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1 Chronicles 16:4
He appointed some of the Levites to minister
before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to
give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of
Israel:
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November 1
Ministers of Thanks
It is no surprise that some of the Levite
priests were appointed to work in the presence
of the ark of the Lord and they were expected to
pray and give thanks there. But this work
isn't reserved for just a special class of
Israelites. The Levites were the ones
appointed to work in front of the ark but all
are called to give thanks and praise the Lord.
God told Moses that Israel would be a
"kingdom of priests" in Exodus 19:6. But
this designation is extended to all Christians
as well. Revelation 1:6 addresses all
Christians as such. "To him who loves us
and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and
has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve
his God and Father..."
We are all ministers of thanks. One of
our chief duties as Christians is to thank God
for what He has provided. Of course one of
the things that we have to thank God for is who
He is. This is praise.
Praise and thanksgiving go hand in hand.
Both are natural expressions of love for God.
Thanksgiving can be general thanks for anything
that God has done or has given us. Praise
can be thought of as specific type of thanks
where we thank God for all that He is - all of
the qualities that make God so praiseworthy. |
