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well good morning welcome to free grace baptist church for another another Lord's Day nice that you could all make it out and enjoy worshiping our Lord together with one voice just by a few few announcements first of all pastor Butler is on vacation so he will be on vacation you'll be out of his office until Thursday this coming Thursday will be the first that he'll be back in the office and so there is there's no bible study again this week so bible study will resume next a week from this Wednesday it will begin again there's a there's an announcement regarding the luncheon perhaps tracy has already seen some of you but there's a church luncheon next Sunday so if you do not get a slip she's been delivering slips of paper but if for some reason you were forgotten and you did not get a slip of paper in terms of what to bring next week then make sure you see Tracy Porter and certainly everyone is welcome to be nice to have everyone everyone with us for the for the luncheon then they're just by way and out of another announcement I did receive an email to Samba this week from from the the public health people and so I did put a notice on the back bulletin board that said that there is a public health notice there was some exposure to her ptosis here at the church so it is a particular concern to pregnant women and children under one so you may want to just stop by and just look at the announcement or look at the piece of paper on the bulletin board in the back if that if that is a concern to you and the last thing is congratulations goes out today to at this steel lane and Rebecca Rebecca Jones obviously Rebecca Butler now that would be really unusual for Rebecca Jones they were engaged this past week and congratulations to them as well as I think this announcement for it was forgotten that Caitlin van wert Tony van wert's daughter Caitlin she was also engaged a couple of weeks ago to a young man by the name of Andrew so congratulations to to Caitlin as well so that's that's good to see the the current and groanin in other ways as well so congratulations a wonderful time in the life of those young people as they look forward to to to to to marriage so I believe that's all the the announcements so let's turn our attention out to to worship and we will begin the call to worship by turning into Psalm chapter 18 Psalm 18 I'm just going to read the first 19 verses so Psalm 18 beginning of verse 1 I will love you o Lord my strength the Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer my God my strength in whom I will trust my shield and the Horn of my salvation my stronghold I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised so shall I be saved from my enemies the pangs of death surrounded me and the floods of ungodliness made me afraid The Sorrows of Sheol surrounded me the snares of death confronted me in my distress I called upon the Lord and cried out to my god he heard my voice from his temple and my cry came before him even to his ears then the earth shook and trembled the foundations of the hills also quate and were shaken because he was angry smoke went up from his nostrils and devouring fire from his mouth coals were kindled by it he bowed the heavens also and came down with darkness under his feet and he rode upon a cherub and flew he flew up on the wings of the wind he made darkness his secret place his canopy around him was dark waters and thick clouds of the skies from the brightness before him his thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire the Lord thundered from heaven and the most high uttered his voice hailstones and coals of fire he sent out his arrows and scattered the foe lightnings and abundance and he Andy he vanquished them then the channels of the sea were seen the foundations of the world were uncovered at your rebuke Oh Lord at the blasts of your at the blast of the breath of your nostrils he sent from above he took me he drew me out of many waters he delivered me from my strong enemy from those who hated me for they were too strong for me they confronted me in the day of my calamity but the Lord was my support he also brought me out into a broad place he delivered me because he delighted in me amen well let's turn to our first him that would be him number 87 and I'll ask you to stand please him number 87 Oh you amen please be seated let's go to God in prayer and ask is blessing to be upon this upon this service and upon this day that's pray a gracious in our loving Heavenly Father we come before a holy God as we just sung up here this morning how we praise You Father that you are altogether different than us you are not just a little bit larger than us but rather you are a holy God a thrice holy God and how we praise you this day Lord we bring before you are our praises are adorations for such a God as you Lord we thank you that you pity us that you that you have sent your son the Lord Jesus Christ to die front for our sins to change us from men who are deserving of your wrath two men whom you would delight in man whom you take caring in and whom you love with an everlasting love and an everlasting covenant Lord how we praise you for the many blessings that are ours in Christ Jesus this name so Lord as we come into your house this day to bring our worship before you how we prayed you would be pleased to hear us this day for Christ's sake we pray that you would hear our prayers hear our praises hear the word of God it's opened up we pray that all these things thought it might be done for your great honor and for your great glory we do pray we pray Lord that you would be pleased given even in the salvation of sinners this day we pray as the gospel is preached from this pulpit that you would be well pleased to to send your spirit along with it and we pray that you would be pleased to stir hearts and stir minds this day to to receive that message of forgiveness of sins to to to to have have one's sins forgiven to be made right with you what a wonderful wonderful thing it is to know that when we pillow our heads at night that father we have peace with you the God who is full of wrath and yet a God who is full of mercy for those who seek that peace through your son the Lord Jesus Christ Lord be praised you bless the preach of this day bless pastor Porter as he brings the word we know it's been a busy week for him and and many things upon upon his upon his lap that need to be done in a a week yet we pray we praise You Father that you that he desires to to bring forth your word this day and so Lord we pray that as he brings it forth that you would be pleased to to own it and bless it hedge him in and cause him Lord to be directed by your spirit give a munchen and helpman on high to bring your word and bring you great glory this day father we pray your blessing be upon pastor Butler as well and Rebecca as well it Lord you would bless them as they continue on vacation away from us here we pray Lord that you would just bless their time may it be a time of rest and relaxation physically mentally but also spiritually we pray Lord that he would be refreshed in the inner man and cause him to return to us on thursday with with renewed vigor and and strengthened and ability and that the lord you would be pleased to continue to bless both of our pastors well bless both of our elders and cause them Lord to to be united in heart and mind and and desires to see this church go forward we thank you for those for those shepherds that you have blessed us with and we pray your kitchen upon both men in into the future as we look forward to another another year ahead father we thank you for the blessing of these these engagements this week as well we we praise you follow that that you have that were that you do to bring bring individuals together and how we pray load that you're rich bless you might both be upon steel and Rebecca as well as Caitlin and Andrew cause them Lord to to continue on in the faith we pray that they might be strengthened as a couple that father all the plans all the excitement all that lies ahead that all these things might be tempered with it with a knowledge that that you have brought