Our Debt

Mark Dunagan
05/20/12 - Sunday Evening

Our Debt

In the letter of the Christians at Rome, Paul mentioned three “I am” statements in the opening chapter.  He said he was eager to preach the gospel in Rome (1:15) and was not ashamed of the gospel (1:16).  Yet the first statement was “I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish” (1:15).  Why did Paul feel that he “owed” or was “in debt” to all men?

The Forgetful Man

Albert Camus wrote that “Man’s first fault is forgetting”.  In Notes from Underground in 1864, Dostoevsky  said that the best definition of man is “the ungrateful biped”.  The Bible would tend to agree, for often God speaks of the incredibly sad reality of even His own people forgetting both Him and the blessings He has given:

• “Can a virgin forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire?  Yet My people have forgotten Me days without number” (Jeremiah 2:32).

Ingratitude is so dangerous and crucial that the Holy Spirit links ingratitude with the very first steps of movement away from God, “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks” (Romans 1:21).

Our Modern Era

In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln warned his fellow Americans against the tendency that Paul mentioned in Romans 1:21 when he said, “We have grown in numbers, wealth, and power, as no other nation has ever grown.  But we have forgotten God”.  Lincoln was absolutely correct, and even more accurate this statement becomes as time passes.  Ingratitude toward God has become so universal that when the popular cartoon character Bart Simpson is asked to say grace at supper time, the writer's joke is to have him say, “Dear God, we pray for all this ourselves.  So thanks for nothing”. How incredibly profane.

Writer Os Guiness observes that the atheist philosopher used to shout, “There is no God”.  “Now the practical atheist who is the modern manager, marketer, expert, or consultant says with quiet professional authority, ‘There is no need of God—and, frankly, this is not the time or place for such questions’” (The Call, p. 196).  Jesus said that man does not live on bread alone (Matthew 4:4), many modern humanistic voices, essentially argue, “Keep the word of God to yourselves; in these modern times we can live quite conformably on bread alone, thank you very much”.

Good Reasons to be Grateful

The Bible often exhorts the faithful to express their gratitude towards God:

• “Oh give thanks to the Lord…make known His deeds among the peoples” (1 Chronicles 16:8).
• “I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart; I will tell of all Thy wonders” (Psalm 9:1).
• “That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving.  And declare all Thy wonders” (Psalm 26:7).
• “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good” (Psalm 118:1).

What the Faithful Enjoy

Passage after passage reveals that God’s people look forward to periods of collective worship, for it affords an opportunity to express our gratitude to our precious Creator and Savior:

• “I used to go along with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God, with the voice of joy and thanksgiving” (Psalm 42:4).
• “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving” (Psalm 95:2).
• “Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise” (Psalm 100:4).
• “Singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16).

Just So Many Things

When it comes to pondering all the blessings I receive from God, blessings that overwhelm my heart with gratitude, the list is endless.  There is so much to be thankful for that every Christian should live a life in a continual attitude of appreciation and gratitude:

• “In everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).
• “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2).
• “Rejoice always…in everything give thanks” (1 Thessalonians 5:16,18).

What Are You Especially Grateful For Today? Today I am Grateful For…

• My existence.
• God’s existence and a world that is not meaningless.
• The forgiveness of my sins, and Jesus’ willingness to die for me to obtain this.
• God’s patience that allowed to world to exist until I was born and gave me time to hear the gospel.
• The beautiful world that God made for us.
• The variety in this world.
• The seasons.
• The mind that emotions that God built into me.
• The marriage relationship.
• The free country in which I live.
• God’s providential care in my life.
• God’s communication: the Bible that you and I can understand

Thanksgiving for All Men

• “First of all, then I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men” (1 Timothy 2:1). 

I know why I should pray for all men, especially rulers, but why should I express thanksgiving for much individuals?  “What does it mean to repay in life?  For our heritage?  Our schooling?  Our language?  Our freedom?  Our physique?  Our looks?  Our health?  Our life?....Isn’t it hypocritical, for example, that when we convict people for doing wrong to society, we say they ‘owe’ something and must ‘repay the debt’—yet when society has so obviously showered so such good on the rest of us, we take it as our right and live as if we owe nothing in return?” (The Call, p. 195).   I do not know all the reasons why Paul said he owed all men the gospel, but one reason is because like us, Paul had personally benefited from the efforts and sacrifices of all sorts of people, many of whom he had never personally met.

Applications

• You will never understand how much your parents sacrificed for your well-being until you yourselves have completed your own life of loving and caring for your own children. Take the time to express your heartfelt appreciation for all they have done to ease your way physically and spiritually.
• Do we have a Bible that we open now and then, but during much of the week it remains closed?  Do we find it difficult to read it consistently or stick to any sort of Bible reading plan?  And yet, how many people have actually shed their blood so that you and I could have the word of God and on top of that, the word of God in an English translation?
• Have you thanked the service men and women around you for all they have sacrificed to help obtain and maintain your freedom in this country? Those who have gone on before in the same valiant efforts cannot now be thanked, but these brave men and women can. Let's protect their work by doing our part to make this country worthy of their pains.
• Do you thank God for your doctor, your dentist, and allowing the advances in modern medicine that provide us a much more pain free life?
• Do you thank God for the modern conveniences of clean water, electricity, indoor plumbing, police and fire departments, smooth roads, parks, and the other positive infrastructure in this country?

The modern temptation is to think that all these comforts as “rights” and that we “deserve them”.  The truth is, they are gifts— gifts that other generations, maybe more deserving, never enjoyed—yet we do.  Rather than, “I deserve this”, let us adopt the humble, “I owe”—I owe thanksgiving, I owe countless individuals who went before me, and I owe mankind the life-improving, soul-saving gospel.

Mark Dunagan | mdunagan@frontier.com
Beaverton Church of Christ | 503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net