I. INTRODUCTION

A. In 1Thessalonians 5:18, the Scripture says, "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." By this, we understand that it is God's will that thanksgiving should attend every part of a Christian's life.

B. With the national Thanksgiving Day approaching, it is good to know what true thanksgiving is and what purpose it serves. This is the intent of our lesson.

II. WHAT THANKSGIVING IS

A. Thanksgiving begins with a thankful attitude of the heart.

1. Consider the element of thankfulness from the heart in Colossians 3:15-16:

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

2. It is evident that thankfulness must be a sincere product of the heart. It is not to be feigned in hypocrisy.

a. Repeatedly in the psalms, thanksgiving to God is declared to come from the heart (Ps. 9:1; 86:12; 11:1; 119:7; 138:1). It cannot come from any other source.

b. Children have to be trained to say "thank you," but eventually they should become mature enough that they have genuine thankfulness in their hearts.

c. Likewise, adults often say "thank you" out of courtesy, but real thanksgiving comes only from genuine gratitude in the heart.

B. Thanksgiving is an expression of heartfelt gratitude by words and deeds.

1. The message of Colossians 3:15-16 is completed in verse 17 -- "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." All of our words and deeds should contain an element of thanksgiving to God.

2. The mere feeling of gratitude or thankfulness does not equate to thanksgiving. There must be an overt expression of that gratitude for there to be true thanksgiving.

a. For example, all ten lepers whom Jesus healed might have been grateful to be free of leprosy, but only one actually gave thanks (Luke 17:11-19).

b. A grateful attitude must be manifested through actual words and deeds in order to be genuine thanksgiving.

C. Thanksgiving must be directed toward a person.

1. Thanksgiving is not to be expressed toward impersonal things.

a. Heathen people have often thanked the sun, the rivers, the animals, or some other aspect of nature for their blessings, but believers in God know that thanksgiving is only appropriate when directed toward God or man.

b. One of the great failings of the Gentiles was that, although they knew God, "they did not honor Him as God or give thanks," but instead they "exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures" (Rom. 1:21, 23).

c. Therefore, let us not misdirect our gratitude toward "mother nature" or some other impersonal entity, but let us be thankful to the true persons who have benefited us, especially God.

2. For thanksgiving to occur, communication between persons is necessary.

a. Either thanks should be clearly stated, or else a deed that is a clear token of thanks should be performed.

b. Thankfulness cannot be assumed. It must be expressed in a genuine show of thanksgiving that is understood by all persons involved.

c. Concerning our thanksgiving to God, it is best expressed by means of prayer (1Thess. 5:16-18) and behavior that is "worthy of the calling with which you have been called" (Eph. 4:1).

III. WHAT THANKSGIVING DOES

A. Thanksgiving causes a person to focus on those who have blessed him rather than himself or the blessings he has received.

1. Personal wants and needs can cause us to become self-centered. The blessings that satisfy those wants and needs can cause us to become self-indulgent. However, thanksgiving takes our minds away from self and turns them to the source of all blessings, who is God our Father (Jas. 1:17).

2. It is easy to be happy about the blessings that give us sustenance, comfort, and safety, but thanksgiving causes us to look beyond the blessings to the God who gave them.

a. In Acts 14:17, Paul told the Gentiles that throughout history God "did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good and gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness." Truly, our blessings are a witness to the love and goodness of God, and they should cause us to give thanks to Him.

b. Every blessing that we receive should instantly move us to give thanks. Consider 1Timothy 4:4-5 -- "For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer."

B. Thanksgiving requires a person to understand the efforts of others made on his behalf and the value of the blessings he has received.

1. Consider the example of the Judean Christians in 2Corithians 9.

a. The context of this passage is about a contribution to be made by the Corinthian Christians for the support of needy saints in Judea.

b. The purpose of this collection was not only to supply the needs of the saints, but it was also to cause them to give thanks to God. Notice verses 10-12:

Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God.

2. Consider also the example Paul and Timothy in 2Corinthians 4.

a. Paul described their tremendous suffering for the sake of Christ and the gospel in verses 8-12. They endured these things in order to take the gospel to the Gentiles.

b. In verse 15, Paul said, "For all things are for your sakes, so that the grace which is spreading to more and more people may cause the giving of thanks to abound to the glory of God."

c. These things were written so that the Corinthian Christians would appreciate what God had done for them through Christ and give Him thanks for it.

C. Thanksgiving requires one to be humble.

1. In Acts 17:24-25, 28, Paul gave a perspective on the relationship between God and man when he said,

"The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things...for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.'"

2. When we give thanks, we are made aware of our own dependence upon God. This causes us to be humble before Him, for we are nothing without His grace and benevolence.

IV. CONCLUSION

A. Certainly, God is worthy of more than a single day of thanksgiving each year. Everyone should offer prayers of thanksgiving and live in gratitude to God every day.

B. As we give thanks to God, let us understand that doing so is not a benefit for God, but rather it is for our own sakes. It gives us a proper perspective on our dependence upon God and draws us closer to Him. It also allows us to fulfill our God-given purpose, which is to bring glory to God (Isa. 43:7).