Why should we not complain but be thankful?
Consider the following:
A) God is sovereign and does/allows what He pleases - all complaints are ultimately against Him
Daniel 4:34-35: "For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom is from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; He does according to His will in the army of heaven And among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain His hand Or say to Him, “What have You done?”"
B) God is all powerful - we can't fathom what God is doing or is able to do at any moment
Job 26:14 - "And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power?”
C) His ways are not like our ways - what He allows in difficulties and trials He uses to bring us closer to Him and to make us more like Jesus.
Romans 8:28-29: "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son..."
D) The Gospel - God loves us so much that He sent His own precious Son to bear the punishment that our sins deserved so that we may be with Him, the source of true joy and life.
1 John 4:10 - "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation [atoning sacrifice] for our sins."
John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Romans 8:32 - "He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all--how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?"
E) Grace alone - we deserve none of His kindness and love but only His wrath
Romans 3:23 - "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
In summary, the awesome, sovereign, infinite God of all creation lovingly and graciously holds us in His hand and works to bring about what is truly best for us, His children.
So, if you feel like complaining, realize you don't really know what is going on, but God does. He's awesome and wonderful and you are not. His own Son died for you so of course He'll take care of you. Therefore, simply trust Him and thank Him for what He has done and is doing.
Don't complain! When complaining:
1. you are showing the world that your God isn't treating you well enough for you to be happy and content.
2. you are displaying a lack of trust on your part towards God's providence in your life.
3. you are wasting time that you could be thanking and praising Him.
Question to finalize matters: Does complaining bring glory to God? This is a "no-brainer".
1 Corinthians 10:31 - "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
***Please leave a comment on the post sharing other verses (etc.) that are especially helpful when explaining to your children or to yourself why not to complain but to be thankful***
No comments:
Post a Comment