Seeking for the help of the Lord,
I direct your prayerful attention to the Gospel according to Luke
chapter 17 and reading for our text verse 18. Verse 18. There are not found that return
to give glory to God save this stranger. The subject upon my
spirit is returning to give thanks or glory unto God. We read this account together
of how our Lord was met by ten lepers. It was as he was passing
through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And they cried unto
him, Master, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And instead of the Lord healing
them then and there or pronouncing a healing upon them, he directed
them to do which was required under the law for one that was
already healed of leprosy, to go unto the priest and to show
themselves. And in one sense, their returning,
their going to the priest was an act of faith, an act of believing
that they could go. They didn't stand and say, well,
we cannot go. We are still defiled. Of course,
they may have felt it in the way that there is under the law,
even if they still had leprosy. It was the priest that was to
determine whether it really was healed, whether it was still
there or not. And so it may not have seemed
a strange thing to them in that way, but of course they had asked
that they be healed. And as they went, they were healed. We read of that. And only one
of them, though, he saw, when he saw that he was healed, He
turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell
upon His face at His feet, giving Him thanks, and He was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, When
there are not ten cleansed, but where are the nine? There are
not found that return to give glory to God, save this stranger,
And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way, thy faith hath made
thee whole. There are several things I want
you to notice by way of introduction, and that is the joining together
here of thanks and giving glory. We read in verse 16 that he fell
at his feet, giving him thanks. That is what he did. But then
we read in our text that he had returned, not to give thanks,
it's worded differently here, it is returned to give glory
to God. Maybe remember that right at
the start. If anything we carry away, From
the Lord's house today, it is that giving a thanks is giving
glory to God. It is returning to God, it is
owning that He is the giver of those things that we have received,
whether it is in providence, whether it is healing, whether
it is health and strength, whether it has come through some means
which is a natural means or not, that we be able to give thanks
in a way that gives the glory to God. It owns that this blessing
has come from God. He is the author of it. Without His hand, without His
blessing, we would not have it at all. And so we want to join
those two things together. And as we gather in the Lord's
house outside of the Chapel here we have the words, or some of
the words, of Psalm 100, which is a psalm of praise. And the words begin that we have
at the front of the chapel, Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
And into his courts with praise. Be thankful unto him and bless
his name, For the Lord is good, his mercy is everlasting, And
his truth endureth to all generations. And we feel how fitting that
is for the house of God to be just in those couple of verses,
or really just in verse four, reminded of thanksgiving and
of praise. And that is why we come into
the house of God and we are to come there with thanksgiving
and come with praise. and to bless his name. It's also
a reminder that these truths that we hold forth of these blessings
of the Lord, they're not just for generations that have gone
before us. It's not antiquated. It's not
that which is not applicable to our generation. We are to
be reminded that his mercy is everlasting and that his truth
endureth to all generations, not just to the older generation
of our day, but to the children, the young people as well, and
one generation to another, the fathers to the children, to show
the wonderful works of God. It's a very sad thing when you
get a situation like the church of which some of us knew, and
I preached in in Australia, in Geelong, that has been sold and
is now a cafe, and over the pulpit still, is engraved in the wall,
thou God, seest me. And yet under those words, no
longer a pulpit, but a bar, and the baptistry covered with a
clear glass covering, or plexiglass covering, and underneath, a Bible,
and the communion set, and a few other things, and round the wall,
the old pictures of the chapel when it was used as a chapel,
And the whole message is, this is a museum. This is what these
poor, deluded people used to do once when they gathered in
this building. But now in the great day of enlightenment,
we just use it as a cafe. Couldn't be further from the
truth. Yes, that church is closed. Most
sadly so. Withdrawing of the spirit and
the blessing in that place. But the Lord is on the throne.
He is the same. These are not things that belong
to another generation. It's not things like the steam
engine that has been replaced by the petrol engine. It's not the drafting board that
I used to use for many years in design and engineering, design
replaced now by computer-aided design. It's a game that I used
to do, never again. Look at those boxes of instruments
and things. I'll never use them again. I
don't need those skills anymore. The things of God are not like
that. The Word of God is not like that. It endures forever
and to ever all generations. And we have to remember that.
