The Ultimate Question

“What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?” (Ps 116:12 AV)

This is the ultimate question for the child of God.  The benefits He as rendered towards us are too numerous to list.  If all that God did was give us life and offer the free gift of salvation, that is far more than we deserve.  I feel as though the American ideal if entitlement has crept into our numbers and has caused a generation that looks upon God as a benefactor of whom we are owed.  The opposite should be our reality.  Gratitude for the mercies of God should motivate the child of God to increased faithfulness, sacrifice, and service.  We see just the opposite in our churches today.

God has been very good to us.  He sent His only Son to take upon himself the sins of all mankind.  Jesus was tortured by the very men whom He created and He did it all so the wrath of God which rightly belongs to us rested upon Him.  He went to a cruel cross, suffered, bled out, and thrown in an grave to be mocked and eventually forgotten.  The God of all creation became a man to be humiliated and murdered that the wrath of God rightly resting upon wicked mankind would be transferred to Him.  All God asks is that we be honest with ourselves and Him.  All He asks is we confess what we already know and approach Him is reverent humility, seeking forgiveness and humbly requesting that Jesus be our Savior.  He graciously permits the imputation of our sin on Christ and His righteousness upon us.  We can stand completely clean and forgiven because of what Jesus Christ did for us.  If all that is what God did for us, we could never repay the basics of God’s grace.

But, He has done so much more.  He has provided for our needs.  He has provided fellowship of suffering and grace.  He has provided families, children, and grandchildren.  He has provided opportunities to serve Him.  Which, by the way, is a greater blessing than we realize sometimes.  He has protected us from the adversary enough to learn and grow.  He has always listened to the prayers of the contrite.  He is ever present, patience, and merciful.  When we fail and fall, He is there to hear our prayers and lift us back up.  When we are afraid of the night, or the future, He is there to remind us that He is and always will be, there.  Our God gives us experiences of life that are priceless.  We may be born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward, but we are not alone.  So, it begs the question:  what could I possibly do to show how much I am thankful for the blessings He has towards me?  The answer to this rhetorical question would be:  not enough.  Therefore, I owe Him all!