Ingratitude The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Psalm 14:2-3 When we are born, we are citizens of that country. We are expected to give our allegiance to that country. To do otherwise would be treason or at least arrogance on our part. What would cause people to turn against their own country and rulers? Usually it is the few that are not content and want to change the way they are ruled or they would want to be rulers themselves. Being ungrateful comes from coveting (which is wanting something that does not belong to you) or thinking we are deprived of something we think we cannot do without. This can lead to action, which may hurt or cause much discontent and upheaval in the world or even our own families. There is so much fighting and unhappiness in the world. We do not have to go very far from ourselves to realize this. Rebellion causes the authorities to respond and quell the rebellion. This is gross ingratitude and must be dealt with and usually ends in death to the rebels. The ingratitude spoken of was only by few rebels but the text speaks of everyone. No one is seeking after God. God Himself calls them fools in His word. To come to an understanding of where this all comes from, we must go back to Paradise (the garden of Eden) where God had put man, the apex of His creation to dress it and keep it. All that Adam needed God gave him to use freely, except he was commanded that one tree, (the tree of knowledge of good and evil) was not to be eaten of. The penalty of disobedience was death! Adam was created perfect without sin, able to obey God and live but he disobeyed and said by his deeds, “I know better than God!” With him all his descendants became rebels and self-gratifiers. The Psalm goes on in verse 4, “Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? Who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord.” What a sad state of affairs! All have rebelled against Him who holds their souls in life. Romans 3:18 says, “There is no fear of God before their eyes.” How can this dilemma be rectified? Is there a way to escape from this corruption we have brought ourselves into? It seems impossible, and it is in us, but thankfully Psalm 14 does not end there! Verse 7says, “Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.” Salvation can only be had by free and sovereign grace through Jesus Christ alone. This is what we need because without a Mediator to take our sins and pay the price required, there would be no hope for any of us because God is infinite but we are finite. This Mediator, our Lord Jesus Christ, must be both a real righteous man and true God in one person to be able to sustain the burden of God’s wrath as we read in the Heidelberg Catechism Lord’s day 6. Jesus Christ made the impossible possible and the ungrateful grateful to the glory of a Triune God. Psalm 110:3a says, “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power.” Have you become a grateful recipient of this salvation? As the Psalmist of old you too shall sing as in Psalter 23:6, “O that from Zion His abode salvation were on us bestowed! When God His exiles shall restore, they shall in song His grace adore.” Written by: Cornelius VanKempen November 25, 2011 Read my meditations and devotions at: Http://Casey4949.posthaven Or Http://Casey4949.wordpress
Posted on: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 17:59:16 +0000
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