And that includes the thanksgiving and the praise. The Lord is as
much in control in this world as much supplying the needs of
his people today as he was with David and the dear saints of
old. He is the same and we are still
dependent upon him. The same in David's day, the
same in the day of these lepers, the glory and thanks to the Lord,
they equate to the same. So this should be the desire
of all the people of God, David in The Chronicles, he speaks
of how this is his prayer and his desire that it might be thanks. When David brought up the ark,
the first time or after it was corrected, it's brought up on
the shoulders of the Levites. But then he gives the direction
in Psalm, in singing, in 1 Chronicles chapter 16 and verse 34. And we read there, O give thanks
unto the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth forever. And say ye, save us, O God, of
our salvation, and gather us together, and deliver us from
the heathen, that we may give thanks to thy holy name and glory
in thy praise. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel
for ever and ever. And all the people said amen
and praised the Lord. And David's desire was that there
be that thanks and that glory to God. But how backward we are
in that is very evident in Psalm 107, the joining together of
thanks and praises, very much in that psalm. In the first verse
we read, O give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good, for his
mercy endureth forever. And then when we come down to
verse 8, O that men would praise the Lord for his goodness and
for his wonderful works to the children of men. Right through
that psalm there's that, O that men would praise the Lord. That
there would be that thanks to the Lord. Men are very backward.
We are very backward to do so. And so it is a real mark as in
the words of our text of a blessing, a real evidence of a difference
that has been wrought in us. when we do give thanks, when
we do return to the Lord, when we do give Him glory. And so, in looking at this subject,
returning to give thanks or glory to God, I want to look, with
the Lord's help, at three points. Firstly, a separating action. This returning to give glory
to God is a separating action. Secondly, to notice some things
that keep us back from thanksgiving to God. And then thirdly, the
company we keep in giving thanks and glory to God. But firstly, this is a separating
action, and in our text it very evidently is. We can picture
these ten lepers And they all came to the Lord, they seemed
to be at one. Jesus, Master, have mercy on
us. And then when he gave them that
direction and they went to be cleansed, then there comes this
separation. And we can picture these ten
walking together, going together to the priest, and suddenly one
of them, one of them separates from that company. and he goes
back, and the others keep on going, but he separates, and
he goes back. They're going to the priest,
he is going to the Lord, he is going to the one who had spoken
those words to them, and the one that they had asked to have
mercy on them, and to have their cleansing, And so very evidently,
with them it was a separating. It separated between those ten. The Lord says, where are the
nine? Were there not ten cleansed?
The Lord knew what had happened there. But here there is a separation. Now I want to notice another
thing here. and that is the blessing of common
grace. The Lord is good to all, his
tender mercies are over all his works. There are not two forces
acting in this world. He causes his sun to shine upon
the just and unjust, him that serveth him and him that serveth
him not. Some are not healed by the hand
of God blessing, the means used, and others are not healed just
by the means alone. It is not that one God is working
in some people, and another God in other people. There is only
one God, one true and living God, who blesses those that even
curse Him, and those that are His enemies. He is good to all. His tender mercies are over all
His works. And it is vital that we realize
this, even in this account that we have before us. We have the
Lord acting the same towards all ten. Though He knew that
nine of them would never return to give thanks to Him at all,
He still gave that blessing to them. And this is happening every
day. It is right through. the world,
every blessing that we have, the food that we have, the water
we drink, all the kindness, the goodness the Lord gives us, out
of a deserved hell. And we must remember that. We
deserve nothing at the Lord's hand. And all that we have out
of a deserved hell is the goodness and mercy of God. He is the savior
of all men, especially of them that believe. And you may say
that all ten here, they tasted that the Lord was gracious. We
read in Peter's writings, if so be ye have tasted that the
Lord is gracious, coming as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed
of men, but chosen of God and precious. And very many of the
Lord's dear people, they have gone from tasting the Lord is
gracious in a natural way, in temporal things, and then tasted
it in a spiritual way, then we have it here, because our Lord
was able to say to this stranger, to this Samaritan, one that was
despised by the Jews, that it was his faith that saved him. Thy faith hath made thee whole,
rise, go thy way. There was that difference, a
separating action, not just physically, but it separated this man as
a man that had faith, faith not just to believe that he was whole,
but to see that the Lord Jesus who had spoken this word, that
he was the Lord of life and glory. He was the one that had wrought
this and done this in them, and healed them, and who he was. We think of how our Lord with
those that ate of the loaves and the fishes in John 6, and
they followed him afterwards over the sea to the other side.
