Introduction

If you have been a Christian for long, you can probably remember several pivotal moments in your spiritual growth that dramatically shaped your Christian life. One of those pivotal, life-altering steps for me was reading Jerry Bridges book, The Discipline of Grace.

I was senior in college, and I was just coming out of a confusing time in my understanding of spiritual growth. And the church I attended while at college had just asked me to take over the youth group. I needed a curriculum, and I really wanted to read this book, because I thought it would help clarify my thinking.

So, I began teaching chapter by chapter through the book. I’m sure my teaching was lousy because I had never done anything quite like this before. But while the teens probably didn’t get much, I sure did. Bridges settled my mind on some key issues, and he set a course for my understanding of spiritual growth that has forever shaped my pursuit of godliness and my ministry to others.

One of the chapters that was especially impactful was the 3^rd chapter, “Preach the Gospel to Yourself.” Bridges argued that the gospel is not just for the lost; instead, a healthy Christian experience must remain rooted in the gospel. Therefore, I don’t just need to preach the gospel to the lost; I need to preach it to myself every single day. I loved it, and ever since I’ve tried to preach the gospel to  myself daily.

This Thursday is Thanksgiving. We all have many things for which to be thankful, but if you are in Christ, the gospel is your greatest cause for thanksgiving. Therefore, I’d like to preach the gospel to you and to myself, and I’d like to calls us to give thanks for the gospel (read). These verses rejoice in 3 blessings of the gospel, but before Paul gets to the blessings, he first emphasizes…

I.  The Priority of Thanksgiving (v. 12a)

Context: Paul describes Christians as those who “joyously give thanks to the Father.” To appreciate the weight of this statement, we must understand it in context. Specifically, our text falls within Paul’s prayer report in vv. 9–14.

But ironically the only prayer request Paul mentions is in v. 9, “That you may be filled…” Verse 10 follows with a vision of what will happen as God fulfills this request, “You will walk…” That is a high vision. My passion should be that I “walk worthy of the Lord” and “please Him” in all that I do.

But you may wonder, “What does that look like?” And Paul is happy to answer. He follows with 4 marks of a worthy walk. A worthy walk will (v. 10) bear fruit, increase in the knowledge of God, (v. 11) be strengthened with divine power, and v. 12 joyously give thanks to the Father. To be clear, this is not an exhaustive list of what makes a worthy walk, or even a list of the top 4 priorities. But these 4 marks are clearly important.

And I find it striking that Paul includes thanksgiving in such an important list. Afterall, we naturally imagine a worthy walk in terms of behaviors. Am I eradicating sin and doing good works? But 2 of the marks focus exclusively on my stance toward God. I must know him, and I must joyfully give thanks.

So, why is thanksgiving a big deal? One reason is that Christianity is not fundamentally a moral code but a relationship to God. It is a relationship of worship through Christ. I see God as majestic and awesome, and I see myself as sinful and underserving of his kindness. And I worship and love him for his glory, and I thank him for his marvelous grace.

Therefore, thanksgiving is a basic mark of a right view of God and a right view of myself. If I am constantly thinking big thoughts about God, and I rightly see the brokenness of my sinful heart, I will stand amazed that the God of heaven would love a sinner like me and would show me any kindness at all, let alone all the marvelous blessings of the gospel. Furthermore, I will see every blessing I enjoy as a kindness of God that I do not deserve.

Therefore, my thankfulness, or lack thereof, says a lot about how I see myself, how I see God, and about the condition of my spiritual life. As Paul says, thankfulness is an essential mark of a worthy walk.

Therefore, if you are an Eeyore, who lives in a perpetual state of discontentment, understand that it’s a problem. Yes, your life may be hard, and you may be facing some tragic circumstances. God understands, and Jesus sympathizes.

But understand that your discontentment reflects an inflated view of self and a deflated view of God. It’s wrong, and you need to repent.

Then choose joy and choose thanksgiving even through the pain. Embrace the attitude of Psalm 119:71, which states, “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.”

