Thanksgiving Day
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series IX, Cycle B
Object:
Theme of the Day
Why we should be thankful.
Collect of the Day
Petitions are offered that by the Holy Spirit the faithful be led to give thanks. Sanctification as a work of grace by the Holy Spirit is emphasized.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 126
See Advent 3.
Sermon Text and Title
"Is It Natural to Give Thanks?"
Joel 2:21-27
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To examine our physical blessings (Providence) in order to see them as undeserved divine gifts and so to stimulate our thanks (Sanctification).
2. Exegesis (see First Lesson for Ash Wednesday)
* The concluding portion of the prophet's liturgy of national lament. Having called for repentance (2:12-17), the lesson is a mixture of praise for God's gracious response to cries for alleviating the plague of locusts and also further assurances apparently proclaimed by the Lord Himself.
* The land is assured that it can rejoice; animals are assured that the pastures will be green (vv. 21-22). Other indications of flourishing nature are noted (vv. 23-25).
* The people of Israel are assured that they will eat in plenty and the Lord God will be in the midst of them, fully confident that there is none like Him (vv. 26-27). Eschatological proclamations and assurances, not included in the lesson, follow (vv. 28ff).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* An examination of God's providence and how sin blurs the thanks and gratitude we owe God for it (Sanctification). God's care for nature entails an ecological dimension (Social Ethics) to the text.
* John Calvin sees in this text a connection between salvation and ecological sensitivity:
But when God is reconciled to His people, His blessing will smile on the brute animals… We hence see that the fruit of reconciliation is made more evident, when it is in part extended to the brute creation.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XIV/2, p. 81)
* Regarding giving God thanks for the divine bounty, Calvin adds:
We know how difficult it is to lead men to do this act of religion, for which we yet confess that we were born; for what is more natural than to acknowledge God's bounty toward us, when we enjoy many blessings? But yet, though God in various ways stimulates us, He cannot draw from us genuine gratitude.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XIV/2, p. 87)
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Regarding giving thanks and its benefits, see the first bullet point in this section for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5.
* Ecological wantonness continues to plague America and the globe. According to the latest available data, the US led all the nations in oil consumption in 2007, averaging 20.5 billion barrels of oil per day, nearly three times the runner-up, China. Canada ranked ninth in use, with a consumption rate of only 2.3 billion barrels per day. Meanwhile, world carbon dioxide emissions have leapt 31% from 1997 to 2008. Glaciers are disintegrating three times more rapidly than in the 1970s. Failure to act substantively on the recommendations of the much-ballyhooed UN Copenhagen Climate Conference is also relevant for recognizing our neglect of this critical issue.
5. Gimmick
Saying thanks comes easy (sometimes). Why not all the time? The thankful life is a good life; the First Lesson and I want to give you more reasons to be thankful.
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Sometime between the late sixth and late fourth centuries the people of Judah finally had something to celebrate, something for which to give thanks. Though under foreign domination (the Persians), the people were receiving a reprieve from the terrible plague of locusts (vv. 18ff).
* Our First Lesson begins with this celebration (vv. 21-23) -- an ancient version of Thanksgiving.
* In view of the horrors of what they had been enduring from this catastrophic plague, how could the Judeans not give thanks and celebrate? As we noted, saying thanks is natural (most of the time). It's a theme all over the Bible. It appears as a theme in no less than 24 verses in the Psalms, and so was a major theme in Hebrew worship in biblical times. But of course there were also times when, like us, the Hebrews failed to praise and give thanks to God, like when the Hebrews complained about God and Moses in the wilderness (Exodus 17, 32) and when the nine lepers healed by Jesus never thanked Him (Luke 17:11-19). Note that those who fail to give thanks in the Bible are not happy people. Neither are we in our moments of ingratitude.
* We are often not sufficiently thankful, as too often we accept the nice things we have (family, friends, job, shelter, food) and instead act like we deserve them because we have earned them.
* Our assault on the environment is no less an example of our lack of thankfulness. Here we have been given the privilege of dwelling in this glorious world, and instead of showing gratitude we have dominated it like it was ours, messed it up. Cite statistics in the second bullet point of Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights.
