34 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.
35 Cry out, “Save us, God our Savior;
gather us and deliver us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name,
and glory in your praise.”
36 Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
his love endures forever.
35 Cry out, “Save us, God our Savior;
gather us and deliver us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name,
and glory in your praise.”
36 Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Then all the people said “Amen” and “Praise the Lord.” (1 Chronicles 16:34-36)
Thoughts: This was a Psalm of David and Asaph, the famous poet of the Bible, when the Ark of the Covenant was brought into Jerusalem. They had tried to bring the Ark into Jerusalem earlier but were careless in the way they did it and some died. But now the Ark was there in the middle of the new capital city. There was a sense that God was blessing them- and He was. When we are in a time of blessing, we not only should give thanks, we need to give thanks. To not give thanks when God has blessed us is to not recognize that God is the giver of blessing. The doxology that is often sung is a great reminder that it is God from whom all blessings flow. But the blessing was exponential- for the people were thanking God for worship. They were thanking God for the opportunity to thank and praise Him. Thanksgiving is an essential part of worship.
The actual words of thanksgiving here should be examined. God is thanked for He is good. In the end, God defines what is good. The blessings we receive come from the God overflowing from His good presence.
That God's love is not a flash in a pan should be a comfort to us. His love is steady, constant, and lasts forever. It is from everlasting to everlasting- double infinity.
Salvation is not just for our own comfort- but now that we are His people, we are saved for a higher purpose- to thank Him (vs.3). We are saved not for our own skin. We are saved to give thanks. Think of that. We are created to give thanks and when we get in trouble, we are saved to give thanks. Thanksgiving should be an essential and encompassing part of who we are.
That God's love is not a flash in a pan should be a comfort to us. His love is steady, constant, and lasts forever. It is from everlasting to everlasting- double infinity.
Salvation is not just for our own comfort- but now that we are His people, we are saved for a higher purpose- to thank Him (vs.3). We are saved not for our own skin. We are saved to give thanks. Think of that. We are created to give thanks and when we get in trouble, we are saved to give thanks. Thanksgiving should be an essential and encompassing part of who we are.
Prayer: To you, right now, I give thanks. Thank you for enabling me to give thanks. Thank you for saving me from trouble so that I might thank you.
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