A Month of Thanksgiving: 30 Scriptures

I intended to post a Scripture every day this month. I even have a Scripture selected for each day. But events and negligence ruined that. So instead, I'm going to post all thirty for your thoughtful reflection.

1. Psalm 69:30 (ESV) I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.
   
   
2. 1 Chron. 16:34 (ESV) Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!
   
   
3. Psalm 30:4 (ESV) Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.
   
   
4. 2 Cor. 9:15 (ESV) Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!
   
   
5. 1 Thes. 5:18 (ESV) give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
   
   
6. Romans 6:17 (ESV) But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,
   
   
7. 2 Cor. 2:14 (ESV) But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.
   
   
8. Ephes. 5:4 (ESV) Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.
   
   
9. Col. 4:2 (ESV) Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
   
   
10. Psalm 56:12 (ESV) I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you.
    
    
11. 1 Chron. 29:13 (ESV) And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.
    
    
12. Psalm 92:1 (ESV) It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
    
    
13. 1 Cor. 1:4 (ESV) I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus,
    
    
14. Col. 3:17 (ESV) And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
    
    
15. Psalm 107:15 (ESV) Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of men!
    
    
16. Hebrews 12:28 (ESV) Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,
    
    
17. Jonah 2:9 (ESV) But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!"
    
    
18. Philip. 4:6 (ESV) Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
    
    
19. Psalm 140:13 (ESV) Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name; the upright shall dwell in your presence.
    
    
20. Isaiah 12:1 (ESV) You will say in that day: "I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me.”
    
    
21. Psalm 9:1 (ESV) I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
    
    
22. Psalm 35:18 (ESV) I will thank you in the great congregation; in the mighty throng I will praise you.
    
    
23. Psalm 86:12 (ESV) I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever.
    
    
24. Psalm 97:12 (ESV) Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name!
    
    
25. Psalm 100:4 (ESV) Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
    
    
26. Psalm 118:1 (ESV) Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!
    
    
27. Psalm 75:1 (ESV) We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks, for your name is near. We recount your wondrous deeds.
    
    
28. Psalm 118:28 (ESV) You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you.
    
    
29. Psalm 145:10 (ESV) All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your saints shall bless you!
    
    
30. 1 Cor. 15:57 (ESV) But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
    
    

Think: A Review

John Piper is a personal hero. I've read many of his books, listened to dozens of his sermons, watched his videos, and attended his conferences. I always learn and am inspired when I sit under the teaching of John Piper.

Think is a good book and I found it helpful. I don't think that Think will end up on a Piper "must read" list. This book will not appeal to a wide audience. In fact, Piper states so much in the conclusion of the book. However, having said that, I do believe this book should be read by college students and other "thinkers" or people being challenged on an intellectual level. It is not so much an apologetic as it is an antidote to blindly accepting humanistic assumptions. And it is a call to Biblical thinking which is sorely lacking today.

The best chapters in the book are:

• Chapter 3- Reading as Thinking... for help in how to read and understand the Bible.
  
• Chapter 5- Rational Gospel, Spiritual Light... for understanding the relationship between human comprehension of the Gospel and the Divine unveiling of the Gospel to man.
• Chapter 6- Love for God: Treasuring God with All Your Mind... for unpacking the Biblical command to love the Lord your God with all your mind.
• Chapter 8- The Immorality of Relativism... for exposing the sinfulness and corruption of relativistic thinking.
  

Some of my favorite quotes:

"Thinking is indispensable on the path to passion for God." (p. 27)

"...at the bottom of human irrationality ("darkened in their understanding") and at the bottom of spiritual ignorance ("the ignorance that is in them") is hardness of heart. That is, our self-centered hearts distort our reason to the point where we cannot use it to draw true inferences from what is really there." (p. 63)

"What does it mean to love God "with all your mind"? I take it to mean that we direct our thinking in a certain way; namely, our thinking should be wholly engaged to do all it can to awaken and express the heartfelt fullness of treasuring God above all things." (p. 83)

"...relativism only looks humble but is inherently a cloak of pride. It works like this. Truth with a capital T- Truth rooted in God's objective reality and word- is a massive, unchanging reality that we little humans must submit to. Coming to know this truth is the humble task of putting ourselves under this reality and submitting to it. Understanding is literally taking the humble position to stand under the truth and let it be our rule." (p. 112)

Below is a video of Piper introducing Think.

