] He says, whatever you do in word or deed, do everything in the name of Christ.

[15:16] And he says, God, Christ has given you his name to live in.

[15:22] To act in. [15:23] Doesn’t say whatever you want to do, do in the name of Christ. [15:27] No, you need to understand how grammar works. [15:29] Some of you forgot. [15:31] He’s qualifying when he says whatever you do, he qualifies it to say you have to do it in the name of Christ. [15:39] And Christ has told you in the word what he wants done in his name.

[15:45] So do those things. [15:47] And what’s Paul’s reaction to that? [15:50] Giving thanks.

[15:53] Peace of Christ. [15:54] Thanks. [15:55] Word of Christ. [15:57] [15:57] Name of Christ. [15:59] Thanks.

[16:00] But here’s the problem. [16:02] The reality is that Thanksgiving is the overflow of a realization as to just how precious and immense the work that Jesus has done for us is. [16:16] It’s what it is. [16:17] It’s an overflow of the realization of what God has done in Christ. [16:22] But it is not necessarily obvious all the time. [16:27] We are still in a world that is cursed by sin.

[16:31] And so when things go wrong, you notice I know some people that are very, very pious. [16:37] They look like they float through this world and it’s like bad things are just these foam nerf darts that just bounce right off of them. [16:44] And you’re like, I wish I could be that person. [16:46] Here’s the deal. [16:47] They actually have a chemical imbalance. [16:50] Those people are crazy.

[16:52] All right. [16:52] If you don’t notice when things go wrong, that’s not good. [16:56] You need to notice some things. [16:58] It’s like your child comes to you. [16:59] I have a fever and I’m vomiting. [17:01] Oh, praise be to Christ.

[17:02] Let’s just ignore it. [17:04] Maybe not a smart idea.

[17:08] But you need to grow in your thankfulness so that your faith can endure the curse of sin in this world. [17:17] How do you do that? [17:19] In First Corinthians 15, the apostle Paul and I love First Corinthians 15 because he spends an entire chapter breaking down the resurrection of Jesus Christ and all of the implications that it has on our lives. [17:32] And then he begins to sum it up in the fifties and in verse 56, he begins by saying this. [17:39] Excuse me. [17:39] The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law.

[17:42] But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. [17:49] Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord, your labor is not in vain. [17:59] And so he says, how can you live a life where you are steadfast in your faith, immovable in your faith, abounding in the work of the Lord? [18:06] Thankfulness.

[18:09] Not that he builds a foundation. [18:11] You are thankful for what? [18:14] There has to be a for what? [18:17] Two pretty big things here. [18:19] First, he says, be thankful that the sting of death is gone. [18:27] How?

[18:28] Because Jesus Christ rose from the dead. [18:31] You have faith in the one man who under his own power, though he died, lived again. [18:42] The older you get, the more precious that reality should be. [18:47] The sting of death is gone. [18:48] What is the sting of death? [18:49] It’s the overwhelming fear of our greatest enemy.

[18:53] And that is your last breath. [18:56] And the apostle Paul says the sting is gone. [18:59] Why? [19:01] It’s the second thing he points out because the power of sin is the law. [19:05] So how is that gone? [19:06] Because Christ fulfilled it in his perfect obedience, even to the point of death.

[19:14] He fulfilled the law in its entirety. [19:16] And the moment that he died, the power that sin has over your life was vanquished in a moment because Jesus rose again from the dead. [19:26] He did not stay dead. [19:30] When you zoom in on your daily living because he gets to steadfast, immovable, abounding in the work of God, that’s daily life. [19:41] That’s the real stuff. [19:44] And when you zoom in on that, your thankfulness for what Christ has gained you is not always obvious in every circumstance.

[19:55] I know that. [19:57] And I say that to my shame. [19:59] And I say that to your shame.

[20:03] But because the sting of death is gone, because the power of sin is gone, I have another hope that I often don’t apply to texts like this. [20:12] I have the hope of growth. [20:15] That I can grow in my gratitude. [20:19] Growing in your relationship with Jesus will necessarily cultivate a life of thankfulness through faith in Jesus, [20:29] because nothing can overshadow the amazing reality of the gospel. [20:35] And so you need to have a goal of growing in thankfulness.

