When situations get tough or a crisis happens within a family, it is so easy to worry, wail, and cry, "Why me Lord?" This is especially true whenever health issues pop up in our lives. Been there, done that....many times.
But how often do we, as believers in Jesus Christ, stop and consider the immense blessings that the Lord has bestowed upon us during our lives? How many times do we thank Him? At dinner each night? At church each week? Once a year at Thanksgiving?
A Bible verse comes to mind.
What shall I render to the LORD for all His benefits toward me?
Psalm 116:12
Even though we can give our heartfelt thanks for all that Jesus Christ has done for us, the question that Psalm 116:12 is asking is "what shall I render...?"
At Dictionary.com there are a LOT of definitions and descriptions for the term "render."
What can we learn from the Bible about this term and verse?
The Blue Letter Bible provides a Treasury of Scripture Knowledge page that gives us additional passages that can be studied regarding answering such a question:
Psa 51:12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.
No matter what happens on this earth, no matter how long each of us lives, no matter what obstacles are thrown in our path - we can always have the joy of God's salvation in our hearts, minds, and spirits! If we let Him uphold us by His generous Spirit - He most certainly will!
Psa 51:13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be converted to You.
When we are filled with the joy of the Lord and His provision of salvation through Jesus Christ, we can then "teach transgressors" (all have sinned) His ways, and sinners (we all qualify for that title) shall be converted to God!
Psa 51:14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, The God of my salvation, And my tongue shall sing aloud of Your righteousness.
Once we know that we are delivered from all of our sins - even the heinous sin of bloodshed by "the God of my salvation," we can then sing the praises of the righteousness of Jesus Christ! It isn't our righteousness that saves - it is His!
Psa 103:2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits:
Is this verse telling us that blessing the LORD via our souls in prayer helps to remind us of all of His benefits?
Isa 6:5 So I said: "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts."
The Old Testament prophets, such as Isaiah, looked forward to the coming of the Messiah to save them from their sins. Meanwhile, they sacrificed unblemished animals for the temporary forgiveness of sins - a foreshadowing of what Christ's sacrifice would accomplish in the final act of redemption for all of mankind. Isaiah prophesied much of what the coming Messiah would endure for our salvation. Seeing the King, the LORD of hosts was frightening indeed because of his sinful condition. But that's not the end of the story!
Isa 6:6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar.
Isa 6:7 And he touched my mouth with it, and said: "Behold, this has touched your lips; Your iniquity is taken away, And your sin purged."
Another symbolic act where in the OT, the prophet Isaiah was assured that his iniquity is taken away by God and his sin purged from remembrance. In the next verse, look at Isaiah's huge change in attitude!
Isa 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."
Isaiah changed from the frightened sinner into a man that God could use! He enthusiastically answered "the voice of the Lord" by saying, "Here am I! Send me."
Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
When we get to the New Testament verses from this list, we see that the "brethren" were to present their bodies as a living sacrifice - meaning that they would gladly obey God's commands and be holy and acceptable to God while doing service for Him in spreading the Gospel of Christ.
1Cr 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
And why would we become "living sacrifices" for God? This verse answers that question - because "we were bought at a price" through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross! We are now called to glorify God both in body and spirit!
Now we get to the crux of the matter and can answer the question in Psalm 116:12 - What shall I render to the LORD for all His benefits toward me?
2Cr 5:14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died;
2Cr 5:15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
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