Sermon Illustrations for Thanksgiving Day (2013)
Illustration
Object:
Deuteronomy 26:1-11
Are we in the land that the Lord has given us? Was it given, or did we take it from those who were here before? I taught Apache indians in my first job, and realized that the land we claim belonged to the indians thousands of years before we came! I realize the children of Abraham also chased off people who had occupied the land for generations before they came. They might have taken it from some who had been there long before them! I know that the various tribes including the Apaches had taken land from other tribes also! There seems to be an implication that while God may give us something, we may have to work to get what he has already given!
That "firstfruits" bit should make us think. Do we give God whatever is left over after all our bills are paid? Do we ever add up all our income and take out a share for him first? The Bible even goes beyond the expected 10% when it speaks of tithes and offerings! First we need to evaluate what God has given us and then decide what are our firstfruits. That could pay off the church debt on one Sunday or at least one year!
Most of us can trace our ancestry to another country, unless we are indian. (When one Navajo was addressing a group in Washington DC, he asked how many were born in the U.S. When many hands went up, he said, "Then we are all native Americans if we were all born here. So call us indians or by our tribal name, not just "Native American.")
That next part makes us think! Look how many years the children of Abraham suffered before God heard their cries and sent Moses to free them from bondage. Sometimes we are impatient and want God to answer right now! But how many generations had to suffer before God freed them from Egypt? God does not measure time as we measure it.
Many of our ancestors left their homes overseas because of oppression and injustice and came to these shores looking for freedom. Some found prejudice, but at least they may have found more freedom to worship as they pleased. It might have seemed like the Promised Land. Most found that they still had to work to make it their home! They had to search for places flowing with milk and honey -- depending on what kind of "milk and honey" they were looking for. Some did not mind the empty prairies where they could raise cattle, but others may have found their reward in a factory job or a business. As long as they gave God the credit and thanked him in both word and his share of the proceeds.
If we were here before some others, remember that other "aliens" have a right to rejoice also! Maybe it is our duty to help them rejoice.
Bob O.
Deuteronomy 26:1-11
The Hebrew people were given instructions on how to conduct a harvest celebration with a spirit of thanksgiving in response to God for the blessings of a new land. The Pilgrims celebrated their new homeland in America with a feast of thanksgiving. Eating is not the only way to celebrate; serving is an honorable way also. One day in the spring of 2013 during devotions at Curran Hospital in Zorzor, Liberia, a troop of Ghanaian soldiers (part of the UN military presence) appeared on the compound. This particular day was Independence Day in Ghana. Even though stationed in a foreign country, the troops wanted to celebrate the freedom of their country in a spirit of thanksgiving by offering to clean the hospital compound. What a marvelous way to "celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord... has given."
Mark M.
Philippians 4:4-9
In the comic strip by the same name, Frank and Ernest are coming out of a high school, math class. Frank, wearing a football letterman's sweater, has a particularly quizzical look on his face. He ponders, "I don't get it... Algebra was invented thousands of years ago, and 'X' is still unknown!"
Application: As we live an honorable and just life, our Christian obedience should not be an unknown X to others.
Ron L.
Philippians 4:4-9
Giving thanks makes you happy. Studies by psychologist Robert Emmons have indicated that adults keeping gratitude journals polled as happier and healthier than the general public (Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier). A thankful life changes you, really makes life the beautiful thing that it is, according to American playwright and novelist Thornton Wilder: "We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of [all] our treasures."
Mark E.
John 6:25-35
"Sir, give us this bread always." Were the disciples being a tad bit selfish? It's understandable. Who wouldn't want the security of bread for life? Wouldn't it be grand if life could be just one huge Thanksgiving Day feast? Reality tells us it is not. Art Simon, founder of Bread for the World, reports in his book Rediscovering the Lord's Prayer: "Each day 30,000 children from infancy to age five die from malnutrition and disease." He makes the connection with Jesus, who taught us to pray "Give us today our daily bread." He writes, "Because it is not my bread but our bread for which we pray, we ask that others too may receive what they need. This points us toward the common good and away from lonely acquisition. What we wish for ourselves -- daily bread and the bread of life -- we also wish for others."
