Gratitude Overflowing

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Gratitude Overflowing

by Pastor Cornelius R. Stam

"For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God." --II Cor. 4:15

It is said that the word "thanksgiving," in one or another of its forms, flows from the heart and pen of Paul more than 50 times, while in all the rest of the New Testament Scriptures it is found only 21 times. Since the size of the rest of the New Testament is about two and a half times that of Paul's epistles, this makes the ratio 6 to 1. That is, for every time some other New Testament writer uses the word, Paul uses it six times. This is probably correct, for Paul's epistles are indeed filled with thanksgiving.

DISRESPECT AND INGRATITUTE

What a contrast this was to the pagan world about him! Long centuries before, the Gentiles who "knew God…glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful" (Rom. 1:21). Their attitude was that of disrespect and ingratitude. The result:

"…[they] became vain in their imaginations [or reasonings], and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image make like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things" (Vers. 21-23).

How superstitious and stupid intellectual man can be! Five hundred years of paganism showed its results in the great moral and spiritual depravity of the Egyptian dynasties. The Egyptians were intellectual people (Acts 7:22). They knew secrets that we moderns know nothing of. We do not know how they built their great pyramids and it is said that no engineer today would know how to build one. They knew also how to embalm their dead so that the mummies of many of their dead are still, after 3500 years, in existence in museums in Chicago, New York, London and elsewhere.

The Great Pyramid at Gizeh is a marvel of geometry, astronomy, and engineering, a permanent record of geometric facts, and a living proof that the ancients had an amazing knowledge of astronomy. Joseph A. Seiss calls the Great Pyramid "the oldest and greatest existing monument of intellectual man."1

But think of the superstition and fear involved in their worship of the hawk, the bull, the cow, the cat, the frog, the baboon, the jackal, the crocodile, and other beasts and reptiles! To these the Egyptians prostrated themselves, bringing them sacrifices to placate them when angry or ill-tempered. And to this we must add religious rites so vile that they are deeply repulsive to the Christian mind and heart. Little wonder, for five centuries before this,

"God…gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves" (Rom. 1:24).

God did not instill unclean desires; He simply gave them up to "the lusts of their own hearts."

The record further states:

"[They] changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator…" (Ver. 25).

Again, the results:

"For this cause God gave them up to vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lusts one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly [Lit., shameful], and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet" (Vers. 26,27).

Ah, but surely all this had changed a great deal by the time of Paul, for it was then that the great Greek philosophers stepped forth, those men after whose wisdom modern western culture is said to be patterned. But was it so different in Paul's day? Listen to his not-very-complimentary description of the wise of his day, as they gathered at Ephesus, that seat of learning where the goddess Diana was worshipped. To the Christians who lived there, he wrote:

"This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles [i.e., the unsaved Gentiles] walk, in the vanity of their mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart" (Eph. 4:17,18).

Again, the moral result:

"Who being past feeling [Lit., calloused], have given themselves over to lasciviousness, TO WORK ALL UNCLEANNESS WITH GREEDINESS" (Ver. 19).

Had the pagan world changed so much by the time Paul arrived on the scene? Indeed, has it changed even since then? Have not pagan philosophies gained amazing headway even in "Christian" America? And have they not brought their sex-madness with them? Are there not millions here in America who "work all uncleanness with greediness"?

EARTHEN VESSELS

But how did Paul combat heathenism in his day? And how should we combat it in ours? First, we should recognize, as Paul did, that we are nothing in ourselves and that the power to bring light and salvation must come from God. Referring in the passage we are considering to "our gospel" (II Cor. 4:3), he says:

"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us" (Ver. 7).

We do not put diamonds and rubies and other precious items in "earthen vessels." They are too fragile. They are too easily broken and crushed. Yet God has deposited "this treasure," the riches of His grace, in "earthen vessels"--us! Why? So that when hearts and lives and homes are changed by the gospel, it may be evident that the power was "of God, and not of us."

Some people think that Paul was "the strong, bold type," but not so. To these same Corinthians he wrote:

"And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling" (I Cor. 2:3).

Nor was his moral background such as would inspire respectful attention. True, he had been conscientious and religious but, in his unsaved state, also ruthless and cruel, "breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord" (Acts 9:1).
Thus he says,

"…I thank Christ Jesus, our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry; Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious…" (I Tim. 1:12,13).

Paul had been anything but faithful to God, to his Messiah, or to his people, but he was divinely enabled and counted worthy, as God entrusted him with the dispensing of the riches of His grace to a doomed and lost world. Thus, when these riches yielded great dividends, it was evident that the results were not due to Paul's oratory or his persuasive powers; they were of God, for the instrumentality employed in defending and dispensing this treasure was altogether disproportionate to the amazing effect produced.

SATAN’S ATTEMPTS TO CRUSH THE EARTHEN VESSEL

And now let us see how Satan, in the case of Paul, sought to crush the "earthen vessel." In II Corinthians 4:8-14 we have the story of the Apostle's struggles--and his victory in Christ. It is replete with metaphors, some taken from the Corinthian games, with which his readers were so familiar.

Verse 8: "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed." The words "on every side," or "all around," are expressive. The Apostle was hard-pressed, as by a wrestler seeking to suffocate his opponent with his hold--yes, hard-pressed, but not crushed!

"We are perplexed, but not in despair." He himself testified that "we know not what we should pray for as we ought" (Rom. 8:26). But he was "not in despair," for he knew that the Holy Spirit does know what is good for us and pleasing to God (Rom. 8:26,27). What an encouragement the Spirit's intercession should be to us who likewise, so often, find ourselves not knowing how to pray! We need not "despair" that our adversary will succeed in crushing these earthen vessels if we simply trust God for the outcome.