Manuscript for the Thanksgiving Service

P In the name of the Father and of the T Son and of the Holy Spirit.

C Amen.

 

KYRIE    LSB 152

A In peace let us pray to the Lord.

C Lord, have mercy.

A For the peace from above and for our salvation let us pray to the Lord.

C Lord, have mercy.

A For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for the unity of all let us pray to the Lord.

C Lord, have mercy.

A For this holy house and for all who offer here their worship and praise let us pray to the Lord.

C Lord, have mercy.

A Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.

C Amen.

 

892 COME, YE THANKFUL PEOPLE, COME

1 Come, ye thankful people, come;
Raise the song of harvest home.
All be safely gathered in
Ere the winter storms begin;
God, our maker, doth provide
For our wants to be supplied.
Come to God’s own temple, come;
Raise the song of harvest home.

2 All the world is God’s own field,
Fruit unto His praise to yield;
Wheat and tares together sown,
Unto joy or sorrow grown.
First the blade and then the ear,
Then the full corn shall appear.
Lord of harvest, grant that we
Wholesome grain and pure may be.

3 For the Lord, our God, shall come
And shall take His harvest home,
From His field shall in that day
All offenses purge away,
Give His angels charge at last
In the fire the tares to cast,
But the fruitful ears to store
In His garner evermore.

4 Even so, Lord, quickly come
To Thy final harvest home;
Gather Thou Thy people in,
Free from sorrow, free from sin,
There, forever purified,
In Thy garner to abide:
Come with all Thine angels, come,
Raise the glorious harvest home.

Text: Public domain

 

COLLECT OF THE DAY

P Let us pray.

Almighty God, Your mercies are new every morning and You graciously provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant us Your Holy Spirit that we may acknowledge Your goodness, give thanks for Your benefits, and serve You in willing obedience all our days; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C Amen.

 

OLD TESTAMENT READING Deuteronomy 8:1–10

¹“The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers. ²And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. ³And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. ⁴Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. ⁵Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the Lord your God disciplines you. ⁶So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. ⁷For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, ⁸a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, ⁹a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. ¹⁰And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.”

A This is the Word of the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

 

PSALM 67

¹May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
²that your way may be known on earth,
your saving power among all nations.
³Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!

⁴Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you judge the peoples with equity
and guide the nations upon earth.
⁵Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you!

⁶The earth has yielded its increase;
God, our God, shall bless us.
⁷God shall bless us;
let all the ends of the earth fear him!

 

EPISTLE 1 Timothy 2:1–4

¹First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, ²for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. ³This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

A This is the Word of the Lord.

 

HOLY GOSPEL

P The Holy Gospel according to St. Luke, the seventeenth chapter.

¹¹On the way to Jerusalem [Jesus] was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. ¹²And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance ¹³and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” ¹⁴When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. ¹⁵Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; ¹⁶and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. ¹⁷Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? ¹⁸Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”

P This is the Gospel of the Lord.

 

APOSTLES’ CREED

 

SERMON

Jesus said, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine?” (Luke 17:17)

Why did only one of these poor guys say thanks? What were the other nine thinking? We can’t guess what was going on in their minds, but with the examples here given, we can examine our own gratitude, or lack thereof.

Our Day of National Thanksgiving is a uniquely American holiday, deriving from our unique history and heritage. At the core of our American way of life is the idea expressed in the Declaration of Independence: "all men are created equal". In the old world, a complicated system of rank and titles kept men (and women) from being equal. It was simply a matter of fact, you were not equal to a baron or a countess if you were born without such title. So the Founding Fathers made it very clear in the Constitution, Article I, “No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States”.

This is not the place to say if the American form of government is the only right way. Many times over, God has blessed and prospered nations that were governed by royals and nobles who were given their titles by birth or by special favor. However history shows us that when a person has a title, and then because of that title believes that they are higher and more important than others, the result is mischief and abuse. It’s damaging to individual freedoms and detracting to human achievement.

Here’s how the thinking goes. “I bear a mark of distinction, a title. It separates me from the others around me. They are not my equals. I am of a different class, designated by my title. I’m entitled to privileges and pleasures reserved for me.”

Formal titles may be a thing of the past for us here and now. But the selfish attitude of desiring special privileges and pleasures still works mischief among us.

Entitlement is the expectation you have certain privileges coming. There’s a temptation that arises with this attitude: sloth, laziness. By nature, sinful human beings care about self first, and seldom give a care toward the neighbor. You expect your privileges. You don’t expect them to have privileges. Thus when you are entitled, you despise the neighbor.

