| Few traits are as distasteful
to us as ingratitude. All of us have felt a twinge of anger
when our hard work or generous gesture went unappreciated by
someone. But more than just socially unacceptable, ungratefulness
has terrible effects on our spiritual lives and is deplored by
our God. Before dismissing it as a trivial consideration, we
must examine what God tells us about ingratitude and its consequences.
Ingratitude leads us directly into a sinful mindset. Consider the Gentiles, who "did not glorify" God, "nor were thankful"(Rom 1:21). From this seemingly harmless beginning springs the "debased mind"(v. 28) which includes homosexuality, covetousness, and murder. As mind-boggling as it might seem, we must conclude that not being thankful led eventually to grievous sin so great that "God gave them up"(v. 26). Like the tongue, the sin of unthankfulness has a consequence far out of proportion to what we would expect. Further, Paul warned Timothy that "perilous times will come" when men are "blasphemers, disobedient to parents" and "unthankful"(2 Tim 3:1-2). Not only is ingratitude placed alongside other deplorable sins, it is a sure sign that "perilous times" have come. The world is indeed a frightening place when people only acknowledge God to blame Him for what is not perfect in their lives. Their ingratitude pushes them headlong into spiritual catastrophe. Sadly, ingratitude is not restricted to Gentiles or the world, but is often a cancer among God's people as well. Three days out of the Red Sea, Israel began to complain against Moses (Ex 15:22-24), and their complaining never seemed to stop. They wanted water, or bread, or meat. They wanted to go back to slavery. "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?"(Num 21:5). Had they forgotten the great oppression they were under in Egypt? Did they not remember the horrific plagues God had brought upon Pharaoh? Had they not walked together through the Sea on dry land? Yet God's people were not thankful for His tremendous deliverance, and it led to a spiritual catastrophe: "their bodies were scattered in the wilderness"(1 Cor 10:5). Had they been grateful for God's grace toward them, surely He would have blessed them tremendously. Yet again we see that ingratitude has disastrous spiritual consequences. For Christians ingratitude is similarly destructive. The command to sing in Colossians 3:16 is sandwiched by "be thankful"(v 15) and "giving thanks to God the Father through Him"(v 17). Thanksgiving is the fuel for our worship. When our singing, praying, and preaching are limp and lifeless, more than likely it is a casualty of unthankfulness. We are also to "be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God"(Phil 4:6). Giving thanks fills our minds with God's goodness and power rather than our anxieties. However, if we neglect thanksgiving, our prayer will remain full of worry. Further, we must not let fornication, uncleanness, or covetousness be named among us, "neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks"(Eph 5:3-4). Gratitude is therefore also essential to cleaning up our speech. It is very difficult to be filthy or coarse when we are discussing the great works of our great God. Just this glimpse shows that a Christian without gratitude is just a shell of a Christian: unable to worship, anxious about worldly cares, filled with sinful speech. He is heading toward spiritual ruin. The good news is that we can avoid the pitfalls of ingratitude. A true consideration of the wonderful things God has given to us leads naturally to thankfulness. When Paul discusses the great grace and gifts God has given us, he must finish by saying "to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever"(Eph 3:21). When we give, it is because we are thankful that we have been given so much (2 Cor 9:15). When we forgive, it is because we remember how much we have been forgiven (Mt 18:23-35). When we abstain from sin, it is because we are so thankful that the price was paid to buy us out of our sins that we refuse to disappoint the Redeemer (1 Pet 1:17-19). Our worship becomes buoyant and exuberant, expressive of our gratitude to our God (1 Tim 1:12). Thankfulness keeps us spiritually centered. Let us remember the horrific example of the Gentiles' debased mind. Let us be realistic about the dangers ingratitude poses. Let us think deeply on God's things, not just to prove doctrinal points, but to deepen our gratitude for His love for us. Let us say with David, "Praise the Lord!" ___Jacob Hudgins |