25 November 2021, Anno Domini
Thanksgiving Day
2021
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COME, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
2. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. 4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. 5 The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.
6 O 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. To day if ye will hear his voice,
8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.
10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:
11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest. (Psalm 95:1-11)
It would be a mighty presumption on my part to expect to make a better explanation of our means and purposes of THANKSGIVING than that presented in God’s Word above. But in this Psalm is presented a very useful approach to rendering thanks to our Lord. The first manner of expressing Godly Thanksgiving is with song. We are not singing to impress any audience, but we sing “unto the Lord.” Once again, I remind you that this is the aim and purpose of the classic hymns of the Church. They embody true biblical doctrine and they return all the glory to God. Nothing can lift the despondent soul more than the singing of the blessed old hymns. I know from experience!
In our Thanksgiving, we acknowledge the Lord as the very ROCK of our salvation. We should never come before the Lord WITHOUT a spirit of Thanksgiving for we owe Him our all. There is not power – no little gods, no potentate, no totalitarian power, that can measure up to the Almighty power of our God. He raises up rulers and he dethrones them. He determines the end of all things. There are no mysteries that escape His certain knowledge – even those of the hidden chambers of the heart.
We do not come before the Lord with irreverence. We do not scream and shout at Him. He is not deaf to hear our petitions even when not spoken. We come before His Excellency on bended knee. We are less than sheep compared to this great Sovereign who deigns to be our Shepherd. Never utter a lamentation against the Lord of Lords and King of Kings. He does all things well.
I fear the Lord has grieved with this generation in America for forty years as well. We have denounced the Power on High, we have elevated evil as good, and demeaned that which is good as evil. We have advanced depraved men and women to roles of leadership in our nation for which we shall soon pay in deprivations unmentionable. We must soon turn from our wicked ways and behold that One on the cross who died that we might truly be free. We are not judged simply by whom we exalt to leadership over us, but for our individual heart conditions. To turn the nation back to God, we must individually repent and be thankful for the opportunity.
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or the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? (1 Peter 4:17-18)
A Happy & Blessed Thanksgiving!
Jerry L. Ogles
Presiding Bishop