[20:41] And this is why last Sunday when I talked about the reality of anxiety, [20:45] that’s why I talk about that so much with people, because it is treated by many as though it is an impossible obstacle to overcome. [20:57] And I’ll say that is not what we receive from the revelation of the resurrection. [21:01] Look at what the apostle Paul, same guy, Philippians 4, he says this, [21:05] Do not be anxious about anything.

[21:09] And to that so often I hear, well, but what about my situation is different. [21:20] My doctor, you don’t understand. [21:24] To which I say, the original language, the word for anything, doesn’t mean some things.

[21:38] So often so many people try to use the original language as though it’s some kind of out. [21:42] You know the translator spent time translating.

[21:46] The original word for anything, you know what it means? [21:48] It means anything.

[21:51] So what should you be anxious about, according to the apostle Paul, in light of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, where the sting of death is gone, where the power of sin has been removed? [22:01] What should I be anxious about? [22:02] Nothing.

[22:04] Nothing. [22:05] He continues. [22:06] So what do I do? [22:08] But in everything, by prayer and supplication with what? [22:13] Thanksgiving. [22:15] Let your requests be made known to God.

[22:17] And here it is. [22:18] Verse 15 of Colossians 3 is in verse 7. [22:21] And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

[22:32] So how does that work? [22:35] By taking your anxiety to Jesus and replacing it with Thanksgiving.

[22:43] And you might say, but you don’t know my life. [22:45] I don’t have a lot to be thankful for. [22:47] I knew that was coming. [22:49] It’s almost as if God gave us an entire scripture to let you know that if you lose everything and you still have Jesus, you’ve got everything.

[22:58] Because you have the gospel.

[23:01] Paul’s very clear. [23:02] He says this is not a natural thing. [23:06] He says it surpasses understanding. [23:10] What does he mean by that? [23:11] He means the relief of anxiety in this life is a supernatural feat. [23:19] I have people come to me all the time.

[23:21] You’re sick, whether it be temporary, whether it be terminal, you broke a bone, you hurt yourself, you’re going through financial difficulty. [23:31] And what do you say? [23:33] Will you pray for me? [23:34] You pray for me. [23:36] I tell you, every time someone asks me to pray for them, I do. [23:39] I pray for you every time.

[23:40] No lie.

[23:43] But when I talk to people about anxiety, I say, how much time have you been spending praying for healing?

[23:53] Why would I do that?

[23:56] That’s the problem.

[23:59] Sin is why we get sick. [24:02] Not always personal sin. [24:03] Usually the curse of sin. [24:06] Sin is why if I fall at my weight, I’m going to break something.

[24:13] Sin. [24:14] You know, sin broke your brain, friend.

[24:18] Sin is ultimately the source of emotional problems. [24:21] Sin is ultimately the source of mental problem. [24:24] So if God can heal the sick, what do you think mental illness is?

[24:31] Not saying it’s easy. [24:32] I’m not saying it’s foolproof. [24:34] I’m not saying God’s going to do it every single time. [24:36] But what I’m telling you is if you have faith in God for physical healing, why wouldn’t you have faith in God for mental healing? [24:43] Why wouldn’t you take it to him? [24:44] It literally says, don’t be anxious.

[24:49] The answer is prayer.

[24:52] So why do we ignore that implication? [24:55] Because anxiety is the enemy of thankfulness. [24:58] It is. [25:00] Secondly, God receives thanks through faith in the gospel. [25:04] God receives thanks through faith in the gospel. [25:07] God will not settle for any thankfulness.

[25:11] He demands a specific thankfulness. [25:14] Thankfulness, therefore, is a uniquely Christian gift.

[25:19] The unbelievers can be thankful, but they cannot fully express why. [25:25] Nor can they express to whom that Thanksgiving goes. [25:29] If you look at Colossians 3, 17, it has an abundantly clear command. [25:33] Whatever you do, do it in the name of Jesus while doing what? [25:38] Giving thanks to the Father through Jesus. [25:41] I love how he often bookends the gospel and everything.

