The Heart of Thanksgiving
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September 25, 2016 |
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 Senior Pastor Dr. Jaerock Lee
"I will give thanks to the LORD according to His righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High" (Psalm 7:17).
The God of love always wants to give good things to His children. As we walk in the light and stay in His grace and love, we can live a life of unceasing thanks and praise. Let's delve into what we should be giving thanks for.
1. We should give thanks for helping us to find the meaning of our lives
Today, many people in the world don't know the true meaning of their lives and pursue meaningless things. Even those who go to church live lives which are not much different from that of worldly people except they attend a service or services on Sunday. They put their value on wealth, honor, fame, knowledge, and so on. They have the goal of enjoying such things a little bit more and more.
If they find they don't enjoy life as much as others do, they think they fail in their lives and they feel miserable and disheartened. Some enjoy great wealth and honor but they still feel lonely with a sense of emptiness in their heart. They then seek after the lusts of the world all the more. Some of them say, "Everything will be over once I die," and they commit suicide resulting from the feeling of futility of life. They are like a ship just drifting in the vast ocean with a broken compass.
But those of you who've heard the gospel of holiness are not like them. How thankful we should be for understanding the purpose and meaning of life, why we were born and how we should live!
The life given to us on this earth is the time for us to recover the image of God in order to come before the throne of God the Father in New Jerusalem. Until our Lord soon comes to take us back, we are to prepare for our eternal lives in Heaven. According to all we do on this earth such as our worship, prayer, and faithful work, God will reward us. Therefore whenever we eat and drink, or whatever we do, we do it for the glory of God.
When we live with this hope, how joyful and happy can we be every day! We become full of joy whenever we think of the grace of salvation. To the extent we cast off sin and change in the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, we become happy. As we come into spirit and whole spirit we live our lives in the rushing flow of joy. We will eventually live in Heaven with glory and happiness. I hope that you are able to sing even stronger praise of thanks to God the Father who gives you this joy.
2. We should give thanks for blessing us to live a healthy life
God wants to give us only the good things both spiritually and physically. He doesn't say, "Since you have the grace of salvation and hope for heaven, for having received them you should be able to accept living with the sufferings of life on this earth."
Just as 3 John 1:2 says, "Beloved, I pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers," God wants us to prosper and be in good health. We are constantly told how our happiness is in the way of our soul and spirit prospering.
In Exodus 15:26, God says, "If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer."
Those who act in righteousness in the sight of God; that is, those who live in the truth and recover the image of God every day will not lose the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Since God surrounds those who live a life of spiritual faith with spiritual light, diseases cannot sneak into them. Even existing diseases and germs will be burnt.
Those, who were once weak, tired easily, and often fell, came to testify they have recovered good health in church attendance and volunteering services. Since they became healthy, they can be more faithful to their duty and possess greater hope for Heaven. Even when you get sick, you already know what you should do. That is, you look back on yourself, repent, and break down the wall of sin. If you have nothing to repent, you can then give thanks more and rejoice more.
When you show your faith that can please God, God the Almighty and the Healer will take care of you and heal you no matter how serious your disease or infirmity is. Moreover, this church has the power that you cannot find anywhere else, it is easier here to meet God and experience Him. As you meet the living God and experience Him like this, your faith can grow up. By that spiritual faith, you can believe in and depend on God, not only for a matter of disease, but also for any problems of life. I urge you to give more thanks to God who can solve any kind of problem including diseases and who gives and wants you to receive only happiness.
3. We should give thanks for being able to receive the blessing of New Jerusalem
The Lord said in Matthew 11:12, "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force." Once we accept the Lord and receive salvation, we must diligently take Heaven by force.
From Paradise to the First, to Second, to Third Kingdom, and to New Jerusalem; we should diligently take it by force. How do we do it? We should cast off sin not only in action but also in heart and thought. We should eventually pull out sinful attributes in the heart and accomplish sanctification. And, we should be faithful in all God's household.
Many people have read the Bible but they don't understand its spiritual meanings and they don't discern the will of God. They don't know what it is to 'take Heaven by force'; they don't know about New Jerusalem. When the Bible mentions Paradise (Luke 23:43), the third heaven (2 Corinthians 12:2), or New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:2), they consider them all the same 'Heaven'; they just vaguely guess at what these places are like. Since they don't know the concept and process of pulling out sinful attributes and becoming sanctified, they cannot even try to become sanctified.
Manmin's members know the different places of Heaven, and the heavenly life in each of them. They even know the details of how to get there. Even though God taught us it all, there are still those who don't go the way they should. So God the Father gave us greater grace. He let me fill up justice by 99%, and let those who are one with me in trust and love enter New Jerusalem by filling up justice by 1%.
God sent them an invitation card to New Jerusalem, along with a map that shows them the way in detail. And for those who were not able to come on their own, God now is sending them a car to go to New Jerusalem. They don't need to walk or run; once they get in the car, they can easily go to New Jerusalem. Therefore, I urge you not to hesitate any more. I hope that you can march on toward New Jerusalem all the more with joy and thanks.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Psalm 50:23 says, "He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; and to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God." I pray in the name of the Lord that you will always keep the love of God and honor Him by offering up words of thanksgiving for it is He who gave His only begotten Son for us.
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