* How appropriate that our text today deals with an environmental issue (how the locust plague had played havoc with the Judeans' farming economy). Ask the congregation to consider whether we learn from Joel and the Hebrews he addressed that part of what we have to give thanks for on this Thanksgiving celebration of ours is to thank God for the wonderful environment that surrounds us. That sort of Thanksgiving celebration might make us a little more ecologically sensitive.
* Yes, as natural as giving thanks seems, especially on a day like this one, there are plenty of (too many) instances in life illustrating how little we offer thanks, how hard it is. Note the second quotation by John Calvin in Theological Insights.
* English author Alduous Huxley had it right: "Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted."
* In fact, giving thanks comes so hard for sinners like us that we need a miracle, need the Holy Spirit to prod us into it. That's what the sixteenth-century Heidelberg Catechism taught. Use the last bullet point of Theological Insights for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5. In other words, giving thanks is a miracle, so give God thanks today when you give thanks.
* Ask the congregation how it feels to give thanks. We have already noted how failure to give thanks did not make the ancient Hebrews or the lepers cleansed by Jesus happy. Without thanks, everything feels like entitlement, and what you're entitled to is nothing really to celebrate, because you feel like you've deserved it.
* Note the psychological studies alluded to in the first bullet point of Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5.
* Use the quotation by G.K. Chesterton in this section for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5. A life of thanks leads to happiness. Also note the following quotation by Gerald Good: "If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness, it will change your life mightily." Giving thanks may not be natural, but God surely has created us in such a way as to make it a joy.
7. Wrap-Up
Wish the congregation "Happy Thanksgiving!" Express the hope that they will adopt a lifestyle of thanksgiving. What a wonderful, joyful way to live.
Sermon Text and Title
"Are We All Saved?"
1 Timothy 2:1-7
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To give thanks for a God who wants all to be saved (Atonement as Creating an Actuality of Salvation).
2. Exegesis (see Second Lesson of Christmas for Background on Pastoral Epistles and This Book in Particular)
* The author (not likely Paul) seems to have known some of the authentic Pauline letters and the book of Acts. Allegedly addressed to one of Paul's missionary companions (Acts 16:16-19; 1 Corinthians 4:17). But this letter is less to Timothy than it is a general teaching to the congregation (probably in Ephesus), with Timothy as a cipher for the ideal church leader.
* The letter has two purposes: (1) To provide guidance in the problems of church administration; and (2) To oppose Gnostic-like false teaching of a speculative and moralistic type.
* Main Sections: (1) Salutation and warning against false teachers (ch. 1); (2) Regulations for worship (ch. 2); (3) Qualifications of bishops and deacons (ch. 3); (4) Instructions regarding false teachings of Gnostic-influenced ascetics (4:1-5); (5) Advice to church leaders (4:6--6:2); and final directions (6:2-21).
* Central Themes and Distinct Emphases: (1) Instructions on how to be a good minister; (2) The goodness of the physical creation affirmed; and (3) Expectations on the faithful in view of the gift of grace.
* Providing worship instruction, urges prayers offered for everyone, including kings, so that the faithful may lead lives of good citizens (vv. 1-2).
* Speaks of God our Savior who desires everyone to be saved (vv. 3-4).
* Cites a liturgical fragment extolling Christ as the one mediator between God and humanity, who as human is a ransom for all (vv. 5-6).
* The author identifies himself as a herald and an apostle of the Gentiles (v. 7).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* The text deals with worship, a Satisfaction Theory of Atonement creating an actuality of salvation.
* John Calvin addresses the concern of whether we should pray for kings or rulers who are evil. He wrote:
I answer, the object of our prayer is, that, guided by the Spirit of God, they may begin to impart to us those benefits of which they formerly deprived us. It is our duty, therefore, not only to pray for those who are already worthy, but we must pray to God that He may make bad men good.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XXI/3, p. 52)
* Concerning the reference to the fact that God wills all to be saved (v. 4), Martin Luther writes: "… God saves all the faithful, but He does not save the faithless in the same way" (Luther's Works, Vol. 28, p. 262).
* Karl Barth makes a related point about what to make of the salvation of those without faith:
If we are certainly forbidden to count on this [the salvation of all] as though we had a claim on it… we are surely commanded to the more definitely to hope and pray for it as we may do already on this side of this final possibility, i.e., to hope and pray cautiously and yet distinctly that, in spite of everything which may seem quite conclusively to proclaim the opposite, His compassion should not fail, and that in accordance with His mercy… He "will not cast off for ever" (Lamentations 3:22f, 31).