And the Lord knew their hearts, He knew their motive. People
can do the same thing, but the motive be wrong. He said, You
seek me not because ye did see the miracle, but because ye did
eat of the loaves and were filled. Labour not for the meat that
perisheth, but for that which endureth unto eternal life. And He discerned again, there
are people that were partaking of the benefit in food for their
bodies, and they would follow the Lord for that, following
him for the loaves and the fishes. This is the same principle that
Job was accused of by Satan. Doth Job follow thee for naught? Or doth he not fear thee for
naught? Thou hast hedged him about, thou
hast given him all that he's got. Touch what he has, and he'll
curse thee to thy face. Satan knew that for the majority
of men, they would take the good from the Lord, but ignore the
Lord, ignore the hand that gives it. They'll only serve the Lord
while He gives them good. And you find that with the world
at large. They'll have no need or no following
the Lord or seeking Him while everything goes good in their
lives. When something goes wrong, then
the Lord is an evil God, He's a bad God, a God that brings
evil in their lives. But when things are going good,
well, that was lucky, and that was good, and that was the result
of their efforts, and God is not giving the glory for what
happens in their lives. God is not in all their thoughts,
and yet they serve Him, as it were, for the loaves or fishes,
for what things they get. How many in times of trial will
immediately come to the Lord, cry to the Lord, and yet they've
never had to be mindful of Him at all beforehand, and when the
Lord appears and helps them, afterwards they immediately forget
and never return to give thanks. We should not overlook this account
that shows what a separating, distinguishing blessing it is. that when we have got in our
hands a blessing, something that we value, we've wanted, we've
asked for, and that really the natural thought of our mind is
to go and enjoy that and to use that, to actually stop and to
not go along using it without first going and giving thanks
to the Lord, looking to where it came from. And so that is
why our Lord, With those who'd eaten of the loaves and the fishes,
they'd had a wonderful miracle set before them. They overlooked
that completely. Overlooked the person who'd wrought
it. Overlooked what that was a sign
of. And all they could see was some
food for their bodies. Because later on in that chapter,
the Lord's teaching of eating his flesh, drinking his blood,
All the time they're stumbling because they're thinking in a
natural way. How can this man give us his
flesh to eat? They're men of the earth. They're
natural. They cannot see the spiritual blessings, same as
Nicodemus at first. Couldn't see the spiritual birth. He's thinking all the time a
natural birth. But here is a separating effect
where there's seeing and realizing. the Lord's hand in these things. My life's minutest circumstance
is subject to His eye. Well, we may have then temporal
blessings, those things that we recognize as the Lord's hand
and the Lord's work and separate from those around about us and
give thanks to the Lord for them. But then there are also those
spiritual blessings as well. And the real effect of grace,
in one way you might say it comes to another level, another step. You have a separating in providential
temporal things and giving thanks to the Lord. And then the Lord
gives things which he does not give to the world at large. When our Lord rose from the dead,
he only appeared to his disciples. He didn't appear to the world
at large. And the disciples in the gospel
according to John, they puzzled how the Lord would reveal himself
to them, but not to the world. How would that be so? And the
Lord said it was through the Spirit. The world could not see
the Holy Spirit and therefore they would not have the Lord
revealed to them. He shall receive of mine and
shall show it unto you. The Holy Spirit reveals to the
people of God the things of God, reveals it through the Word of
God. Open thou mine eyes, that I may
behold wondrous things out of thy law. It is the blessing that
the Bereans had, who searched the Scriptures daily, whether
these things were so. Therefore many of them believed.
It was what the two on the way to Emmaus has, as the Lord opened
to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. And he didn't leave them unmoved,
their heart burned within them. And then later on he did what,
of course, cannot be done now in a gospel day, he literally
showed them his hands and his feet, he showed them himself
and there he was, risen indeed, risen from the dead and later
to ascend up into heaven. So then there's another level
there where the Lord blesses with spiritual blessings and
then we give the Lord Thanks for that. Thanks that he has
blessed his word to us. Thanks that he has revealed himself
to us through his word. Remember what he said of dear
Samuel, remember Samuel, he did not yet know the Lord and the
Lord came and stood and spoke to him. And then we read at the
end of chapter three, one Samuel, and the Lord appeared again in
Shiloh, how did the Lord appear? The Lord revealed himself to
Samuel in Shiloh. How did he reveal himself to
Samuel? By the word of the Lord. That is how he revealed himself
to Samuel. And so, when we're given those
spiritual blessings, then there's another token for good, another
separating thing. that there's a returning to the
Lord and are humbled that the Lord should ever bless us. The hymn writer said, why was
I made to hear thy voice to enter while millions make a wretched
choice, rather starve than come? And those that have those blessings
are mindful of them. They prize them. They prize every
softening of heart, every time the word is open to them. Every
time that they are drawn, no man can come unto me except the
Father which sent me. Draw him. Every time we feel
that drawing, every time really that we feel the Lord's reproving
hand, good for me that I was afflicted to be able to discern
the chastening hand. It is the Lord. Let him do, says
Eli, what seemeth him good unto me. And there's a giving. Glory to the Lord and thanks
that the Lord is mindful of us. He's not silent to us. He speaks
to us through the word. He speaks to us through providence.
