I would encourage you to join me in your copy of the scriptures in the book of Luke, chapter 10. Luke, chapter 10. Actually, Richard's testimony gives us a good jumping point from our discussion this morning. I had an opportunity on Thanksgiving morning, as perhaps some of you did, Before I even got out of bed, I started making a mental list of things that I am thankful for. And I'm sure that if I am like you, there were things on that list starting with my salvation. I thanked the Lord for that, and then I began to thank the Lord for my spouse, and I thanked the Lord for the church, and I thanked the Lord for our pastor, and I began to make this mental list. It's good for us as God's people to spend some time expressing gratitude. I appreciated the fact that we still have the Thanksgiving theme here. I was called the Grinch in my church that I just pastored. I always said, no Christmas carols until after the first communion of December. is that God told us to remember his death, not his birth, so we're going to focus in on that. Then after that, you can sing carols or whatever you want. But my secretary used to go bananas because she was ready to sing Christmas carols about October. And I said, no, you can't do that. We're going to focus in on this time of the year on Thanksgiving. Another thing I used to do was to encourage our people to write thank you notes. I had my class involved in that project. year, and we wrote gratitude notes to one another. Do you realize how many people serve in the context of a local church whose ministry and service often goes unrecognized, often for many years at a time? There are people in this church, and I'm sure in other churches, who have served 15, 20 years in a responsibility that no one ever bothers to think about. But, we need to remember and to express thanks for those kind of ministries that people have. As we look at the life of the Lord Jesus, we find two specific things for which He expressed gratitude to His Heavenly Father. Few of Jesus' prayers are recorded for us in the scripture. We have some great examples, for instance, in John 17, and we have a few others that are times when Jesus prayed and the Holy Spirit has given to us the context of that prayer. But we know very much that He spent time with the Heavenly Father in prayer. But we have two occasions that the Holy Spirit recorded for us a personal word that Jesus said to the Father, I thank you. If Jesus was thankful for these two things, we ought to express our gratitude for the very same things. I think they need to be added to our thank you lists. And so we would like to look at them this morning. The first of these is to be found in Luke chapter 10, verse 21. It reads, In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and the prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes, even so, Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight. I thank you for giving wisdom. You'll notice that the verse begins with that expression of time in that hour. Luke pinpoints for us the exact moment that Jesus said this, I thank you. Something special was happening in Jesus' life at that time. We read in our verse, Jesus rejoiced in spirit. This is the only place in the Bible that I know of that it says that Jesus rejoiced. There are other times that joy is expressed on the part of our Lord, but here we have it specifically stated that He rejoiced in spirit. This hour was one of the happiest moments in our Lord's earthly life. He was rejoicing in spirit. The question must then follow, what was happening this very hour that caused our Savior to rejoice? He was rejoicing, if you notice the context, in the successful service of the 70 that He had sent out. You'll notice back in verse 1 of this chapter, after these things the Lord appointed other 70 also and sent them two and two before His face into every city and place whether He Himself would go. He was rejoicing in the successful service of the 70 that he had sent out. He still rejoices, by the way, in the service of his disciples. When you become involved in the Lord's work, doing what God has given you to do, whether it's to serve in Africa or whether it's to serve in Lakeland, God is pleased and he rejoices in that. The phrase rejoicing in spirit helps us to understand that joy and rejoicing are produced by the indwelling Holy Spirit as He impacts our spirit. We read from Romans chapter 14 verse 17 that the kingdom of God is among other things joy in the Holy Ghost. In Galatians chapter 5 verse 22 we also know that joy is a fruit of the Spirit. We need to have that kind of joy and rejoice in spirit. According to verse 20, and I'd like to read that verse as well, notwithstanding in this rejoice not that the spirits are subject unto you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven. The disciples were experiencing a spiritual high. If you were to go back and to read the entire context here, They were rejoicing and they were testifying. They had expelled evil spirits. They were ecstatic over this matter of exorcism and they were at a fever pitch of their spiritual life. I suspect that if we were in their sandals, we would do the same. We would just think in terms of what God is using us. But Jesus tells them not to rejoice over this matter of exorcism. I maintain that we, like other disciples, sometimes are grateful and rejoice over the wrong things. Sometimes we're picking out the wrong things to spend our time thanking Him for. Jesus says that they would rather rejoice in the truth that their names are written down in heaven. Written, if you will, in the Lamb's Book of Life. Not that they were successful in their ministries, but that their name was written down. In fact, everything pales in comparison to this. You can be rejoicing this morning and be thankful for many things at this Thanksgiving time. But you need to be grateful that your name is written down on the page white and fair. Having it written there is security of our eternal life And if your name is not there, you won't get to heaven. Some have the idea, mistakenly, that through their own efforts, through their own goodness, through some righteousness of their own, they're going to make it to heaven, but they're not. The Lord will say in that day, depart from me, I never knew you. But he's going