ONE WAS THANKFUL - NINE WERE NOT

One Was Thankful - Nine Were Not

by Pastor Mark Taylor 

And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And He said unto him, Arise, go your way: your faith has made you whole” (Luke 17:17-19).

Giving thanks and the word thanksgiving are mentioned over 140 times in the Bible.  All the people used by God in the Bible had the “attitude of gratitude”.  David said: “Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits” (Psalms 103:1-2).  Daniel gave thanks: “Daniel went to his house. And his windows were open in his roof room toward Jerusalem; and he kneeled on his knees three times a day and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did before” (Daniel 6:10).  Paul tells us: “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

In a list of sins in the last days, observe that being unthankful is one of those sins.  This tells us the things that displeases God.  Hopefully, we will see that being ungrateful is one of those things that we need to remove from our lives as one of His children.

“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

For people shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent (lack of self-control), fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”  (2 Timothy 3: 1-5)

Being thankful is not a natural trait.  Ask God to help you to be thankful.  It has to be taught and it has to be practiced.  Watch others who are thankful and see how God blesses them.  Teach others to be thankful with your words and your life.  

You have so much to be thankful for.  You have the freedom to worship.  You have access to the Word of God at your fingertips.  You have a church family that loves you, and to whom you can go for comfort and fellowship.  You have the financial resources to buy food and live in a comfortable home.  You have access to medical care and medicine.  You have family and friends to bring joy into your lives.  Remember the song we sing: “Count your many blessings, name them one by one.  Count your many blessings and see what God has done.”

Think about how much you appreciate your children, grandchildren, friends, and family when they say “Thank You”.  And think about how you feel when you do something for them and they do not say “Thank You” or acknowledge your act of love.  Your attitude about doing something more for them often will be affected by their response or lack of response.  We are created in God’s image, which means He has feelings much like we do.

“And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go show yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.”(Luke 17:14)  When you ask the Lord to help you, He will usually ask you to do something to demonstrate your faith. 

The “One Thankful Man”, took the time to return to Jesus to thank Him.  He started out standing “afar off”, but now he was on “his face, at His feet, giving Him thanks”.  He started out asking for mercy, and now he glorified God with a “loud voice”.

Those who have received mercy from God should openly demonstrate it to others.  Their praise to God may encourage others, and lead them to trust Christ.

Jesus took notice of the grateful return the “One Thankful Man” made.  He also took notice of the ingratitude of those that were sharers of the mercy that did not return to give thanks.  “Where are the nine?”  Of the many that receive mercy from God, there are very few (one in ten) that return to give thanks.

Today, you should thank our Lord and Savior for the many times He has had mercy on you.  If you are a child of God you have much to be thankful for.  You have Heaven to look forward to.  Jesus told the “One Thankful Man” that his faith had made him whole. He not only received a physical healing, but a spiritual healing. He not only received a higher quality of life on earth, but he received “Eternal Life”. This man not only appreciated the gift he received, but also the Giver.  “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities; Who heals all your diseases…” (Psalm 103: 2-3).

Be one of the 10% that Loves God enough to give thanks to Him today!!!!

Below are some ways you can be thankful to our Lord:

“To the end that my glory may sing praise to You, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto You for ever” (Psalms 30:12).

“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto Your name, O most High” (Psalms 92:1).

“Praise you the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endures for ever” (Psalms 106:1).

“By Him, then, let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15).

What happens when you become thankful?  God listens to you, and will pour out many more blessings upon you.  Other people will be blessed by your words of praise instead of listening to your complaints.  You will begin to see answers to your prayers and feel the presence of God in your lives.  You will please your Heavenly Father.

TOO MANY EXCUSES

“TOO MANY EXCUSES"

By Pastor Mark Taylor

There are at least five areas that we all to focus on as we carry out His commission:  “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel”.  Each of you are the Church. “Now you are the body of Christ, and members in particular” (1 Corinthians 12:27).  You are not just a member of an organization.  We need to focus on these five ministry areas in our lives.  If we are following the will of God, and if our eyes are on Him, we can be excited about what God is doing and what He is going to do for us as individuals and for the Church. Understand that God loves you as you are, but in serving Him, He will make you better, and He has many blessings to give you.  As you bless others with your finances, your abilities, and your time, you will be blessed.