(Church Dogmatics, Vol. IV/3 First Half, p. 478)
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Americans seem to lack this confidence that God wills the salvation of all, as they tend to construe salvation as contingent on what we must do. See this Section for the Gospel and Second Lesson, Pentecost 2.
5. Gimmick
Are you saved, brother and sister? Are you saved? Speak up!
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Strange way to start a sermon in our denomination, especially on Thanksgiving? Perhaps, but our Second Lesson demands that we give this question our attention.
* Read verses 3-4. Repeat, stressing that God desires everyone to be saved. Then note verse 6, citing that Christ gave himself as a ransom for all.
* If God wants it, does He get it? Are we all saved? Doesn't this go against the grain of the Bible and references to hell (Mark 9:43, 45, 47)?
* Such a teaching also seems to go against the grain of what Americans believe. Consider the data in Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights.
* Why would we not want to jump at this way of thinking? The certainty of salvation sure beats the uncertainty about whether you've done enough works, had a deep enough faith to get saved, right?
* Martin Luther developed this point further, trying to help his hearers appreciate the certainty in salvation they can have as a result of this teaching. If we still have doubts, he contends, we should take hold of our nose, search our guts, and it will become evident that we are part of the world and so belong to the number of the elect (Complete Sermons, Vol. 2/1, p. 364).
* Let's still get clear about what is thought in our text. It leans toward universal salvation (the unequivocal affirmation that all are saved). But the church does not allow us to make that affirmation unequivocally (precisely because of the biblical passages about hell already noted). Consider the quote by Martin Luther in Theological Insights.
* Use Barth's quote in Theological Insights. All receive the gift of salvation (not just the offer of salvation), but the gift is placed in each of our laps. But some are so stubborn as to throw the gift away. (This is the idea of Single Predestination.)
* This is where Barth's reflections fit. It would be a heretical sermon to preach unequivocally that all are saved. But it would be a hard-hearted fool who did not pray for this reality. Good news again: God desires everyone to be saved!
7. Wrap-Up
Why preach on this theme on Thanksgiving? It is a most appropriate theme for the holiday. If we're going to thank God, shouldn't we do it for the most precious of all gifts He gives, salvation? And the message of today is even more fabulous than we could ever imagine. The love God shows us all in providing food and material comforts, family and friends, and jobs, is a love for all when it comes to salvation. A God so profoundly, even unimaginably loving like that truly deserves thanks just for being who He is.
Sermon Text and Title
"Giving Thanks Helps You Get Your Priorities Straight"
Matthew 6:25-33
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To proclaim assurance that God will address the needs and problems of His people, for He is the One who provides good things (Providence and Justification by Grace), along with the construal of Sanctification that follows from these commitments (a life of thanks devoted to God's kingdom as well as to the things of the earth).
2. Exegesis (see Gospel for Epiphany)
* Jesus offers teachings in practical piety, in this case with special attention to undivided devotion to God and His kingdom (v. 24).
* Jesus instructs His followers not to worry about life, what to eat, wear, or about the body (v. 25a). For life is more than food and the body more than clothing (v. 25b). After all, the birds, who are of less value than humans are cared for by God (v. 26).
* Worrying fails to add a single hour to a life span (v. 27). There's no need to worry about clothing when one considers the lilies of the field, which grow without toil yet are marvelously clothed (vv. 28-30).
* Jesus concludes the discourse with questions about why worry about what we will eat, drink, or wear, for it is the Gentiles who strive for such things and God knows we need these things (vv. 31-32). He exhorts instead that we strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all things will be given (v. 33).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* The text provides assurance that God is in control, will address the needs and problems of His people (Providence and Justification by Grace), and Sanctification (calling for a life of thanks devoted to God's kingdom and the things of the earth).
* In John Wesley's view our text directs us to what nature can teach us: "And thus instructed in the philosophy of our heavenly Master we will learn a lesson of faith and cheerfulness from every bird of the air and every flower of the field" (Commentary on the Bible, p. 410).
* God's care is a central theme of the text in John Calvin's view (Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XVI/2, p. 340).
