Posted December 5, 2011
With Thanksgiving behind us, let's continue to reflect on thankfulness. Being thankful is a godly trait - in fact, God is thankful for many things! Let's think about what God is thankful for.
Take a look in the Bible for a few of the things God is thankful for.Source: Photos.com
On Thursday, November 24, Thanksgiving Day was celebrated in America. In millions of homes people enjoyed a very special time with family and friends. In many homes, there was an abundance of laughter and love as well as an abundance of food to feast upon. Some enjoyed a football game or two.
During the festivities on that day many prayers were said, thanking God for all of the blessings that He has showered upon us. In addition to the prayers of thanksgiving there often was robust discussion about those blessings that we enjoy.
Thanksgiving is a time of reflection. Normally, in an article such as this, the author would write about those things we should be reflecting on—those things we should be thankful for. However, I would like to take a different approach with this article and ask the question: This past Thanksgiving, what was God thankful for?
God is thankful for the good things He has done
This is humanly speaking, of course. Since "every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights," God is probably not literally thanking Himself (James 1:17). However, He experiences great satisfaction, pleasure and joy, which we mortals largely think of in terms of "being thankful."
God, no doubt, was thankful for so many things that it simply would not be possible to list them in a short article such as this. However, let's take a look at just a few of the things that God was thankful for this past Thanksgiving—and every other day for that matter!
First, God is thankful for His physical creation . God took pleasure—He found joy—in His creation. Repeatedly in Genesis 1 we find the expression: "And God saw that it was good" (Genesis 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31). When the Creator looked upon the product of His will, He found it perfectly complete and admirable; and He was pleased. Seven times this statement is made. Every one of God's creative acts was perfect, complete, pleasing, satisfying. When someone serves us a piece of homemade pie and we exclaim, "This is good!" we are expressing not just our approval, but our pleasure. Often, when we "create" something we find ourselves going back to it several times taking pleasure in what we have made. The Father has joy and thankfulness in what His hands have made.
Second, God is thankful for His spiritual creation . When we look at the stubbornness and rebellion of man, we ask the question, why should God want to save sinners? And especially, why should He want to give His unique and beloved Son to die the agony of God's holy judgment in bearing our sin on the cross? Scripture's answer is that salvation demonstrates the glory of His grace. Salvation brings glory to God, and it does so because it manifests the nature and character of His person. Salvation reveals a number of things about God that bring glory to the person of God and shows us something of the reasons for salvation. Salvation reveals God's love for mankind; salvation manifests the holiness of God; and salvation makes possible the fellowship we can have with God the Father and Jesus Christ our elder brother! For all of this God is truly thankful!
Third, God is thankful for the Christian's walk with Him . Note how God's great love for His people is expressed:
Examples of what God is thankful for
"Moreover, because of what Christ has done, we have become gifts to God that he delights in , for as part of God's sovereign plan we were chosen from the beginning to be his, and all things happen just as he decided long ago" (Ephesians 1:11, The Living Bible, emphasis added throughout).
"I drew them to me with affection and love. I picked them up and held them to my cheek ; I bent down to them and fed them" (Hosea 11:4, Today's English Version).
"Let him have all your worries and cares, for he is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you " (1 Peter 5:7, TLB).
"You can throw the whole weight of your anxieties upon Him, for you are His personal concern " (1 Peter 5:7, JB Phillips translation).
Thanksgiving Day is a time of reflection. We have reflected on just a few of the things that God is thankful for. As we think on these things we come full circle and realize that we can give thanks for those things that God, Himself, is thankful for!
We too can give thanks for God's physical creation, His spiritual creation and the fact that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ we can have an intimate relationship and walk with both the Father and the Son. Truly, Thanksgiving is a time for much giving of thanks!
Perhaps you might like to read our booklets Jesus Christ: The Real Story and Who Is God?
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