Gracious Gratitude

Chuckle: When I was little, I often wondered who Richard Stands was. You know: "I pledge allegiance to the flag . . . And to the republic for Richard Stands."

Quote: "If it were our lot to suffer deprivation, as it is the lot of many in the world, then gratitude for the little things of life and the big things of God would come more readily to our lips." --Cardinal Basil Hume

GRACIOUS GRATITUDE

    "One of them (the healed lepers), when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, 'Praise God, I'm healed!' He fell face down on the ground at Jesus' feet, thanking him for what he had done. The man was a Samaritan" (Luke 17:16 NLT).

I think there are basically three ways we can react when being offered a free gift from God or another person.  (1) We can refuse the gift for fear of obligating ourselves to the giver.  (2) We can accept the gift while see ourselves as worthy, entitled, and deserving because of our circumstances or who we are.  Or, (3) we can accept the gift while seeing ourselves as unworthy and undeserving as our hearts are filled with humility, praise, and gratitude.

I'm sure you are familiar with the story leading up to our passage where Jesus healed ten lepers, but only one, a Samaritan, showed gratitude to Jesus for what had been done for him.  This account reminds us that it is very possible to receive God's wondrous gifts while harboring an ungrateful attitude in our hearts.  Nine of the ten lepers never received the blessing of hearing Jesus say, "Stand up and go. Your faith has made you well" (vs. 19).

When we are grateful for what God does for us, we grow spiritually and become more like Jesus, our ultimate role model for Christian living.  We grow in our understanding of God's wonderful grace and mercy as we express our gratitude.  God uses our response as an opportunity to teach us more about himself.

Lastly, this passage teaches us that God's love, grace, and mercy are for everyone, regardless of race, or social status.  The Samaritans were despised by the Jews who saw themselves as the only pure descendants of Abraham.  The hated Samaritans were a mixed race from the intermarriage between Jews and other people after Israel's exile.

The Jews looked down their noses at the Samaritan's and would not associate with them in any way.  It must have been most difficult for the Jews to accept, but the Samaritan's gratitude for Jesus healing him taught them and us a valuable lesson -- that God does not discriminate when bestowing His love, grace, and mercy. He loves every human being equally and Christ died for the sins of all and He is deserving of our deepest gratitude.

Love, Jerry & Dotse  

From Darkness to Light

Chuckle: A boy served morning coffee to his grandmother.  When finished, she asked, “why are there three little toy Army guys in the bottom of my cup.”  The grandson replied, “You know, Grammy, it’s like on TV.  The best part of waking up is soldiers in your cup.”

 

Quote:  “Light that makes some things seen, makes some things invisible. Were it not for darkness and the shadow of the earth, the noblest part of the Creation would remain unseen, and the stars in heaven invisible.”  --Sir Thomas Brown (adapted)

 

FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT

 

    “In him (Jesus) was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe . . . The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world” (John 1:4-9 NIV).

 

In the Scriptures, God has much to say about darkness and light.  They are metaphors used to describe the ruler of darkness and evil (Satan) versus the Light of the World (Jesus) and the righteousness of God.  You will remember the account in Genesis 1;3 when God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.  The first time God said, “Let there be light,” He illuminated our physical world with the sun and reflective moon.  The second time God said, “Let their be light,” He sent His Son, the Light of the World, to illuminate the hearts and minds of people where the darkness of sin had taken root.  

 

As I pondered the above quote, the underlined phrases reminded me that the Light of the World illuminates the darkness of our sins and makes them visible to us by the convicting power of His Holy Spirit.  That same Light renders our confessed and forgiven sins invisible -- even to God Himself.  Our sins are blotted out by the blood of Jesus, and it is as if those sins had never occurred.  We are told that God remembers our sins no more (Hebrews 8:12) when we repent of our sins and prayed to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.  We are “a people belonging to God . . . who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9 NIV).

 

Like the stars which shine their brightest in the darkest of night, the Light of the World shines His brightest in the darkness of a sinful world.  The darkness we once experienced allows us to see more clearly and experience the brightness, beauty, and benevolence of God’s redeeming love and light.  If you allow Christ to guide your life, you will never need to stumble into the darkness of sin again.  “In him (God) there is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5 NIV).

 

An old hymn:  “The whole world was lost in the darkness of sin, The Light of the world is Jesus; Like sunshine at noon-day His glory shone in, The Light of the world is Jesus.”

 

Love, Jerry & Dotse