* Martin Luther nicely explains what is at stake in this text:
Day and night everybody's concern is how to make a living. And this stimulates greed to the point where no one is content with what God provides and bestows… Everyone wants to get on better and have more… With this sermon the Lord endeavored to put a brake on such attitude and conduct.
(Complete Sermons, Vol. 7, p. 16)
* Luther also notes that we turn things around too often, not having the food and clothes serve us, but serving them instead (Complete Sermons, Vol. 3/1, p. 111). The animals put us to shame: "Ay, shame on you now, that the little birds are more pious and believing than you; they are happy and sing with joy and know not whether they have anything to eat" (Ibid., p. 114).
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Deism continues to exert an influence in America. A 2006 Harris poll revealed that nearly half (44%) the population believes that God is not directly involved in events, but is just an observer. However, most remain committed to belief in a God who is actively engaged. See this section for the Gospel, Pentecost 6 for more poll data supporting that finding.
5. Gimmick
The confirmation student raised a sound question. Why say thanks to God and not to the parents who gave us everything?
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Is this confirmand's question not ours? Why should God get the credit for our work? Invite the congregation to struggle with this question throughout the holiday.
* A first response might be that God gives us the ability to earn the good things we celebrate at Thanksgiving. But if that's all God does, what's the big deal? This way of thinking (very typical among many Americans [see Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights]) essentially marginalizes God. Is that what we want to say? It would sure make our thanks offered to Him hollow and artificial, for then it would make more sense to offer thanks to those who got the goodies for us. Maybe this is why Thanksgiving in this nation is more of a secular holiday than a religious one.
* Well Jesus and our other Bible lessons seem to undermine this idea that God merely equips us to obtain the good things in life. In our gospel He instructs His followers not to worry about life. Review the last three bullet points of Exegesis, reading the verses that show that God takes care of the things of nature while we do nothing.
* You only get worried if you have a God who is an observer, who leaves things up to you. Also note God's involvement in our First Lesson in ending the plague of locusts (Joel 2:18ff). The people of Israel did nothing to rid themselves of the locusts. Lilies and birds do nothing and are clothed. So it is with us. Consider the quote by John Wesley and the second quote by Martin Luther in Theological Insights. The animals and lilies of the field put our faith to shame as they wait for God to work, without the anxiety we humans feel.
* It may look and even feel like, as it did to the young confirmation student, that we are doing a lot of work in feeding and clothing ourselves. But as Martin Luther so thoughtfully pointed out, we are just "the fingers of our Lord God" in the gifts he gives (Complete Sermons, Vol. 6, p. 400), His "masks" (Luther's Works, Vol. 14, pp. 114-115). Fingers and masks don't deserve much credit. It's the person who does the nice thing for you who gets the thanks, not their fingers or their masks. That's why we thank God and not our parents and other loved ones who gave us what we had.
* This insight also helps us get our priorities straight. We are being foolish worrying about all the things we need to obtain, when in fact it is God who is the One who gets them for us. We're just wasting our time with all that worry and anxiety about things. Use the first quotation by Luther in Theological Insights.
* Still not confident about God providing for you and yours? Jesus reminds us again to consider the leaves and the birds (vv. 26-28). But we might also keep in mind our Second Lesson's claim that God wills the salvation of all (1 Timothy 2:3-4). It would make no sense for God to want to save us all if He did not also care for our physical needs. It would be as absurd as the parent who paid for his child's college tuition but didn't feed and clothe him in his growing years. No, if God plans to save us, He must be taking care of us too. Give thanks.
* When we get our priorities straight, fully confident that God is the One who provides us with what we need, it changes our outlook on things, makes life a lot happier and carefree.
7. Wrap-Up
Being thankful in this way gives you a new, healthier, more carefree perspective on things. When you focus on God in thankful praise you get your priorities right, seeing that giving thanks to God outweighs seeking "things." The more you're into God, the less pressure you'll feel to obtain. See the Gerald Good quote in the last bullet point of this section for the First Lesson. He's right. Being thankful changes your life. It makes you more faithful. May our Thanksgiving celebration never end.
Why we should be thankful.
Collect of the Day
Petitions are offered that by the Holy Spirit the faithful be led to give thanks. Sanctification as a work of grace by the Holy Spirit is emphasized.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 126
See Advent 3.
