GOD’S PRECISE WILL FOR YOU!
We are often perplexed in life, not knowing what the will of God is for us. But there is one verse in the Bible that is crystal clear about God’s will for us. It is to give thanks to Him in all situations whether we understand what is going on or not. “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
WHEN TO THANK GOD?
i) WHEN WE ARE AT LOSS – When Job lost everything, he never said that he had lost his hard-earned properties and richly-merited children. Instead, he thanked God saying that he had everything from God and now He has taken them away (Job 1:21).
ii) WHEN THINGS WORK AGAINST US
See, when Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went into his house, where the windows of his upper room opened toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he got down on his knees, prayed, and gave thanks to his God, just as he had done before (Daniel 6:10). If the Scripture just recorded that Daniel prayed as before, we could guess that he would have prayed to reverse the king’s order or something like that. But it is written that he prayed and gave thanks to God. Even in such adverse moments, Daniel had reasons to thank God.
iii) WHEN WORRIED
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6). Even when situations stimulate anxiety or worry, we are asked to take things to God in prayer blended with thanksgiving.
iv) WHEN THERE IS NO REFUGE
When Saul for chasing David to take his life, he ran to Achish, the king of Gad for refuge. But he had to act as a mad man to escape from them and he fled to a cave in Adullam for his safety (1 Samuel 21:10-22:1). The surprise part is that David sang Psalm 34 in this situation, saying, “I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth”, and he exhorts others to magnify God together with him saying, “Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.” (Psalm 34:1, 3)
HOW TO THANK GOD?
i) BY ACCEPTING OUR UNWORTHINESS – Jacob, thanked God saying that he is unworthy of all of God’s favour and faithfulness, for when he was running away from his home, he just had a rod in his hands but then was blessed with two large group of people and cattle (Genesis 32:10). Even David after he became the king of Israel and when he was prophesied about the blessings of his household and heritage, he sat before God and thanked him saying, ““Who am I, O Lord GOD? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far?” (2 Samuel 7:18)
ii) BY ADMITTING THAT HE IS THE SOURCE OF ALL THAT WE HAVE – When David had everything – greatness, power, glory, riches, splendour, kingdom, strength, etc., he said, “Everything is Yours, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours.” When David and the Israelites gave for the building of the temple he said, “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.” (1 Chronicles 29:10-14)
iii) WHOLE-HEARTEDLY – We ought to thank God with gratitude in our hearts (Colossians 3:16). Jesus calls those who just praise and thank Him out of their lips but not their hearts as hypocrites (Matthew 15:7-8). Let our thanksgiving not just be because we are taught to do so (Isaiah 29:13).
WHY TO THANK GOD?
i) BECAUSE HE IS OUR GOD – Psalms 100:3-4
ii) BECAUSE HE IS OUR CREATOR – Psalm 100:3-4
iii) FOR EVERYTHING – Ephesians 5:20 – For whatever we have, for it is He who protects, preserves, guides and provides
NOT THANKING GOD IS TO GO AGAINST HIS WILL
As the key verse says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”, when we are not thanking God, whatever the situation may be, we are not doing His will. Everything that God allows for those of us who love Him is for our good says the Scripture in Romans 8:28. So, we ought to thank Him irrespective of our circumstances. We are never wiser than Him.
i) THE UNGRATEFUL SATAN IS CAST DOWN
Angels are created to praise and thank God (Isaiah 6:2-3) and to carry out His purposes (Psalm 103:20). But a group of them under the headship of Satan, the Lucifer were ungrateful and cast down by God. Let us see how it happened.
Satan was given everything except Godship:
* Filled with wisdom (Ezekiel 28:12)
* Perfect in beauty (Ezekiel 28:12)
* He was on the holy mountain of God (heaven) (Ezekiel 28:14; Isaiah 14:12)
* Covered with precious stones – sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold. (Ezekiel 28:13)
* Walked in the midst of fiery, shining stones (Ezekiel 28:14)
Instead of being grateful for all that His Creator had given him, he was greedy for the
throne of God and wanted the position of the Most High God. So, we read that God cast
him and his angels into the lowest depths of the pit (Isaiah 14:12-15). Greediness makes us
ungrateful for all that we have.
ii) THE COMPLAINING ISRAELITES WERE DEADLY PUNISHED
God with all His might and wonders brought Israelites out of their slavery and we read all
about these in the book of Exodus. But these people, instead of being thankful to God and their leaders for all their efforts, complained and murmured against God and His servants about 14 times throughout Exodus. They complained about the Red Sea, drinking water, manna from heaven, Moses not returning from the mountain, Moses’ leadership, giants in the land of Canaan and much more. They had a lot of reasons to be thankful to God – the ten plagues in Egypt in which they were all safe, their deliverance from Egypt, the gold and other valuables they got from their Egyptians, the submerging of Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea, water from the Rock, bitter water made sweet, heavenly Manna without any labor, victory over enemies on the way to Canaan, divine leadership of Moses and Aaron, and much more. As a consequence, we see none except Joshua and Caleb among those who left Egypt entered Canaan (Numbers 14:38).
Let us therefore be careful to thank God at all times, whatever the situation may be. This is exactly the divine will of God for everyone of us. We were formed by God to declare and proclaim His praises (Isaiah 43:21; 1 Peter 2:9). Let us not be let down at His coming by not doing His will of thanking Him always (Matthew 7:21).