Hear ye the rod and who hath appointed it. It's who hath appointed
it. And He's giving thanks for those
things. So, this is a separate. He separates who are the Lords
and who are not. is a mark of the people of God
who return back to the Lord, return to give thanks, return
to give glory unto Him. And we might say then it is an
effect of grace, it is by grace that we be brought to give thanks,
the free unmerited favour of God. But I want to add another
dimensional aspect to this, because some might say, well, if it is
by grace, then surely it will be all the time automatic that
we give thanks. And there are some times you
might say, I don't feel to give thanks. And it's hard to do so,
and I'm having to wrestle and struggle with being able to give
thanks for various reasons, and we'll look at them in a moment.
And so to look at it in this way, there's a marker separation
in that it is done in obedience. When the Lord blesses in a spiritual
way, he makes the people obedient. Now it's very evident through
the word of God that we are to give thanks. It is a New Testament,
Old Testament as well, command to give thanks. We read of it
in the Psalms and David has it, but very much prominent in the
New. And especially, I'll take you
through a few verses from Paul's epistle to the Colossians. When Paul writes to the Colossians,
He says in chapter 1 verse 3, we give thanks to God and the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you. So he gives thanks for the Colossians. Later on in verse 12, he says,
giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us made to be
partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light. who hath
delivered us from the power of darkness and hath translated
us into the kingdom of here his dear Son. And what is being set
before us is the duty of thanksgiving for the people of God, the path
that they are to learn from the Word of God to walk in. And so then becomes part of the
exhortations of the Word of God, which where we are given the
new birth, where we're given a hearing ear, that even though
we might not feel in ourselves that rising up and the bubbling
up of giving thanks, we're to understand what we are called
as the people of God to do. And the world will say, well,
we are unteachable. We don't want to learn about
this. But if we are made tender, we'll
listen to the word, and though we might not feel it bubbling
up within, yet we are to seek that we might be thankful in
these ways and at these times. So he says in verse 7 of chapter
2, verse 6 as well, as you have,
therefore receive Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him,
rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as
ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. And so there becomes an exhortation
to walk in thanksgiving. And when we thought of Psalm
107, how backward we are, yes, even God's people are, but hopefully
we have got an ear that is open to listen to the Word and to
receive that exhortation. So we read in chapter 3 of Colossians
again, in verse 17, Again, it is a very clear direction to
us. given in the directions in chapter
four to masters, given to your servants, that which is just
and equal, knowing that you also have a father, a master in heaven.
Continue in prayer and watch in the same with thanksgiving. This exhortation, don't you think
of these lepers? In effect, prayer, have mercy
upon us. Watch, the Samaritan, he did
watch, he saw that he was healed. And that immediately returned
with thanksgiving. How much do we watch in prayer?
If you were asked this morning, what have you prayed for today?
What have you asked for? Would you say, well, my prayers
are so general, I haven't really asked for anything specific.
Or perhaps you've asked for things that are very specific. You might
have asked that the Lord's servant bring a specific subject or a
specific text. or answer your need. And then
you're to watch, has that happened? Has the Lord answered your prayer?
And if he has, then it is with thanksgiving. The three things
going together, isn't it? Prayer and watching, thanksgiving. Our prayers should be such that
if answered, we can clearly say they are answered and give thanks
for the answer that has been given, and to be very specific. You think of David when, with
his men, he went to rescue the men of Keeler because the Philistines
robbed the threshing floors. And when he was in the city and
Saul was pursuing him, King Saul, and King Saul said that he now
would be able to take David because David was in a city that had
gates and bars. And David heard that Saul was
practicing mischief against him, and so he prayed to the Lord.
