Title: Mystery of Gratitude
Contents
Mystery of Gratitude: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 2009/10/03
Once upon a time in a village there lived a kind-hearted and diligent farmer. I planted radishes one year, and it worked so well that I ended up pulling radishes that were almost the size of a human. The farmer thought it was due to the selection of the Wonnim, who was taking good care of the village, and brought the radish to the Wonnim. Wonnim was thinking about how to repay this farmer's grateful thought, and when he called his servant and asked, he told me that a large bull had recently arrived.
The monk gave this bull to the farmer. As this rumor spread throughout the town, an evil peasant who betrayed it, offered the ox to the lord, thinking that he would receive land if he offered the ox because he had sacrificed the radish. Wonnim said thank you and told him to bring any valuable items that came into the palace, but it was the radish that came in last time.
Genuine gratitude is the result of greater gratitude.
1. Giving thanks can only be done by those who have realized the grace of God.
The word “thank you” is the Greek word for “eucharistos”, which is derived from the word “grace”. Therefore, thanksgiving begins with knowing God's grace, and those who do not know God's grace cannot give thanks. Therefore, when we know and realize God's grace every day, the words of thanks come out of our mouths, and those who have experienced God's grace fervently will always glorify God's grace through a life of gratitude.
But why is our life without gratitude? In a word, it is because we forget the grace of God and live. Looking back, it all comes down to God's grace. We are grateful that we are alive now. Being able to go to church is also a blessing. It is also a blessing to have a job and a place of business. Above all, the fact that we are staying in the love of the most high and great God itself is grace and something to be thankful for.
To those who did not know this, Jesus gave an illustration.
An example of a foolish rich man) Stacking warehouses to overflowing ~ Let's enjoy it now.
God - If you take your life today, who will it be with all these riches?
It was one summer day. Two passers-by were walking on a path without shade to rest for a while because there were no trees. The two of them were sweating profusely, walking with a gait as if they were about to collapse in the heat, when they found a large tree with thick branches. A cool shade was cast under the tree. The two ran into the shade of the tree as if they had met the Savior. As the chest opened, which seemed to be suffocating, and the sweat on their foreheads cooled, the two began to talk. "Honey, most of the trees are useful somewhere, but this alder here is useless for anything. It really does exist, but it's not there, but it's the same thing." Then one man said, arguing.
“Now that I think about it, it’s really true, it’s a really useless tree.”
The reason why you can't feel the grace even though you're under the shadow of grace is because you don't think about it that much.
In Hebrews 3:1, holy brethren who have been called from heaven... Saints, contemplate Jesus.
Think deeply. “Focus on Jesus. Always think and think again.” Think of Jesus every moment and do not forget that grace.
Let's thank God for today.
Thank you for giving us the faith to be thankful for.
Chuseok Even though it took a lot of hard work and hospitality, let's be thankful that we are in good health so we can meet family and friends.
Thank you with the person next to you. "Thank you. Love it. bless you”
Always think of the grace of the Lord and give thanks.
2. Those who have faith will live with gratitude.
Today's text says, "In everything give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." To give thanks in everything means to give thanks in everything.
However, we are living in a generation where the word “everything” is very offensive. We are living in a world where there is only worry when we turn around and only worry when we turn around.
Complaining that when a typhoon came and the crops and houses were flooded, everything was lost,
If there is no typhoon and the crops harvest a great wind, they complain that their value has dropped.
Complaining that work is too much in a place where the company is well paid and the company is strong,
They complain that the work is decent, but the pay is low.
They say that if you eat full, you will die of fullness, and if you are hungry, you will die of hunger.
Why? Are people living with complaining and resentment? It is because of greed and desire to own more than others, eat more than others, and have things that are better than others.
People who fall into this greed and desire are not satisfied and always complain. Through this greed, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden ate of the forbidden fruit out of their desire to become like God who made them. There is no end to our human greed today. This greed does not bring true satisfaction to us humans, just as a person who drinks sea water cannot quench their thirst. Therefore, greed robs us of gratitude and gives us dissatisfaction and murmuring.
