Be Grateful
Join us as we learn how to be joyful always, knowing the kingdom of God belongs to us through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.
November 19, 2023
Luke 15:25-32
“Be Grateful”
by Ben Caldwell
Today, I thought I would start by talking to you about what ungrateful people complain about. I mean what better way for us to consider what we are truly grateful for?
These thing are from an article written by a guy named Christopher Hudspeth, entitled Things People Complain About Way Too Often.
Here are 10 things people ungratefully complain about way too much:
10. Handling things that they’re supposed to handle.
Working on your house, taking care of your kids, doing your job, when you would rather be doing something else.
9. Morning.
8. Mondays.
7. Someone liking you too much.
And this isn’t about a stalker, this is just someone sending flowers too soon in the relationship etc.
6. Facebook statuses.
You don’t have to look at other people’s updates. Block them.
5. The toilet seat being left up.
You could take 0.3 seconds to check its condition and then put it like you want it. Or you could complain for 45+ minutes arguing/giving a lecture on your preferred condition of the porcelain throne upon your arrival.
4. Flying.
Seriously though, we’re granted these gorgeous views of the earth and we complain about it. Can the pre-flight process be tedious? Yes, but we need it that way for our safety. Look, you get to watch movies while sipping Coke and eating pretzels; you don’t have to drive; and you will likely get where you are going in a fraction of the time it would take you otherwise. Maybe we should appreciate that the entire concept of flying makes absolutely no sense, and is the most amazing form of travel we common folk have had bestowed upon us.
3. Weather.
Dress accordingly. And realize we all know that the winter is going to be cold, the summer is going to be hot, and the spring and fall will likely be rainy. We all know that already.
2. Lengthy waits in the drive-through.
I know this can be tough, but you’re going to sit in the air conditioning with music for a bit, then a hand is going to pop out of a window with a bag of hot food and you’ll be on your way. I mean you are being treated like a King! If the employee is rude, that’s one thing, but if they get your order wrong they’re human (or Taco Bell), and what we gain in “speed” we sometimes sacrifice in accuracy.
1. Slow, but free Wi-Fi.
It’s FREE. ON THE HOUSE. COSTLESS. $0. BUY NONE, GET ONE FREE. The world mourns for you if that YouTube video takes a few extra moments to load, but please, for the love of GIFs, stop criticizing free Wi-Fi before coffee shops respond to these complaints with faster Internet at a cost.
I’m guilty. I remember sitting in a Dr.’s waiting room and complaining to myself that they didn’t have free wifi. Crazy right? I’m paying them to be there and complaining that they aren’t giving me something for free. I say all this to illustrate the point that we all have moments when we could be more grateful.
I believe it is just easy to get caught up in seeing the negative things around us instead of recognizing just how good we have it. And so today, I’d like for us to look at a passage of scripture that is one of my favorites.
History: Now, I like to give you a little context whenever we look at a passage of scripture, because… if we are going to really understand the passage… if we are going to properly interpret its meaning, then we need to know what was going on at the time.
In Jesus ministry one of his most well known teachings is a series of three stories. One is about a shepherd who lost a sheep. The man has a flock of 100 sheep, but when we loses one, he leaves the other 99 behind. And he goes out and searches for the one that is lost. The next story is about a woman who lost a precious coin. When she discovers that it is lost, she lights a lamp and turns the house up-side down, until she finds it, because it was so important to her. And the third story is about a Father who had a son who rebels and leaves home and squanders the money the Father had given him. When a severe famine hits, the son is left with nothing. And he gets a job as a pig farmer. For an Israelite, there wouldn’t have been any job lower than that one. So here is this young man, flat on his back as low as low could be. He even longs to eat the slop the pigs were eating. And at his lowest point, the scripture says (Luke 15:17), “… he came to his senses…” So he heads home to ask his Father to make him a servant… he knows he doesn’t deserve to be a son. And the son finds the father watching, waiting, and welcoming him home.
And we love these three stories. Do you know why? Because we have been lost. The sheep story tells us even when we act like a stupid sheep and lose our way, God (in his loving, kindness) pursues us. When we are like that missing coin and not in our rightful place with Him, He works tirelessly to restore us. And in that picture of the prodigal son… mmm… Pastor Howard-John Wesley says, “Haven’t we all shown some prodigal proclivities that put us in the pig sty? I bet I’m not the only one who knows what the pig pen feels like. We all know what it is like to stray outside God’s will and God’s desire. You may look clean today in your Baptist Beautiful, but we know what it means to wind up in a place where you find life isn’t all you thought it would be… living on your own terms. You realized it was time to get your dirty self straight back to God. So you ran back to Him and He welcomed you with open arms”
But there is more to the story that just that. Let’s read together… IF YOU ARE ABLE… WOULD YOU STAND AS WE READ?
