The Law of Thankfulness

The law and will of God is so remarkably absent from the consciousness of this age. But as absent as it is in the world, so complete is its centrality to the Christian. We see this first and foremost in the law of love: the summary of every command being to love God and our neighbor. This means that every time we are called to love God or our neighbor, by faith we simultaneously see HOW this is to be accomplished when Christ himself says “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”

But this dichotomy between the unbeliever and Christian doesn’t end with how we love. It also extends to our gratitude. The Heidelberg Catechism helpfully organizes its third and final section under the heading of "Our Gratitude" – which is to say that our response to our salvation from sin and misery is to show true thankfulness by keeping God’s law. This connection is critical to our perseverance in the faith, as is so often illustrated throughout scripture. Moses warned the old testament people of God in Deuteronomy 8:17 to “Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’” This is a consistent theme. Consider the writer of Proverbs 30:8, who wishes away riches “lest I be full and deny you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’” For a Christian, thanksgiving is intimately connected to our service to God and sanctification – a far cry from the indulgence and increasing decadence of our cultural celebrations.

Thankgiving, just like our love, forms our entire lives. We come into God’s presence “with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise.” Indeed, for the Christian, not a single breath can be taken without thanksgiving. How else can we truly “enjoy” God forever, as the Westminster catechism so helpfully outlines our purpose? From the apostle Paul all the way through history, God’s people have confirmed this pattern and provided examples of thankful living in the most difficult of circumstances. In most cases, the more difficult the circumstance, the more singularly beautiful is the example of gratitude displayed by the saints of any time and place. We should remember this while we still enjoy relative prosperity and freedom. We should remember the words of Proverbs and Moses and keep in mind that thanksgiving cannot be mere words spoken – Like our love for God and neighbor, it encompasses our whole duty.