Dear brothers and sisters, I hope you have faith to love God. Those who truly believe in God will learn the secret of being satisfied and grateful for the little things that come from doing their best and working hard.
Helen Keller, who lost the functions of her eyes, ears and mouth due to a fever at the age of 19 months after birth, wrote “If I could only open my eyes for three days,” gives us a lot of insight.
If only I could open my eyes for three days
On the first day, I want to see the faces of my friends who have made my life worthwhile and the beauty of nature. On the second day, I want to experience the wonder of night turning into day and see the beauty of art beyond my fingertips through museums, films, and plays. On the third day, I want to understand the daily life of people standing on the street looking at them. After that, I would like to thank God for opening my eyes for three days.
We will meet Helen Keller in heaven someday. I hope that we can confess that we were able to give more thanks in a world that has opened our eyes for thousands of days more than that. If you look around you, everything is the grace of the Lord. Hallelujah
3. Gratitude is what makes our lives happy.
Why does a life of gratitude in everything give us happiness? It is because to be thankful is to live according to the will of God. A person who is grateful for everything is happy because he accepts everything by God's grace, believes in God's will, and lives boldly. If we have the thought that we have to endure and endure the trials and pains that come to us because it is God's will, we will be grateful for the hardships and feel God's love in the midst of suffering and live a happy life.
[Koriden Boom], whose whole family was imprisoned in a concentration camp for hiding Jews in Poland, read today's text, "I will be thankful for everything," and received grace while reading the Bible she had brought with her. So, even though I was in prison, I was able to live without forgetting gratitude. However, I had to move from the previous cell to another cell, and the cell had so many fleas that it was not only painful. He lost gratitude. But my sister [Betsy] said, "Thank God for the flea." While praying, this Cory did not develop a grateful heart. On the contrary, there was a complaint against God. But what I later learned was that the flea kept German guards out of the cell, allowing them to worship and socialize freely. Therefore, those who realize God's grace become grateful even in the midst of suffering, and thanksgiving instills happiness in us.
Those who live in poverty because they have little in the world have many things and live a happy life. However, even if you have many things in this world, you are the poorest people who are not satisfied and do not know how to be grateful. Just as a person who does not appreciate the blessings of his parents can never be filial, and a person who does not know the gratitude of his wife can never love his wife. will be
However, there was a church to the contrary. That church is the Laodian church. The Lord said to the church in Laodia, "I am rich and prosperous, and need nothing, but I do not know that you are wretched and poor and poor and blind and naked." The members of the Laodia Church did not suffer tribulation or persecution. We live in an age of peace. In the worldly world, he was rich and possessed much wealth. But their faith is not grateful. It is a church with a lukewarm faith without hot emotions and emotions. So the Lord said that the church in Laodia had a pitiful appearance from a spiritual point of view, and he rebuked it as a church that is rich in the world but poor spiritually, and is a foolish church whose eyes are so dark that they cannot see God and the shame that they live naked. is doing.
This Laodian church refers to the church of the age we live in now. Now we are not in tribulation. There is no one who is needy and naked and lives in starvation. Now we are living a life of faith in the age of peace. However, we need to know that we are losing our spiritually passionate faith, and that we are not moved by our lukewarm faith and have lost our gratitude.
The saints of this age are enjoying more cultural benefits than in the past. He also owns more and lives in abundance, but has lost his fervent faith. I gave up the faith of gratitude. You can see that in extreme selfishness with complaints and resentment, they are not trying to obtain mental satisfaction and peace, but only physical satisfaction.
Gratitude is not for those who have a lot of material things. Those who have faith and abide in God's love can be thankful, and those who are grateful can live a rich and happy life inwardly despite the external poverty, like the church members in Smyrna.
Dear brothers and sisters, I wish you a happy life with a grateful heart.
I wish you a harvest season in October, when you give thanks more than any other year.