Psalm 100 (NKJV)

1 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!2 Serve the Lord with gladness;Come before His presence with singing.3 Know that the Lord, He is God;It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Psalm 100 (NKJV)

4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,And into His courts with praise.Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.5 For the Lord is good;His mercy is everlasting,And His truth endures to all generations.

THANKFUL FOR GODPsalm 100

Thankful For God

My kids have been listing things that they are thankful for over the past week

They not only have to say what they are thankful for, but why they are thankful for those things

It can be easy for us to rattle off a list of our blessings

Thankful For God

It might be more helpful and meaningful to us if we mention why we are thankful for the blessings we have

It helps in our appreciation and in our expression thereof

So what are you thankful for around this time of year?

Thankful For God

I think one thing we all would mention would be how thankful we are for our God and our relationship with Him

Again, we ask the question, why?

I’m thankful for my God, and let me tell you exactly why both you and I should be thankful for Him…

The Goodness of God

One of the characteristics we often take for granted is the goodness of God

What if God were an evil, hateful, spiteful, or mean God?

False gods of years gone by were never merciful, loving and kind as we know our God to be

The Goodness of God

See the reaction of the prophets of Baal in I Kings 18:28

The God of the Bible was nothing like that, and for that I’m thankful!

The psalmist spoke of the goodness of God over and over; no doubt because it was witnessed firsthand

The Goodness of God

“Oh how great is Your goodness…” (Ps. 31:19)

“The goodness of God endures continually” (Ps. 52:1)

“For the Lord is good…” (Ps. 100:5)

“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!” (Ps. 107:1)

The Goodness of God

“You are good, and do good…” (Ps. 119:68)

Paul spoke of the goodness of God in his letter to those in Rome (2:4-11; 11:22)

One of the fruits of the Spirit of God is goodness (Gal. 5:22)

The Goodness of God

Every good and perfect gift comes from a God of goodness (Js. 1:17; Matt. 7:11; Lk. 11:13)

“…God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (I Jn. 1:5)

God cannot lie and cannot be tempted by evil (Titus 1:2; Js. 1:13)

The Goodness of God

The goodness of God is seen in His other attributes

He is holy (moral excellence), loving, gracious, merciful, longsuffering, etc.

I am thankful that I serve a God who is good, that I can trust to keep His word and not change who He is

The Love of God

I am thankful for the love that God has shown towards me

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (Jn. 3:16)

I am included in “the world”

The Love of God

God’s love means that I do not have to suffer the fate that I deserve (Rom. 6:23)

God’s love was manifested to us through His Son Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:8; I Jn. 4:9)

God’s goodness and love worked together (Titus 3:4)

The Love of God

Could you imagine trying to serve a God that did not love you?

Would we even be here if God didn’t love us

God’s love brings about things such as His grace, mercy, kindness, longsuffering, etc.

The Grace of God

I am also thankful for the grace that God has offered to mankind

Grace has been called “God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense”

It is properly defined as unmerited favor

We do not deserve God’s favor; yet He offered it anyways

The Grace of God

Noah found grace in the eyes of God (Gen. 6:8)

Although we are all sinners, we are justified freely by His grace (Rom. 3:23-24)

The forgiveness of our sins is according to the riches of His grace (Eph. 1:7)

The Grace of God

I’m thankful for the grace of God because I too am a sinner

His grace is not just for you and I, but for all men (Titus 2:11-14 & 3:7)

God’s grace has brought us from where we were to where we are now (Eph. 2:1-10)

The Longsuffering of God I am thankful for the longsuffering of

God as well

God is a good God who loves us and has been gracious to us

However, He also continues His goodness through His longsuffering, in giving mankind a chance to repent

The Longsuffering of God God’s longsuffering has always

been there (I Pet. 3:20)

Paul paired up the longsuffering of God with His goodness (Rom. 2:4)

Peter reminds us of the fact that God is longsuffering towards us, which is why He has not yet returned (II Pet. 3:9)

The Longsuffering of God God is longsuffering because He

is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance”

I’m thankful that God has given me an ample opportunity to respond to His goodness, love, and grace

Have you taken advantage of the opportunity?