He's Alive! TBC Sermon Series

November 7
John 20:1-23
He's Alive! Rejoicing in the Resurrection


November 14, 2010
John 20:24-31
He's Alive! Believing in the Resurrection


November 21, 2010
John 21:1-25
He's Alive! Restored by the Resurrection

Come worship with us at Tremont Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ together.

A Month of Thanksgiving: November 4

2 Corinthians 9:15 (ESV) Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

A Month of Thanksgiving: November 3

Psalm 30: 4 (ESV) Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.

A Month of Thanksgiving: November 2

1 Chronicles 16:34 (ESV) Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!

A Month of Thanksgiving: November 1

I love Thanksgiving. It is one of the last (mostly) pure and (relatively) uncommercialized holidays we have left.

For the month of November, I am going to post a Scripture a day related to the theme of Thanksgiving.

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"I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving."
Psalm 69:30 (ESV)


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JK on Prayer

My friend Josh King has just written an excellent post about prayer. You should go read it.

Radical: A Review

Radical by David Platt is a challenging and convicting book. The thesis of the book is simple: Christians have abandoned a Biblical calling to carry the Gospel to the nations for the American dream of health, wealth, and pleasure. Platt pleads with his readers to be moved with compassion for the 4.5 billion people who are without Christ and the more than 1 billion who live in abject poverty. Platt interweaves Biblical exposition with personal stories from his life and from his church.

I strongly urge you to pick up this book (you can order it from Amazon right now for about the same price of a fast food value meal).

Be warned though. After reading this book, it may affect your life in a radical way.

Here are some favorite quotes:

"... somewhere along the way we had missed what is radical about our faith and replaced it with what is comfortable. We were settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves."

"He created human beings, not only to enjoy his grace in a relationship with him, but also to extend his glory to the ends of the earth. Simple enough. Enjoy his grace and extend his glory. This is the twofold purpose behind the creation of the human race in Genesis 1..."

"...there will continue to be millions and millions of people who do not hear as long as we continue to use spare time and spare money to reach them. Those are two radically different questions. "What can we spare?" and "What will it take?"

Knowing and Obeying Scripture: Verses and Books

Knowing and Obeying Scripture is basic to living the Christian life. Therefore, it ought to be a priority for every Christian.

Psalm 119:9 (ESV) How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.

Psalm 119:11 (ESV) I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

Psalm 119:16 (ESV) I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

Psalm 119:105 (ESV) Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

John 17:17 (ESV) Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

Ezra 7:10 (ESV) For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.

2 Tim. 3:14-17 (ESV) But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it [15] and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. [16] All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righ teousness, [17] that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

2 Tim. 2:15 (ESV) Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.

James 1:22 (ESV) But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

1 Peter 1:22-2:3 (ESV) Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, [23] since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; [24] for "All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, [25] but the word of the Lord remains forever." And this word is the good news that was preached to you. [2:1] So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. [2] Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up to salvation— [3] if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.


Books

Living by the Book by Hendricks

Personal Bible Study Methods by Warren

How to Apply the Bible by Veerman

How to Study the Bible by Arthur

Knowing Scripture by Sproul

Ryken's Bible Handbook

Can I Trust the Bible by Sproul

How to Study the Bible by MacArthur

Promises Made: The Message of the Old Testament by Dever

Promises Kept: The Message of the New Testament by Dever

MacArthur Study Bible (Available in NKJV, NASB, and ESV)

ESV Study Bible

NLT Study Bible

HCSB Study Bible


Special Note:
I highly recommend James White's book The King James Only Controversy. Even if you are not interested in the KJV Only debate that exists, this book helps the reader understand how we got out Bible and why we can have confidence in our English Bibles.

I also recommend The Origin of the Bible which explains issues like inspiration, canonization, and translation.