Questions and Answers About Psalm 107 and Christian Thanksgiving from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon

What is the primary characteristic of true Christianity according to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones?

According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the primary and fundamental characteristic of true Christianity is thanksgiving and praise to God. He states, "The primary and the fundamental note of Christianity, and therefore the chief characteristic of the Christian is the giving of thanks unto God." This sense of gratitude distinguishes true Christianity from mere morality or philosophy, as it springs from a deep recognition of God's goodness and mercy.

How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones differentiate true religion from morality?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that morality, good as it is, never leads to praise of God. He says, "A moral man is a very good man... But as long as he's nothing more than morality, he will never be a man who praises God." Morality is often cold and correct, while true religion involves emotion and warmth of heart. As he quotes Matthew Arnold, "Religion is morality tinged with emotion." True Christianity involves the whole person—not just the will (as in morality) or the intellect (as in philosophy), but also the emotions.

What makes all Christians fundamentally the same despite their differences?

Despite coming from different backgrounds, temperaments, and experiences ("from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south"), all Christians are united in their praise to God. What produces this unity is their common experience of God's redemption and mercy. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that regardless of one's past or personality, every Christian has experienced being desperate about themselves, crying out to God in their distress, and finding salvation in Christ alone. This common experience of redemption leads to common praise.

Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones reject the idea that only certain "types" need conversion?

Lloyd-Jones firmly rejects the notion that only certain types of people (like drunkards or adulterers) need conversion while respectable, religious people don't. He states, "Whatever your past, whatever your antecedents, whatever your father and mother were, whatever your grandparents were, whatever name you bear, wherever you've been brought up, every man and woman alive needs to be converted, needs to be born again, universal." He argues that the need for redemption is universal regardless of one's background or apparent religiosity.

What two aspects of God's character does Dr. Lloyd-Jones highlight as reasons for praise?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones highlights two aspects of God's character that should lead to praise: His goodness and His enduring mercy. First, "God is to be praised because He is what He is and because He's God." His inherent goodness demands praise. Second, "His mercy endureth forever," meaning that despite our failures to praise Him properly, God hasn't given up on us but continues to show compassion. The ultimate expression of this mercy is seen in Christ and the cross.

What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the common experience of all Christians?

The common experience of all Christians is being in a condition of distress, realizing their helplessness, crying out to God, and being delivered. He says, "A Christian is a man who has known himself in soul distress... who's become desperate about himself... who's tried everything and exhausted everything and found them all to fail." This desperation leads to crying out to God and finding deliverance through Christ. This experience of redemption from "the hand of the enemy" is what unites all Christians.

According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, what is the most terrible sin?

Dr. Lloyd-Jones suggests that the most terrible sin is the failure to praise God: "I know of no more terrible sin tonight than just failure to praise God." He particularly highlights self-righteousness and self-satisfaction as especially grievous because "there is no atom of praise to God in his life. He's entirely self-satisfied. He spends the whole of his time praising himself." This is why, he explains, the New Testament presents the self-righteous Pharisee as "the most hopeless person in the universe."

How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones describe what redemption means in practical terms?

Redemption means being delivered "from the hand of the enemy." These enemies include "lust, passion, jealousy, envy, avarice, hatred, malice, spite, uncleanness, foulness, perversion"—the things that hold us captive. Lloyd-Jones notes that even the most moral person may be most tightly in the grip of "the fetters of self-righteousness and self-satisfaction." True redemption delivers us from these enemies and gives us "a new nature and a new life and a blessed hope."