O Give Thanks Unto the Lord
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O Give Thank Unto the Lord
O Give Thank Unto the Lord
Turn to and read Psalm 136:1-3. Pray.
There are some things that I take for granted. One of those is the knowledge of the true history of the United States of America. Having grown up attending a Christian school, I very early learned that history is “the written record of mankind. It is [literally] ‘His story’ describing the rise and fall of nations and individuals as they respond to God’s truth—the story of what man has done with the time God has given him, from creation through the present.” Because of that, I learned very early in life that the creation of our country – the United States of America – was the result of God at work in the affairs of man and the response of men and women as to God’s truth. One such individual was our 16th president – President Abraham Lincoln who led our country through some of its darkest hours – the Civil War. It was in the midst of the Civil War, on October 3, 1863, that President Lincoln gave his “Thanksgiving Proclamation” setting aside the fourth Thursday in November as a national day of Thanksgiving!
"The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of almighty God.
"I do, therefore, invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States…to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that, while offering up the ascriptions justly due to him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation, and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union.”
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=69900
In his proclamation, President Lincoln was simply following the admonition of King David, in Psalm 136:1:
O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever.
Giving thanks is an act of worship.
Giving thanks is an act of worship.
(Turn to and read together Psalm 100.)
Giving thanks isn’t simply a psychological or emotional exercise.
Giving thanks & having a grateful attitude should not be motivated by the benefits which we might derive from it.
Giving thanks should be spiritually motivated.
If there is a besetting sin of which most of us are guilty, it is a failure to give thanks for His goodness. Instead, there’s one thing that Christians should be known for: Being thankful. And that should be seen (or heard). In Psalm 100, David says, “Make a joyful noise…,” “Serve the Lord with gladness…,” “Come before His presence with singing…” As a congregation, when we sing the songs of the faith, we should all participate – and we should participate heartily!
John Wesley’s “Rules for Singing” (1761)
Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a slight degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up and you will find a blessing.
Sing lustily, and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of it being heard, then when you sing the songs of Satan.
Why should we do this? Because giving thanks is an act of worship!
One of David’s first official acts as king of Israel is recorded for us in 1 Chronicles 15 &16. King David and the Israelites brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.
So they brought the ark of God, and set it in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it: and they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God.
You need to remember that the Ark of the Covenant represented the presence of God. Therefore, for the nation of Israel, this was a big deal!
In 1 Chronicles 16:4 we are told…
And he appointed certain of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord, and to record, and to thank and praise the Lord God of Israel:
When was the last time you simply thanked and praised God because He is your Savior and that He is with you?
Giving thanks should be directed to the Lord.
Even the world understands that our gratitude has a recipient.
Gratitude is “a fundamentally social emotion: you are grateful either to other people or to some sort of higher power with whom you can communicate.”
O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever.
Giving of thanks should not be dependent upon the physical or material.
Some individuals may say, “I have nothing to be thankful for!” However, that’s an incorrect statement because our gratitude is not be dependent upon “things.”
If our gratitude is dependent upon “things” then our gratitude will be gone when those “things” are gone.
Psalm 136:1 simply states, “O give thanks unto the Lord; for He is good…” Not because He has done good things but because of His character – the very essence of His being is good! For that reason and that reason alone, we should give Him thanks!
Even though we generally give thanks for such things as our possessions, our family, etc. those things are not needed in order to still have a grateful spirit.
Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,
And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, And naked shall I return thither: The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.
Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.
I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
One way in which we can cultivate a thankful attitude is to lower our expectations because one of the many ways in which we lose our gratitude is when our expectations are not met. This is demonstrated by the Apostle Paul.
Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
What are your expectations? All of us likely have expectations
Expectations in the workplace from our employer, from our co-workers, from our employees, from our customers.
Expectations in our home - from our spouse, from our children
Expectations in our relationships.
Expectations from our government.
Expectations from God.
And when our expectations are not met we find ourselves developing a critical and complaining spirit instead of a grateful spirit.
And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.
And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?
The Apostle Paul states it this way:
But godliness with contentment is great gain.
For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
Our giving of thanks should be dependent simply upon two things:
Our giving of thanks should be dependent simply upon two things:
God is good.
God is good.
God is merciful.
God is merciful.
Now, David did list “things,” in Psalm 136, that God had done.
Creation (136:5-9)
The Exodus from Egypt (136:10-15)
Provisions and Victory in the Wilderness Wanderings (136:16-20)
The Promised Land (136:21-25)
However, David’s thanks began with God’s goodness and ended with His mercy.
O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: For his mercy endureth for ever.
O give thanks unto the God of heaven: For his mercy endureth for ever.
One of the characteristics of God that so many tend to doubt is His goodness.
Individuals will many times make statements such as, “If God is so good, why did He…?”
Most things that often cause us to doubt God’s goodness should really be attributed to the fact that we live in a world that has been affected by sin.
That is why it is important for us to not only remember the goodness of God, but also His mercy.
This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.
It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.
Note: Jeremiah penned those words after Jerusalem had been destroyed! When seemingly there would have been nothing to be “thankful for!”
Can we honestly say the same thing as we consider the condition of our country right now?
Closing: “Dr. Robert Emmons, professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, and a pioneer in gratitude research, told the Wall Street Journal that in order to reap all of its benefits, feeling gratitude must be ingrained into your personality, and you must frequently acknowledge and be thankful for the role other people play in your happiness: ‘The key is not to leave it on the Thanksgiving table,’ he said.” In other words, we must develop a year round “attitude of gratitude!”
By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
In Luke chapter 17, we read the account of the 10 lepers that were healed by Jesus Christ. However, only one turned back and glorified God and gave Him thanks.
And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?
This Thanksgiving, let’s not be like those nine. Let’s determine to give thanks and worship God simply because He is good...regardless of the condition we may find ourselves in today and regardless of what we may “have” or “not have!”