[25:46] You do it because of Jesus and you do it in Jesus. [25:49] Therefore, if Jesus is out, you’re not going to be able to obey God because God demands it. [25:55] It happened through faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. [25:58] Ephesians 5, 20 echoes a similar sentiment. [26:02] Text says giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father. [26:08] In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I think oftentimes we look over that stuff.

[26:12] We’re like, that’s just the addendum. [26:13] He seems to put on everything. [26:15] But there’s a reason he puts it on everything, because he doesn’t just want any type of things. [26:22] He wants a thanks that is rooted in the reality of the gospel of Jesus Christ. [26:27] If Thanksgiving demands a God to whom you must be thankful and that God has made himself known in a specific way through a specific person for a specific purpose,

[26:41] then how fruitless is it to pretend that he has it? [26:45] It must be about the gospel because life is ultimately about the triumph of the gospel. [26:53] How do I know that? [26:55] Second Corinthians, Chapter two, the apostle makes this abundantly clear. [26:59] He says, But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. [27:08] For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.

[27:13] What does he start with? [27:14] He says we are thankful to God because of the triumph of the gospel. [27:21] And so the life of the Christian is marked by a triumphal procession through this world. [27:28] We’re founded on our thankfulness. [27:31] We spread the knowledge of God everywhere we go. [27:35] It is through this that many will come to faith.

[27:38] He says we’re spreading the fragrance of him and many will be saved through it. [27:44] The unique reality of Thanksgiving for that work, though, is foundationally built on the gospel of Jesus. [27:51] And so there is no triumphal procession in your life apart from faith in Jesus. [27:59] There’s no gospel redemption apart from faith in Jesus. [28:04] So in being thankful for everything, realize that it is faith in Jesus that any thankfulness is built on. [28:11] And so this week when that one family member, nobody likes, says, Let’s go around the table.

[28:17] Everybody say what you’re thankful for.

[28:20] No matter what you say, if you’re thankful for the turkey, you’re thankful for the stuffing, you’re thankful that one family member didn’t show up. [28:29] There’s always that one. And if you don’t know who it is, I got bad news for you.

[28:36] Nobody’s looking forward to you. [28:38] Just kidding. They are. I promise.

[28:42] Don’t email me. I didn’t do it. [28:46] But no matter what you say, even down to the promotion at work, the raise at work, whatever happened. [28:53] What God is saying, when you look at the totality of everything in your life, [29:00] all of your Thanksgiving springs forth from a faith that is rooted in the gospel of Jesus Christ. [29:07] And you need to live that way. [29:10] Which is why number three is vital.

[29:14] The gospel makes thankfulness and suffering real.

[29:25] Thanksgiving goes beyond what you wanted and what you expected to what really is going on in the life around you. [29:37] Last Sunday, I think this might help. [29:39] Last Sunday, I shared a story of my oldest child, my son, [29:45] being born with a few small holes in his heart. [29:48] As an example of my thankfulness to God. [29:51] You know, and if you weren’t here, if you didn’t see the video,

[29:54] my son was born with with three holes in his heart. [29:58] And over six months, because of the amazing design of God and the hand of God enduring in life, [30:05] those holes healed, which often happens and talked about the fact that we took him to a cardiologist [30:12] and they had this amazing machine that looked into my son’s chest as just a tiny infant [30:19] and went all the way down into the different parts of his heart, the different valves. [30:24] And he had these pinholes and this machine had such a magnification on it that it could see through his chest,

[30:30] into his heart, to the tiniest of pinholes. [30:34] And I said, man, thank God for the capacity that he has put in us through his image [30:40] so that we could develop such technology that could save lives and show us what’s really going on [30:47] when the heart doesn’t sound right. [30:49] And of course, the conclusion of that was the doctor said it will probably heal. [30:53] And then it did heal. And I said, what was my response?

[30:56] My response was immediately, thank God. [30:59] OK, now I want to go to the other side of that argument that I saved for today, [31:07] knowing what someone in the crowd may retort with because it’s something that I feel oftentimes.

