WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7
Luke 17:11-19
Psalm 107:1-7

“O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good:
for his mercy endureth for ever.”

THE VIRTUE OF THANKFULNESS

Jesus showed in Luke 17:11-19 the virtue of being thankful. He taught in this incident that in receiving mercy thanks must be given to the one who extended mercy. So many people even Christians who daily receive abundant goodness from our Lord do not even bother to give thanks to God. Of the ten lepers who asked Jesus for mercy only one had the heart to return to give thanks for the healing. More often than not, God receives more praise and thanksgiving from those who had long lived not knowing Him, than from those who were raised up among His people and who professed to be Christians. This must not be the case! Take note that the story tells us that only the thankful man was genuinely healed for he got saved. The rest had physical healing but they still would get sick and die, ending up in hell in spite of their physical restoration.

Thankfulness must be characteristic of every Christian. Jesus here gives us this clear teaching. Although He healed even the unthankful and those who failed to recognize His goodness, such attitude makes the healing useless. The psalmist invites all men, “O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever” (Ps 107:1), and Paul also exhorted, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thess 5:18).

Thankfulness brings God glory. Thanksgiving exalts the attributes of God. It is the act of acknowledging that God did it all; not of our own or other means but by God’s power alone. Thankfulness is a virtue forgotten in today’s generation. Many, even Christians, fail because they displace God attributing success to themselves and other factors in the equation. They think they are the reason why things happened. We must always be most thankful, especially for our salvation, for salvation is truly of the Lord. Remember when we give thanks to God, we recognize that He alone has worked in our favour.

THOUGHT: Am I mindful to give thanks always unto the Lord?
PRAYER: Father, make me a thankful and a thanksgiving person.