THANKSGIVING

In a few days our nation will pause and celebrate Thanksgiving.  As we as a nation stop to give thanks, it may appear there is little to be thankful for. A short time spent listening to the national news or reading the newspaper would indicate times are bad and getting worse.  Is this really the case?  Do we have any reason to give thanks?  Yes we do. We can be thankful for our nation.  America is certainly not perfect and we all should do our part to improve the nation.  But what other country provides the freedom and opportunity that ours does?  We can worship God without governmental interference.  We are not required to pay taxes to support the nationally recognized religion and it’s particular practices.  Nor are we required to participate in that religion’s public observances.

We can be thankful for Jesus.  He died for our sins, receiving the punishment we rightly deserve (Isaiah 53:1-12; Titus 2:14; I Peter 2:24).  John wrote that Jesus “is the propitiation for our sins” (I John 2:2).  To propitiate is to “appease (an offended person)” (The Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus, page 1199). Before the Jewish council Peter proclaimed, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).  Without Jesus there is no hope of salvation from sin.  Nor can one find release from the guilt sins bring.

Jesus promised to build His church and then did it (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:47).  The church is where God places the saved (Acts 2:47).  The church serves as: the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:22-33); the body of Christ (Ephesians 1:22,23; Colossians 1:18); the temple of God (I Corinthians 3:10-16); it is also the family or household of God (I Timothy 3:15).

We can also be thankful for the way Jesus organized the church.  With each congregation independent and self-ruling from all others, there is the safeguard against apostasy.  When a congregation departs from “the faith once delivered to the saints” (Jude 3), no other congregation is compelled to follow.  If the structure involved one congregation or one eldership or one man over several congregations, then when the leading church departs all those under their authority would also depart.

The leadership of the local congregation belonging to an eldership made up of two or more men meeting specified qualifications is another thing to be thankful for.  These men bring a check and balances to the leadership.  This structure prevents one man from imposing his will rather then the Lord’s will on the congregation.

As this article closes, consider one more area of thanks: your personal blessings. As the song we sing admonishes “Count your blessings, name them one by one.  Count your blessings see what God has done.”  As you count you will no doubt be amazed how much you personally can be thankful for.

—Denny