You may never be a cheery person who is just happy all the time, and that’s okay, because that’s not what God demands. But by God’s grace you can progressively develop a thankful stance before God where you see his graces all around you, and you are able to rejoice even in the face of great sorrow. Afterall, joy is fruit of the Spirit.

So, let’s not view thanksgiving merely as a holiday or an occasional discipline. Let’s value it as an essential mark of a worthy walk, and let’s discipline ourselves to make it a daily priority.

And then notice that our text specifically calls us to regularly give thanks for the gospel. Preach the gospel to yourself every day and give thanks. Paul rehearses 3 reasons we must give thanks for the gospel.

II.  Reason #1: I have an eternal inheritance (v. 12b).

We ought to understand inheritance here as a reference to the New Jerusalem that God will establish at the end of time. The Bible promises that someday God is going to replace this broken world of suffering with a new heavens and a new earth.

Paul says that it will be an age that is characterized by “light,” not the darkness that v. 13 says characterizes this age. “And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it” (Rev 21:23–26).

God will be among his people in a way that we cannot comprehend, and he will give constant light to every corner of the New Jerusalem. It’s going to be marvelous.

And notice that we can’t take any credit for this incredible hope. I don’t earn my place in heaven or qualify myself through my character or good deeds. No, v. 12 says the Father “qualified us” for this inheritance. Verses 21–22 remind us why we cannot qualify ourselves, and how God solved the problem (read). I was “alienated and hostile.” He had to qualify me, and he did so through the death of his son.

Therefore, I can look forward to someday enjoying a “share in the inheritance of the saints.” In other words, I’m going to have my own piece of property in the New Jerusalem. I will have a share in this great inheritance.

No matter what else may be going on in your life that’s a great reason for joyful thanksgiving. Some of you have had a long, hard year. There doesn’t seem to be much of anything in your life that is worthy of thanksgiving. All you see is pain, loss, and frustration.

But even the worst circumstances on earth cannot touch the inheritance our Father has awaiting us in glory. And when we see the New Jerusalem descending to earth in all its beauty, it will overwhelm every memory of pain and suffering.

So, Christian, joyously give thanks to the Father because he has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. Praise God! The 2^nd reason we must give thanks is that…

III.  I am a citizen of Christ’s kingdom (v. 13).

Notice in particular the stark contrast in this verse between my natural condition as a sinner and my new condition through the Father’s grace.

On my own I was under the “domain of darkness.” The Greek word that is translated as domain is exousia. It speaks of a dominion, authority, or power. It’s used again in v. 16 to speak of demonic powers.

Therefore, the “domain of darkness in v. 13 refers to the evil reign of Satan and his demons over this world. Second Corinthians 4:3–4 call Satan the “god of this world” who has “blinded” the “minds” of the “unbelieving.” As a result, unbelievers live in a “domain of darkness” meaning they don’t see God for who he truly is, and they are dominated by the sin nature and the lies of Satan.

The unbeliever likes to believe that he is free, that he sees the world clearly, and that he is making all his own decisions. But God says that’s all a lie. Satan has blinded him so that what he thinks is freedom is actually harsh slavery.

It’s good for us to remember often that this used to be me. I was enslaved to the cruelest slave master imaginable. And he was so cunning that I didn’t even realize that he was marching me to eternal destruction.

But the Christian should be filled with joyful thanksgiving because the Father “rescued” me from the “domain of darkness.” He gave life to the dead and sight to the blind, and freedom to the slave.

And not only did he rescue us from slavery v. 13 adds that he “transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.” In other words, instead of living under the “domain of darkness” we are members of Christ’s kingdom.

Our eyes are open to the glory of God, and we can live a new life in the power of Christ. We don’t have to be controlled by anger, strife, lust, emptiness, and all the other fruits of sin. Instead, we can have joy, peace, and contentment, and we can enjoy a community in the church that is marked by love, generosity, and unity. Even if your life is hard, we enjoy a wonderful life compared to the “domain of darkness.”

And someday, Jesus is going to establish his kingdom on earth, and Revelation 20 says that we will reign alongside him. It’s going to be a kingdom of righteousness, justice, and peace. This kingdom will be home in a way that this world never will be.