them together that that you would receive all the honor and the glory we pray but they might walk with you and that they might not just walk in the first in the first year in the first couple of years but rather they might walk throughout their whole lives in close fellowship with you and great love for one another soul or do bless them and the planning that that lies ahead for for both couples we do pray where we ask your blessing for the the churches in our community here in chilliwack we pray Lord that where the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is truly proclaimed and preached the would you would be pleased to own that ole not preaching bless that that word goes forth from other pulpits here in this place we pray that it would be for the salvation of sinners and for that you would be glorified that you that the angels in heaven would rejoice in over sinners that that come to knowledge of the Savior this day here in this community and what we pray for ourselves we pray for other churches throughout their throughout our nation father we pray that there would be a just a revival sent to your churches in our nation Lord me we know that we are deserving of your wrath but Lord we would we would beseech you because you are a God of mercy a God of great mercy and so Lord we pray that you would be merciful to us be merciful to us and in our elected leaders as well as there's a there's an election coming soon we pray Lord that that those a desire to do what is right and righteous according to your law that you'd be pleased to see them get into get into positions of influence and power in our country and the Lord you'd be pleased to to to bless us with with continued good governance and and we pray your your blessing upon the Church of Christ we would enjoy these times of peace but where we are not threatened where we where we do not suffer great persecution from our governing authorities Lord we thank you for your great mercy you've given us given these things to us and we how we pray that you would be pleased to to continue to bless the churches throughout throughout Canada was continued peace we do pray we know Lord it comes from your hand it's not our it's not our our it's not it's not necessarily our the way in which one votes or it's not necessarily in the way the government's that govern but it's your hand of goodness that that has allowed us to enjoy these things and so lord it's to you that we return our grateful things how we pray your blessing this day to be upon the the churches in quebec we know there's a great work going on there through pastor / own and other pastors in that in that province we pray load that you would be pleased to bless the word own the word cause it for cause it to be for the salvation of sinners in in quebec and for the and for the the building up of saints as well so bless those men who do labor in that province and cause them Lord to know your help your age your strength from day to day to persevere and to and to know your help in the pulpit and and as they as they bring bring the doctrine from from home to home and and household to household where we ask your blessing be upon our missionaries we think particularly this day of those missions that we know in China we think of the chungs and the Santiago's the Hamiltons and there are certainly others but those are the ones that we're familiar with we pray Lord your blessings be upon them and that's in that nation that great nation of just teeming teeming millions of people are we pray Lord that you would that you would be pleased to bless that word as it goes forward and cause it to be for the salvation of sinners and and for the edification of saints for the building up of your church in that too in that nation we do pray Lord that you would be pleased to bring peace to the Middle East we know that there's there's great turmoil there and great warring and we know there are many Christians who are under persecution and attack how we pray load that you would be there that you would be there rock that should be there source of strength that they would that they would find their source in you and the Lord you would comfort and encourage them and protect them and give to them that ability to continue on and and even in the face of persecution we know there are many who are proclaiming a gospel data that is hated and that they will be persecuted for but we pray below that she would be pleased to to protect them and cause that word to go forward we do pray in that in that nation or in those nations so Lord again we just commit this time into your hands knowing Lord that that that you are well pleased to be enthroned by the praises of your people so as we be as we continue praising you we prayed load that you you would present yourself amongst us and give to us your gracious Holy Spirit and in Jesus precious name we pray amen well let's turn it in our in our hymn book so once again to him number 56 for our second him hymn number 56 and I'll ask you to stand and please turn with me your Bibles if you have a Bible in front of you that you would turn to Revelation chapter one as we continue our reading the New Testament or beginning in chapter chapter one of the revelation of Jesus Christ and just as we begin this book we as a church do take a preterist position which would indicate that this is not all future but rather this this was it this was a letter to to the Saints that lived back in in this period of time before 70 AD and that said I would count of course from the time text right in the chapter that we're about to read verses 1 and 3 and 7 all those are what we call time text of the ones that would indicate that this was written to a people that that did exist long before we came upon the scene not that we can't take much from the book of Revelation there's as he starts off those that read this book will be blessed and so we look forward to that blessing but but not that we would see great great things in the future for us and if you want a good commentary i can certainly recommend one by by somebody who actually most of you know and that we passed a brother for his master of divinity he did a commentary which sits collecting dust in his office we've always encouraged me they should publish it but being very self-effacing he he doesn't think it's worthy of it but if you are interested if you're relatively new to the church or you did not know that he has done a very very excellent work on the book of Revelation very readable it's not a commentary that's meant for the the theologian in the seminary it's meant for the man in the pew in the pastor of a local church so I probably recommend that you get that either a PDF form or a physical physical booklet that he could certainly loan to you so I encourage you to get that well let's begin reading a verse verse 1 of chapter one of the book of Revelation the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him to show his servants things which must shortly take place and he sent and signified it by his angel to his servant on who bore witness to the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ to all things that he saw blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it for the time is near John to the seven churches which are in Asia grace to you and peace from him who is who is and who was and who is to come and from the seven spirits who are before his throne and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness the firstborn from the dead and the ruler over the kings of the earth to him who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood and has made us kings and priests to his God and Father to him be glory and Dominion forever and ever amen behold he is coming with clouds and every eye will see him even they who pierced him and all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of him even so amen I am the Alpha and the Omega the beginning and the end says the Lord who is and who was and who is to come the Almighty I John both your brethren companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ I was in the spirit on the Lord's Day and I heard behind me a loud voice as of a trumpet saying I am