We need to focus on investing and inviting.  We need to focus on the Word of God and prayer.   We need to focus on meaningful relationships. We need to focus on serving others.  We need to focus on praise and worship.

There is one thing stopping us from accomplishing these areas of ministry and that is “Too Many Excuses”.  Because it is going to take commitment, dedication, sacrifice, and tenacity to get it done. It means that we are going to have to stop making excuses.   It seems all of us have strong excuses why we don’t do the things we ought to be doing.  Instead of saying “I can’t,  we need to be saying:  “I can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).

There was one person in the Bible who came up with excuses on why he could not do what God had called him to do.  As many of us do, Moses had many excuses that he gave to God as to why he could not fulfill his calling to rescue the Israelites from slavery.  God has called many of us to do something for Him.  Are you using the same excuses Moses did?

Moses said, “But I am not qualified.”  Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” (Exodus 3:11).   All Moses could see was his own unworthiness.  God is calling us to make an impact and God is going to provide the means to fulfill that calling. We are His, we are His sons and daughters and He has qualified us to make an impact. 

Moses said, “But I don’t have the knowledge to do what you are asking me to do.”  “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” (Exodus 3:13). God always gives us the knowledge and the power to do what He asks us to do. 

Moses said, “But others will not believe me.”  Moses, once again doubts himself and his ability to fulfill his mission.  “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The LORD did not appear to you’?” (Exodus 4:1).  We should not worry about what others think of us in relationship to our mission and calling from the Lord. 

Basically Moses is saying they are not going to believe me so I don’t believe in me.   The fear of failure often keeps people from trying to follow the Lord.  God gave Moses convincing proofs and He gives us the Word of God to produce faith in us.  “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”  (Romans 10:17).

Moses said, “But I don’t have the right gifts for this mission.”   If God calls you to do something, He will give you the ability to get it done.   “Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”   (Exodus 4:10).  God answered Moses and said:  “Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” (Exodus 4:12).   God already knows the inability and shortcomings of those He calls.  But our God is a God of miracles and He can give you what you need to get His job done.  “But Jesus looked at them and said, "With men it is impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible." (Mark 10:27).

Moses said, “But I don’t want to!”  But Moses said, “Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.” (Exodus 4:13).  Moses was done with excuses and showed the real state of his heart. He would rather have God send someone else.  His problem wasn’t really a lack of ability; it was a lack of willingness.  He simply did not want to go.  It may be true with us that we would really rather that God would use someone else.  Send someone else to visit the sick.  Send someone else to invite people to church.  Someone else can pray.  Someone else can give their money and time.  In that case someone else will receive God’s blessings and some other church will grow and take the message throughout the world for the Lord.  God has given us everything we need to do everything He has called us to do.  “I can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13).  We need to be more confident in the fact that God is always going to give us what we need to get the job done.  All we have to do is step out in faith and do it.  We have to step out on faith even when we “don’t want to”.

With Moses, we know that He did answer the call and was successful in delivering the children of Israel out of Egyptian bondage.  What about us?  Will we heed the call to use our gifts and abilities for the service of the Lord?  Moses is with the Lord right now enjoying his salvation and rewards for making the right decision.  It is an honor to be called by God and to serve Him.  If you put aside your excuses you will hear Him say to you: “Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.” (Matthew 25:21).

What is God calling you to do this year, this week, today?  I am sure He is speaking to each of us about something.  He has told us we are “the light of the world” and that we are “the salt of the earth”.  This means we are called to do something to make our world better, our church better, and our friends and families better.  Why don’t we all quit making excuses and start doing what God is asking us to do?  When you do something for the “Church” you are doing it for our Lord Jesus.  You are doing it for the body that you are a vital part of.  Let’s find something we can do and complete it for God. Let us all use our money, time, and talents for God.    No More Excuses, please.