Day of Thanksgiving

Deuteronomy 8:1–10

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Remember to count your blessings. Indeed, it is good to pause, at least once in a while, and remember all the good things you have, all the things that make you rich. And I think you all know that what’s more important than just being materially rich is being rich in family, friendship, love. In any case, it’s good to recognize and appreciate all your blessings.

In Deuteronomy, Israel is getting ready to enter the Land of Canaan that the Lord had promised them. They have come to the end of their 40 years in the wilderness. The old, stubborn, disobedient generation that came out of Egypt had by now passed away. And also the lack of food and water, the quarrelling and rebellion, the deadly fiery serpents—it’s all behind them. In Deuteronomy, Moses tells this new generation of Israel just how richly the Lord is going to bless them in this bountiful Land: The Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land He has given you. Israel is going from barren wilderness to almost–Eden, practically paradise. Life is going to be good.

And in order that life remains good for His people, the Lord has given them His Law for life in this new Land. The Book of Deuteronomy is Moses preaching this Law for Israel one last time before they enter and receive the Land the Lord is giving them. And so throughout Deuteronomy it is made clear that they should not be motivated to keep God’s Law in order to be saved, or curry favor with God, or get special recognition. But they are motivated to keep God’s Law because of what God has done and is giving to them. Moses reminds Israel, “The Lord rescued you from Egypt and made you His people… And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness… And while He humbled you and tested you and disciplined you, as a man disciplines his son… At the same time, He also provided for you. He fed you with manna… and your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years… So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God by walking in His ways and by fearing Him. For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land.” Why should you obey God’s Law and treasure His Word? So that He’s pleased with you? No, because of what He has done for you. You keep His Word out of gratitude, with thanksgiving. And what’s more, keeping the Law comes with earthly blessings. Life, in general, goes well for you when you follow the Law. Blessings follow when you walk in the ways of the Lord. He is always ready to give more.

Again and again in Deuteronomy, Israel is reminded that God is giving them this Land and all its blessings. The word “Give” is used 167 times in Deuteronomy, and 131 of those times (almost 80%) it is the Lord who is doing the giving. That’s the kind of God He is. All things come from Him and He is happy to do it. But the reason that Deuteronomy repeats this so much is that there will always be a great danger for Israel to forget God and His gifts. Moses goes on in chapter 8, warning them: Take care lest you forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments… lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied (In other words, after you’ve received all the good things the Lord will give you), then your heart be lifted up (in pride, arrogance), and you forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, who fed you in the wilderness with manna… that He might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 

If they are careless in taking and enjoying all the good gifts, they might forget and forsake the One who gave it all to them. Moses says, Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ They will be tempted to take the Land for granted. Israel, and all sinful mankind, is tempted to assume that all the good things, all the blessings we have in life, are a right, that we have deserved them, either on the basis of what effort we’ve made or on the basis of simply who we are. We are tempted to forget the Lord and His gifts. Moses commands: You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may confirm His covenant that He swore to your fathers… And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God (Deut. 8:11–20). 

And that is precisely what Israel does. Once they are established in the Land of Canaan and enjoying its rich bounty, they forget the Lord and how He’s the One who gave it to them—how He’s the one true God deserving of their trust and thankfulness. And so the Lord takes the gifts of the Land away from them, just as He warned. The Bible says that the Land vomited them out because of their faithlessness. Just as your belly might protest if you gorge yourself too much this afternoon, the Land that the Lord gave to Israel protested against their idolatry and ingratitude. The blessings were taken away.

Remember, count your blessings! But counting your blessings can be another way of counting your idols. That’s what it was for Israel—they counted all their blessings: their land, their fruitfulness, their identity as God’s chosen people (even though He never chose them for any reason in themselves). And all this counting of blessings only multiplied into more idols, more chasing after earthly wealth and foreign gods. Blessings become idols when we make them ends in themselves—when we fear, love, and trust the blessing rather than God. Consider your blessings, and then consider how distraught you might be if you were to lose them… That will give you an idea of how much you idolize them. Rather, we are to fear, love, and trust God, and take every other blessing He wants to give as bonus. Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and everything else will be added to you (Matt. 6:33).

Now, we should always remember, especially when reading a book like Deuteronomy, our nation is not the new Israel. The new Promised Land is not America. Sorry, not even Iowa. We are not His chosen nation in the same way Israel was, and He did not give us this land in the same way He gave them Canaan. However, this story of Israel should remind us that He did give us the place where we live and everything else. What do you have that you did not receive? St. Paul asks. If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it (1 Cor. 4:7) as if you earned it? Don’t make the same mistake Israel did. Don’t forget God and say, “My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.” Every good thing you have, every bond of love you cherish are all gifts. And if they are gifts then there must be a Giver. Counting your blessings is only good when you count the One who has blessed you. Today many people will take a little time to think about what they are  thankful for… A very good, right, and salutary custom. But really, the even more important question is, Who are you thankful to?