the Alpha and the Omega the first and the last and what you see right in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia to Ephesus to Smyrna and to a Peugeot mas to Thyatira to Sardis to Philadelphia and to Laodicea then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me and having turned I saw seven golden lampstands and in the midst of the seven lampstands one like the son of man clothed the garment down to down to the feet and ger and girded about the chest with a golden band his head and hair were white like wool as white as snow and his eyes like a flame of fire his feet were like fine brass as if refined in a furnace and his voice as the sound of many waters he had in his right hand seven stars out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword and his countenance was like the sun shining in its shining in its strength and when I saw him I felt his feet as dead but he laid his right hand on me sane do not be afraid I am the first and the last I am he who lives and was dead and behold I am Alive for evermore amen and have the keys of Hades and of death right the things which you have seen and the things which are and the things which will take take place after this the mystery of the Seven Stars which you saw in my right hand and the seven golden lampstands the seven stars of the angels of the seven churches and the Seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches amen but just I just reference us to 21 versa as many things that could be said but I'll leave that to our pastors and elders but I would just I feel I can't I can't not comment on on verse 17 and when I saw him I fell at his feet as dead men as dead certainly that ought to be the right response when that the Apostle John demonstrates for us the right response to a thrice holy God he came before a thrice holy God and that is that is how he that is how he position himself he just automatically was as a dead man and so when we come to church on the Lord's Day we come before the same thrice holy God not that we ought to fall as a dead man but been recognized we come before a very holy God and therefore we ought to come in a sense respecting that and reflecting upon the great holiness of God that that are that are and we notice also in the verse that great affection that he has for his people he says in verse 17 he laid his right hand on me saying do not be afraid what great affection our God has for his people he lifts them up he comforts them he supports he strengthens them what did Jesus say to his disciples on that on the on the boat on the Sea of Galilee but fear not you said the very words in John of course would have recognized those words fear not what a wonderful thing to to hear that from from our God from from from the Lord Jesus Christ and I am the first and the last that would have been a reflection back to the Book of Isaiah where it's often he sees several times three or four times i believe it is referred to as the first of the last and he always said that in the book of isaiah to comfort his people to to steal his people not to inflict fear upon them but rather to give them a sense of i am in control i'm with you so what what a wonderful chapter to open the book of Revelation with and that is a sense of a sense of we do come before a holy God but a holy God he wants to comfort his people a holy God wants to strengthen his people who wants to uplift his people who wants to revive his people that's the God that we come before as we as we see reflected in that verse verse 17 of the first first chapter of Revelation well let's go to God in prayer just commit the the the preaching into God's hand as pastor Porter will come after we sing one more him let's pray our gracious and our loving Heavenly Father how grateful we are for that we have to do with a God who is who is eminent who is far far different than us a God who is holy thrice fully how we praise you for that yet father we also praised you that you are God who is personal a God who was near as a God who desires to do revive his people to strengthen them to lift them up and so let me know that you do not do that through some some special in some special way you've done it you do do it through the through the gift and the the blessing of your Holy Word so as we come before you this morning now father to read your word to hear your word opened up and preach we pray Lord that for all the saints here this day that they might be strengthened by it they might be revived by they might be lifted up by it and we thank you for your gracious holy spirit that has been given to do these very things and we pray that you would be pleased to come down and bless the preaching of your word and again we do pray that you would be pleased to even cause it to be for the salvation of sinners there be and here in this place it would hear that that that voice of anger one day that will say depart from me I never knew you how we pray that we might hear that to hear that voice in eternity when each of us will enter into into that eternity that we would hear the hear the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ that says be not afraid common and enjoy the Bliss of heaven forever and ever and ever so Lord we pray that you would be pleased to bless this day bless pass support or as he as he brings the word and we do pray that you would be pleased to forgive us of all of our sins and cleanse us a fresh and that precious blood of your son the Lord Jesus Christ it's in his precious name we pray amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to the last to the last him and that would be to him number 89 him number 89 I'll ask you to stand thank you may be seated one as Steve said pastor Butler's away and will be back on Thursday returning to his exposition I believe in the book of Matthew and in the Ten Commandments until that time I trust that you'll bear with his substitute in the pulpit and I trust God will give strength that it will easy that it will be easy for you to do so you can turn in your Bibles to Psalm 107 Psalm 107 as we explore some of the riches of Psalm 107 vs. 129 both morning and evening Psalm 107 we have good words of our God concerning his merciful deliverances to men we want to rehearse Thanksgiving and rehearse the reasons for Thanksgiving here this morning and then this evening get into some of the specifics with regards to God's deliverances and why men ought to praise and thank their God so this is Psalm 107 beginning in verse 1 and finishing in verse 9 the word of the living and true God o give thanks to the Lord for he is good for his mercy endures forever let the redeemed of the Lord say so whom he has redeemed from the hand of the enemy and gathered out of the lands from the east and from the west from the north and from the South they wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way they found no city to dwell in hungry and thirsty their soul fainted in them then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble and he delivered them out of their de-stresses and he led them forth by the right way that they might go to a city for a dwelling place oh that man would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men for he satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with goodness amen let us pray Heavenly Father we thank you for your word we thank you for this song that we just read disclosing the fact that men ought to be thankful that men ought to give praise to their God for His goodness and for his mercy delivered and we do pray God that you would help us as we explore your word to give us grace to rejoice to give us that presence of wisdom to to understand to to take in these things to glory in the truths that that your word discloses to us that we might leave this place rejoicing and seeking to live in light of your truth and we just pray that you would bless preacher that you would bless hearer that again this exercise of worship the preaching of the word Lord would be done and to the praise of your grace and unto the praise of your Most High name it's in Christ's name that we pray amen well you'll remember that there are many types of Psalms when we come to our Bibles