to take the books and open the books and the books are gonna be read and my name's written down, amen? Your name is written down and we need to be grateful and thankful for that. Then here in our verse, Jesus thanks his father that certain things are hidden from the wise and the prudent. The wise and the prudent would be wise in their own eyes and in their own estimation. And that these things are hidden or revealed to babes, that they're not hidden but are revealed to babes. Babes in the spiritual sense, that is to his disciples. So he's saying that some people don't have an understanding, other people do. Some around Jesus at this time prided themselves in their education, in their keeping of the law. They were sometimes referred to as Pharisees and others. but the disciples, with their simple understanding, could know who Jesus is, they could know His name, and they could have assurance that their names were written in heaven. On the one hand, we have the wise and the prudent, and we have the babes. He goes on to say, in verses 23 and verse 24, blessed are they who see and hear these things that you see and hear. Many had desired to see and to hear but hadn't. Many in our world lack this basic understanding of salvation. But I thank God this morning that I understand and that my name is written in heaven. Jesus goes on in the context here to give us a couple of illustrations. One of someone who in his own estimation was wise and prudent. that didn't understand, and then one who was a babe, that is, in terms of spiritual understanding, a meek understanding person of spiritual things. The first one of these is the lawyer. We find him in verses 25 to 37. I'll not take the time this morning to read that passage, but he comes to the Lord and says, what do I do to inherit eternal life? He was quite confident in his life and in his spirituality. This man wanted what people today want. They want an understanding and an assurance of life after the grave. He tempted the Lord, but this truth was hidden from him. He was wise and prudent in his own estimation, and Jesus tells him the story of the good Samaritan to show him just how unwise he was. Then, if you go down further in the context, in verses 38 to verse 42, we have Mary. Here was a simple woman, a babe, if you will, humbly sitting at Jesus' feet. And the Father revealed who the Son was unto her, and she knew Jesus, and she had eternal life. Sometimes, like the disciples, we get excited about the wrong things. God may indeed be blessing us. We are unified as a congregation. We have seen growth in our numbers. We've seen areas of personal commitment in the lives of individuals. There are many things that we could point to that we could be thankful for. But we ought to be thankful this morning that the Father, in his infinite wisdom, revealed to us who Jesus is that we knew his name and that our names are written in the book of life. He goes and says in verse 22, no one knows the son except those whom the son chooses to reveal himself. The songwriter asked the basic question, is your name written there on the page wide and fair in the book of God's kingdom? Is your name written there? I ask you this morning that question. Is your name written there? Are you confident that you're on your way to heaven? Do you know who the Lord is? Has He revealed that understanding to you? Then you need to be thankful today. We need to say thank you to God for giving us the wisdom to know Him. In Matthew 11, verse 25, we find the same words of the Lord Jesus, but in a different context, but really for the same reason. I'll not take the time to turn there, but in that passage, Jesus is speaking of the ministry of John the Baptist. Here was a man who had spiritual insight. He had understanding. He indeed knew who the Lamb of God was and introduced him to the world at that time. But the cities of Jesus' day that he identifies there in that context, Cordazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum, were wise and prudent in their own estimation, and they were going to be brought down. Again, we have this matter of Jesus' thankfulness for the understanding that had been communicated. I would like to look at a passage in the Old Testament though. In the book of Daniel, chapter 2, most of you are familiar with this Old Testament account of Daniel. And in Daniel, chapter 2, verse 23, Daniel uses this same expression, I thank thee. I thank Thee and praise Thee, O Thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of Thee, for Thou hast now made known unto us the King's matter." You might remember that in this account that Daniel expresses thanks to God for spiritual understanding. The King had had a dream. He had demanded an interpretation. but it was hid from the wise men of that day. And they were going to be destroyed because they did not know the information. Daniel and his friends prayed for wisdom to understand the king's dream, and God had revealed it to them. And here we find Daniel, knowing God, says, I thank you for giving me wisdom. Daniel had wisdom revealed to him by God, which kept him from perishing with the wise men of Babylon. Some people think they may know it all. They have the education. They sometimes would express at least the idea that they have all the answers, but the truth has been hid from him. The natural man, or if you will, the unsaved person, cannot know the things of the Spirit of God, neither can he know them. He is spiritually unable to understand them. Let me ask, has God revealed His salvation to you? If He has, be grateful that He has given you understanding that the unsaved does not have. That understanding will keep you from perishing. with those around you. Friend, if you are without this assurance, you may be hoping for eternal life. You may hope that you get to a place in heaven, but the truth is not in you. The truth is in Christ. Ask him for wisdom and he will give it to you. We can help you understand if you want to trust Christ today as your Savior. You need not perish like others around you. You can have new life. I hope that you will all be able to rejoice with us together in the wisdom of salvation. Then I'd like for you to turn to John chapter 11, for we find the second time that Jesus expresses gratitude to his heavenly father. John chapter 