And he asked two things. He asked whether Saul would really
come. And he asked whether the people
of Keilah would deliver him up into Saul's hands. And the Lord
answered and said that Saul would come. But he didn't answer the
second part of David's petition. And David recognized and knew
he'd only got half an answer. So he went back to the Lord again
in prayer and asked, will the people, men of Keelah, deliver
me up? And the Lord said, yes, they
would. So David went out to the city. Like that account is really
illustrating the difference between fatalism and election. Fatalism would say, well, it's
all going to come. They're going to deliver me up.
Hopeless case. Nothing I can do. This is what
is determined. But election takes the warning
of it. And David goes out of the city.
Saul hears he has escaped, he doesn't come, and the men don't
deliver up. So was what the Lord said all
wrong? No, if David had stayed in the
city, Saul would have come and the men would have delivered
him up. He's a good example. He's a good example also of when
a prayer is only half answered, to go back to the Lord, to recognize
it is, and ask of the Lord. So we are to walk in that path
of obedience. When Paul writes to the Thessalonians,
his first epistle to them in chapter five, in verse 18, or
he exhorts in verse 17, but pray without ceasing. In everything
give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning
you. What a clear word of direction
to the people of God. People of God that may be asking,
Lord, what is the will of God concerning me? What is thy will
concerning me? The Lord said, this is the will of
God concerning you, that you are to give thanks. What, Lord? What things? In everything, in
everything, give thanks, for this is the will of God concerning
you. So we're not to think then and
not to be discouraged and say, well, because we're not automatically
given thanks, because we've got some reluctance or backwardness
to do it, then we can't have grace. But is our ear opened? Are we willing to be taught and
instructed by the Lord as to what his will is for us? The
world won't take any notice of that. Those that are uncalled
will not take any notice of that, but I hope if the tender fear
of God is in our eyes, we'll want to do what the Lord would
have us to do. And it'll be one of the things
we'll ask for grace. Lord, give me grace to give thanks
at this particular occasion when perhaps there are things that
are holding me back from doing so. And so I want to look to
the Lord's help at our second point, those things that keep
us back from giving thanks and praise to God. The first thing that I mention
is unbelief. The niggling thought, well, perhaps
it wasn't God anyway. It was just some other force.
And so, because it's not really Him, we're not going to go out
and give thanks unto God. May we always be mindful of the
unbelief that works in our hearts. may cleave to the word that who
is he that saith and he cometh to pass when the Lord commandeth
it not. All things come from the Lord
and it is his hand. Paul says in Acts 17, in him
we live and move and have our being, inseparable from the Lord. But then there can also be when
there is an aspect of the gift that mars it in our eyes. Some blemish or something that
is not quite right. We might have the gift of a holiday,
we have the time, we go away, and then maybe the weather is
bad. And so we're hesitant about giving
thanks for the holiday because, well, it's a pity the weather
wasn't very good. Or maybe we still carried all
our worries and all our trials and all our troubles, and we
haven't been able to let go of them, or others have pushed them
upon us. And because of that, it clouds
the blessing of the time away, clouds the blessing that we've
had received. in some days, very precious days,
or when the word has been so blessed to us, because of those
little things that have marred it in our eyes, then we don't
give thanks. It's not been exactly what we've
thought or what we've asked for. How many child has had a present? And it's perhaps what they've
asked for, but not exactly. And so instead of giving thanks
to the parent, They're complaining, they're moaning, well I didn't
like that colour, I wanted a different colour. I wanted one that had
an electric motor on it and this hasn't. These sort of things
that mar the giving of thanks and come into our lives so often. And it robs the Lord of his glory
because of these things. Is there something that we should
be giving thanks for? But there's some aspects in it
that weren't exactly what we wanted, or that have been a sorrow
to us. And so we said, Lord, because
of that, I'm not going to give thanks at all. I'm not going
to return with thanks. Another reason is, is when the
blessing is minimized, And I find this often, Satan does this,
you'll ask for something, and when it is given, Satan will
come in, ah, it's nothing. It's naught, it is naught saith
the buyer. And he just minimizes the blessing. I've often found a good thing
to do with that is to go back in our mind to when we didn't
have it. Maybe it was the phone that was
lost, a key that was lost, we didn't know where it was. What
would happen if we had lost them forever? We wouldn't have that
key, we wouldn't have our phone, or whatever it was, and we pray
for it, and we find it. And the devil says, well, you
would have found it anyway. It was such an obvious place.