[31:16] What if he hadn’t been healed?

[31:20] What if six months later the holes were still there and it was a life altering reality or even a life ending

[31:27] reality as it is for some people? [31:30] Because sometimes social media does this to us. [31:33] It ruins us. [31:36] But you see someone in there, something good happened. [31:39] All right. And, you know, they got a promotion, they got a raise, they got a house, they got a car. [31:44] They met someone, anything.

[31:47] And they’re like, man, praise God, this amazing event happened in my life. [31:50] The best news ever. [31:51] This is what I’ve wanted for 23 years. [31:54] And it finally happened and all my hard work paid off. [31:56] Thanks be to God. [31:57] All good and perfect gifts come from above.

[31:59] I’m so thankful to God. [32:00] Praise God. [32:02] And I’m a gloomy Gus.

[32:05] So I, you know, I’m like, well, would you be thanking God if you hadn’t gotten it? [32:11] Would you be praising God if it hadn’t gone your way?

[32:16] And we really have to think about that. [32:20] I mean, the response may sound like it is easy to thank God when what you wanted to happen happens.

[32:30] It’s easy to thank God when what you prayed for would happen, happens the way you wanted it to happen. [32:39] But what about when the healing doesn’t come?

[32:43] What about when it doesn’t feel like my prayers are answered? [32:47] God seems totally silent in my life. [32:51] Could you and would you be thankful if there are nothing but negative outcomes?

[33:04] The vision for your life didn’t come to fruition. [33:08] The career you were chasing didn’t happen. [33:11] The marriage that you wanted falls apart. [33:15] The person that you wanted to be healed isn’t and they die. [33:19] I’ll tell you, I walk with people through every single one of those things. [33:26] When things work out the way we desire, it is so easy to respond.

[33:31] Thank God. [33:33] But when things don’t go the way we desire, it is difficult. [33:37] And there is often nothing offered but silence. [33:40] And so what do we do? [33:44] Colossians 3.16, 3.17 rather, as we’ve seen, tells us that in whatever we do, [33:52] we do it in the name of Jesus giving thanks.

[33:58] This is true of everything. [34:01] I don’t know if you know this or not, but your life is basically going to be defined by the choices that you make [34:07] and the reactions that you have to things that happen to you.

[34:14] And those reactions are what I would put in the category of saying that when Colossians 3.16, 3.17 says, [34:22] in whatever you do, your reactions are included in that. [34:29] That is a whatever you do in the name of Jesus Christ giving thanks. [34:34] Whether we are celebrating healing, whether we are celebrating an accomplishment or a victory or any type of gain in this life. [34:44] But it is also true whenever we are hurting, whenever we are mourning, whenever we are burying a loved one, [34:56] whenever we are experiencing great personal failure, whenever we are experiencing any type of loss in this life.

[35:07] Still true. [35:09] The phrase whatever you do is an all encompassing reality, friend. [35:15] If we look to God for the things we enjoy,

[35:21] we must also look to God for the things that we dread.

[35:26] Everything comes from his hand. [35:29] And so in everything, give thanks. [35:34] Faithful thanksgiving sees God’s work in everything and trusts him with it. [35:41] No matter what. [35:43] I didn’t say that was easy because it’s easy for me to say. [35:48] It’s hard to experience.

[35:51] The reason that we can do this is I think great place to look forward is 2 Corinthians 4, starting in verse 14. [36:00] But first, I want you to put this in its right place. [36:03] In 2 Corinthians 2, the apostle Paul has already said, [36:10] giving thanks because he leads us in a triumphal procession. [36:15] So in chapter two, he says triumph, victory, fragrance of God through our thanksgiving for that triumph. [36:25] But in chapter four, he applies that overarching reality to the real stuff of life.

[36:34] Look in verse 14. [36:36] He says, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. [36:46] For it is all for your sake so that as grace extends to more and more people, [36:51] it may increase what Thanksgiving to the glory of God. [36:56] And then he’s going to tell us how. [36:59] Starts by saying, so we do not lose heart.