Sermon Text and Title
"Is It Natural to Give Thanks?"
Joel 2:21-27
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To examine our physical blessings (Providence) in order to see them as undeserved divine gifts and so to stimulate our thanks (Sanctification).
2. Exegesis (see First Lesson for Ash Wednesday)
* The concluding portion of the prophet's liturgy of national lament. Having called for repentance (2:12-17), the lesson is a mixture of praise for God's gracious response to cries for alleviating the plague of locusts and also further assurances apparently proclaimed by the Lord Himself.
* The land is assured that it can rejoice; animals are assured that the pastures will be green (vv. 21-22). Other indications of flourishing nature are noted (vv. 23-25).
* The people of Israel are assured that they will eat in plenty and the Lord God will be in the midst of them, fully confident that there is none like Him (vv. 26-27). Eschatological proclamations and assurances, not included in the lesson, follow (vv. 28ff).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* An examination of God's providence and how sin blurs the thanks and gratitude we owe God for it (Sanctification). God's care for nature entails an ecological dimension (Social Ethics) to the text.
* John Calvin sees in this text a connection between salvation and ecological sensitivity:
But when God is reconciled to His people, His blessing will smile on the brute animals… We hence see that the fruit of reconciliation is made more evident, when it is in part extended to the brute creation.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XIV/2, p. 81)
* Regarding giving God thanks for the divine bounty, Calvin adds:
We know how difficult it is to lead men to do this act of religion, for which we yet confess that we were born; for what is more natural than to acknowledge God's bounty toward us, when we enjoy many blessings? But yet, though God in various ways stimulates us, He cannot draw from us genuine gratitude.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XIV/2, p. 87)
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Regarding giving thanks and its benefits, see the first bullet point in this section for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5.
* Ecological wantonness continues to plague America and the globe. According to the latest available data, the US led all the nations in oil consumption in 2007, averaging 20.5 billion barrels of oil per day, nearly three times the runner-up, China. Canada ranked ninth in use, with a consumption rate of only 2.3 billion barrels per day. Meanwhile, world carbon dioxide emissions have leapt 31% from 1997 to 2008. Glaciers are disintegrating three times more rapidly than in the 1970s. Failure to act substantively on the recommendations of the much-ballyhooed UN Copenhagen Climate Conference is also relevant for recognizing our neglect of this critical issue.
5. Gimmick
Saying thanks comes easy (sometimes). Why not all the time? The thankful life is a good life; the First Lesson and I want to give you more reasons to be thankful.
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Sometime between the late sixth and late fourth centuries the people of Judah finally had something to celebrate, something for which to give thanks. Though under foreign domination (the Persians), the people were receiving a reprieve from the terrible plague of locusts (vv. 18ff).
* Our First Lesson begins with this celebration (vv. 21-23) -- an ancient version of Thanksgiving.
* In view of the horrors of what they had been enduring from this catastrophic plague, how could the Judeans not give thanks and celebrate? As we noted, saying thanks is natural (most of the time). It's a theme all over the Bible. It appears as a theme in no less than 24 verses in the Psalms, and so was a major theme in Hebrew worship in biblical times. But of course there were also times when, like us, the Hebrews failed to praise and give thanks to God, like when the Hebrews complained about God and Moses in the wilderness (Exodus 17, 32) and when the nine lepers healed by Jesus never thanked Him (Luke 17:11-19). Note that those who fail to give thanks in the Bible are not happy people. Neither are we in our moments of ingratitude.
* We are often not sufficiently thankful, as too often we accept the nice things we have (family, friends, job, shelter, food) and instead act like we deserve them because we have earned them.
* Our assault on the environment is no less an example of our lack of thankfulness. Here we have been given the privilege of dwelling in this glorious world, and instead of showing gratitude we have dominated it like it was ours, messed it up. Cite statistics in the second bullet point of Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights.
* How appropriate that our text today deals with an environmental issue (how the locust plague had played havoc with the Judeans' farming economy). Ask the congregation to consider whether we learn from Joel and the Hebrews he addressed that part of what we have to give thanks for on this Thanksgiving celebration of ours is to thank God for the wonderful environment that surrounds us. That sort of Thanksgiving celebration might make us a little more ecologically sensitive.