Go back to when you'd lost it. Go back to when you were so anxious,
when you were fearing the consequences, and now think, I'm now in the
position I have it. and then give thanks, and then
give praise. The devil all the time minimized
the work of God, the wonder of it, the answer to prayer of it,
and so go back to when it was a real burden, real concern.
Like these lepers, if they went back to when they were still
lepers, went back to when they were pleading for the Lord to
have mercy upon them, how much more they would then have given
things, realise what had been done. Another thing that can
cause us to not give thanks is, though we may really bless the
Lord and want to give thanks or should give thanks for the
specific thing that we've had, there's something else that weighs
upon us. You might have had the Lord appear
for us in Providence and we are thankful for that, we're pleased
with that, but then we're sick, we're not well. And because of
that trial, we don't give thanks for the other blessing. One of
the hymns speaks of this, when one trial doth a man seize, and
when that lets him go, then another doth him seize. You know, we
go from one snare to another snare, from one affliction to
another affliction, from one trial to another trial. And sometimes
these are hard, fast upon another. And when we don't get everything
right, then we're likely to say, well, until we have everything
blessed and everything right, then we're not going to return
to give thanks. And yet, you might say with thee,
Leper here, if he hadn't returned thanks, we would never have heard
the words of our Lord, thy faith has saved thee. In actually returning,
you had that double blessing. There may also be those things
that have happened afterwards that stop our mouths, and this
is a a real argument for being instant in thanksgiving. When
the Lord appeared to Moses in the wilderness and sent him to
deliver, or be the means of delivering, Israel from Egypt, at first Moses,
he had every argument that the children of Israel would not
believe him. The Lord gave him signs to show
before them, and they did believe. And they did give thanks, they
did give glory to God. They were still in Egypt, they
were still in bondage, and it was right that they should give
thanks then, because very soon, Pharaoh started to make their
burdens even harder. And then there was so much in
anguish of spirit, even though Moses spoke to them of what the
Lord was going to do for them, they would not hear for anguish
of spirit. And sometimes it issues us. If
we leave it too late and not instant, and think if the children
of Israel had said, well, we're not going to give thanks until
we're out of Egypt, then we'll give thanks. It would have been
too late. We're to be instant. We're to
give thanks as the Lord gives his blessings, owning it to the
Lord, going back to the Lord, giving glory. to the Lord for
what he has done. Not all the time with that thought,
well, we'll wait and see. We'll wait and see how it turns
out, and then we'll give thanks. Very often the world will say,
ah, you gave thanks too soon. And just thinking of that, how many
times in my life I've had a, I've been driving along the road,
and something's come into my mind. You've had several months
of good health. What a blessing that is. I've
been really thankful for it. And then the next day, I've come
down ill. And I've told that to some of the world, and they
immediately say, well, you shouldn't have said it. It's bad luck to
realize that and to say you've had all these months of good
health. That's why it's happened. I never
viewed it like that. I've always viewed it. that before
the Lord has taken away a blessing, he's shown me that blessing first
and given. So I gave thanks for good health
for several months. And when he's taken it away,
I could say with joy, the Lord gave and the Lord had taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.
And I've had that happen in several things through my life that I've
gone for a while not being even mindful of a blessing. Then be
mindful of it, giving thanks for it, and immediately it's
taken away. But the Lord has done it, so
he does get the praise, he does get the honor, and we're able
to say, then the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away. Be
mindful, dear friends, of those things that rob the Lord of thanks,
rob the Lord of praise, and very easy to do happy. You know, before
going away on holiday, I prepared or prepared the rough skeleton
of the sermon here today, this morning. And so the hymns were
chosen some two and a half weeks or so ago, and the subject chosen. And my anticipation would be,
we'd come back from holiday and able to be Completely refreshed
to be able to give so much thanks and praise to God. But some of
the things that have happened in the couple of weeks when I
viewed this subject, I thought, well, you shouldn't have chosen
that. How are you going to go now?
And yet it's been really reproofed to me. It was chosen rightly. It is a right subject. But it's
just that these things come and would rob the Lord of His honour
and glory. And I hope it'll be a help. to
some others as well. Some of you may be in similar
ways in which you have things in your life, things the Lord
has done, and because of other things, then your thanksgiving,
your praise, even if it is not completely extinguished, is very
much dampened, not very enthusiastic at all. And so the Lord knows
our need, and I trust that He knew our need here this morning.