Mark M.
John 6:25-35
We don't care about miracles as long as God puts bread on the table. Do the homeless come to the Salvation Army only because there is a free meal? Sure, that may be the start, but we hope it will not be the end and that their hunger may be whetted for spiritual food. People came to my church during the week looking for a handout, but I tried to give them spiritual bread as well. Some were happy for that, but some walked out empty-handed and empty-hearted. Every week I get appeals from my former students in Nepal for a handout. I can understand their urgent needs, but they also receive my prayer support -- sometimes in place of cash. We both know what is more important. Almost all have seen God work miracles in their midst, but God does not always jump to answer when they are hungry.
Most of my Nepali friends work for the food that endures to eternal life. If they weren't they would return to their former faith, since most have been alienated their families who could have given them an unending supply of earthly food. It was a sign of the genuineness of their dedication to our Lord. Would all of us here in America, the richest nation, give all our wealth to serve our Lord? That should give us something to meditate on. Remember the fellow who wanted to follow the Lord, but when he heard that he would have to give away all his wealth it gave him second thoughts?
We often think of God's work as giving to the poor or fighting for the rights of those who are persecuted or treated unjustly. We think of jobs like us pastors, or teachers or councilpersons who serve in some capacity for the Lord. Of course, we need those people! But Jesus seems to be saying that our most important work is to believe in him.
Some are looking for miraculous signs to make them believe. I once attended an Oral Roberts healing meeting in Sacramento. It was crowded with eager people hoping to see some miracles. Would they wait to believe until they saw some signs from heaven? Maybe some would, but the most important work is to believe in Jesus with or without miracles.
If some were healed it was not Oral Roberts who did it, nor was it Moses who gave the Israelites bread from heaven. We miss the point, which is that Jesus is the true bread from heaven!
When we receive the Lord's Supper we show that we believe in the true bread from heaven. I hope it is done because of our belief and not just as routine that we have done for years. I hope that each time we come forward we feel the divine presence in, with, and under that bread! When we receive the Lord's body, we should never be spiritually hungry again!
Bob O.
Are we in the land that the Lord has given us? Was it given, or did we take it from those who were here before? I taught Apache indians in my first job, and realized that the land we claim belonged to the indians thousands of years before we came! I realize the children of Abraham also chased off people who had occupied the land for generations before they came. They might have taken it from some who had been there long before them! I know that the various tribes including the Apaches had taken land from other tribes also! There seems to be an implication that while God may give us something, we may have to work to get what he has already given!
That "firstfruits" bit should make us think. Do we give God whatever is left over after all our bills are paid? Do we ever add up all our income and take out a share for him first? The Bible even goes beyond the expected 10% when it speaks of tithes and offerings! First we need to evaluate what God has given us and then decide what are our firstfruits. That could pay off the church debt on one Sunday or at least one year!
Most of us can trace our ancestry to another country, unless we are indian. (When one Navajo was addressing a group in Washington DC, he asked how many were born in the U.S. When many hands went up, he said, "Then we are all native Americans if we were all born here. So call us indians or by our tribal name, not just "Native American.")
That next part makes us think! Look how many years the children of Abraham suffered before God heard their cries and sent Moses to free them from bondage. Sometimes we are impatient and want God to answer right now! But how many generations had to suffer before God freed them from Egypt? God does not measure time as we measure it.
Many of our ancestors left their homes overseas because of oppression and injustice and came to these shores looking for freedom. Some found prejudice, but at least they may have found more freedom to worship as they pleased. It might have seemed like the Promised Land. Most found that they still had to work to make it their home! They had to search for places flowing with milk and honey -- depending on what kind of "milk and honey" they were looking for. Some did not mind the empty prairies where they could raise cattle, but others may have found their reward in a factory job or a business. As long as they gave God the credit and thanked him in both word and his share of the proceeds.
If we were here before some others, remember that other "aliens" have a right to rejoice also! Maybe it is our duty to help them rejoice.
Bob O.
