DCLM Daily Manna 2025: DCLM Daily Manna 20 October 2025: The Sin of Ingratitude
Text: Acts 7:17–35 (NKJV)
“But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt 18 till another king arose who did not know Joseph. 19 This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live. 20 At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father’s house for three months. 21 But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son. 22 And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds.
23 “Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian. 25 For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand. 26 And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’ 27 But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? 28 Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?’ 29 Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons.
30 “And when forty years had passed, an Angel [a]of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai. 31 When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the voice of the Lord came to him, 32 saying, ‘I am the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and dared not look. 33 ‘Then the Lord said to him, “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. 34 I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ’
35 “This Moses whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’ is the one God sent to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the Angel who appeared to him in the bush.
KEY VERSE: “The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live.” – (Acts 7:19)
We live in a world where people hardly appreciate what God, governments, or other people have done for them. Ingratitude, firmly ingrained in society, according to Webster’s Dictionary, is forgetfulness of, or poor return for the kindness received. A preacher once noted that ingratitude is worse than revenge. Revenge is repaying evil with evil, while ingratitude is repayment of good with evil.
The ill-treatment of the children of Israel in Egypt is an act of ingratitude. Centuries earlier, God had used Joseph, an Israelite, to preserve the nation of Egypt from famine. In appreciation, Pharaoh permitted Joseph and his family to dwell in Goshen in Egypt. A new ruler, who knew not Joseph, appointed taskmasters over them until God delivered them. Paradoxically, these same children of Israel demonstrated ingratitude in their wilderness journey to Canaan. They took the mercy and material provision of God for granted. They murmured and grumbled against God and Moses at the slightest discomfort.
Christ raised a similar concern when only one out of ten lepers that He had healed returned to thank Him. In America, the fourth Thursday in November is observed nationally as Thanksgiving Day. Should gratitude be expressed only one day a year? But even this is better than most of the world, where instead of gratitude, the norm is to disregard God’s goodness, criticise governments and everyone else at will, and forget that the situation could have been worse. In families, more and more children are becoming unthankful to their parents. At the same time, many couples spend more time quarrelling over trivial matters instead of appreciating each other. There is a need for general repentance.
How can we become thankful? Count your blessings and remember the goodness of God in your life. Then, thank God for your family and friends, and the necessities of food, clothing, and shelter. Let’s learn to be thankful for the finished work of Christ at Calvary and the exceeding great promises in the Bible. Cultivate the habit of saying “thank you” for the services or benefits received from other people. In every situation, let us be thankful (1 Thessalonians 5:18).
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Gratitude is the gateway to more blessings.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Isaiah 61–66
Daily Manna 20 October 2025
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