I want to then look thirdly at the company we are keeping in
returning to give thanks to the Lord. And just to mention a few,
we mentioned Israel and of course the Lord did eventually deliver
them out of Egypt when they came through the Red Sea. Then they
sung the song of Moses. How they so praised the Lord. Three days later they are murmuring
at the waters of Mara because they are bitter and they couldn't
drink them. But that beautiful time, that
song of Moses, that song of deliverance was there when they saw their
enemies dead, when they realized such a wonderful deliverance.
We're in company with them. We're in company with Naaman. Gainer Leper, a Syrian, that
came to be healed and Peirce was very angry because it wasn't
in the way that he thought it would be. He thought that Elisha
would come out and that he would do some wonderful, dramatic thing,
but instead he told him to go to Jordan not to one of the rivers
of Damascus, but to Jordan and to wash himself seven times and
to come again. And he went away angry. And it
was his servants that persuaded him to do as he was bade. And when he did, the Lord still
used that means to heal him of his leprosy. But he didn't just
go home and just didn't go back to Syria and say, Oh, you know,
I was angry with the man and I can't go back to him now. No,
he returned. He wanted to give presents. Well, Elisha wouldn't take them.
Most solemnly Gehazi lied, deceived, and got the presents. Also had
the leprosy of Naaman put upon him as a judgment from God. But
Naaman, he didn't just go back to his own country, he returned.
He turned to the man of God and gave thanks. And there is an
aspect there. The Lord's servants, those that
are the means of the blessing, it is a good thing where there
is that acknowledgement. The Lord says, he that receiveth
you, receiveth me. He that receiveth me, receiveth
him. that has sent me. And it's a
good thing where those who have been blessed under the servants
of the Lord go back to them, give them their penny, acknowledge
the Lord's hand through them. And very often there's sometimes
a lifelong union between those who have spoken the word and
those who have been blessed under the word. And there's many churches
that their strength lies in that. that their congregations are
those that have been blessed under the ministry of their pastor
and of those who minister to them. And so may we be in the
company of Naaman in that way. Not, as it were, lifting up man
on his own, but lifting up God who has used man as an instrument,
God's own appointed ways, and the glory be to the Lord with
encouragement ours. Then we have Hannah. Hannah who
prayed for a child, for this child I prayed, the Lord hath
given me my petition that I have asked of him. And we have in
1 Samuel 2, the first 10 verses there, where Hannah goes to pray
and her whole prayer, it doesn't mention Samuel, It's all praise
and glory to God. May that be a real pattern to
us. Prayer that has been where we've been on our knees to ask. When the Lord has answered, we
go back to that same place on our knees and we give thanks. And give thanks to the Lord.
Then we think of the disciples when our Lord ascended up into
heaven. They'd lost their Lord. Their
Lord had been taken up. He's no longer with them. But
how clearly they could see, how clearly they could understand
then the wonderful triumph and glory of the Lord. We read at
the end of this Gospel, Gospel according to Luke, they worshipped
him. That is, when he was parted from
them, carried up into heaven, They worshipped Him and returned
to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple
praising and blessing God. Amen. That was their employ. May we be in company with them
when we're able to see and believe the Lord, even though we may
say, well, He's parted from us for a season. And then we're
in company with that host of the saints in heaven and the
people, the great hosts of heaven. In Revelation chapter 7, we read
from verse 11, that those angels that stood around the throne,
the elders about the throne, what are they saying? Amen, blessing,
they're worshipping God, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving
and honour and power. and might be unto our God for
ever and ever. Amen. And it's in this context
where there's the asking, what are these which are arrayed in
white robes, whence came they? These are they which came out
of great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them
white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the
throne of God. serve him day and night in his
temple. And these are beautiful words,
to be in company with those in heaven, those that give thanks,
and may we be accustomed to that here below, giving thanks for
the deliverances, for helms, and remember that one day we
shall be able to give thanks with nothing to mar that thanks,
a complete victory, forever with the Lord, forever giving thanks
and glory to the Lord. May we be amongst that separated
number then, ones that are made distinctive by this, that they
return to give thanks unto God. There are not found that return
to give glory to God, Save this stranger, no more a stranger
or a guest, but like a child at home. May the Lord add his
blessing. Amen.