Despite Paul’s past, God chose him to take His Name to the lost. Because of Paul’s past, he was extremely thankful for his new life in Christ. Paul tells us, “Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief” (1 Timothy 1:13).
Gratitude is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the state of being grateful: thankfulness.” It can be hard to practice gratitude in our daily lives, especially if we are in a hurry or a bad mood. The Bible teaches us much about thankfulness and the importance of thanking God for all He has done and continues to do. Many Bible characters practiced gratitude, but we are going to highlight four figures today:
1. David
A prominent Bible character who practiced gratitude was King David. David was known to give thanks throughout his life and walk with the Lord. Even though David often messed up and made mistakes, he could still express gratitude to the Lord. Many of us think of Bible characters as being “untouchable,” yet they are human just as we are. They had their own difficulties and struggles with sin. We, too, have our own struggles with sin, yet we can follow David’s example of repenting and expressing gratitude to the Lord.
King David is accredited with writing most of the Book of Psalms in the Bible. Throughout the Psalms, we see David giving thanks to God and urging others to do the same. Psalm 7:17 records, “I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.” As David writes in this psalm, he is telling us that he is giving thanks to God for His righteousness, and He will sing praises forever to the Lord. From David’s words, we know he had a heart of gratitude and thankfulness to the Lord.
In addition to Psalm 7:17, numerous psalms are dedicated to giving thanks to the Lord. These psalms are known as “psalms of thanksgiving.” Psalm 34 is another psalm that highlights David’s gratitude. Throughout this psalm, David attests to the greatness of the Lord and encourages us all to sing praises to His Name. Gratitude and thankfulness are common themes throughout the Psalms, in which David continually offers up praises of gratefulness to God. In our own walk with the Lord, we must do the same. God is completely worthy of our thankfulness and praise.
2. Daniel
A second Bible character who practiced gratitude was Daniel. Daniel was a devout follower of the Lord, who was taken into Babylon's captivity. King Nebuchadnezzar ordered all people to worship the golden image he had created, and he made it illegal for anyone to worship any “god” outside his own. Daniel and his friends went against King Nebuchadnezzar’s orders and chose to remain faithful to the Lord.
Even though it was illegal for Daniel to pray to the true God, He still prayed to the Lord and gave thanks just as he had always done. The Book of Daniel tells us, “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before” (Daniel 6:10). Daniel still chose to give thanks even though it was illegal, and he knew he could be sentenced to prison or death for praying to the true God. This fact did not make Daniel waver, as he knew his first priority was always the Lord.
Most of us in America don’t have to worry about being physically persecuted or placed in jail because of our faith, yet it can still be difficult for us to give thanks to God. If Daniel could practice gratitude and thank God even though he knew he could be imprisoned or killed, then we can certainly make it an everyday occurrence to practice gratitude to God. Daniel remained faithful to the Lord even when he was thrown into the lion’s den. God saw the gratitude, thankfulness, and faithfulness in Daniel’s heart, and he sent an angel to close the mouth of the lion (Daniel 6:22).
3. Paul
A third Bible character who practiced gratitude was Paul. Paul understood what it meant to be saved by God’s grace. Before Paul was a Christian, he was a persecutor of the faith and a murderer (Acts 9:1-4). Paul knew the severity of his past and the pain he had caused God to experience. Despite Paul’s past, God chose him to take His Name to the lost. Because of Paul’s past, he was extremely thankful for his new life in Christ. Paul tells us, “Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief” (1 Timothy 1:13).
Paul’s gratitude was shown throughout his life. The thankfulness and gratitude he had for the Lord was shown in his actions and his life. He was so grateful to the Lord that he willingly dedicated his entire life to taking the Gospel to the lost. It was because of Paul’s gratitude for God’s mercy that he lived in the way he did. He understood the severity of his past sin, and he was thankful that it was forgiven on the behalf of Jesus’ death on the cross.
In the same way, we need to follow Paul’s example. He was grateful for the forgiveness and new life given to him through Jesus Christ. He did not take this lightly, as he knew the great lengths Christ went to in order to redeem us from our sins. Each of us has a past in sin, yet God gives us a new start in Him. Since we have this great gift from the Lord, may we all practice a heart of gratitude to God today.
4. The Leper
The fourth Bible character who practiced gratitude was the leper. Jesus healed ten lepers, yet only one of the ten came back to thank and praise God (Luke 17:11-19). This single leper practiced gratitude because he returned back to Jesus to give Him thanks after showing himself to the priest. The other nine lepers left after they had been declared clean by the priest, never returning to Jesus. The Gospel of Luke tells us, “One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan” (Luke 17:15-16).
The Gospel of Luke informs us that the single leper who returned was a Samaritan. The other nine lepers would have been ethnic Israelites, yet they did not return to give praise to God. The Lord declares, “‘Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?’ Then he said to him, ‘Rise and go; your faith has made you well’” (Luke 17:17-19).
This single leper, who was a Samaritan, returned to give the Lord praise. From this leper’s actions, we can see he was practicing gratitude. Unlike the other nine lepers who had not returned to give Jesus praise, this single leper did. As the Bible tells us, the leper was so grateful to Jesus that he literally threw himself down at Jesus’ feet, thanked Him, and praised him. The leper is a perfect example of someone who practices gratitude in the Bible.
Practicing Gratitude
Gratitude is a skill we all need to cultivate in our lives. There are so many reasons to be thankful. Since we know Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, our hearts and mouths need to express our gratitude to Him. The Lord is completely worthy of our love, praise, and worship. We have every reason to be grateful because of Him. Even when things turn sour, we can still turn to the Lord with a grateful heart. Through the mountain highs and the valley lows, God promises never to leave our side.
These four Bible characters are just a few of the individuals in the Bible who practiced gratitude during their lives. We, too, can practice this same gratitude by singing praises to God, remaining faithful to Him, following Him with our whole heart, and throwing ourselves at Jesus’ feet because of our gratitude for Him. I encourage you to go to the Lord today and express your gratitude for Him. God Himself is why we live, have our being, and take each step in our lives. Let's thank Him for such a daily, gracious miracle.
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