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Tag: thanks

Thank Who?

Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name. – 2 Samuel 22:50 KJV

Thanksgiving: celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year… Thanksgiving has its historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, and has long been celebrated in a secular manner as well.

gratitude

The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.

[Oxford Dictionary]

Yet why would a ‘heathen’ give thinks ‘in a secular manner,’ as opposed to thanking God?

Who does the heathen, the unbeliever, thank?

Do you thank yourself for what you have given yourself this past year… for your successes in this brief moment of your mortal time in human flesh? Do you thank your boss, your neighbors, the leaders of your country and community, your family, your friends?

Why would you have gratitude to any, if you have not gratitude to God?

Last year at this time I reflected on the well-known Thanksgiving hymn: We Gather Together. Even unbelievers in these places of Thanksgiving tradition may briefly hope for some gathering such as the Rockwellesque images of families (yes families: husband and wife, sons and daughters) gathered together to thank God for one great Turkey dinner (with all the trimmings and treats).

The traditions of thanking God for our blessings acknowledge by our humility, that we remain in debt daily to a Power higher than ourselves for our very life and existence. God IS and God provides.

By the higher Authority of God the King is made King (the President is made President and the Prime Minister made Prime Minister). No man or woman, even those in highest authority on earth, is in charge of the blessings of God – and for this we give thanks.

David, King of Israel, which God would judge and destroy into a remnant for a time, gave thanks to God. (You may be familiar with some of David’s many Psalms of thanksgiving.)

The Book of Samuel records the thanks given by David to God for delivering him out of the hands of his enemies. We should be so thankful for the same so much more often; for God has many enemies among the heathens, as do the faithful of Christ Jesus.

2 Samuel 22

“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
3 my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold and my refuge,
my savior; you save me from violence.
4 I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies.

Is there any question who David is thanking for his life – for his deliverance from Saul? David thanks God. David praises the Lord for saving him. David takes refuge in God. Do you?

8 “Then the earth reeled and rocked;
the foundations of the heavens trembled
and quaked, because he was angry.

14 The Lord thundered from heaven,
and the Most High uttered his voice.
15 And he sent out arrows and scattered them;
lightning, and routed them.

Would you want to anger the Living God?

Would it not behoove us to rather give thanks to the Creator of all the heavens and earth, who is mighty to save the indefensible man of this flesh?

18 He rescued me from my strong enemy,
from those who hated me,
for they were too mighty for me.
19 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
but the Lord was my support.
20 He brought me out into a broad place;
he rescued me, because he delighted in me.
21 “The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
22 For I have kept the ways of the Lord
and have not wickedly departed from my God.

Will the Living God not reward the righteousness of His servants – those who give thanks to Him?

26 “With the merciful you show yourself merciful;
with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
27 with the purified you deal purely,
and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
28 You save a humble people,
but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them down.

47 “The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock,
and exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation,
48 the God who gave me vengeance
and brought down peoples under me,
49 who brought me out from my enemies;
you exalted me above those who rose against me;
you delivered me from men of violence.

50 “For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations,

and sing praises to your name.

51 Great salvation he brings to his king,
and shows steadfast love to his anointed,
to David and his offspring forever.”

The word, ‘thanks,’ given by David demonstrates an imagery even beyond the scope of our discussion which further explains other verses of this psalm in 2 Samuel. The traditions of giving thanks to God go back as far as Adam and forward beyond the example of Jesus Christ until this day.

Even many Christians giving thanks at Thanksgiving will not know even the meaning of ‘thanks’ as spoken by our Lord and God, Christ Jesus. In this word you will see the deeper significance of Thanksgiving in the community and family of Christ Jesus.

eucharisteō – eucharist or communion

Matthew 26

NKJV

26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks,

and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

Yes, our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus, gave thanks to God the Father for His own sacrifice about to take place for your sins and for mine.

Gratitude – The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness. Jesus gave thanks to God. Jesus showed His readiness to show appreciation for the kindness of God our Father to save whose God loves from the deserved wrath of sin. This is the new testament, the new covenant of love with God.

It is God’s love and provision for which we give thanks in communion, in the breaking of the bread, in our daily lives (hopefully), and also as celebration of just one Thursday in one month of one year of one mortal live given to us by God.

From Adam to Noah to David to Christ Jesus; to you and me, and until the Kingdom is proclaimed in the highest heavens: we will give thanks to God.

Revelation 11: NKJV

Seventh Trumpet: The Kingdom Proclaimed

15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”

16 And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying:

“We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
The One who is and who was and who is to come,
Because You have taken Your great power and reigned.

