GIVE THANKS! (A meditation on Thanksgiving)

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords! For His mercy endures forever.

To Him who alone does great wonders, For His mercy endures forever; To Him who by wisdom made the heavens, For His mercy endures forever; To Him who laid out the earth above the waters, For His mercy endures forever; To Him who made great lights,
For His mercy endures forever—The sun to rule by day, For His mercy endures forever; The moon and stars to rule by night, For His mercy endures forever…

Who remembered us in our lowly state, For His mercy endures forever; Who gives food to all flesh, For His mercy endures forever.

What a great one is Psalm 136. It reiterates the power of God in creation, His sovereignty over all rulers, how He delivers His people from their enemies, and His goodness toward them.

We do have certain times of the year to remember and celebrate the blessings and the goodness of the Lord toward us in many ways, on different holidays. We sure enjoy these days and seasons, but we often get to the point where they become a routine for us. Influenced by the world around us, we lack the right attitude and forget the true meaning of them. Most of us tend to give thanks to God on a specific date of the year. But shouldn’t it be an everyday thing for the Christian? We must come before the Lord daily with the right attitude, giving thanks for all that He is, all that He has done and continues to do for His own glory.

The Wrong Attitude

Throughout the holy scriptures, while the Lord has been good to His people, He has also given them requirements. He has specifically prescribed how to approach Him in times of celebrations, sacrifice offerings, services, and in what attitude to come before Him in these times of worship and thanksgiving. But His people do not always follow the divine requirements. Hear what the Lord, through the prophet Isaiah, says:

Hear the word of the Lord, You rulers of Sodom; Give ear to the law of our God, You people of Gomorrah: “To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats. “When you come to appear before Me, Who has required this from your hand,
to trample My courts?  Bring no more futile sacrifices; Incense is an abomination to Me. Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; They are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood. “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice… (Isaiah: 1:10-17).

Like Israel, the people of God, Many of us today often gather for activities and programs, or simply offer lip service to God while our hearts are far from Him (Isaiah 29:13). The Lord hates the kind of service offered to Him as a routine not only with our hearts removed from Him, but also whatever service we offer with a sinful heart.

See that the Lord is here in verse 16, through the prophet Isaiah is primarily calling His people to repentance, purity of hands and heart, before they come to their appointed times of feast, celebration, and thanksgiving.

Our programs, activities, feasts, and celebrations do not matter to God as much as clean hands and pure motives. That includes our singing, our preaching, giving, praying, gathering, and even our daily living. None of these activities of worship glorifies God if we are absent of pure hands and a repenting heart before him.

Always have been amazed at how God spoke His precious words to His covenant people in a very personal way in Psalm 50:

“Hear, O My people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you;
I am God, your God! I will not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings,
Which are continually before Me. I will not take a bull from your house, Nor goats out of your folds. For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.

 I know all the birds of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are Mine.

“If I were hungry, I would not tell you; For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.
Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God thanksgiving,
and pay your vows to the Most High (Ps 50:7-14).

This is a divine reproach directed to the people of God, not because of their act of sacrifice or offering, but because of their attitude in sacrificing. God hates mere ritual. It is an abomination to Him (1 Sam. 15:22).

The Right Attitude

What pleases the Lord? Simply put: Love unto Him and obedience.

King David in the next Psalm (51) tells us exactly what it means to offer thanksgiving to the Lord: The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—These, O God, You will not despise…(Ps 51:17).

Then you shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,
With burnt offering and whole burnt offering; Then they shall offer bulls on Your altar (v. 19).

There it is dear brethren. Let everyone come to the Lord empty handed, needy, repentant, and with contrition of heart first and foremost. Then and only then, we can come unto Him to offer our service, worship, and celebration of thanksgiving.

When Do We Give Thanks?

Even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though its waters roar and be troubled, Though the mountains shake with its swelling… When we have been given very few of material possessions, when our health is poor enough for us to count the number of our remaining days, when the future is uncertain around us, when our loved ones have passed to the unknown, when temptations assail us in our walk with the Lord… there is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. 

We sing with King David:
“Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name!  Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits:
 Who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”

We ought to give thanks to the Lord everyday. He who gives good to all flesh. For the Lord does not only provides for His own children but also for those who are His enemies(Matt 5: 44-48).

Therefore, let all the earth rejoice and give thanks to the Lord always – for He reigns, and His mercy endures forever.