Then when you get these privileges, you have no attitude gratitude, no thanksgiving. You are just like nine cured lepers that went on with their lives without a care. Thus when you are entitled you despise the Lord.

But then on the other hand, if you feel you are entitled to something special and you don’t get it, the usual response is to pout, to kick and to complain, “It’s not fair.”  

It’s inevitable in this world that people will be defined into certain types and classes. Don’t make too much of it. Don’t just assume that you deserve certain special treatment because of what the world says you are. Position and rank in this life count for very little. What matters is this: who does God says you are?

You are a descendant of Adam. That’s your hereditary title, given you at your birth. It’s a title that marks you as a sinner and entitled to guilt and condemnation.

But now, you who have been baptized have been given a second birth, a new life, a new title. You are a child of God. You are a citizen of heaven, there is where your rights and privileges are to be found.

It is a happy coincidence that our nation’s Thanksgiving holiday comes just a few days before the start of the Church’s new cycle through the seasons of the year: Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter and Pentecost. We will shortly begin again our meditation on the birth, life, death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. As we again celebrate his coming and his birth in Bethlehem, we as the church will marvel at his incarnation. From all eternity, before there was time, he bore the title and truly is Son of God, eternally begotten by His Father in the glorious Trinity. But in his humility and love, he sat that title aside and took up a new title that he liked to use of himself, the Son of Man, born of the Virgin Mary. In love for us poor sinners, he didn’t demand the privileges and pleasures of his high status. He became human, like one created equal with us, flesh and blood, descended from Adam.

Jesus your fellow human being is happy to be with you, at your level and station. Because of that you have a new station, a new position, exalted to be truly a son or daughter of the King of kings and Lord and lords, the Most High God.

True thanksgiving to God must start with the humble admission that you and I haven’t deserved any goodness and favor we have received from him. We don’t have it coming. We weren’t born into it naturally and we haven’t done anything to deserve it since. But in Jesus, our God gives us mercy every day and promises eternal pleasures at his right hand forevermore. Amen.

THANK THE LORD LSB 164

C Thank the Lord and sing His praise; tell ev’ryone what He has done.

Let all who seek the Lord rejoice and proudly bear His name.

He recalls His promises and leads His people forth in joy

with shouts of thanksgiving. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH

O Lord, heavenly Father, from everlasting to everlasting, you are God. You have been our dwelling place in all generations. We give thanks to you that from the beginning of the world You have shown your loving kindness every morning and your faithfulness every night.

We praise you for the glorious gift of your beloved Son Jesus Christ our Lord, the faithful Witness of your grace and mercy and the Ransom to redeem us from all our iniquity. You raised Hi as the First-begotten of the dead, that he might bring many others to glory. Grant that by faith in him we may be clothed in righteousness and be heirs of eternal life.

We thank you, O Holy Spirit for all the gifts you have poured on your people: for the Holy Scriptures that give light for our way and truth for our shield. Open our hearts that that your word may rule our thoughts and lives. Dwell within each of us and impart to us your spiritual gifts.

Here, Today we acknowledge with humble gratitude the blessings that are ours in this good land. We thank you for the privileges we have of freedom, liberty, brotherhood, and prosperity. Clearly you have favored this beautiful country with its bright valleys and majestic mountains, the fertile plains and abundant pastures, industry, technology, and art. Thanks be to You, our Lord.

In every time and situation, be our Refuge and Fortress. Without You we are nothing. You have done all and you have given all without any merit or worthiness in us. So watch over your people. Keep your church here and throughout the world. Save her from faithlessness and from corruption, that she may serve you as your Bride.

Send your light and love into all our homes, that they may be nourished by the truth and grace of Jesus Christ and find joy in His presence.

Save us, O Lord, lest we forget all our good and the source of all our blessing. For unto you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit be unending thanks and glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

LORD’S PRAYER

C Our Father who art in heaven,

     hallowed be Thy name,

     Thy kingdom come,

     Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;

     give us this day our daily bread;

     and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those  who trespass against us;

     and lead us not into temptation,

     but deliver us from evil.

For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

 

BENEDICTION

P The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.

The Lord look upon you with favor and T give you peace.

C Amen.

 

 

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Divine Service, Setting One from Lutheran Service Book

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV^® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2020 Concordia Publishing House.