18 The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come,
And the time of the dead, that they should be judged,

And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints,
And those who fear Your name, small and great,
And should destroy those who destroy the earth.”

November 26, 2014
We Gather Together
Perhaps you know the Thanksgiving hymn, “We Gather Together.”

Look to the lyrics of the hymn of thanks and give thought to them:
```
1.	We gather together 
	to ask the Lord's blessing; 
	he chastens and hastens 
	his will to make known.  
	The wicked oppressing 
	now cease from distressing.  
	Sing praises to his name, 
	he forgets not his own.

2.	Beside us to guide us, 
	our God with us joining, 
	ordaining, maintaining 
	his kingdom divine; 
	so from the beginning 
	the fight we were winning; 
	thou, Lord, wast at our side, 
	all glory be thine!

3.	We all do extol thee, 
	thou leader triumphant, 
	and pray that thou still 
	our defender wilt be.  
	Let thy congregation 
	escape tribulation; 
	thy name be ever praised!  
	O Lord, make us free!
e
source: We Gather Together lyric

We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing. Yes, that's what Thanksgiving is all about. Yet dig deeper into the text of this formerly well-known Thanksgiving hymn (many churches no longer offer a service of Thanksgiving) and find more for which to be thankful.

To begin, here is an interesting looking a probable emergence of the hymn: The Surprising Origins of "We Gather Together"
```
“We gather together” is cherished as yearly opportunity for family gatherings; however further examination of the lyrics suggest an occasion of worship “to ask the Lord’s blessing.”

Do you gather together with other Christians (not just family) regularly to ask the Lord’s blessing? And if you do not bless God, would it not be appropriate for God to curse you? Therefore, let us always give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And if we receive blessings from the Lord day by day (and we do, if you will take note of these), should we not thank the Lord each and every day even as was ask the Lord’s blessing on the food and full provision for our lives?

“He chastens…”

Chaste: there’s a word you don’t see in the Christmas ads on T.V. or anywhere else.

Chasten:
1. to be instructed or taught or learn, correct,
2. of those who are moulding the character of others by reproof and admonition
3. of God to chasten by the affliction of evils and calamities
Revelation 3:19

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

What does it mean that the Lord rebukes and chastens his beloved (you an me, dear brothers and sisters in Christ)?

Perhaps you think that Thanksgiving is not a time for ‘rebuke’ from the Lord. Yet if we are unrepentant in our relationship to the Lord and in our relationships to each other, I can think of no better time for a loving Father to rebuke and correct His children, even adopted children through the Cross of our Lord, His only Son, Jesus Christ.

He chastens AND…

“… and hastens His will to make known.”

“Thy will be done,” is the prayer we all pray.

What is God’s will for you? Do you want to God’s will when you finally get around to it? Or if we listen to the lyric, it would seem that God would make haste in our measured days to make His will know to us.

“The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing.”

A definition (as if we need a reminder): oppression – prolonged cruel or unjust treatment, mental pressure or distress

The world surrounds us with wicked oppressing; but thank be to God for redeeming us from oppression of our our sin. Is anything more oppressing than sin? Yet by grace we may cease from distressing over the punishment of the Father we truly deserve.

And what should be our response to the lifting of our oppression from us by the grace of the Cross?

“Sing praises to his name…”

Indeed, Thanksgiving is all about worship of God our Father and Christ Jesus.

Thank God; for:

“… he forgets not his own.”

Colossians 1

English Standard Version (ESV)

11 May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Verse 2.

Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining…

Encouraged? You know this from the Christmas message:

Matthew 1:23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).

“… ordaining, maintaining his kingdom divine;”

Jesus began the Kingdom. Jesus maintains His Kingdom. Jesus will return for His subjects… His family. He will reign.

We thought that we were losing out on life, but by accepting Jesus as our King we cannot be defeated.

Hebrews 12: 1b-2 NKJV

… let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

“so from the beginning the fight we were winning; thou lord wast at our side,”

Isn’t it comforting to know in our daily struggles that Jesus stands right there with us? It’s just one more reason to praise him.

“all glory be thine!”

Verse 3

“We all to extol thee, thou leader triumphant,”

‘Extol.’ It’s an old word that has fallen from our vocabulary. It means to praise enthusiastically. Furthermore, it is appropriate to make mention of another old English usage that has fallen by the wayside. The King James Version of the Bible remains popular with many because of its use of ‘thee and thou.’ It is a proper reverence for God and Christ, lost in familiarity of worshipers bordering on disrespect. Our attitude of worship (as a church and in our family and personal life) should at the very least show God the respect due a father. Often, it does not.

