SIN OF INGRATITUDE
MEMORISE: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Romans 1:21
READ: Numbers 11:1 -20
1 And when the people complained, it displeased the LORD: and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp.
2 And the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the LORD, the fire was quenched.
3 And he called the name of the place Taberah: because the fire of the LORD burnt among them.
4 And the mixt multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?
5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:
6 But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.
7 And the manna was as coriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium.
8 And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil.
9 And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.
10 Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent: and the anger of the LORD was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased.
11 And Moses said unto the LORD, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me?
12 Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?
13 Whence should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat.
14 I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me.
15 And if thou deal thus with me, kill me, I pray thee, out of hand, if I have found favour in thy sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.
16 And the LORD said unto Moses, Gather unto me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom thou knowest to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them unto the tabernacle of the congregation, that they may stand there with thee.
17 And I will come down and talk with thee there: and I will take of the spirit which is upon thee, and will put it upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with thee, that thou bear it not thyself alone.
18 And say thou unto the people, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow, and ye shall eat flesh: for ye have wept in the ears of the LORD, saying, Who shall give us flesh to eat? for it was well with us in Egypt: therefore the LORD will give you flesh, and ye shall eat
19 Ye shall not eat one day, nor two days, nor five days, neither ten days, nor twenty days;
20 But even a whole month, until it come out at your nostrils, and it be loathsome unto you: because that ye have despised the LORD which is among you, and have wept before him, saying, Why came we forth out of Egypt?
MESSAGE
Ingratitude is a sin, and many people, including children of God, are guilty of it. Ingratitude was the cause of the original sin in the garden of Eden. Before God created man, He planted a garden and put everything there. The man just woke up to find that there was abundance everywhere. God said to Him, "Everything you see here is yours, there is only one tree I don't want you to touch, that is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil". The tempter then came and said, in essence, to the woman, "Forget all the things that God has given you, just focus on that one thing that you can't have. Don't be grateful for the rest".
She obeyed him, ate the fruit and gave some to her husband who also ate it. This made God send them out of the garden and they had to start toiling to grow their food afterwards (Genesis 3). Their ingratitude led to them losing everything God had provided for them in Eden!
It is dangerous not to be grateful to God for all that He has done for you because more than anyone and anything else, He is really worthy to be praised. It is ingratitude to focus only on what we do not have yet and ignore all other benefits the Lord has blessed us with.
There was a very wealthy man who was also a great socialite. Unfortunately he had a stroke - the kind that can take away a man's voice. He was taken to the best hospital in London and it so happened that l was visiting the city around the same time. We had a mutual friend who asked me to come pray for the man. When we arrived at the hospital, he was sitting up in bed with his wife by his side, but then she stepped out briefly. After l had prayed for him, he tried to pass across a message to us by gesticulating. It took us about 30 minutes to understand that all he was trying to say was that his wife would soon be back.
Now, look at yourself. You don't need thirty minutes to make a simple statement. You can talk, you can shout, you can even sing. Why then don't you thank God for the gifts and benefits He has given you while you trust Him to provide those other things you are yet to receive? As we read in our Bible text for today, ingratitude can lead to destruction; it is a sin. Be grateful for what you have.
PRAYER POINT
Father, I am sorry for being ungrateful all this while; please have mercy on me.
Now go ahead and thank Him for all He has given you.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Romans 16-1 Corinthians 1-3
HYMN 25: TO GOD BE THE GLORY GREAT THINGS HE HAS DONE
1 To God be the glory, great things He hath done,
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life our redemption to win,
And opened the life-gate that all may go in.
Chorus:
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice;
Oh, come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory; great things He hath done.
2 Oh, perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
3 Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport when Jesus we see.