when we come specifically to the Book of Psalms we find various types we find Psalms of lamentation remember where the psalmist is giving formal expressions of grief over sin over oppression over those who oppose and sometimes even over the the absence of God or the perceived absence of divine favor we have a Psalms of doxology remember what that is that psalms of praise the psalmist simply giving praise to god for his multitudinous mercies and kindnesses we have messianic Psalms don't we those songs that set forth Christ in the Old Testament typically directly and prophetically we have psalms of thanksgiving like we do here in Psalm 107 where the psalmist is calling upon the congregation to give thanks to God and in so doing he rehearses various mercies and various redeeming activities of God in order to elicit that Thanksgiving and so we want to rehearse some of the texts that we find here in Psalm 107 examine them under two headings this morning the call to Thanksgiving and the general character of God that informed men's thanksgiving and praise so first off notice the call to Thanksgiving it's very simply o give thanks to the Lord remember and you've heard this for me multiple times and I apologize but you'll probably probably will hear this until God brings me home that these calls come to men o give thanks to the Lord because in spite of the obvious reality that we should be such that are to give thanks to God it comes to men who it comes to us because we can be so often marked by thankless Ness and so these calls come to men it comes to redeemed men so that our souls might be aroused to the thing brought before us in this case the call to Thanksgiving and hopefully you'll come with me and realize that as the redeemed people of God we are to be marked by this particular disposition under the call to Thanksgiving though o give thanks to the Lord we want to notice first off generally all men are to give thanks and praise to God this hopefully is an obvious thing because of who God is and what he has done our confession says at this point generally all men are to give thanks and praise to God our confession in the doctrine of God reads this way he is most holy in all his counsels in all his works and in all his commands to him his due from angels and Men whatsoever worship service or obedience as creatures they owe unto the creator and whatever he is further pleased to require of them you know the commandment here the entreaty to give thanks to God doesn't it illustrate that the commands in Christianity are blessed commands what are we commanded to do what to give thanks to God what would a kindness that God issues this command through his psalmist and the command is give thanks to the Lord it's an interesting thing here in the Greek translation of the Old Testament Hebrew two words are brought together one word is the word uh to confess or to profess and the other word you'd be familiar with its Alleluia so when we read here bless it or when we read here oh give thanks to the Lord the Greek translators chose the word alleluia praise ye the Lord and so this command is given and the command is give thanks to the Lord or praise ye the Lord with your mouths confess Yahweh in His goodness and His mercy all men though are to give thanks to God Calvin writes this there is no one who is not indebted to him for numberless benefits you see later on in well actually the very next verse we read let the redeemed of the Lord say so but you see it is all men that are to give thanks to God as Calvin says there is no one who is not indebted to him for numberless benefits the redeemed yes that makes sense of course doesn't it that we are to give thanks to our great God for the numberless benefits that he has bestowed upon us but you see he is bestowed numberless benefits upon all men regenerate and unregenerate alight turn with me to Psalm 117 Psalm 117 a very short Psalm isn't it two verses but notice praise the Lord all you Gentiles laud him all you peoples for his merciful kindness is great toward us and the truth of the Lord endures forever you see it is the case of course again that the redeemed are to give thanks to the Lord but the psalmist because of the greatness of his God because of the goodness of his God because of the multitudinous mercies of his God calls out to Gentiles and says praise the Lord all you Gentiles laud him all you peoples our god is great and he is greatly to be praised Bibles at the ready turn as well to Psalm 148 we want to tour through much Bible this morning in this evening to see these connections to see these truths to see these things from Psalm 107 notice in Psalm 148 and at verse 11 on this note kings of the earth and all peoples princes and all judges of the earth both young men and maidens old men and children let them praise the name of the lord for his name alone is exalted his glory is above the earth and heaven and he has exalted the horn of his people the praise of all his Saints of the children of Israel of people near to him you see what the psalmist does here again in the in the spirit of Psalm 107 and Psalm 117 kings of the earth and all people princes and all judges of the earth both young men and maidens old men and children let them praise the name of the Lord generally all men are to give thanks and praise to our God because what do we read in the Bible but this motto not this motto but these words that truly sum up this reality he gives to all life breath and all things men unregenerate and regenerative lake wake up in the morning and they have life their hearts are beating their bodies are working they have strength in their bones even in weariness and even in laziness and even in tiredness and even in sickness it is the case that most of us brethren can rise up from our beds and we have strength in our bodies we have strength in our limbs we have breath in our lungs it's a startling thing that the God who condescends in His goodness to give things to men that they are to be thankful for like breath in their lungs nevertheless use that breath to blaspheme the very God who gives it to them God gives life breath in all things to men generally all men are to give thanks and praise to our God secondly under the call to Thanksgiving this is though to be a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God kids when we say when I said now this is to be a definitive disposition of the people of God that simply means that Christians kids are to be defined by Thanksgiving it is to mark us if you're a Christian if you say you are a Christian then you can't be one unless you are marked by Thanksgiving that is something that is definitive of a Christian we are to be a thankful people and when we say it's to be definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God that means it is to be a continual thing and the people of God we're going to see this as we work on this point a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God first we see this in that it is absent from the unbeliever to turn with me to Romans 1 we see that this is to be a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God because to the contrary or on the contrary the enemies of God are defined by the absence of Thanksgiving notice Romans 1 beginning in verse 18 for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness because what may be known of God is manifest in them for God has shown it to them for since the creation of the world his invisible attributes are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made even his eternal power and Godhead so that they are without excuse because although they knew God they did not glorify Him as God nor were thankful but became futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened you see what the absence or the opposite of thankfulness is well we know that it's thankless nests but thankfulness is set in opposition here to the foolishness of thoughts futility of thoughts foolishness of hearts and darkened understanding Christians are marked are to be marked by a thankfulness because it is the very case that the unbeliever is marked by a thankless ness they have been made owned by virtue of creation and