[37:04] So pause. That’s a command. [37:07] Jesus said the same thing. He’s quoting Jesus. [37:11] Anytime you see something like that, understand that the reason he’s saying don’t lose heart is because you’re going to be tempted to. [37:19] Is because you’re going to want to is because you’re going to feel like that’s the only option you have. [37:26] But he continues, though our outer self is wasting away. [37:31] Our inner self is being renewed day by day.

[37:36] But then get this for this light momentary affliction.

[37:43] He isn’t specific. [37:46] He’s general. [37:49] Which means he’s talking about all of it. [37:53] What’s your problem? [37:54] Lay it down. [37:55] Light momentary affliction.

[37:57] All of it. [37:59] Is what he does with it. [38:01] He says this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison. [38:14] As we look not to the things that are seen, but to the things that are unseen for the things that are seen or transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

[38:23] I love this. [38:25] Because he looks to you and says, what is your problem?

[38:31] Everything that God brings into your life. [38:34] Is going to feel like it’s killing you. [38:37] That’s what I take from verse 16. [38:40] Though the outer self is wasting away. [38:42] If you’re over 35, you’re beginning to experience this.

[38:49] I mean, for me, it was like 18. [38:51] I’m fat.

[38:55] But I have not had a day where something hasn’t hurt for a few years. [39:00] It’s just the truth. [39:02] And the older you get, all right, the more that’s real. [39:06] Reality. [39:07] I talk to a lot of elderly people. [39:09] It’s a lot of medicine.

[39:11] I keep track of it all. [39:13] There’s a lot of pain. [39:15] But look at what he says. [39:16] He says through faith in Jesus, every pain, every hurt, everything that’s killing you emotionally, physically, mentally, every problem in your life, every hindrance in your life. [39:32] While that’s happening, the gospel of Jesus Christ uses pain as a catalyst to renew your inner self day by day. [39:47] He’s saying there should be a trajectory that as pain increases, if you are growing in your relationship with Christ, so will your gratitude.

[40:02] You’re being renewed day by day. [40:05] You’re growing in the spirit every day. [40:07] You’re growing in faith every day. [40:10] You’re becoming wiser and wiser every day. [40:13] You’re treasuring the gospel more and more every day. [40:16] You’re being renewed.

[40:17] You’re being faithful. [40:19] You’re being obedient. [40:20] You are loving Jesus Christ because this light momentary affliction is preparing for me an eternal weight of glory. [40:35] Beyond all comparison, I think the apostle Paul just ran out of words. [40:41] An eternal weight of glory. [40:44] And Paul says, how can I express what that means to a people that don’t have it?

[40:52] This is beyond all comparison. [40:54] He says, I don’t care what your pain is. [40:57] There’s a lot of pain in this world.

[41:00] There’s a lot of pain.

[41:04] Loved ones die.

[41:08] People are diagnosed with disease.

[41:13] People start losing their grip on reality, whether it be dementia, Alzheimer’s, cancer, whatever it is. [41:26] It hurts.

[41:29] And this text tells me God knows that. [41:33] And he says, if you’ll trust me, I’ll use it to grow your joy, to which I say, good luck.

[41:45] Good luck. [41:46] Good luck. [41:47] To which God says, buddy, beyond all comparison. [41:51] Why? [41:53] Because it’s not natural.

[41:56] It’s supernatural.

[42:00] If all that you have, verse 18 says, is what’s right in front of your face, you’ll never have it.

[42:08] You say, what else am I going to define my life by? [42:10] It’s right in front of my face. [42:11] That’s what I have to define my life by. [42:13] And God says, no, I’ve given you the gospel. [42:16] I’ve given you the peace of Christ. [42:17] I’ve given you the word of Christ.

[42:18] I’ve given you the name of Christ. [42:20] That is what you define it by.

