How often do you express your thanks for oxygen? For your hands and feet? For your oven at home? For roads? There’s no doubt we’re thankful for all the good things in life, but some don’t regularly rise to the level of our consciousness because they’re so common. They’re just always there. But life would be so different without them.
The gospel message sometimes makes its way onto that list. The gospel is working invisibly, and it’s working all the time. It’s such a regular and common force in the world that . . . . we may not often take a moment to recognize its enormous impact.
There are times when the results of the gospel are clearly there. In Acts we see 120 believers (1:15), then about 3,000 more (2:41), then 5,000 just counting the men (4:4). The message of Christ quickly spread into Samaria (8:25) and Antioch (11:21) among other places. Then there are times the gospel doesn’t seem to be producing such a harvest, or the church even seems to be in decline. But it’s always going out according to God’s purpose.
The Apostle Paul and his companion in ministry, Timothy, first give thanks for the faith and love of their brothers and sisters in Christ. 3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people (Colossians 1:3-4). Then they go on to recognize how it is that they are united in faith and love. In the same way, the gospel is bearing fruit and growing throughout the whole world—just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and truly understood God’s grace. (Colossians 1:6). The gospel!
Maybe consider adding to your prayers this week a heartfelt one for the gospel that brought you and so many others to faith in Christ. You can’t go wrong in giving thanks for the gospel. It’s hard at work every second of every day!