Providence and their own conscious of their own consciences thats testify to the reality that there is a God in high heaven who will judge the living in the dead nevertheless there thankless and they become futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts are darkened it is a definitive andevai an abiding disposition of the people of God secondly because it was at the best of times what characterized Old Testament Israel can turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus 15 it is to be a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God we see this demonstrated at least in his people redeemed from out of bondage in Egypt though many of these were unregenerate it nevertheless recognizes that the people of God in this sense his old covenant people exercised a measure of thankfulness and this would extend spiritually to his new covenant people regenerate who are to do likewise notice in Exodus 15 1 then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the Lord and spoke saying I will sing to the Lord for he has triumphed gloriously the horse and it's rider he has thrown into the sea you see the thankfulness here well we don't see a thankful we don't see a word a rendered thankfulness or that they gave thanks to the Lord or I will sing thanks to the Lord nevertheless hopefully you see that there they were just redeemed from out of bondage in Egypt they were just brought by their God from out of physical bondage in Egypt and God had judged their enemies and so they sing this song that is later repeated in verse 21 but we see there that the people of God at the best of times were characterized by this disposition of thankfulness notices we find our way back to the Psalms thirdly that it is the constant refrain of the psalmist's throughout the Psalms hopefully when we read that when we read that Psalm 107 verse 1 hopefully you sort of were reminded of the fact that I've heard this a lot as I've read my Bible he read through the Psalms oh give thanks to the Lord for he is good for his mercy endures forever that's a constant refrain by the psalmist's in our songs a couple of instances notice in Psalm 95 and we want to bring out a particular point with this instance of the phrase in Psalm 95 and verse to notice what we read well beginning in verse 10 come let us sing to the Lord let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation let us come before his presence with Thanksgiving let us shout joyfully to him with songs you see what's going on here is the importance and this will bring up later but the importance of coming together as the saints of Christ in church you may have a title that isn't inspired that's a help added if you will by those translating the Bible mind says a call to worship and obedience that's right you see it's the psalmist call to the gathered assembly or perhaps even to the assembly not yet gathered saying oh come come to the gathering come to the assembly and let us sing to the Lord let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation let us come before his presence with Thanksgiving you see there is a peculiar and certain reality that God is present with his people when they gather together in the house of the Lord the joy it is to come into this place hopefully for you brothers and sisters and you give thanks because you have like-minded Saints gather together there's something that ought to warm the heart when we stand up together we open up a hymn book and we sing of the glories of our God if you're if you're like me and and yeah I think I want to set a you know a figurative nuclear bomb that destroys all social media and the Internet it's helpful we can find good stuff on there but sometimes don't you find yourselves alone and you're you know you're whatever your current events and that sort of a thing and and you're just bombarded by the wickedness of our world you're bombarded by the the madness you're bombarded by by rainbows and people singing the praises of a woman's choice to murder it murderously and barbarically destroy their child and they're singing the virtues of these things and you feel sort of a loan because you're usually by yourself whether you're on your computer your what doing whatever you are with those devices looking at these things of current events and and you're like man it's everybody out there against the truths that I hold dear and then you can come into church can come into church and be with your people who are with you your God whose presence is here and who is with you it's a wonderful thing be thankful for that we come and we sing to the Lord we shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation we come before his presence and we do so with what we do so with Thanksgiving because of the glories of our God because of the blessings and the benefits that He pours out upon us abundantly through Christ Jesus the Lord this is to be a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God fourthly because it was the disposition of the mediator the Lord Jesus Christ we're we're what as Christians were constantly by the grace of God being conformed to what the image of his son the Lord Jesus Christ we are to follow after our Savior the Lord Jesus and at the point of thanksgiving we do well to follow after him don't we he turned to the book of Matthew the Lord Jesus Christ his disposition is marked by Thanksgiving Matthew 11 Matthew 11 and verse 25 you know this verse well at that time jesus answered and said I thank you Father Lord of Heaven and Earth that you have hidden these things from wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes even so father for so it seemed good in your sight you see God is to be thanked for his sovereign good pleasure in all things that particular point of view is sovereign pleasure and hiding gospel truths from the wise and the prudent but revealing them to babes a doctrine so maligned even by some who say they fly the banner of Christ the unrivaled mastery and sovereignty of God over all things in this world even unto the point of the redemption of guilty sinners the truth that is so maligned Christ praises God for a truth that is so maligned by the opponents of predestination and the doctrines of grace is God has thanked for by the mediator by the god man the Lord Jesus Christ but all of that to bring us back to this let's follow after our master the Lord Jesus and have hearts of thankfulness you know I here's another thing that I might say too often but hopefully it's a wholesome repetition what do what ought we to do when we wake up in the morning this isn't just to fill sermon time when we wake up in the morning we are to be marked by souls of thankfulness yes because we draw life yes because we draw a breath or have life and draw breath yes because of the multitudinous benefits that God physically and temporarily gives us brothers and sisters as we'll get to later because of the mercies of God through the saving and perfect work of our Lord Jesus Christ as Deacon Steve prayed in his prayer we pillow our heads at night with thankful hearts and we follow after our mediator the Lord Jesus Christ in doing so fifthly this is to be a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God because it is the disposition that is to mark our prayers a core to the Apostle Paul isn't it remember what Paul says to the anxious what Paul says to the worrying he says be anxious in nothing but with prayer and supplication mingled with Thanksgiving make your requests known to God our disposition in prayer you see we just don't we don't launch into prayer we don't fly into prayer with fast feet skipping past the disposition that is thankfulness we don't just bring our supplications and throw our requests that God charging into the prayer room but rather we are to come with those controlled by the spirit with a disposition of thankfulness it's Paul's major point there be anxious in nothing but with prayer and supplication mingled with Thanksgiving make your requests known to God in prayer our disposition is to be one of Thanksgiving not a give me attitude not this attitude whereby we see prayer is some sort of formula where we ask in God gives but with