GIVE THANKS AND PRAISE HIS NAME
Sunday, December 10, 2000
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Romans 1:18-23 NIV
Almighty God, the creator of heaven and earth, has made His presence and His character known to us. When we look at His handiwork, we see where He has been and what He has done. Nothing we see in the world around us, nothing we have and use in our daily life, just appeared from nowhere. None of these things materialized independently. Somewhere, someone had an idea, someone formed a plan, someone gathered the necessary materials, and someone worked to make or build that thing. Just as an architect draws a plan and a builder follows the plan to build a building, so this universe and all that is in it was invented and created by God. He is the planner and the executor of His creation, which includes you and me.
It is a slap in God’s face to deny His existence and to worship the creation instead of the Creator. We must glorify Him by acknowledging His presence and His handiwork and by giving Him thanks. Everything we have belongs to Him and was offered freely to us. Therefore we are exceedingly selfish and ungrateful if we do not acknowledge Him or give Him thanks for it all – for creating us and for so graciously allowing us to freely enjoy the blessings of all of creation.
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6 NIV
We must recognize God for who He really is, not just for who we think He is or is not - otherwise we believe a lie. God exists, whether man believes it or not. He does not exist just because we believe He exists, He just IS! He even called Himself “I AM” when Moses asked for His name. Gravity exists whether you believe in it or not. It exerts an influence over your body no matter how much you deny it. Just try to jump off a high tower without a parachute and you’ll know that gravity is real and it worked for you! God exists. We need to get the revelation!
He wants us to know that He is real and at the same time He wants us to know Him and to know how He feels about us. He is a rewarder by nature, not a destroyer. People who think that God is out to destroy them cannot have the relationship with God that they could and should. We need to know that God made us, and everything around us, and that He loves us. We need to give thanks and be thankful and grateful to Him!
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. Psalms 100:1-5 NIV
Rejoice and be thankful! God made you and He loves you. He is eternally faithful and He will never let you down. He is deserving of all your love and praise. Be joyful, be glad, shout for joy and praise Him. You have a reason to thank and praise Him. He is good and His love, kindness and mercy will never cease or fail. You can praise him because you can always count on Him – no matter what. What a great God we serve! He is truly worthy of all our praise and thanksgiving.
Recent:
Righteous Now
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV
Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come! 2 Corinthians 5:17 AMP
“Therefore if any man be in Christ…” What does it mean to be “in Christ”? Galatians 3:27 says, “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” You are baptized into Christ when you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” And Romans 10:13 says, “For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The moment
Defeating Strife
These six things the Lord hates, indeed, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look [the spirit that makes one overestimate himself and underestimate others], a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 A heart that manufactures wicked thoughts and plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who breathes out lies [even under oath], and he who sows discord among his brethren. Proverbs 6:16-19 AMP
Faith Facts
Faith is persistent
Luke 11:9-10 AMP
So I say to you, Ask and keep on asking and it shall be given you; seek and keep on seeking and you shall find; knock and keep on knocking and the door shall be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks and keeps on asking receives; and he who seeks and keeps on seeking finds; and to him who knocks and keeps on knocking, the door shall be opened.
John 16:24 AMP
Up to this time you have not asked a [single] thing in My Name [as presenting all that I AM]; but now ask and keep on asking and you will receive, so that your joy (gladness, delight) may be full and complete.
Faith is single-minded
James 1:5-8 AMP
If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him. 6 Only it must be in faith that he asks with no wavering (no hesitating, no doubting). For the one who wavers (hesitates, doubts) is like the