Faith Lutheran Church and Student Center

Three Aspects of Thankfulness

Wednesday, November 26, 2025

Thanksgiving Eve Service

Text: Luke 17:11-19

Link to Sermon Teaser

Link to Livestream

Sermon Audio

How to define thankful

What are characteristics of thankful Christians?

3. Thankful people are doing better than they deserve.

College, asked girl, “How are you doing?” Better than I deserve

Better than I deserve means our baseline is not where we’re at

Apart from God we deserve nothing

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” (Ephesians 2:1–3, ESV)

  • Any perfect gift is not something we can demand from God

“On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”” (Luke 17:11–13, ESV)

  • Lepers: How are you doing?
    • 9 out of 10 would say they’re not doing great
      • No family
      • No job
      • Excommunicated from the community
    • 10th Leper: I’m doing better than I deserve
      • Humility
      • Samaritans were the lowest of the low, used to having nothing
      • Thought of what he had: friends, enough food to survive, now Jesus is coming
    • Whenever something bad happens to us, we fly off the handle
      • How could this happen to me?
      • Do you know who I am?
    • We think we earned our place
      • Our hard work earned our riches
      • Our kindness earned our family
      • Our niceness earned our friends
    • This may be true to an extent
      • There are many ways in which we fall short
      • We sin daily and are in need of forgiveness
      • God would be right to take away the blessings we have

“And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”” (Job 1:21, ESV)

  • Everything we have is a blessing from God, and we’re doing better than we deserve
    • Thanksgiving
      • Lots to be anxious about, seeing family, traveling, or cooking food
      • How is it going to go?
      • Even if it’s the worst thanksgiving, it’s better than you deserve, count your blessings
  • 2. Thankful people look at the return address.
    • When you get a gift in the mail, do you check the return address?
      • Do you think about who sent you it?
      • Do you thank them?
    • Ten lepers
      • 9 of the 10 didn’t check the return address, entitled attitude
        • Jesus came, but my sore got better
        • I’m healed now I need to interact with people? That’s obnoxious
        • You can forget the person who gave you the good gift
      • 1 Samaritan who came back and thanked Jesus

“Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan.” (Luke 17:15–16, ESV)

  • Many atheists can be thankful
    • Thank family, thank friends, be thankful for riches
    • Many things, from where does the good thing come?
      • Weather
      • Talents
      • The circumstances you met wife
    • As Christians we know

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” (James 1:17, ESV)

  • It is Christ who has given us the Father’s favor
    • Jesus suffered, died, and rose again, giving us forgiveness, life, and salvation
    • We have every Good and perfect gift and we can check the return address.
    • Thanksgiving
      • Don’t just be thankful, thank God!
      • Pray to the Lord Jesus thanking him for the many gifts He has given
  • 1. Thankful people know it’s their duty to thank and praise.
    • Someone I know encourages seminary students to be zealous in writing thank you notes because they’ll be in an industry of receiving gifts
      • When I was a seminary student, I tried to be diligent in writing thank you notes to the congregations that supported me
      • I treated it like a part time job
    • Luther in the 1st article of the creed
      • “All this he does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him.”
      • God calls us to give thanks for our own benefit
      • Not a nice afterthought, my duty
    • Ten Lepers
      • The 10th leper, only he was bothered to return to Jesus
      • There were things he wasn’t doing so he could thank Jesus
        • Seen family
        • Started working
        • Done anything
        • Waste of time?
    • Ways we can be thankful
      • Call someone to say thanks
      • Write a thank you note
      • Stay a few minutes extra to say thank you
    • Everything previously stated in the sermon
      • I don’t deserve this (better than I deserve)
      • Without you I wouldn’t be here
    • Thankfulness is its own blessing: Writing thank you notes
    • Samaritan

“Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”” (Luke 17:17–19, ESV)

THANKFUL PEOPLE EXPRESS GRATITUDE TO GOD FOR EVERY BLESSING.

The Samaritan left with healing but also eternal healing

Going to church

  • We come to give praise, but we leave with many blessings

Blessings of forgiveness in Word and Sacrament