God. And not just any God. This God: the God who took Israel as His own people—a tiny people of no account, stubborn and rebellious. The same God who took all humanity as His own—a corrupt and self-centered race. And Jesus was cursed in our place so that He might bless us. This God, our Lord Jesus, was willing to suffer and lose everything so that He might give us everything. He truly showed us how man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Jesus fulfilled that. He kept the commandments of the Lord His God by walking in His ways and by fearing Him, loving Him, trusting Him completely, even to the point of death on the cross. Jesus kept the Law. He alone is righteous. 

And He gives His keeping, His righteousness, to us, so that we can live. So that we can have daily bread, and turkey and pie, dear loved ones, a good country, good books, football, music, a good dog, whatever you have. Anything good in this life comes to you because Jesus died to take away your sins. But above it all, Jesus gives us His righteousness so that we might have His Word, His Name, His body and blood… Everything good for life everlasting.

So, it is good to come to church on Thanksgiving—to remember what our Lord has done for us and for all people. We thank Him by extolling His works and His gifts. We open our mouths to sing and proclaim what He has done. In counting our blessings, we recount the deeds of the Blessed One who comes in the Name of the Lord. And then, in remembrance of Him, we open our mouths to receive more from His hand, from the new Eden He has given us: Life-giving Food from the One who counts us as blessed, heirs of His land forever. O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, and His mercy endureth forever.

In the Holy + Name of Jesus. Amen.


Preached at Trinity, Clinton, IA and Immanuel, Charlotte, IA

Day of Thanksgiving

Psalm 104

St. Luke 12:13–21 (Harvest Observance)

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Introit this morning is drawn from Psalm 104, but whenever we sing snippets of a psalm, it is also good for us to think about the entire psalm. Psalm 104 is a psalm of thanks to God for the goodness of His creation that was made and given to us as an undeserved gift. 

The psalm begins: Bless the Lord, O my soul! We exhort ourselves to praise and bless God. To bless someone means to speak good words about them or to them. So, how do we bless God? Just as we do at the end of the Divine Service: Bless we the Lord. Thanks be to God. We speak good words of thanksgiving. We tell of what He has done and given for us. In this way, the psalmist begins His exuberant song about this world that is bursting with life, an absolutely wonderful riot of fruitfulness, a beautiful order in which every creature praises its Maker by doing what He has given it to do.

God’s work is good because it reflects His own goodness. He is clothed with splendor and majesty, covering Himself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent. These heavens are the sky, even what we call “outer space”, which is not empty but full of the sparkling, blazing splendor and majesty of stars and planets, constellations and galaxies. 

He makes the clouds His chariot; He rides on the wings of the wind; He makes his messengers winds, His ministers a flaming fire. Even the winds and storms of our atmosphere tell us something about His power and speed, and about the service of the holy angels, His ministers. The angels, these windy, fiery messengers serve their Lord by serving us. They are sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation (Hebrews 1:14).

He set the earth on its foundations… He set a boundary for the oceans that they may not pass… He makes springs gush forth in the valleys… they give drink to every beast of the field… the earth is satisfied with the fruit of His work. The Lord’s creation does His bidding and so is blessed. His creation is good because it reflects His own goodness. Or as another poet once said: “The world is charged with the grandeur of God…”

From the realms of stars and vast sweeping oceans, the psalmist descends into the lush liveliness of creaturely order: a world full of wild donkeys and roaring lions, the birds of the heavens and storks building their nests in great trees, while the wild goats and badgers make their fortresses in the mountains.

Also there is Man, that most unique of God’s creatures. Man—like the animals, he is flesh, and like the angels, he is spirit. Body and soul, he is created in the image of God. And since he is the crown of God’s creation, all of that creation is made for his benefit. The Lord causes the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine and bread to strengthen man's heart. The rich bounty of the Lord’s earth is put into the hands of men, so that we may be glad, refreshed, and strengthened for lives of service to our God and to His world.