hearts of thankfulness that have been made such by the shed blood of such a savior and by the spiritual power of such a spirit we come to God in prayer with Thanksgiving making our requests known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding is ours through Christ the glorious Redeemer lastly under this is to be a definitive and abiding disposition of the people of God it is to be our signature disposition in all things so to sum it all up to wrap this all up the Bible tells us that it is to be our signature disposition in all things brethren turn to call Colossians with me the book of Colossians we read there in chapter 3 that prayer is to be the Christians signature disposition in all things notice what we read beginning in Colossians 3 at verse 15 and let the peace of god rule in your hearts to which also you were called in one body and be thankful let the word of Christ dwell in richly in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord and whatever you do in word or deed do all in the name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks to God the Father through him you see then that it is true that our disposition is to be our signature disposition in all things is a thankfulness what will hopefully close by by looking at some things whereby we can culture this but brethren were reminded time and again to give thanks to the Lord because we need to be reminded time and again to give thanks to the Lord made it always be our disposition yes will slip yes we might go through a day and are in our busyness and and whatever else will have times of seasons of where we seem like we're far from the presence in the favor of God but might we always by God be brought back to the point where we rise and we fall where we wake and we sleep with that disposition thanking God through Jesus Christ for the benefits for the blessings for the glorious things that he gives us thirdly then under the call to Thanksgiving we have what is the content of thanksgiving and praise you see you know maybe i don't know if you've ever done this exercise and i'm just giving out a hypothetical you know husband and a wife or are you know they've been married for a long time and they're you know they're either becoming weary and they're becoming you know they've just you know maybe gone their own separate not separate ways in life but you know one is the husband's working a lot the the mother she's you know the wife she's wrapped up with housework and kids and everything else she's schooling them she's feeding them and maybe they're two ships passing in the night and they they sit down and they want to rekindle they want to get back on track with their relationship one with each other hopefully prayerfully and they sit down and they write a list of the those things those things that they're they're thankful for one to each other a husband and wife and hopefully that hopefully the list can get long and hopefully they can sit there for a while and right but if you've ever done these exercises something like okay uh uh uh okay yeah yeah right and then and then you eventually get a list going but hopefully brethren moving too much higher things not that the relationship between a husband and wife should be taken lightly it's a blessed gift given from God but the point is were to give praise and thanks to our God and rate when we're called to write a list the pen should hit the paper right upon the command and we can keep going until eternity throughout eternity what do we have what is the content of our thanksgiving and praise well firstly brethren generally and necessarily thanksgiving and praise for all things well that's an easy thing to say preacher but it's true and let's rehearse some the content of our thanksgiving and praise generally and necessarily thanksgiving and praise for all things first off under that we want to note we are to thank God for daily blessings and those all undeserved brethren we thank god for daily blessings and those all undeserved at this point pink makes a good observation gratitude is the return justly required from the objects of his beneficence let's stop for a moment what pink is saying is that thankfulness is rightly to be given God because of his benefits given gratitude is the return justly required from the objects of his beneficence that means his bestow love good things and benefits yet is it often withheld from our great benefactor simply because his goodness is so constant and so abundant it is lightly esteemed because it is exercised toward us in the common course of events you see we we have at least in the Western world we have so many benefits don't we so many blessings yes we have life and breath but we have an abundance of food don't we we have we have cars that most of them work and we can drive them we have houses we have clothes and no shortage yes there are those that struggle but if we look at our lives we can look and we can see that this is true that there are so many that there is an abundance of the goodness that is constant and it is exercised toward us in the common course of events you see we can go through a day we can go through a week and we enjoy so many things but do we stop along the way and give thanks to our God you see ritual is a good thing what do I mean by that obviously salvific ritual ritual in order to gain God's favor is an abomination empty and vain ritual the pagans sort are nonsense and should never be followed after of course but at the point of Thanksgiving you know what a good ritual is you know what a good custom is give thanks to God for your food oh but you know it's just a ritual you close your eyes and you bow your head and you thank God for your food yes glorious ritual why because at least there we're stopping and we're doing what is to be our disposition we're doing what is to be our activity as Christians were giving pause to consider the benefit of the benefactor that he's given to us in His grace and in his condescending mercy we don't deserve the food that we have remember pastor Butler maybe it was last lord's day said something like this that the only thing that we deserve is what an eternity in a lake of fire because of our sinfulness because of our iniquity because of our depravity so when we get to when we get to cut into a juicy steak or if you're a vegetarian when you get to cut into a good chunk of tofu when you get to when you get to cut into your blessed meal brethren its undeserved and that reality is to cry out thanks to God that reality is to cause you in your soul to be stirred too high thanks to God who gives us things in the face of the reality that it's deserved we do not deserve those things that he gives so for daily blessings all undeserved life breath and in all things as well not only for blessing but for affliction that's that's why some people can look upon Christians who embrace this reality thankfulness in affliction and can say man they're weird because that just doesn't ruminate with them that just doesn't fly with with the unbeliever but brethren turn with me to song turn with me to psalm 119 this is and I want to we want as you're turning there psalm 119 and specifically verse 71 psalm 119 and verse 71 if you want you can read it before I read it that's that's fine but I want to pause here for a moment you'll remember most of you will remember the fellow blessed brother that died a number of years back Johnny for Reese he was a flick tip with SMA and he near the you know the last I don't know I'm just guessing at this point but certainly the last 20 years of his life completely unable to move it may be the smallest movement of course in his mouth but as far as his limbs as far as large bodily movement nothing a withered man on a bed and yet he was he was able to in that create websites with his mouth to send out prayer requests into to maintain a prayer distribution list in a reformed baptist directory and do all these things with just the movements of his mouth you know what he would close off most of his emails with it is good for me that I have been afflicted that I may learn your statutes wow what does that speak to but a disposition of definitive and abiding thankfulness