“Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.’ And immediately he regained his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they too gave praise to God.” —Luke 18:42–43
Praise—to speak highly of the greatness and excellence of God—is the natural outflow from a thankful heart. Indeed, not only was the healed, blind beggar praising, but also all those who beheld the miracle.
King David gives us the proper perspective on praise:
“I will thank the LORD with all my heart! I will tell about all your amazing deeds! I will be happy and rejoice in you! I will sing praises to you, O Most High!” —Psalm 9:1–2
Unfortunately, many Christians do not manifest this attitude of gratitude. However, Christians should be the most grateful of all people! Jesus has healed us of our spiritual poverty and darkness. He has empowered us with the precious Holy Spirit, enabling us to live a life worthy of the gospel and allowing us to withstand every attack of the evil one. Jesus has bestowed upon us the gifts of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control. We experience these in ever-increasing measures as we submit to His working in our lives. He holds out to us abundant life not only in the here and now, but in eternal life as well. Peter tells us:
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may proclaim the virtues of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. You once were not a people, but now you are God’s people. You were shown no mercy, but now you have received mercy.” —1 Peter 2:9–10
Jesus said:
“You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill cannot be hidden. People do not light a lamp and put it under a basket but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.” —Matthew 5:14–16
Become More
Wales Goebel observed: “It is too bad that many believers minimize the place of good works in the Christian life. We do not perform good works to get any glory for ourselves, but we do them to glorify His blood given on our behalf.”
“Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, acknowledging his name. And do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for God is pleased with such sacrifices.” —Hebrews 13:15–16
Further Reflections
“Cultivating a grateful heart is not just an add-on nicety, a civil tip of the hat to God as we steamroll through our day. A posture of purposeful, perpetual thanks to God is absolutely central to Christian character. It gives glory to Him. It is the key defense against Satan’s temptations to despair, distrust, dysfunction. It protects us from sin and self. It is the hallmark of heaven. It does not exist in hell.” —Ellen Vaughn
“Holy joy is the life of thankful praise, as thankful praise is the language of holy joy.” —Matthew Henry