Sadly, it is a part of human nature to be ungrateful. Many have short memories and do not remember those who have been kind or have given assistance in a needy time.
Lets start by looking at a Biblical story where ten people with a terrible disease were healed by the Lord Jesus. Before reading how many do you think said thank you to the Lord Jesus? Did all ten say thank you? Eight? Seven? Five? Less than five??? Read and see the answer:
Luke 17
11 And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed
through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.
12 And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten
men that were lepers, which stood afar off:
13 And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master,
have mercy on us.
14 And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves
unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went,
they were cleansed.
15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back,
and with a loud voice glorified God,
16 And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks:
and he was a Samaritan.
17 And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but
where are the nine?
18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God,
save this stranger.
Leprosy is a terrible disease. A person had to live outside the city separated from healthy people. This disease caused a rotting of the skin and body parts. A person with leprosy lived with other lepers and had nothing to do but to wait until death came. To be healed of this disease is a major thing! Today it would be like a person being healed from terminal cancer.
All ten men had this terrible disease and they were all healed by the Lord Jesus. Out of the ten people only one person returned to say thank you in a spirit of gratefulness.
Imagine being healed from a terrible sickness like leprosy and then not being thankful! Most people would say they would be like the one person who was thankful. But in reality is that true? Ten healed and only one says thank you!
To me this shows a window into the evil heart of our sin nature. Ungratefulness is a sin done by both the saved and the lost. God's people can also be ungrateful and unthankful as well.
People commit the sin of ungratefulness in two ways:
1) To our fellow man
2) To God
Lets look more closely at each:
UNGRATEFULLNESS TO OUR FELLOW MAN
The main way people show ungratefulness today is in response to good deeds and acts of kindness. It really should not be a hard thing to say a simple thank you but many times that gets forgotten.
Children should be very grateful for all their parents have done for them. As a child this may not happen but as the child grows up he should look, recognize, and be thankful for all the sacrifices made by his parents.
Husbands should show more gratitude toward their wives. Wives should show more gratitude toward their husbands. This list can go on and on!
UNGRATEFULLNESS TO THE LORD
It is very easy to be ungrateful to other people. But it is even easier to be ungrateful to the Lord. The Bible says that each day goodness and mercy follows His people. How many times do we forget to praise and thank the Lord for His blessings?
What about forgetting the major blessings from the Lord?
Forgetting the great blessings of salvation is ungratefulness:
- Salvation from sin and hell by the one sacrifice of the Lord Jesus
- Forgiveness of sin
- The Lord Jesus bled and died for our sins. He bore our punishment
- Saved people are a new creation in the Lord Jesus
All God's people must:
We must purpose to remember the great blessings of God each day
We must always be grateful and thankful to His many blessings and answers to prayers
We must remember that the one-time sacrifice done on the cross was sufficient for our eternal salvation. No works on our part can be done to add to the finished sacrifice. God showed His great love toward lost mankind by becoming a man, dying on the cross, and paying the penalty for our sins. Remember to thank the Lord for such a great eternal salvation!
Also, out of love and gratefulness to God for our salvation, the Christian loves and obeys Him. We draw near to God because He first loved us.
Romans 5
8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were
yet sinners, Christ died for us.
1 John 4
19 We love him, because he first loved us.
Finally, the Lords supper done in every Bible believing church. It is a vehicle where Christians can remember and give thanks to the great sacrifice paid on the cross. We remember two things:
1) The fact that the Lord's body was broken as He was crucified for our sins. The Lord Jesus took our place and bore our penalty for sin.
2) We remember the shed blood of the Lord Jesus. His blood was shed in payment for our sins. The blood of Jesus cleanses from all sin!
CONCLUSION
In this tract we had a quick look at the sin of ungratefulness. This is a very common sin and is done by both the saved and the unsaved.
The Christian needs to take note and look for opportunities to show his gratefulness to all who are a blessing. From the Lord to our friends and family, a simple thank you expresses gratitude.
One of the major ways a Christian can show his love and gratitude to the Lord is to offer himself as a living sacrifice. Commit your life to the Lord and let Him use you any way He chooses! Always remember that God's ways are perfect and pleasing!
Rom 12
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable
unto God, [which is] your reasonable service.
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