* Yes, as natural as giving thanks seems, especially on a day like this one, there are plenty of (too many) instances in life illustrating how little we offer thanks, how hard it is. Note the second quotation by John Calvin in Theological Insights.
* English author Alduous Huxley had it right: "Most human beings have an almost infinite capacity for taking things for granted."
* In fact, giving thanks comes so hard for sinners like us that we need a miracle, need the Holy Spirit to prod us into it. That's what the sixteenth-century Heidelberg Catechism taught. Use the last bullet point of Theological Insights for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5. In other words, giving thanks is a miracle, so give God thanks today when you give thanks.
* Ask the congregation how it feels to give thanks. We have already noted how failure to give thanks did not make the ancient Hebrews or the lepers cleansed by Jesus happy. Without thanks, everything feels like entitlement, and what you're entitled to is nothing really to celebrate, because you feel like you've deserved it.
* Note the psychological studies alluded to in the first bullet point of Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5.
* Use the quotation by G.K. Chesterton in this section for the First Lesson, Pentecost 5. A life of thanks leads to happiness. Also note the following quotation by Gerald Good: "If you want to turn your life around, try thankfulness, it will change your life mightily." Giving thanks may not be natural, but God surely has created us in such a way as to make it a joy.
7. Wrap-Up
Wish the congregation "Happy Thanksgiving!" Express the hope that they will adopt a lifestyle of thanksgiving. What a wonderful, joyful way to live.
Sermon Text and Title
"Are We All Saved?"
1 Timothy 2:1-7
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To give thanks for a God who wants all to be saved (Atonement as Creating an Actuality of Salvation).
2. Exegesis (see Second Lesson of Christmas for Background on Pastoral Epistles and This Book in Particular)
* The author (not likely Paul) seems to have known some of the authentic Pauline letters and the book of Acts. Allegedly addressed to one of Paul's missionary companions (Acts 16:16-19; 1 Corinthians 4:17). But this letter is less to Timothy than it is a general teaching to the congregation (probably in Ephesus), with Timothy as a cipher for the ideal church leader.
* The letter has two purposes: (1) To provide guidance in the problems of church administration; and (2) To oppose Gnostic-like false teaching of a speculative and moralistic type.
* Main Sections: (1) Salutation and warning against false teachers (ch. 1); (2) Regulations for worship (ch. 2); (3) Qualifications of bishops and deacons (ch. 3); (4) Instructions regarding false teachings of Gnostic-influenced ascetics (4:1-5); (5) Advice to church leaders (4:6--6:2); and final directions (6:2-21).
* Central Themes and Distinct Emphases: (1) Instructions on how to be a good minister; (2) The goodness of the physical creation affirmed; and (3) Expectations on the faithful in view of the gift of grace.
* Providing worship instruction, urges prayers offered for everyone, including kings, so that the faithful may lead lives of good citizens (vv. 1-2).
* Speaks of God our Savior who desires everyone to be saved (vv. 3-4).
* Cites a liturgical fragment extolling Christ as the one mediator between God and humanity, who as human is a ransom for all (vv. 5-6).
* The author identifies himself as a herald and an apostle of the Gentiles (v. 7).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* The text deals with worship, a Satisfaction Theory of Atonement creating an actuality of salvation.
* John Calvin addresses the concern of whether we should pray for kings or rulers who are evil. He wrote:
I answer, the object of our prayer is, that, guided by the Spirit of God, they may begin to impart to us those benefits of which they formerly deprived us. It is our duty, therefore, not only to pray for those who are already worthy, but we must pray to God that He may make bad men good.
(Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XXI/3, p. 52)
* Concerning the reference to the fact that God wills all to be saved (v. 4), Martin Luther writes: "… God saves all the faithful, but He does not save the faithless in the same way" (Luther's Works, Vol. 28, p. 262).
* Karl Barth makes a related point about what to make of the salvation of those without faith:
If we are certainly forbidden to count on this [the salvation of all] as though we had a claim on it… we are surely commanded to the more definitely to hope and pray for it as we may do already on this side of this final possibility, i.e., to hope and pray cautiously and yet distinctly that, in spite of everything which may seem quite conclusively to proclaim the opposite, His compassion should not fail, and that in accordance with His mercy… He "will not cast off for ever" (Lamentations 3:22f, 31).