[42:23] I don’t know if you guys remember, but in March through August of 2020, it was a wild time. [42:30] Wild time. [42:31] I mean, I saw a guy in the grocery store with a hazmat suit. [42:35] All right. [42:36] Wild times. [42:38]

[42:41] But my kids, it took them a while for them to figure out what was going on because, you know, we homeschool and, you know, we got a little house on the prairie and smoke tree. [42:50] They don’t always watch the news ever. [42:52] They don’t care.

[42:55] But it took them a while to figure out what was going on. [42:58] And after a few weeks of not being here on Sunday, me saying I was on vacation didn’t work because they kept watching videos of me and they were like, but you keep going up there. [43:10] I said, fine. [43:11] And so I explained to them a little bit as to what was going on, as to what I understood. [43:16] And then, of course, in that moment, they were a little worried. [43:19] They said, who?

[43:21] What if what if we get it? [43:22] I looked at him. [43:23] I said, even if it kills me, glory, glory, glory, glory, light, momentary affliction, glory.

[43:40] Since March of 2020, the number of people on anxiety medication has increased immensely. [43:50] The number of children on anxiety medication has increased tremendously. [43:55] Why? [43:56] Because we don’t look at it as a light momentary affliction. [44:01] We look at the pain of this world and we look to our children and we say eternal death sentence.

[44:10] It’s a lie. [44:11] It’s a lie. [44:12] It’s all a lie. [44:14] Every bit of it. [44:15] The apostle says, give Jesus your pain. [44:22] He can be trusted with it.

[44:24] He knows what to do with it. [44:28] Friends, whatever is wrong with you today, I’m about to be a prophet.

[44:35] Whatever is wrong with you today is going to be wrong with you on Thursday. [44:40] I’ve been begging God for my feet to stop hurting, and he keeps saying it’s related to your weight. [44:47] My feet are going to hurt Thursday. [44:49] I know I’m in sin. [44:52] My feet are going to hurt. [44:54] Your sickness will probably still be there.

[44:56] Your emotional turmoil will probably still be there. [45:00] The pain that you feel today will be there on Thursday. [45:03] But here’s the deal. [45:05] Be thankful. [45:06] Be thankful. [45:08] Be thankful.

[45:09] Be thankful. [45:10] The world is going to try to lie to you. [45:16] And they’re going to say it’s not a light momentary affliction. [45:19] It’s something that needs to create an ending anxiety in you to which the Christian response must be lies. [45:31] Regardless of the pain, light momentary affliction. [45:36] When I have the faith to say eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.

[45:45] But then you might say, but it’s right in front of my face. [45:50] To which I say, verse 18, look not to the things that are seen, but to the things that are unseen. [45:57] For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

[46:04] This is a life worth living to the praise and thankfulness to God. [46:12] The application points first order your life to grow in thankfulness doesn’t happen by accident.

[46:19] If you think you’re just going to drift into thankfulness, you’re nuts. [46:23] You have to make that happen. [46:25] You have to order your life in that direction. [46:28] Secondly, seek to be obviously thankful to proclaim the gospel. [46:32] What I mean by that is if you’re trying to proclaim the gospel to unbelievers and you’re not an obviously thankful person, [46:39] why are they going to want to believe the gospel?

[46:42] They should see an overwhelming and obvious thankfulness in your life. [46:47] That is an argument for the gospel. [46:50] Thirdly, thankfulness finds meaning in the gospel. [46:55] It’s the place that we go to say here’s why. [46:58] Fourthly, because of Jesus, you can be thankful and suffering. [47:03] Because of Jesus, you can be thankful and suffering.

[47:06] Pain is going to happen to a hundred percent of you. [47:10] If not right now, it’s coming. [47:13] But because of Jesus, light, momentary affliction.

[47:21] Fifthly, happy Thanksgiving.

[47:25] Happy Thanksgiving. [47:27] My prayer for you and your family is that you will eat a lot. [47:33] But more than that, it’s that regardless of the situation you find yourself in, [47:38] whether it’s been the best year of your life or whether it’s been the worst year of your life, [47:42] my prayer is that beyond all of the things in creation, [47:47] your thankfulness transcends every bit of it.

[47:50] And you are able through faith to say, thanks be to God for Jesus Christ.

[48:19] Thank you.