Psalms 107:22 And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing.
This week I challenged the Teens Class to define thanksgiving. Many were aware of the Secular meaning, a holiday established in remembrance of the great act of kindness and sacrifice provided to the pilgrims by the indigenous people of America. The reason this is remembered is because without that act by the native peoples, the pilgrims likely would have died in the coming winter without provisions.
When asked about the biblical meaning of thanksgiving, the answers were less succinct. Many knew thanksgiving towards God required an expression of gratitude, but thanksgiving in the Bible is much more than a thank you uttered in prayer. Many Christians skim over words like this in the Bible, opting to use the definitions provided by the secular world for terms that carry great spiritual weight with God.
As our text makes plain, thanksgiving is something far more than words and appreciation. In the Old Testament thanksgiving required an offering. Not a sacrifice required by commandment, but an offering willingly given on top of mandated sacrifices. Biblical thanksgiving requires you to give something as a token of thanks. If you aren’t giving when you show thanks, you aren’t performing thanksgiving
Thanksgiving in the Bible is an offering. A gift to God (on top of tithes and required sacrifices) as a token of thankfulness. It was literally giving something to God and going without it to show your sincerity towards God.
We’ve got to many Christians that think a scribbled Thank you note or a “thanks, God” uttered in prayer is an act of Thanksgiving. Haven’t you heard someone say something like, “God knows how thankful I am in my heart.” That’s utter hogwash. Thanksgiving isn’t standing up and telling others how thankful you are either, that’s called praise.
True thanksgiving is not done in front of others. It is personal and private. The only ones who knew of an offering of thanks in the Bible were the one giving thanks, the priest who assisted in the offering, and the recipient (God). You have been made a priest so that you can directly to God and offer your own thanksgiving in person to the Almighty. When was the last time that you actually used that privilege and showed thanks to God?
If people got back to a place where they were giving in order to show thanks towards God, Revival would be sure to follow. When was the last time you gave, gave up, or offered something to God as a sign of your thankfulness? When was the last time you took stock of the great number of ways in which God has blessed you until you became burdened to offer up thanksgiving? Have you ever felt so overwhelmed and baffled by the goodness of God that you were willing to give back those blessings to God to show how much more God meant to you than the blessings he has bestowed upon you?
Thanksgiving like that is what moves the heart of God. Thankfulness shown in sincerity draws you closer to God. Because as you present your offering and remove it from your life, it makes room for you to draw closer to God. That is the true purpose of thanksgiving.
Your Fellowservant, Jordan Foster
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