(Church Dogmatics, Vol. IV/3 First Half, p. 478)
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Americans seem to lack this confidence that God wills the salvation of all, as they tend to construe salvation as contingent on what we must do. See this Section for the Gospel and Second Lesson, Pentecost 2.
5. Gimmick
Are you saved, brother and sister? Are you saved? Speak up!
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Strange way to start a sermon in our denomination, especially on Thanksgiving? Perhaps, but our Second Lesson demands that we give this question our attention.
* Read verses 3-4. Repeat, stressing that God desires everyone to be saved. Then note verse 6, citing that Christ gave himself as a ransom for all.
* If God wants it, does He get it? Are we all saved? Doesn't this go against the grain of the Bible and references to hell (Mark 9:43, 45, 47)?
* Such a teaching also seems to go against the grain of what Americans believe. Consider the data in Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights.
* Why would we not want to jump at this way of thinking? The certainty of salvation sure beats the uncertainty about whether you've done enough works, had a deep enough faith to get saved, right?
* Martin Luther developed this point further, trying to help his hearers appreciate the certainty in salvation they can have as a result of this teaching. If we still have doubts, he contends, we should take hold of our nose, search our guts, and it will become evident that we are part of the world and so belong to the number of the elect (Complete Sermons, Vol. 2/1, p. 364).
* Let's still get clear about what is thought in our text. It leans toward universal salvation (the unequivocal affirmation that all are saved). But the church does not allow us to make that affirmation unequivocally (precisely because of the biblical passages about hell already noted). Consider the quote by Martin Luther in Theological Insights.
* Use Barth's quote in Theological Insights. All receive the gift of salvation (not just the offer of salvation), but the gift is placed in each of our laps. But some are so stubborn as to throw the gift away. (This is the idea of Single Predestination.)
* This is where Barth's reflections fit. It would be a heretical sermon to preach unequivocally that all are saved. But it would be a hard-hearted fool who did not pray for this reality. Good news again: God desires everyone to be saved!
7. Wrap-Up
Why preach on this theme on Thanksgiving? It is a most appropriate theme for the holiday. If we're going to thank God, shouldn't we do it for the most precious of all gifts He gives, salvation? And the message of today is even more fabulous than we could ever imagine. The love God shows us all in providing food and material comforts, family and friends, and jobs, is a love for all when it comes to salvation. A God so profoundly, even unimaginably loving like that truly deserves thanks just for being who He is.
Sermon Text and Title
"Giving Thanks Helps You Get Your Priorities Straight"
Matthew 6:25-33
1. Theological Aim of the Sermon and Strategy
To proclaim assurance that God will address the needs and problems of His people, for He is the One who provides good things (Providence and Justification by Grace), along with the construal of Sanctification that follows from these commitments (a life of thanks devoted to God's kingdom as well as to the things of the earth).
2. Exegesis (see Gospel for Epiphany)
* Jesus offers teachings in practical piety, in this case with special attention to undivided devotion to God and His kingdom (v. 24).
* Jesus instructs His followers not to worry about life, what to eat, wear, or about the body (v. 25a). For life is more than food and the body more than clothing (v. 25b). After all, the birds, who are of less value than humans are cared for by God (v. 26).
* Worrying fails to add a single hour to a life span (v. 27). There's no need to worry about clothing when one considers the lilies of the field, which grow without toil yet are marvelously clothed (vv. 28-30).
* Jesus concludes the discourse with questions about why worry about what we will eat, drink, or wear, for it is the Gentiles who strive for such things and God knows we need these things (vv. 31-32). He exhorts instead that we strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all things will be given (v. 33).
3. Theological Insights (see Charts of the Major Theological Options)
* The text provides assurance that God is in control, will address the needs and problems of His people (Providence and Justification by Grace), and Sanctification (calling for a life of thanks devoted to God's kingdom and the things of the earth).
* In John Wesley's view our text directs us to what nature can teach us: "And thus instructed in the philosophy of our heavenly Master we will learn a lesson of faith and cheerfulness from every bird of the air and every flower of the field" (Commentary on the Bible, p. 410).
* God's care is a central theme of the text in John Calvin's view (Calvin's Commentaries, Vol. XVI/2, p. 340).
