A grateful heart melts ice-old minds. A word of thanksgiving alters a tense atmosphere. A dozen of grateful people build a warm world. Gratitude should permeate Christian life, as an external expression of their internal lives. We can learn a lot from the models in the Scripture.
Jesus Christ. His thankful words were recorded in the four Gospels.
Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.
Luke 10:21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do."
John 11:41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me.
Paul the Apostle. We can see that he always gave thanks from Acts and the Pauline epistles:
Acts 28:15 The brothers and sisters there had heard that we were coming, and they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and was encouraged.
Romans 1:8 First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.
1 Corinthians 1:4 I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.
Daniel. The prophet Daniel always showed gratitude in the Old Testament time.
Daniel 2:23 "I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king."
Daniel 6:10 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.
Jonah. Despite his complaint to God, he made a thankful prayer after having been saved by God. Later though some misunderstanding to God was caused, he returned to God again and wrote the book to show his rebellion to the next generation.
Jonah 2:9 "But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, 'Salvation comes from the Lord."
Anonymous Samaritan. Jesus healed ten men with leprosy while only a Samaritan, one of them, praised God. Jesus praised him.
Luke 17:12-19 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed.
One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him-and he was a Samaritan.
Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."
David. King David was grateful. Psalms documented his moving prayers and many of them talked about gratitude.
Psalm 56:12 I am under vows to you, my God; I will present my thank offerings to you.
Psalm 69:30 I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.
Job. If we want to find out the most wronged person in the history, it is Job. He did nothing wrong, but lost all his possessions and family except his wife and suffered from physical pain. Being outstanding, he was attacked by Satan. He didn't forget gratitude even in deep misery.
Job 1:21-22 ((He) said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb,and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised." In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
Joseph. The Jewish ancestor experienced strong winds and big waves. Once the beloved son of Jacob, he was sold to a merchant by his brothers; later he was put in prison. However, he didn't lose the grateful heart. He gave others a hand in prison and eventually walked out of the jail, promoted to be the ruler of Egypt. His dialogue with his brothers showed his gratitude.
Genesis 45:5 "And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you."
Genesis 45:8 "So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt."
Genesis 50:20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Bartimaeus. Once blind, the beggar shouted to Jesus to heal his eyes when the Lord was leaving Jericho. Jesus heard his cry and healed him. Though Jesus said go, he became the disciple and followed Jesus.
Mark 10: 50-52 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.
"What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him.
The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see."
"Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
Mary Magdalene. The woman suffered much pain. She met Jesus and was healed completely. Seven demons was driven out of her. Then she followed the Lord throughout her life. What was more, she so loved the Lord that she was the first one to arrive in Jesus' tomb and firstly saw the Lord after his resurrection.
Mark 16:9 When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene,out of whom he had driven seven demons.
John 20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
John 20:11-14 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb ... she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
Translated by: Karen Luo
