Thanksgiving

THANKSGIVING

For those in the know, the first Thanksgiving in the U.S. was in 1607, and it wasn't established as a holiday until George Washington, our first president, declared it so in 1789. It seems to have taken some sad turns, though, as more than two centuries have passed since the days of George Washington, and I would like to make it glaringly apparent here.

First, it had taken on a wrap of commercialism in the first century and a half. Even now, it is a big deal in grocery stores and supermarkets across the country, and even Canada has a Thanksgiving a month earlier than ours, but I think the U.S. has them beat on commercialism of the occasion. The rest of the retail sector, however, has ignored giving thanksgiving much advertising, as they haven't been able to make a big financial happening out of it, and they go straight from Halloween to Christmas in their campaigns to raise money from holidays. Yes, from about the 60s to present, thanksgiving and giving thanks to God have taken a back seat, if not being ignored completely, by the retail sector in regards to the last Thursday in November. At this point I would like to go over reasons for giving thanksgiving to God, and why this holiday should be important to Christians to celebrate, thinking of God and His benefits and accomplishments in our behalf.

1 Chron. 16:7 - 8 has it that David delivered a psalm of thanks to Asaph and his brethren; "Then on that day David delivered first this psalm to thank the LORD into the hand of Asaph and his brethren. Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon His name, make known His deeds among the people." When we call on the Lord and ask Him for things, and He grants them, shouldn't we thank Him? Consider Christ's answer when He healed the ten lepers; "And as He entered into a certain village, there met Him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And they lifted up their voices, and said, 'Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.' And when He saw them, He said unto them, 'Go shew yourselves unto the priests.' And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, 'Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.' And He said unto him, 'Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.'" (Luke 17:12-19) I would think, had they heard Him, that the other nine would be embarrassed and ashamed. Should we not also be, if we forget to thank Him for any thing He has done for us?

David reminds us of other reasons to give God thanksgiving in 2 Sam. 22:48 - 50; "It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me, and that bringeth me forth from mine enemies: Thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: Thou hast delivered me from the violent man. Therefore I will give thanks unto Thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto Thy name." Has God ever allowed you to escape your enemies? From people who wanted to hurt you in any way? (Maybe they had circumstances come about later that they were miserable from) And perhaps God should get the thanks that it came to pass? Apparently David felt so. And note how David says he will thank God "...among the heathens..."? I have gotten rebuke just for bringing up God on Facebook and the internet as a subject to talk about, let alone thanking Him in person in front of heathens!

I suppose among the many first songs of thanksgiving to God, David's were among them; "Sing unto the LORD with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God: who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains." (Psa. 147:7-8) Not that he was the first, because there was the song of Moses when God crushed pharoah's army under the Red Sea (Exod. 15:1 - 19), and Judg. 5:1 - 31 has the song of Deborah and Barak for thanking the Lord for the avenging of Israel.

1 Cor. 11:24 - 25 has this; "And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, 'Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me.' After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, 'This cup is the new testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of Me.'" Note that He gave thanks to the Father for the supper. I thank God for all three of my meals, and even snacks, for many people not only have no snacks, they are fortunate if they have one meal all day!

Thanksgiving is mentioned for the first time in Lev. 7:11 - 15 in reference to the law of peace offerings to God. It was a thanksgiving for answer to prayer, deliverance, healing...it was a way to thank God in a manner He would be pleased with.

Here's a reason for thanksgiving; "And with them Heman and Jeduthun, and the rest that were chosen, who were expressed by name, to give thanks to the LORD, because His mercy endureth for ever; and with them Heman and Jeduthun with trumpets and cymbals for those that should make a sound, and with musical instruments of God..." (1 Chron. 16:41- 42) His mercy endures for ever, and we are particularly keen of this in the blood of Christ Jesus that was shed for us who were otherwise dead in our sins! "And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity; and she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of Him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem." (Luke 2:36 - 38) Ah, to be like Anna, thankful to the Lord for the Redeemer she saw with her own eyes!

How often do we think of thanking the Lord? How often did the Levite priests thank Him? "And to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at even;" (1 Chron. 23:30) I thank Him for every morning I'm alive, because it's another opportunity to serve Him in some way in as many opportunities as the day presents to me.

In the Old Testament days, they gave thanks offerings to God in His house; "Then Hezekiah answered and said, 'Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto the LORD, come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of the LORD.' And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings; and as many as were of a free heart burnt offerings." (2 Chron. 29:31) By the way, these were besides the tithing offerings.

"O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks unto the God of gods: for His mercy endureth for ever. O give thanks to the Lord of lords: for His mercy endureth for ever." (Psa. 136:1 - 3) His mercy is stressed here by David as something to be thankful for, because without it, who could avoid hell? The entirety of Psa. 136 ends each verse with the fact that His mercy endures forever.

Let it not come upon us that we should forget to thank Him in all things; consider what is written in this passage for the Israelites, should they forget Him; "Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping His commandments, and His judgments, and His statutes, which I command thee this day: Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint; who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that He might humble thee, and that He might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; and thou say in thine heart, 'My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.' But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is He that giveth thee power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day." (Deut. 8:11 - 18)

So here we have many ways and reasons to thank the Lord our God, with thank offerings, with magnifying His name, wonders, our deliverance, meals, snacks, healings, with music, singing, and praise. The most dear and precious thing to thank Him for that I can think of is our salvation!