Thanksgiving is a uniquely Christian holiday, for obvious reasons. Thankfulness requires an object, and thanking anyone but the true and living Creator and Savior God is foolish, misplaced and sinful. A characteristic of those who have rejected God, according to Romans 1:21, when mankind turns away from God, one of the resulting fruit is unthankfulness. Thanksgiving is a way for believers to reject sinful unthankfulness return to a habit we should all be growing in: remembering the blessings of the Lord. If this exercise is something you recognize should be added as you grow in sanctification, Strength for Life produced a video series in 2023 entitled “10 Biblical Things for Which to Be Thankful.”
While God has given us so many good things, I want to remind us of things that all believers, regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in, can thank the Lord for. One of these things is God’s grace. I’m so thankful that God provided grace. Definitionally, grace is that which we do not deserve. It is “undeserved favor.” The Bible describes a couple different types of undeserved favor from the Lord. First is common grace. Common grace is something everyone benefits from, whether they’re saved or unsaved. The beautiful sunlight is a good example. In Matthew 5:45 Jesus explains, that God makes the “sun to rise on the evil and on the good.” Further it explains that God “sendeth the rain on the just and on the unjust.” Both the sunlight and the rain are important for sustaining human life on the Earth. The truth is that none of us deserve another day on this planet. Yet not only do we have life, we have the energy of the sun and the nourishment of the rain, that make so many other blessings possible. God graciously brings us into the world and sustains our lives through His many common graces.
Second, the Bible describes saving grace. This is the type of grace that Jonathan Newton called “amazing.” Another hymn-writer, Julia Johnston, described saving grace as “marvelous.“ In her hymn appropriately titled “Grace Greater Than Our Sin,” she wrote that it’s “grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt.” The grace is marvelous because it covers and forgives any sin we could commit against God.
You will never appreciate the grace of God until you recognize the sinner that you are. Once we realize that we are wretched and vile before a perfectly holy God, we’re humbled by any notion that God’s righteous anger against us could be appeased. Certainly, God’s wrath being appeased is and act of His grace. None of us sinners deserve heaven and none of us can work or earn our way to heaven, because our righteousness is as filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).
The third stanza of “Grace Greater Than Our Sin” explains this contrast well.
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide.
What can avail to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide;
Whiter than snow you may be today.
Grace, grace, God’s grace—
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within.
Grace, grace, God’s grace—
Grace that is greater than all our sin
In June of 1988, I received the saving grace of God. I admitted that I was sinner and I needed Jesus as my Savior. Jesus never sinned so He is the perfect substitute to graciously die and pay the price of God’s wrath for a sinner like me. The fact that I get to stand in a pulpit Sunday after Sunday to proclaim this same message is yet another demonstration of God’s grace. To go from a sinner in need of a Savior to a herald of God’s grace that He can use to bring others the the saving work of Christ is a wonderful privilege. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God!
The above article was written by Pastor James C. Johnson. He is the pastor of NorthStone Baptist Church. Please let us know your feedback. You can email us at strengthforlife461@gmail.com.
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