Steve Ellison: Thanksgiving

  • Saturday, November 21, 2015
  • Steve Ellison

Those of us who are parents already understand the lesson found in the following illustration.  We love to give gifts to our children.  We desire to meet their needs and even their wants.  The warm satisfaction we feel makes the sacrifices we made on their behalf all very much worth it.  However, it is much more satisfying when our gifts are received with gratitude and thankfulness.  God has given us many, many gifts, too numerous to count.  Psalms 95:1-8 gives the best and most important and most basic reason for us to give thanks to God, “O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. 2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. 3 For the Lord is a great God And a great King above all gods, 4 In whose hand are the depths of the earth, The peaks of the mountains are His also. 5 The sea is His, for it was He who made it, And His hands formed the dry land. 6 Come, let us worship and bow down, Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. 7 For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you would hear His voice, 8 Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, As in the day of Massah in the wilderness.” (NASU) 

God is our Creator.  God is the omnipotent being whose holiness and justice required our eternal punishment.  God is the omniscient being whose love devised a way for His holiness and justice to be satisfied without eternal punishment for us. God is the being who is so great that we cannot look on Him and live.  God is the creator and owner of every single thing in the universe.  He needs no one and no thing and yet He desires fellowship with us.  God wants a relationship with the people He created in spite of their rebellion.  God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit gave the greatest sacrifice possible in order to make that relationship a possibility.  The greatest gift ever given is the gift of relationship with God.  Keep in mind that this relationship is not just any relationship but rather that of adopted child.  We are indeed the “people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand”.

As parents want to hear the voice of their children and also want their children to hear their voice, God desires the same from and for us.  Verses 7 and 8 give us clear direction about maintaining this best of all relationships.  If we are to hear the voice of God, we must not harden our hearts as our forefathers did at Meribah also known as Massah.  At Meribah the Israelites failed to thank God for the miraculous deliverance from Egypt, the miraculous provision of water, the miraculous provision of manna, the miraculous provision of quail, etc.  Instead they grumbled and complained against Moses and God.  A life of thanksgiving is a two sided coin.  If we are to be able to come before the presence of the Lord joyfully singing and with thanksgiving, we must eliminate the complaining, grumbling, and murmuring that hardens our hearts.  The spirit of complaining that permeates many of our lives makes it impossible for us to live lives of thanksgiving to God, our Creator, Sustainer, and Deliverer.  Verse 6 gives the result of a life of thanksgiving.  We will bow to His majesty and give Him the worship He deserves.

----

pastorsteve8800@gmail.com

Latest Headlines
Church
Bob Tamasy: A Notable Time When Politics And Faith Intersected
Bob Tamasy: A Notable Time When Politics And Faith Intersected
  • 3/14/2024

This being another Presidential election year, it seems appropriate to consider something that happened nearly 50 years ago. A new term burst upon the American psyche: “born again.” This came ... more

"My Son's Been Busy" Is Topic Sunday At Middle Valley Church Of God
  • 3/13/2024

Middle Valley Church of God, 1703 Thrasher Pike in Hixson, announces that Pastor Mitch McClure will be preaching on the topic, "He's My Boy," this Sunday in the 10:30 a.m. service. The sermon ... more

Community Partners Collaborate To Host 2024 Chattanooga Men's Health Summit
Community Partners Collaborate To Host 2024 Chattanooga Men's Health Summit
  • 3/13/2024

Tennessee Men’s Health Network, Mt. Canaan Baptist Church and Purpose Point Community Health are partnering to host the 2024 Chattanooga Men’s Health Summit. The event will take place on Saturday, ... more