11, verse 41. Most of you will identify the context here as the raising of Lazarus. And we read there, And they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. Here we find the thank you for answered prayer. This is the second illustration and time that Jesus gives gratitude to His Heavenly Father. It is for the assurance of answered prayer. The occasion, as I've pointed out, was Lazarus' funeral. This was one of the saddest moments in Jesus' life. If you read back a few verses, back in verse 35, a profound statement. is there contained within those two words, Jesus wept. So if you follow me, this reminds us that in everything we are to give thanks. For in our Lord's life, when He was rejoicing in spirit, when things were going so well, He gave thanks. And then, at the saddest moment in our Lord's life, when He shed tears, It says, he rejoiced and thanked God. I think that in all areas of our life, we need to be thankful. In this passage, Jesus pauses before raising his friend to life and he thanks God. The word thanks that is translated here is a different word than the word that is used over in Luke. Luke chapter 10 verse 21, the word thank has more the idea to acknowledge or to give praise. This word has more the idea to be grateful. Jesus uses this word in John chapter 6 verse 11 to bless the food before he fed the multitude. It's the same word that's used in this John passage. Interestingly enough, in Luke 18, verse 11, the Pharisee also used this word. And when he said, I thank you, when he was thanking God in his prayer time, because he was grateful that he was not like the publican over in the corner praying. I thank you, he said. Again, he was thankful for the wrong things. He lacked spiritual understanding, and that babe, that publican, did understand. We need to be careful about what we are thankful for. Here, Jesus thanks God, His Heavenly Father, that He heard Him. Jesus knew that the Father always heard Him, if you look in verse 42, but on this occasion, He publicly gave thanks. The question can be asked of us, why? Why then? would he do it publicly, in order that the people standing by might know that the power to raise Lazarus came from God as a result of prayer. He gave thanks publicly in order that people would believe he was God's Son and that he had been sent by the Father. If you note in verse 45, indeed it says that many of the Jews which came to Mary and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on Him. The giving of thanks in a public setting is a wonderful testimony of who God is. We express our gratitude to Him in a public service such as this. It leads others to believe on Him. God has promised indeed to answer our prayers as well. We can read in Psalm 91 verse 15, He shall call upon me and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble and I will deliver him and honor him. Again in Isaiah chapter 58 verse 9 it says, Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer. Thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am." Again in Isaiah chapter 65 verse 24, And it shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer, and while they are yet speaking, I will hear. Are you thankful that God answers your prayers? We are often time praying to God and asking for things, but we're not quite as diligent about going back to God and thanking Him that He answered our prayers. We took a journey this Thanksgiving to South Carolina to be with our daughter and family for Thanksgiving. When I left, I do as often many of you do, I prayed for safety. There are some wacko drivers out there. on the roads, especially at the holiday time. And the Lord provided safety for the trip to South Carolina. And I then, on the return trip on Friday, as we were pulling into Lakeland, I paused, even before I arrived at the driveway, to thank God for the safety that He had given to me and my wife in our travels. We need to be grateful for answered prayer. God answers our prayers just like He did the Lord Jesus, and we need to thank Him publicly. And perhaps even when we do so, some will believe. I take you back to the passage that Richard read to us a little bit ago, 1 Chronicles 29, and In the context here, we find that David is praying out loud before the congregation. This was a public Thanksgiving service for the palace that had been built. And I think it's always appropriate in our context, even as a church service, that the one who is leading and the one who is leading in prayer not only ask God for things, but to be thankful to God for the answers that he has given to us. In verse 13, we read, now therefore our God, we thank thee and praise thy glorious name. Here was David leading a praise service to God, and he wanted the congregation to join in and to lift up their praise and their thanksgiving to God. How appropriate it is, at least once a year, that we as a church pause and say thank you to God for the many blessings that he has given to us. We can count them one by one, as the song says, You'll notice the response of the people in verse 20. And David said to all of the congregation, now bless the Lord your God. And all the congregation blessed the Lord God of their fathers. And they bowed down their heads and they worshiped the Lord and the king. And they sacrificed sacrifices unto the Lord and offered burnt offerings unto the Lord on the morrow after that day. And it goes on to indicate what they offered. Together, we thank the Lord this morning. It will cause us to bow our heads and to worship Him. Thanksgiving is something that should be done by God's people as it offers to God the praise that He rightly deserves, how worthy He is of our gratitude. It is a part of our context of worship. to Him. The people here in David's day worshipped the Lord. We certainly have much to be grateful about. We have much to say thank you to Him for. I've added a couple of things to your list today. Indeed, our Lord did, because they were the two things that He said He was thankful for, answered prayer and the giving of wisdom. A wisdom to understand spiritual truth so that we might know Him and that we would not perish with the wise and the prudent of this world. And as we close this morning in prayer, perhaps some here this morning will believe on Jesus as their Savior. Heavenly Father, we thank you.