One of the most beautiful Psalms of Thanksgiving is the 100th Psalm. Please turn to it and read verses one through five. With all my heart I believe we are a people and a nation that has truly been blessed by God. Of all those who “give thanks to Him and praise His name” we should be at the top!
It is not uncommon to compile wish lists at Christmas, and draw up a list of resolutions for the new year. But there is another list we often overlook - a Thanksgiving Day list of all for which we are thankful. What would your list contain? Most likely, a good part would be material possessions. I’m convinced that we would find that we have much more for which to be thankful than just our material possessions.
Like you, I’m sure my list would include the major things - life, health, family, friends, and the nation we live in, despite all its flaws. But even more than that, I’m thankful for my salvation, my Church family, and the mercy that God showers upon us each day.
Has it ever occurred to you that no Americans were more underprivileged than that small handful from the Mayflower who started the custom of setting aside a day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God? They had no homes nor did they have a government agency to help them build homes. They had no means of transportation except for their legs. Their only food came from the sea and the forest, and they had to get it for themselves. They had no money and no place to spend it.
They had no means of communication with their relatives in England, no social security or Medicare. However, they did have four of the greatest human assets: initiative, courage, a willingness to work, and a boundless faith in God.
Our forefathers had “a boundless faith in God.” Our hallowed “Declaration of Independence” proclaims, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights . . .” And it ends with these words, “. . .with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.”
Thanksgiving Day is a distinctive holiday. It doesn’t commemorate a battle or anyone’s birthday or anniversary. It is simply a day set aside to express our nation’s thanks to our nation’s God. In 1789, George Washington made this public proclamation. As you read only a little part of it, I want you to see the strong and absolute acknowledgment of the fact of God, and of our nation’s dependence upon Him.
“By the President of the United States of America. A proclamation: Whereas, it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor, - and “Whereas, Both Houses of Congress”
Did you notice? “Both Houses of Congress?” “...have by their joint committee requested me ‘to recommend to the people of the United States a day of Public Thanksgiving and Prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God. . .’
“Now, Therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. . .” So read the very first Thanksgiving Proclamation.
In a few days our nation pauses once again to give thanks. And one would assume that because of the example of our forefathers, and because we today have so much, that we would be an extremely thankful people. But it is often just the opposite, isn’t it? The more we get, the less thankful we become, the less mindful of God we become, and the more we want.
I think that the 100th Psalm was written to deal with that attitude, to remind us of our need to be thankful and to maintain a grateful attitude.
THE BASIS OF OUR THANKSGIVING
The 100th Psalm was written for the people of Israel. God said to them, “When you come into the promised land, and settle down in your warm homes, and you have plenty to eat, don’t forget Me. I led you out of the wilderness and I brought you into a land flowing with milk & honey.” But it doesn’t take very long to realize that the people of Israel needed a reminder, and I am afraid that we need it, too.
Maybe God had us in mind, too, when this Psalm was written. Did you notice to whom it is addressed? The first verse says that it is addressed to “all the earth,” and the last verse says that it is includes “all generations.” This message of thanksgiving is so deep and wide that it applies to every person in every era in every stage of life.
I think that there is a real danger in this season of determining our thanksgiving on the basis of how much we have.
“Do I have enough turkey to gorge myself sufficiently? Is my money in the bank secure? Am I healthy?”
And we let these things determine whether we are or aren’t thankful. However, the only thing we have for sure is our relationship with the Lord.
And that is what the 100th Psalm emphasizes. Just scan the Psalm.
In vs. 1 you’ll find the name of the Lord.
In vs. 2 you’ll find the name of the Lord.
In vs. 3 you’ll find the name of the Lord.
In vs. 4 it says, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving. ”
And in vs. 5 you’ll find the name of the Lord.
The basis of our thanksgiving is the Lord.
To help us remember that we got to this point with the help of God and that He is the provider of every blessing we have, let us consider:
FIVE THANKSGIVING COMMANDS
The first command is in vs. 1, “MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE UNTO THE LORD, ALL YE LANDS.”
It means to “shout with the force of a trumpet blast,” a shout of joy to the Lord that comes from the very depths of your being. Maybe He solved your problem. Maybe He has given you the direction to go. Maybe He has provided a blessing, and you realize that it has come from God. So from the depths of your being you proclaim your praise.
And that is what the Psalmist is saying. “Suddenly you realize that God has been so good to you that you can’t keep it inside any more. From the depths of your being you shout your joy unto the Lord.”
The second command is, “Serve the Lord with gladness.” It doesn’t say “serve the church.” It doesn’t say “serve the preacher, or serve the leaders, or serve the organization.” It says, “serve the Lord.”
The Bible teaches that if we witness on behalf of the Lord, if we feed the hungry, if we clothe the naked, if we do the work of the Lord, whatever it might be, we are serving the Lord. Jesus said, “Inasmuch as you have done it unto the least of these, you have done it unto me” Matthew 25:40.
I’m not sure that we grasp that. But the Psalmist says, “In whatever you do, serve the Lord with gladness.”
The third command is, “Come before Him with joyful songs.” Another passage says, “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord.” And that I can do. Have you noticed? In these first 3 commands, God has said, “I want you to be happy. Shout with joy, serve with 6 gladness, and come with joyful songs.” The Psalmist says, “Come before Him and serve Him and sing His praise with joy in your heart.”
Command number four is, “Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.” God took every bone, every joint, and He welded them together with sinews and muscles, covered them with skin and gave us eyes that see, brains that think, and fingers that can pick things up. God made us, inside and out. He made you the way He wanted you to be. And He made me the way He wanted me to be.
That is a mystery, isn’t it? And He is still making us. That is important, too. He’s not satisfied with the unfinished product. He’s not satisfied with your temper. He’s not satisfied with the weak areas of your life where you are giving in to temptation. So He’s still making us. He’s still working on our lives. God is your maker, and you are created in His image. Therefore give Him thanks for who you are.
Then He says, “We are His people, the sheep of His pasture.” Most of us want to be shepherds, not sheep. “It’s not any fun being sheep,” we say. But the problem is, we don’t know where the still waters and green pastures are. And every time we go out searching for them, we invariably end up in the far country. He is saying, “You be the sheep. Let me be the shepherd, and I will lead you beside the still waters and the green pastures. Follow my lead.”
Command number 5 is this, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever. His faithfulness continues through all generations.”
In the Old Testament, the temple symbolized the presence of God. So whenever the people came to the temple and entered the courtyards they knew that they had come into the presence of God.
Now that temple no longer exists. But oftentimes the place where we meet to worship God is called a “sanctuary,” indicating that God is there. But God is everywhere. You know that. He is with you every moment of your life.
That is the source of our thanksgiving, isn’t it? But, let us consider this: What if God began to treat us like we so often treat Him? What if God met our needs to the same extent that we give Him our lives? What if we never saw another flower bloom because we grumbled when God sent the rain? What if God stopped loving and caring for us because we failed to love and care for others? What if God took away His message because we wouldn’t listen to His messenger? What if He wouldn’t bless us today because we didn’t thank Him yesterday? What if God decided to stop leading us tomorrow because we did not follow Him today?
O Lord, help us to be thankful that you do “not DEAL WITH US AFTER OUR SINS, nor reward us according to our iniquities” [Psalm 103:10].
I pray that this will be a meaningful Thanksgiving for you and all your family. Take time to read the 100th Psalm again. And if you’ll listen to those commands, your heart will overflow with thanksgiving to the Lord