A good one for this Thanksgiving week.
Thanks with a Grateful Heart
by Phil Johnson
hanksgiving (the constant kind, not the once-a-year variety) is a good exercise for the out-of-control tongue. Ephesians 5:4: ” Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”
Thanksgiving for what? “In everything give thanks” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). And especially be thankful that “God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). That’s plenty to be thankful for.
As a matter of fact, thankfulness to God is more than just a tongue-taming exercise. It is a remedy for any kind of temptation to idolatry, uncleanness, or immorality (Ephesians 5:3)—because it focuses our hearts properly away from self and sin, and it fixes our minds on God. Just as covetousness, filthy talk, and bad morals act like a leaven to spread evil into every aspect of our lives, gratefulness and gracious speech arrest that leaven and season our hearts and minds with grace.
George
“to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” (Eph. 3:21)