Jesus has triumphed over death… and He did it for us. IF Jesus is our Lord, He IS our leader triumphant.

“and pray that thou still our defender wilt be.”

We will be raised up with Him at the Judgment.

1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

“Let thy congregation escape tribulation;”

Do you know what tribulation is really? According to the Oxford Dictionary, its a cause of great trouble or suffering.

First century Christians suffered much tribulation from evil men opposed to Christ. Last century Christians will suffer a worse tribulation under the oppression of the Antichrist and the persecution by all those opposed to Jesus Christ as Lord. Yet we are victorious in Christ Jesus, who has overcome death, will defeat Satan, and rule a new heaven and a new earth. We will reign with Jesus our Lord!

For this we ought to have much thanks giving.

“thy name be ever praised!”

And one final plea of the hymn (only it is not for freedom from tyrants):

“O, Lord, make us free.”

Are you part of the family of God? Or do you remain a slave to your sin?

John 8: ““Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

You may gather with ‘family’ and give brief thanks for too much food; but Thanksgiving is much more than this.

Psalm 102:18-22

Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:

that he looked down from his holy height;
from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,

to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to set free those who were doomed to die,

that they may declare in Zion the name of the LORD,
and in Jerusalem his praise,

when peoples gather together,
and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.

Children singing “We Gather Together”

Happy Thanksgiving.

Praise the Lord.

Jesus IS Lord.
November 28, 2013
Thank God

ALMIGHTY God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Then shall the Priest, turning to the people, rehearse distinctly all the TEN COMMANDMENTS: and the people still kneeling shall after every Commandment ask God mercy for their transgression thereof for the time past, and grace to keep the same for the time to come, as followeth.

In worship we have finally bowed down to God. We have repented of our sin. We seek His holiness through the Cross of Christ Jesus.

Though I could have chosen liturgy of many denominations of our Lord’s church, we exam ourselves through the part of the liturgy of communion in the Anglican Church.

BCP – Holy Communion

Then shall the Priest say to them that come to receive the holy Communion,

YE that do truly and earnestly repent you of your sins, and are in love and charity with your neighbours, and intend to lead a new life, following the commandments of God, and walking from henceforth in his holy ways: Draw near with faith, and take this holy Sacrament to your comfort; and make your humble confession to Almighty God, meekly kneeling upon your knees.

I ask you to pause here: Consider our position before God in light of our examination of scripture, sin and righteousness, the heavens above and hell beneath; in the light of the cross of Christ and hopelessness of our own nature to sin against our Lord, rather than to worship Him and bow down to His will. Do our sinful lives not require His grace?

Therefore let us put off the soiled garments of our hypocrisy and confess our sins before Almighty God.

Then shall this general Confession be made, in the name of all those that are minded to receive the holy Communion, by one of the Ministers: both he and all the people kneeling humbly upon their knees and saying,

ALMIGHTY God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, Judge of all men: We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, Which we from time to time most grievously have committed, By thought, word, and deed, Against thy Divine Majesty, Provoking most justly thy wrath and indignation against us. We do earnestly repent, And are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; The remembrance of them is grievous unto us; The burden of them is intolerable. Have mercy upon us, Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; For thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ’s sake, Forgive us all that is past; And grant that we may ever hereafter Serve and please thee In newness of life, To the honour and glory of thy Name; Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

These words always stuck in my craw as I remembered my sin:

We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness.

“…Which we from time to time…” is most kind; for by thought, word and deed are we not constant sinners?

Do we not well deserve the wrath of God and punishment of hell?

Yet God is a loving Father of all mercies, who sent to us his only Son, even as a sacrifice on the cross for your sin and mine; for the sins of the world, those saved and those yet to be saved.

This is mercy. This is grace. This is the highest reason for a sinner like me, a lowly creation of a loving God, to worship and bow down to God our Father in Heaven and Christ Jesus, Sacrifice of His love for us on the Cross.

It is our duty and obligation of this sinful flesh, formed by God and given the life of His Spirit, to bow down to our Creator as Lord. Because of His love for us, He came to us in the flesh – the sinless flesh of Christ Jesus the only Son of the Father in Heaven. He IS and was and IS to be our Savior and Lord.

Therefore, let us worship Christ our Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God for His Spirit and the eternal life made possible for us only by the Blood of Jesus on the Cross.

As the Apostle Paul instructs us, let us give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

November 25, 2013