If you are a Christian, you ought to give thanks that you have been rescued from darkness. As the song says, “I once was lost in darkest night yet thought I knew the way. The sin that promised joy and life and had led me to the grave.” But God rescued me and made me a member of Christ’s kingdom. “Now all I know is grace.” We have great reason to “joyously give thanks to the Father.” The 3^rd reason we must give thanks is…

IV.  Reason #3: I enjoy redemption and forgiveness (v. 14).

Verse 14 transitions from the Father’s work to 2 works by the Son for which we must give thanks. First…

Christ paid my debt. In the 1^st century world, language about redemption almost always recalled the practice of slavery. This makes sense in our context considering what v. 13 says about the rule of Satan.

Therefore, v. 14 once again reminds us that without Christ, we were in bondage. This is because we had a sin debt that we could never hope to pay on our own. Many people like to think that if they try a little harder, they can pay down their debt. But the problem is that we just keep sinning. There’s no way sinners could ever catch up to our sin debt before a righteous God who demands justice. So, on our own, we were like miserable slaves with a hopelessly massive debt that only grows by the day.

However, in the 1^st century world, redemption typically describes the payment of a ransom to buy someone out of slavery. That’s exactly what Jesus did on the cross. He purchased our redemption. He paid the infinite sin debt that I owed to Holy God so that I could be freed from my debt and its enslaving power.

How we ought to give thanks for the blood bought ransom of Christ. I will never have to pay my debt under the eternal judgment of God, because Jesus has “paid it all.” And because Jesus redeemed us we also should give thanks that…

Christ removed my guilt. Verse 14 adds that we enjoy “the forgiveness of sins.” Forgiveness is not hard for us to grasp because we’ve all received it from other people, and we’ve extended it to others.

However, you could spend a lifetime coming to grips with the weight of God’s forgiveness because you could spend a lifetime coming to grips with the righteousness and justice of God and with how our sin has offended God. Therefore, the more you know God and appreciate your depravity, the more you will stand amazed at the forgiveness of God.

When we stand before a holy God someday, we will not be amazed that he would condemn sinners to hell, but we will be amazed that he forgave a sinner like me. And for all eternity we will praise the Lamb who was slain for his incredible sacrifice and the Father who loved us and sent his Son to die for us. If that’s what we will do for eternity, we should get a head start today. We should give thanks for forgiveness in Christ every day of our lives.

But maybe you have never received this grace. First, you’ve always thought of yourself as a good person with a good life, not as a member of a “domain of darkness,” as having an impossible sin debt, or as under the wrath of God.

These are hard ideas to accept, but the Bible is clear that God is holy, righteous, and just and that we stand condemned before him. But it is also clear that you can be saved from God’s wrath through the cross of Christ. Jesus shed his blood to redeem and forgive us. He took our punishment so that we would never have to.

All you must do to receive his redemption and forgiveness is to come to Christ in faith. Repent of your sin and trust in what he did on the cross. If you do, all of the blessings of this text will immediately be yours.

So, please be saved. If you have questions, please talk with us because we’d love to share how you can have your sins forgiven. Don’t leave today under the dominion of darkness; leave in the kingdom of the Son, forgiven, and redeemed.

V.  Preach the gospel to yourself.

If you are saved, I want to urge you again to joyously give thanks for the gospel. As Jerry Bridges said, “Preach the gospel to yourself” every day of your life.

Don’t let a single day pass when you don’t take time to remember who you are apart from Christ. On your own you lived under the domain of darkness with an infinite sin debt.

But remember that God loved you and sent his Son to die in your place on the cross. God made the ultimate sacrifice because of his great love.

And then God applied this incredible gift to you through faith. You were justified and born again. Now your sins are forgiven, you are redeemed, and you can live a new life in the kingdom power of Jesus.

And someday, you will receive an incredible inheritance with the saints in the Light. You will live for all eternity in the glorious presence of the Son.

Yes, if you have been saved for long that’s all very basic. But it’s so easy for us to lose that anchor. So, preach the gospel to yourself every day. Stay anchored to your life and your hope. And give thanks for the gospel every day that the Lord gives you.