* Martin Luther nicely explains what is at stake in this text:
Day and night everybody's concern is how to make a living. And this stimulates greed to the point where no one is content with what God provides and bestows… Everyone wants to get on better and have more… With this sermon the Lord endeavored to put a brake on such attitude and conduct.
(Complete Sermons, Vol. 7, p. 16)
* Luther also notes that we turn things around too often, not having the food and clothes serve us, but serving them instead (Complete Sermons, Vol. 3/1, p. 111). The animals put us to shame: "Ay, shame on you now, that the little birds are more pious and believing than you; they are happy and sing with joy and know not whether they have anything to eat" (Ibid., p. 114).
4. Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights
* Deism continues to exert an influence in America. A 2006 Harris poll revealed that nearly half (44%) the population believes that God is not directly involved in events, but is just an observer. However, most remain committed to belief in a God who is actively engaged. See this section for the Gospel, Pentecost 6 for more poll data supporting that finding.
5. Gimmick
The confirmation student raised a sound question. Why say thanks to God and not to the parents who gave us everything?
6. Possible Sermon Moves and/or Stories/Examples
* Is this confirmand's question not ours? Why should God get the credit for our work? Invite the congregation to struggle with this question throughout the holiday.
* A first response might be that God gives us the ability to earn the good things we celebrate at Thanksgiving. But if that's all God does, what's the big deal? This way of thinking (very typical among many Americans [see Socio-Economic, Political, Psychological, and Scientific Insights]) essentially marginalizes God. Is that what we want to say? It would sure make our thanks offered to Him hollow and artificial, for then it would make more sense to offer thanks to those who got the goodies for us. Maybe this is why Thanksgiving in this nation is more of a secular holiday than a religious one.
* Well Jesus and our other Bible lessons seem to undermine this idea that God merely equips us to obtain the good things in life. In our gospel He instructs His followers not to worry about life. Review the last three bullet points of Exegesis, reading the verses that show that God takes care of the things of nature while we do nothing.
* You only get worried if you have a God who is an observer, who leaves things up to you. Also note God's involvement in our First Lesson in ending the plague of locusts (Joel 2:18ff). The people of Israel did nothing to rid themselves of the locusts. Lilies and birds do nothing and are clothed. So it is with us. Consider the quote by John Wesley and the second quote by Martin Luther in Theological Insights. The animals and lilies of the field put our faith to shame as they wait for God to work, without the anxiety we humans feel.
* It may look and even feel like, as it did to the young confirmation student, that we are doing a lot of work in feeding and clothing ourselves. But as Martin Luther so thoughtfully pointed out, we are just "the fingers of our Lord God" in the gifts he gives (Complete Sermons, Vol. 6, p. 400), His "masks" (Luther's Works, Vol. 14, pp. 114-115). Fingers and masks don't deserve much credit. It's the person who does the nice thing for you who gets the thanks, not their fingers or their masks. That's why we thank God and not our parents and other loved ones who gave us what we had.
* This insight also helps us get our priorities straight. We are being foolish worrying about all the things we need to obtain, when in fact it is God who is the One who gets them for us. We're just wasting our time with all that worry and anxiety about things. Use the first quotation by Luther in Theological Insights.
* Still not confident about God providing for you and yours? Jesus reminds us again to consider the leaves and the birds (vv. 26-28). But we might also keep in mind our Second Lesson's claim that God wills the salvation of all (1 Timothy 2:3-4). It would make no sense for God to want to save us all if He did not also care for our physical needs. It would be as absurd as the parent who paid for his child's college tuition but didn't feed and clothe him in his growing years. No, if God plans to save us, He must be taking care of us too. Give thanks.
* When we get our priorities straight, fully confident that God is the One who provides us with what we need, it changes our outlook on things, makes life a lot happier and carefree.
7. Wrap-Up
Being thankful in this way gives you a new, healthier, more carefree perspective on things. When you focus on God in thankful praise you get your priorities right, seeing that giving thanks to God outweighs seeking "things." The more you're into God, the less pressure you'll feel to obtain. See the Gerald Good quote in the last bullet point of this section for the First Lesson. He's right. Being thankful changes your life. It makes you more faithful. May our Thanksgiving celebration never end.
