Thanksgiving Sermon

November 21 Reconciling Power Colossians 1:11-20

I was, you might say, called into the Presbyterian church by the Confession of 1967, which chose as its theme the message of reconciliation. To my young heart, this document represented the power of God at work in a church that intended to change the world through reconciling love.

The Confession is summarized in this morning's reading from Colossians 1:20: "through [Christ] God was pleased to reconcile…all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross." … As the Confession says, "God’s reconciling work in Jesus Christ and the mission of reconciliation to which he has called his church are the heart of the gospel in any age. Our generation stands in peculiar need of reconciliation in Christ." And I say it's just as true today as it was in 1967!

Despite our mistakes, the Church lives in the grace of God, and when we practice this ministry of reconciliation we impart God's grace to the world. A General Assembly moderator said once to an unruly assembly, "We are a family. God has put together and we're going to have to behave!" We belong to a family with a tradition of contention, but our family includes all those contentious saints in the New Testament churches. So Colossians invites us to "Give thanks with joy to the one who has enabled us to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light."

Thanksgiving is often a time for self-congratulation. There are two New Testament models for this sort of prayer.

One is the "I've-got-it-made" prayer of the rich farmer who had just completed his building campaign and said to himself, "Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” We know what happened to him that very night.

The other is the Pharisee whose prayer we studied a few weeks ago: "God, I thank you that are are not like other nations: I know we've been blessed by your goodness, and although we fight awfully hard to protect it, we also worship you on a regular basis.”

The Confession of 1967 defines a Presbyterian prayer of thanksgiving: "Thanksgiving is rejoicing in God's goodness to all people and in giving for the needs of others." Thanksgiving is not just about us. And it's not just a matter of words and talk. It must be genuine thanksgiving that shows itself in action.

Here's an example of an authentic NT prayer of thanksgiving (Ephesians 3:20-21):
Now to [the One] who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to [God] be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen. 

You know from the way I preach that I don't tell you what to do, either in reading scripture, or what course of action to take, whether mission, or social justice or ministries of compassion, or interpersonal behavior. I try to raise questions that prompt you to think in new ways.

Today I invite you to make a commitment to do one thing this Thursday and to write it down on your bulletin. Take it home and put that piece of paper in a prominent place to remind yourself of what you are going to do. This Thanksgiving, try something different around the Thanksgiving table.

What does it mean for you to give thanks with joy? What action might express that? I can't answer for you. My friend Marv Lagstein used to come up with a question every year for the Passover gathering. Each year there was a topic for reflection and each person at the table was expected to speak. I wonder if your Thanksgiving includes a conversation about what you are giving thanks for? Perhaps you could talk about where the food comes from and the people who brought it to you. For many of us, Thanksgiving is one of those times that we say grace before we eat, even if we don't do it every time.

What would leave you feeling at the end of the day that you had truly given thanks with joy? Do you need something more than just words? Some people serve meals at homeless shelters. Some extend the hospitality at their own thanksgiving table. Some make resolutions repenting of how much they consumed at Thanksgiving. I wonder if there's any way to bring Thanksgiving into Black Friday and shopping for Christmas? Is there some way to (as our Sunday School curriculum invited us to do in the opening prayer) to go beyond thanksgiving to thanks-living? I don't know what works for you, but I would invite you to think about it and write something down on your bulletin. Some step you plan to take to live out your thanksgiving with joy.

If each of us does one thing, it will expand Thanksgiving into a time of reconciliation and joy for many more of God's children. That's thanks-living. May it be so!