INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• Did you get enough to eat over the Thanksgiving holiday? My scale said GET OFF!
• As I reflect on the issue of be thankful I want to share a few things I am thankful for.
• I am thankful that there are not twice as many congressmen and half as many doctors.
• I am thankful that the space available for messages on T-shirts and bumpers is limited.
• I am thankful for low-carb candy, cookies, ice cream, etc…
• I am most thankful that I am not a TURKEY!
• This has been a tough year for many in this country as well as around the world. The first Thanksgiving was celebrated during some difficult times.
• Most of the people that came over from England had died, it was a tough time, yet the people in the Plymouth Colony in1621 took time to give thanks and to share what they had with one another.
• William Bradford in his address in 1621 said that we should give thanks to God for what He has done for us even in the midst of the difficulties they faced.
• In 1863, Abraham Lincoln, in the midst of the Civil War established the recognition of a day of thanks.
• On the day of thanksgiving, to whom do we give thanks? Abe Lincoln said we should give thanks to God. It has seemed to me fit and proper that [the gifts of God] should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged with one heart and one voice by the whole American people. I do, therefore, invite my fellow citizens . . . 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. -Thanksgiving proclamation, 1863 Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
• Over the past three weeks we have been looking over some reasons we can celebrate, three things we can be thankful to the Lord for.
• Now today we are going to finish our series by looking answering the question, HOW do I show God that I am truly thankful for what He has done?
• Is it good enough to say that we are thankful once a year? I am glad that we have a national recognition of Thanksgiving, but if we are truly thankful to God for what He has done for us, how do we express it?
• Hebrews 13:15-16 gives us the answer to that question.
• The context of this passage is a contrast between the Old Covenant people and the way they offered sacrifices and thanks to God and the way that the Christian is can offer sacrifices and thanksgiving to God.
• In the Old Testament, people did these things through prescribed rituals and festivals whereas in the New Covenant, we do not need a ritual or festival to express our gratitude towards God.
• I want us to look at three ways that we can express to God that we are truly thankful for what He has done and what He will do for us.
• Let us begin with verse 15
• SLIDE #2
• Hebrews 13:15 (ESV) Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
• SLIDE #3
SERMON
I. Thankful people express thankfulness with their words.
• One of the ways that we can express our thankfulness to God is by our words. This is a way that most people express their thankfulness.
• This is the easiest way to express thankfulness. Words do not cost us anything.
• The thing about words though is that they SHOULD mean something.
• What we say, the words we speak should come from the heart.
• When we tell our spouse that we love them, we should mean it.
• Jesus reminds us that what we say actually does reveal what is in our heart. Jesus puts it is strong terms as He chastises the religious leaders of the day.
• SLIDE #4
• Matthew 12:34 (ESV) 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
• WE will not be true to our words of thankfulness if our attitude is not one of thankfulness.
• SLIDE #5
• Colossians 4:2 (ESV) Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
• The Hebrew writer tells us to CONTINUALLY offer up a sacrifice of praise to God.
• A sacrifice of praise was an extra offering given to the Lord on top of other sacrifices (Lev 7:11-25).
• This expression is used a few times in the OT to indicate a particular category of literal sacrifice (e.g., 2 Chron. 29:31), but it also becomes a figure of speech for a grateful heart (e.g., Ps. 50:14, 23). This continual sacrifice is to be made through Jesus (lit., “him”), and it is further defined as the fruit of lips that confess his name.
• Hagner, D. A. (1990). New International biblical commentary: Hebrews (243–244). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers.
• WE are told in the context what the sacrifice of praise is supposed to be, the fruit of our lips that acknowledge His name.
• We have a great tradition of doing this in our country.
• There have been celebrations of Thanksgiving going clear back to 1541. We model our current celebration after the famous one in 1621. Except for BLACK FRIDAY and CYBER Monday.
• President George Washington issued the first Federal Proclamation in 1789. He offered praise not to some nebulas higher power but to GOD ALMIGHTY!
• Here is the opening statement.
• 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 it goes on. The ACLU would have a COW now.
• Abe Lincoln as we mentioned in the introduction issued a proclamation in 1863. Congress established our national holiday in 1941.
• Philippians 4:6 reminds us.
• SLIDE #6
• Philippians 4:6 (ESV) do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
• It is one thing to say something, but if we are going to make words have real meaning we need to do something else also.
• Let us look at verse 16
• SLIDE #7
• Hebrews 13:16 (ESV) Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
• SLIDE #8
II. Thankful people express thankfulness by their works.
• WE are told to not neglect doing good.
• This is one way we can add power to our words, by following them words with works.
• If I tell my wife I love her, I need to make sure that I show her by what I do. I need to help her even if I do not like doing them. HOUSEWORK!
• We show God that we are truly thankful to Him by what we do for Him and in His name.
• James reminds us…
• SLIDE #9
• James 2:20 (ESV) Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless?
• When we are thankful to God, we are called to show it by not only what we say but by what we do!
• SLIDE #10
• James 1:27 (ESV) Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
• Our passage tells us not to neglect doing what is good.
• It is easy for us to get so wrapped up in our lives that we can forget that we are called to do good, or to help other people.
• Doing good or helping people is another way to show God that we are thankful for what He has done for us.
• Our works should reflect our thankfulness to God we possess.
• SLIDE #11
III. Thankful people express thankfulness with their wealth.
• Verse 16 also encourages us to and to share what you have
• WE are told that by our works and by sharing what we have that we please God! We are told such sacrifices are pleasing to God!
• If we are truly thankful, then we should want to please God.
• The word “share” comes from the same word that we get “fellowship”.
• This implies that if we are thankful to God, then we should not neglect participating with one another for the cause of Christ.
• SLIDE #12
• 1 John 3:17 (ESV) But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?
• The way that we spend or use the material wealth that we have is a sore spot with a lot of people. I think the reason for that is that we feel guilty.
• It amazes me that the ACLU seems to have all the money that they need for their cause, but many times the church seem to limp along by the skin of its teeth in many areas.
• The way we use the material blessing we receive from God shows Him who we are thankful to for what we have.
• How are we using our wealth? Are we using some of it to promote the kingdom of God? Are we using all that we have on ourselves? Are we robbing God of what is His?
• SLIDE #13
• Malachi 3:8–10 (ESV) 8 Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.
• Part of being thankful to God is trusting that God will take care of you!
• If we use all of our wealth on ourselves, then we are not honoring God, He really is not first for us.
• I believe that God wants to bless us even more if we are willing to let go of some of what we have. We cannot out give God.
• SLIDE #14
• Luke 6:38 (ESV) give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
• When we were kids one of the things that we were taught was how the pilgrims shared what they had with the Indians who helped them to survive the harsh conditions. Giving back is a part of THANKSGIVING.
CONCLUSION
• Hebrews 13:15-16 is really a gage of our spiritual vitality, are we really thankful to God for what He has done for us?
• We are to express thanksgiving to God with our lips, but we also express our gratitude to Him by the way that we live our lives and by the way we share what we have.
• Does your life, words and the way you use your wealth express to God that you are thankful to Him for what He has done for you?