he had been afflicted with this disease and yet he did not as so many unbelievers would raise his fist at God and see why why have you given this to me but rather he would close off his emails with it is good for me that I have been afflicted that I may learn your statutes oh sure he would send email sometimes repenting and saying you know I struggled this week with you know wondering why I've been afflicted for so long that sort of thing but then he would quickly collect himself and say find himself back with a thankful heart at this text again it is good for me brethren blessing and affliction in fact in our Psalm Psalm 107 if we were to read the entirety of it we would see that it is in blessing and affliction that we are to rehearse the praises of our God we are to give thanks to God for both blessing and affliction the merchant mariners the psalmist says learns up know that truth for a certainty notice Psalm 107 23 those who go down to the sea and ships who do business on Great Waters they see the works of the lord and his wonders in the deep for he commands and raises the stormy wind which lifts up the waves of the sea they mount up to the heavens they go down again to the depths their soul melts because of trouble they reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man and are at their wit's end then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble and he brings them out of their de-stresses he calms the storm so that its waves are still you ask well where where is giving thanks to God here for blessing and affliction will notice yes it is God who calms the storm so that it's waves are still but brethren verse 25 for he commands and raises the stormy win you see God delivers the storm in the good pleasure of his will in the wisdom that he alone has for the good of his people for his own glory and yes for the judgment of his enemies but you see that same God comes the storm so that it's waves are still blessing an affliction give thanks to God we are to give thanks to God for the law of god psalm 119 62 psalm 119 and verse 62 we give thanks to God for his law at midnight I will rise to give thanks to you because of your righteous judgments and perhaps in view is most certainly his law but perhaps even more to the point the execution of his laws demands notice the language here is because of your righteous judgments well when we get tonight to an examination of more of the general character of God will note that it is a mercy of God when he judges the enemies of his people here we see brethren that we are to give thanks to God for his law and for the execution of it God's law is wise it is right it is glorious it is to come to us as honey to our lips it is a blessed thing his law and his word and lastly we are this is under again the content of our thanksgiving and praise we are to be thankful for the gospel you see that ought not to be a stretch that comes to your ears and hopefully you say a wholesome yes that's right not a Yeah right but a wholesome yes that's right preacher because if all of these things of all of the things daily blessings all undeserved blessings and afflictions consider temporarily and physically these things remember will fade away and will be gone but the one abiding and eternal thing is what gospel verities that we've been saved by such a christ by such a God through such a glorious work of redemption and so we come to God with thankful hearts for all things we come to him first and foremost and with primacy at the point of the gospel of Jesus Christ you look for the you look for this in the Psalms and I believe we find it in many places but Psalm 103 verse 1 and following bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me bless His Holy Name bless the Lord O my soul and forget not all his benefits now notice who forgives all your iniquities who heals all your diseases who redeems your life from destruction who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies who satisfies your mouth with good things so that your youth is renewed like the Eagles Calvin says at the point of this Psalm and particularly at who heals all your diseases and he notes some take this to mean and to assume that God when he forgives us of our sins will also heal us from our sicknesses our maladies and our our physical diseases and Calvin says no that is to restrict it it's referring spiritually to God's deliverance from our spiritual death and sickness who forgives all your iniquities who heals all your diseases does he give us physical food that satisfies does he give us good things that we can eat and be sustained physically yes but when we read who satisfies your mouth with good things so that your youth is renewed like the Eagles were to mount up from physical things and to arrive at the spiritual and to say he feeds us with the bread of life that is Christ Jesus the Lord notice what we find back in Psalm 107 at this point closed our section and Psalm 107 verse 9 we read for he satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with goodness brethren when you need when you come to the word of the living and true God you have food for the Soul when we cry out in hunger and when we cry out with longing souls God feeds us with Christ the bread of life John 6 if you ever wonder if God feeds you with anything spiritually go to John 6 Christ says he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood he has life in him not blasphemous blasphemously referring to some strange and magical transformation of the elements at the Lord's Supper that's nonsense but rather speaking to what he had already said prior to that he who believes in me will never hunger he who comes in me comes to me shall never thirst God feeds us with sustaining strength God feeds us with his Christ with revelations of his word with the truths of the gospel remember that that stuff that Isaiah brings out in Isaiah 55 come you who Hunger you who thirst and buy without money you see we spend and we pour so much money into into physical things now there are things that we need to spend money on money is that's you know that's the stuff that we need to buy stuff to put in our mouths to drive to live to put raiment on our backs and to have houses over our heads but you see very often we can go overboard and we can we can waste money on some pretty trivial things can't wait for not sinful necessarily but nevertheless things of no lasting value the things that can so often steal away our attention you see the things that we are to focus on as Christians with regards to the soul certainly not those things those things should never warm our souls giving thanks to God for physical benefits sure but the things of abiding value that were to feed ourselves with the word of God his Christ in His gospel the flower fades and the grass withers the Word of God lives and abides forever brethren we have so much to thank our precious God for we're going to get we're going to move to the general character of God tonight as time ticks on we want to close with a few things here a few closing thoughts will push the general character of God that informs man's thanksgiving and praise to this evening but let's close with some few closing thoughts here first we are to be a thankful people that's obvious but brethren be a thankful people be a Christian who is only such when marked by a disposition of abiding thankfulness remember the unbeliever is marked by thankless Ness we are not to we are not to mimic and we are not to follow after the way of the unbeliever that's sure and that's obvious and so what are we to be then if they are thankless we are to be a thankful people we thank our God for daily blessings all undeserved we thank God in blessing and affliction we thank him for the wisdom of his law and his word we thank him for the blessings of gospel truth the blessings of redemption the blessings of salvation via thankful people secondly we are to cultivate our thankfulness we are to cultivate nurture grow our thankfulness how do we do that if in the first place we are to be a thankful people then how do we how do we cultivate that how do we grow that how do we nurture that I think it's simple