Luke 15:11-32 says:
25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 28 The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ 31 “ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
There is more to the context than Jesus just telling us that God loves us. You see there were these religious leaders who were looking at Jesus and judging him. They saw all these “tax collectors and sinners” gathering around Jesus and being welcomed by him. And they are muttering under their breath, “Look at Jesus welcoming these ‘sinners!’” Because of those comments, Jesus begins to tell this series of three stories. He is teaching these religious leaders about how God sees the situation.
Luke 15:5 tells us how the shepherd who loses his sheep reacts when he recovers it. It says:
“And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on this shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Luke 15:9 tells us about the reaction of the woman who finds the lost coin. It says: “And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 in the same way, I tell you there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Then in the story of the lost son, the older brother is jealous. And he says, “I’ve been slaving for you for years and you’ve never given me calf to party with my friends.” And the dad responds, “You’ve been with me. Everything I have is yours! And then the Father points to what he is thankful for: We had to be glad and celebrate, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found.
The point here is that the Pharisees should be grateful to God that the Lord is reclaiming people who were once lost. That people who were far from God are close to Him again! Sometimes life can take the Thanksgiving right out of you. Do you know what I mean? We’ll still say “Thank you.” Because it is the politically correct thing to do. It is socially acceptable. And if someone presses you of course you can come up with things that you should be thankful for. But in our low spots, a grateful heart is sometimes far away. I believe Jesus has given us some things that we need to keep in mind.
BE GRATEFUL: God Never Leaves Us or Forsakes Us
The story is told of two men were walking through a field one day when they spotted an enraged bull. Instantly they darted toward the nearest fence. The storming bull followed in hot pursuit, and it was soon apparent they wouldn’t make it. Terrified, the one shouted to the other, "Put up a prayer, John. We’re in for it!" John answered, "I can’t. I’ve never made a public prayer in my life." "But your daddy was a preacher – surely he taught you some sort of prayer! So pray John, pray! The bull is catching up to us."
"All right," panted John, "I’ll say the only prayer I know, the one my father used to repeat at the table: ’O Lord, for what we are about to receive, make us truly thankful.’"
I know that is just a joke, but there is some truth in the idea that no matter what we go through, there is a sense in which God is with us. Taking care of us helping us, even blessing us.
The pastor I mentioned before says: “In every pain. In every storm. In every struggle. In every problem. In every layoff. In every Heartbreak. In every Diagnosis. He is with you.
When the younger brother is back and the older brother won’t go in, the Father goes out to find him and tells him “You are with me always.”
I had a conversation once with a man who’s whose son had recently died. And the man said, “You start to see things differently when you get to the point that you understand every happiness, every joy, every moment that you shared with your loved one was a gift from God.” And I was just blown away by that conversation… by the man’s gratitude to God for his son.
When we are stubborn. When we are stupid. When we are selfish, God watches, waits, welcomes, and take the initiative to come to us first, blessing us with his presence, even though we don’t deserve it.
BE GRATEFUL: Jealousy and Selfishness Cause Forgetfulness
The older brother in this moment, is jealous of the little brother.” The Father is telling him, “Everything I have is yours!” Don’t let this moment make you forget all that you possess. Ever felt that way?
In a motivational online video narrated by Matthew McConaughey, he says:
“Happiness is an emotional response to an outcome. If I win, then I will be happy. If I don’t, then I won’t. It’s an if, then, cause and effect, quid pro quo standard that we cannot sustain, because we immediately raise it once we attain it. You see happiness demands a certain outcome; it is result reliant. If happiness is what you are after, then you are going to be let down frequently and you’re going to be unhappy much of the time.
But JOY… Joy though, joy is a different thing. Joy is not a choice. It is not a response to some result. It is a constant. Joy is a feeling that we get when we are doing what we are fashioned to do,” (and I would add to that) when we are being who we are called to be, when we are rightly connected to God regardless of the outcome or circumstance.
Why talk about happiness verses Joy. Watch this: in Luke 15… in our series of three stories that Jesus gives the Pharisees, the story of the Shepherd who loses his sheep.
Jesus says in Luke 15:5:
“And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have round my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”
Seeing a person who is far from God being brought close to God should make us feel joy. Joy is a feeling that we get when we are doing what we are fashioned to do,” when we are being who we are called to be, when we are rightly connected to God regardless of the outcome or circumstance.
What was the problem with the older brother? He couldn’t be happy for his younger brother. He couldn’t find joy, because he was focused on his own happiness, his own success, his own party with friends. He didn’t share his father’s joy.
In the greater context… as Jesus is telling this story to help the Pharisees… what was the problem with the Pharisees? They couldn’t be happy for these sinful people who were being changed. They couldn’t find joy, because they were focused on their own happiness, their own success… they didn’t like that Jesus was helping them be properly connected with God, when the Pharisees seemed to be unable to help them. So they don’t share God’s joy.
What is the problem with us? What are you focused on? Your own success? Your own projects? Your own work? Your own happiness? Shoot, you can even get focused on having the perfect Thanksgiving to give you happiness.
Believers, we should be joyful always, knowing the kingdom of God belongs to us through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.