Being Thankful is a State of Being and Not a Product of Effort

Over the last several weeks, I have come across three separate pastors (all in the SBC like me) who have, in one way or another, given a message on the need for Christians to develop an attitude of gratitude. One of them said it in exactly that way. Another argued that a Christian’s intimacy with God is broken when they start complaining, and this leads to doubt. To allay this process from the start, he urged believers to practice being thankful. The third pastor, believing he was giving a biblical message on thankfulness, appealed to Colossians 3:15-17 and proceeded to rip it out of its context. Basically, he argued that Christians who practice being thankful can avoid giving into anger and walk in peace.

These three pastors have, unfortunately, failed to understand that biblical thankfulness is a fruit of the Spirit that is received as the point of salvation. To maintain and develop their thankfulness, believers must continue to be filled by the Spirit by living in obedience to the Word of God (Note: this includes repenting as necessary). To put this another way, believers obey God, and the fruit of thankfulness will be made manifest through the inner renewal work of the Spirit. Furthermore, it works in conjunction with the rest of the Christian’s new being (i.e. other fruits of the Spirit in the believer’s life).

Since thankfulness is a fruit of the Spirit, it is directly associated with a believer’s new life in Christ. In other words, it is part of their new being. It is not something that was a part of their old life apart from Christ; rather, it is something that they received at the point of salvation when they were made a new creation. Therefore, thankfulness is something that cannot be directly worked for or on.

At times, a believer, who may be thankful in their inner person, may not exhibit thankfulness in such a way that this fruit is readily apparent to others. For example, a Christian who has learned that a brother/sister has fallen into sin will likely be saddened by such news. Should they have to then confront this errant believer, they would not be expected to be outwardly thankful at having to render such a service. But, if they do offer a word of rebuke to a fallen Christian and that Christian repents, they will certainly be filled with thankfulness. To understand this better, we will now turn to Colossians 3.

In Colossians 3:10, Paul is addressing Christians who are walking obediently in accordance with God’s Word, and consequently, are filled with the Spirit[i] and being renewed in the knowledge of God. Put simply, these believers are practicing holiness in keeping with repentance and maintaining a right relationship with God. These believers are those who have put on their new self and are striving to faithfully continue living according to it (Col 3:10). They are actively seeking to develop their knowledge of God by studying the Word of God and applying it to their lives: “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom 12:2 NASB). The renewal work of the Spirit, therefore, occurs in the minds of believers (cf. Eph 4:23)

To highlight the characteristics of this new self, Paul instructs Christians to “put on a heart of compassion, humility, gentleness, and patience” (Col 3:12 NASB). In Colossians 3:14-15, he adds love, peace, and thankfulness to this list. Given that these qualities are associated with our new heart (our new self) and the ongoing renewal work of the Spirit who is bearing these fruits in our lives, none of them can be directly formed in the believer (Gal 5:22-23). They can, however, be maintained by continuing to faithfully apply God’s Word to every aspect of one’s life.

In Colossians 3:13-25, Paul gives a more in-depth discussion on what believers can do to remain compassionate, humble, gentle, patient, loving, peaceful, and thankful. First, believers should maintain healthy relationships with one another and make sure that forgiveness is practiced as needed.[ii] Second, the word of God should be the center point in the believer’s life. Evens songs should be sung in such a way that believers teach and admonish one another. Third, Christians should do everything in way that glorifies Christ while maintaining a spirit of thanksgiving. Fourth, family members (husbands, wives, and children) must uphold proper relations with one another. Finally, those who are working should do so in a manner worthy of the Lord regardless of whether or not anyone notices.

[i]All believers have been indwelled by Spirit at the point of salvation. Here, the filling of the Spirit is being discussed. Please note that being filled by the Spirit is different than being indwelled by the Spirit.

[ii]This will sometimes require confrontation (See Loving One Another Biblically Requires Some Confrontation, available at: https://battlehardenedbeliever.com/?p=545)