brethren a large tone a large book need not be written how to cultivate your thankfulness were to come to church oh here he goes again him and him and Butler always saying come to church rather and remember what we looked at before oh come the psalmist calls for the gathering of the people of God come and give thanks to God you can give thanks to God monday through saturday to be sure but there is a divinely designed and mandated and commanded gathering we're in that thankfulness is formerly expressed and it's in the corporation the gathering the corporate body of christ in his church it's why the psalmist so often vs. and attaches these things to worship to commands to gather together in worship remember the new covenant announcements and declarations are no different do not forsake the assembling of yourselves together as is the manner of some cultivate your thankfulness by coming to this place yes you got a cracked pot in the pulpit and you're surrounded by other sinners saved by grace but brethren we with one voice raise a voice to God and we give him thanks and praise for so many things the crowning thing of which is the gospel of free and sovereign grace prayer how am I to cultivate thankfulness by prayer a Christian is a praying man woman boy girl go to the Lord in prayer remember if it is the case that a measure hint of anxiety or worry is welling up and you hear the words of the Apostle Paul again be anxious in nothing but with prayer and supplication mingled with Thanksgiving major requests known to God go to the go to our God in prayer and brethren you're a Christian if you're a Christian you go to God in prayer you will find yourselves thanking him you will find yourselves thanking him because we cannot but arrive at multitudinous benefits when we read his word when we cast our eyes upon creation in Providence we can't but land on a posture of Thanksgiving unto our God for all of his blessed benefits the reading of the word the reading of the word how do we cultivate our thankfulness read your Bibles brethren because page after page as Spurgeon said chapter after chapter we find Christ upon the cross working out the salvation of man we come to our Bibles and we find an absolute mine an absolute treasury of that we throw into our hymn book of thanksgiving and praise to our God we come you go to the book of psalms hopefully that is a an address of Holy Scripture that you find yourselves often in because the psalmist's rehearse the multitudinous glories of our God kids multitudinous another big word that just means a lot I could we could just probably just say a lot but to be honest multitudinous sounds great multitudinous glorious riches excellencies of our God we come to the songs and we have things that will fill our hymnbooks throughout eternity we come to the New Testament we come through the old which is Christ word in its trajectory we arrive at the New Testament Christ has come and that covenant document of the New Covenant ratified in his blood speaks of what the glories of Christ's Redemption by him the victory of a crucified and resurrected Redeemer you see that the the hem book that is populated by the riches and the glories of Christ is not three pages long but it's an inexhaustible hymn book that will launch a multitude of hymns throughout eternity we are to read our word we are to read the scriptures and we are to take from it the Blessed revealing truths of God wherein he discloses Christ upon the cross working out the salvation of sinners brethren baptism and the lord's supper remember that God has instituted God has ordained things where by the grace of faith is strengthened if you're a believer and you haven't been baptized be baptized what why are you waiting why aren't you coming in obedience to Christ to be blessed in that blessed pool the water has no efficacy the the words of the pastor the words of the one baptizing you have no efficacy in and of themselves but God through the or nents blesses you cultivate your thankfulness by thanking god for his redeeming activity for giving you newness of life do you come up from that water it's it's an emergence of Thanksgiving and as you look back upon that day throughout your life when you went into those waters of blessed obedience give thanks to your God for salvation by such a Christ in the Lord's Supper that is remember an ordinance of remembrance and Thanksgiving isn't it what are we doing but we're remembering our Christ were remembering his redeeming work what a blessed thing we have all of those things to gulp to cultivate our thankfulness and brethren lastly we are to rehearse God's goodness and mercy will get to that tonight but remember what this Thanksgiving is rendered for or what this command to give thanks is to rehearse what follows o give thanks to the Lord for he is good for his mercy endures forever when you are thanking your God you are to rehearse his goodness in your lives and his mercy in your lives and all of those points where his goodness and mercy come and that is in all things but remember that crowning event saving of your souls the work of our Christ the application the benefit benefits of his perfect cross work by the holy spirit of our love we are to remember we are to rehearse the goodness and mercy of our God if you're here this morning and you don't know this Christ you don't know our God you don't believe in this one who is to be thanked this one who is filled and perfect in His goodness and mercy you are what we described earlier one who is thankless there might be some sort of you know measure of thankfulness that you have but it is a godless in a Chrysler thankfulness to that spiritually ambiguous and atheistic and agnostic thankfulness whereby you're thanking something or someone but you're leaving the singular one who is to be thanked and praised for all things you're leaving him you're not giving him the thanks and the praise that is his do but rather your futile and your thoughts and your foolish tarts are darkened the Bible comes and it says believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved the Bible says that you've sinned all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God but you see there is not loss if you close with Christ there is much loss if you don't but if you believe on the king the Redeemer the glorious one who came into this world sinners to save who rose again to secure that salvation who now sits at the right hand of the Majesty on high interceding for all those who me saved you close with him and you will give thanks to your God you will give thanks for your Christ and you will sing the thankfulness of so great a salvation believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved we'll see you tonight Heavenly Father we thank you for your word we thank you for this song that simply discloses that the the command to give thanks and we know that it is not a heavy and burdensome thing to do so but rather we cheerfully comply and we pray that you would give us your spirit that we might do so we would give you thanks that we would honor you that we would praise you for there is so much to give you thanks for we pray that you would help us that you would give us strength to give you thanks that you would give us daily that a presence of mind to be found thanking you are precious God for all of the benefits that you pour out upon us through Christ Jesus the Lord we pray that you would strengthen your Saints this day and save sinners that you would help us Lord God to go out into this world this week to be thankful and to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ go with us now father might all that we do this day this lord's day sabbath be done unto the praise of your most high name and it is in Christ's name that we pray amen why don't we stand and sing the doxology then you'll have a brief time of meditation after that and we can we can pray but let's stand and sing the doxology together now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy to God our Savior who alone is wise be glory and Majesty Dominion and power both now and forever amen well please be seated and when the piano is finished you're free to leave