            And yet, even the food we need to survive is not mere fuel. God could have arranged our bodies to be nourished by dirt. But the food He gives is also for our enjoyment, that we may taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8). As Solomon wisely observed: Happy are you, O land, when… your princes feast at the proper time, for strength, and not for drunkenness! … Bread is made for laughter, and wine gladdens life (Ecclesiastes 10:17–19). Sin comes with over-indulgence, when we use our earthly goods for selfish purposes. But there is no sin in enjoying the good gifts of this creation: wine and beer, turkey, chocolate, or buttery mashed potatoes. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving (1 Timothy 4:4).

The psalmist goes on to marvel at the orderliness of life. Far from this world being the mad, random rushing of atoms, the universe is held together by a design. God’s creation works together because it fits together, each creature finding his proper place at the proper time. He made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting. He makes darkness, and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep about. The young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God. When the sun rises, they steal away and lie down in their dens. Man goes out to his work and to his labor until the evening. Even man and beast have their coordinated schedules, happily going to the work their Master has given them to do so that He might also fill them with His bounty.

And yet, life is not all work and no play. The psalmist sees how life’s labor and fun complement each other, making each more rewarding and more pleasurable. Here is the sea, great and wide, which teems with creatures innumerable, living things both small and great. There go the ships, and Leviathan, which God formed to play in it. Can’t you hear the enthusiasm of a little boy? There go the ships! And Leviathan—a giant sea creature, what we might call a dinosaur, or better yet, a dragon!—splashing about in the waves.

O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom have You made them all. All the many and various works of God are done in Christ, the true Wisdom of God. That Wisdom is not just a thought, but a Person—specifically the second Person of the Trinity—the Word who is God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made (John 1:3). In Christ, this world was made. In Christ, this world was redeemed. And in Christ, the gifts of this world are still given to all His creatures, even though some of these human creatures do not believe in Him or thank Him.

Whether they know it or not these all look to You, O Lord, to give them their food at the proper time. When You give it to them, they gather it up; when You open Your hand, they are filled with good things. And without the Lord who created us, and died for us, and rose again, then all creation would cease to exist, crumbling, falling into the void of nothingness. When You hide Your face, they are dismayed; when You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. He is the Creator and Redeemer, and so He has the authority to judge and sentence to death.

But, when You send forth Your Spirit, they are created, and You renew the face of the ground. The Spirit of God, the Lord and Giver of Life, is always at work in His world. He is the Breath that carried the Word of the Father and brought all things into being. And He’s still doing it. “The world is charged with the grandeur of God… Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.” The dawning of each new day is a reminder of God’s mercy and faithfulness.

The antiphon for our Introit comes from the end of the psalm. May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works. This prayer flows from God’s declaration in Genesis 1: God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good (Gen. 1:31). His creation is good because it reflects His own goodness. He was pleased by His creation. And even though His creation rebelled against Him, He desired to rescue it so that He could rejoice in His work all the more. May the Lord continue to rejoice in His works, He who could unmake it with a touch, who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke! The psalm ends with a word of judgment: Let sinners be consumed from the earth, and let the wicked be no more! Evil, disobedience, ingratitude, pride, selfishness—all that must be eradicated so that only joyful praise is heard from God’s creation. 

This means that repentance is essential for true thanksgiving. You can’t really enjoy God’s gifts in creation when you’re unrepentant of your sin. God certainly gives daily bread to everyone… even to all evil people, so, if you don’t confess your sin, sure, you’ll still eat and you might have what you think is a good life, but you won’t really enjoy it. What is better? Buying dessert from the store or getting a piece of Grandma’s homemade pumpkin pie? The bought one might be perfectly fine, but you truly enjoy Grandma’s pie because of the good relationship you have with the one who made it and gave it to you out of love.

Likewise, the foolish but rich farmer had many earthly gifts from God, yet they were not good FOR him. He could not enjoy them and in the end they even condemned him because of his faithlessness. The fact that he turned the goods into idols made it even worse for him. So, to have a truly good life means repentance for sin and faith in Christ. Give thanks to God and give goods away to your neighbor. Then, even when it’s time to die, you don’t lose anything. In fact, you gain even more, because what was most important was your good relationship with God, the Giver of all those gifts.

And you do have a good relationship with the Creator, through His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Christ graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32). He sends forth His Spirit and we are created anew by faith. And the Lord Christ even gives His body for bread to strengthen you and His blood for wine to gladden your heart. So, we can call God our Father and confess His works in the Creed.

I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them.

He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life.
He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil. 

All this He does only out of fatherly divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me.

For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him.

This is most certainly true (SC, First Article).

Bless the Lord, O my soul! Alleluia!

In the Holy + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Poem quoted: “God’s Grandeur” by Gerard Manley Hopkins