Deuteronomy 26:1-11
The Hebrew people were given instructions on how to conduct a harvest celebration with a spirit of thanksgiving in response to God for the blessings of a new land. The Pilgrims celebrated their new homeland in America with a feast of thanksgiving. Eating is not the only way to celebrate; serving is an honorable way also. One day in the spring of 2013 during devotions at Curran Hospital in Zorzor, Liberia, a troop of Ghanaian soldiers (part of the UN military presence) appeared on the compound. This particular day was Independence Day in Ghana. Even though stationed in a foreign country, the troops wanted to celebrate the freedom of their country in a spirit of thanksgiving by offering to clean the hospital compound. What a marvelous way to "celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord... has given."
Mark M.
Philippians 4:4-9
In the comic strip by the same name, Frank and Ernest are coming out of a high school, math class. Frank, wearing a football letterman's sweater, has a particularly quizzical look on his face. He ponders, "I don't get it... Algebra was invented thousands of years ago, and 'X' is still unknown!"
Application: As we live an honorable and just life, our Christian obedience should not be an unknown X to others.
Ron L.
Philippians 4:4-9
Giving thanks makes you happy. Studies by psychologist Robert Emmons have indicated that adults keeping gratitude journals polled as happier and healthier than the general public (Thanks! How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier). A thankful life changes you, really makes life the beautiful thing that it is, according to American playwright and novelist Thornton Wilder: "We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of [all] our treasures."
Mark E.
John 6:25-35
"Sir, give us this bread always." Were the disciples being a tad bit selfish? It's understandable. Who wouldn't want the security of bread for life? Wouldn't it be grand if life could be just one huge Thanksgiving Day feast? Reality tells us it is not. Art Simon, founder of Bread for the World, reports in his book Rediscovering the Lord's Prayer: "Each day 30,000 children from infancy to age five die from malnutrition and disease." He makes the connection with Jesus, who taught us to pray "Give us today our daily bread." He writes, "Because it is not my bread but our bread for which we pray, we ask that others too may receive what they need. This points us toward the common good and away from lonely acquisition. What we wish for ourselves -- daily bread and the bread of life -- we also wish for others."
Mark M.
John 6:25-35
We don't care about miracles as long as God puts bread on the table. Do the homeless come to the Salvation Army only because there is a free meal? Sure, that may be the start, but we hope it will not be the end and that their hunger may be whetted for spiritual food. People came to my church during the week looking for a handout, but I tried to give them spiritual bread as well. Some were happy for that, but some walked out empty-handed and empty-hearted. Every week I get appeals from my former students in Nepal for a handout. I can understand their urgent needs, but they also receive my prayer support -- sometimes in place of cash. We both know what is more important. Almost all have seen God work miracles in their midst, but God does not always jump to answer when they are hungry.
Most of my Nepali friends work for the food that endures to eternal life. If they weren't they would return to their former faith, since most have been alienated their families who could have given them an unending supply of earthly food. It was a sign of the genuineness of their dedication to our Lord. Would all of us here in America, the richest nation, give all our wealth to serve our Lord? That should give us something to meditate on. Remember the fellow who wanted to follow the Lord, but when he heard that he would have to give away all his wealth it gave him second thoughts?
We often think of God's work as giving to the poor or fighting for the rights of those who are persecuted or treated unjustly. We think of jobs like us pastors, or teachers or councilpersons who serve in some capacity for the Lord. Of course, we need those people! But Jesus seems to be saying that our most important work is to believe in him.
Some are looking for miraculous signs to make them believe. I once attended an Oral Roberts healing meeting in Sacramento. It was crowded with eager people hoping to see some miracles. Would they wait to believe until they saw some signs from heaven? Maybe some would, but the most important work is to believe in Jesus with or without miracles.
If some were healed it was not Oral Roberts who did it, nor was it Moses who gave the Israelites bread from heaven. We miss the point, which is that Jesus is the true bread from heaven!
When we receive the Lord's Supper we show that we believe in the true bread from heaven. I hope it is done because of our belief and not just as routine that we have done for years. I hope that each time we come forward we feel the divine presence in, with, and under that bread! When we receive the Lord's body, we should never be spiritually hungry again!
Bob O.
