The psalmist writes:

1 Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!
2 Worship the Lord with gladness.
Come before him, singing with joy.
3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God!
He made us, and we are his.
We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise.
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the Lord is good.
His unfailing love continues forever,
and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

We read part of this scripture on Wednesday night as part of our Mosaic thanksgiving service.
What does it mean to enter his gates with thanksgiving?

I don’t know about you, but I am looking forward to this coming week. Rebecca will be leaving for Roanoke about 2:00 Tuesday afternoon. We will drive up and pick her up and then continue on to East Berlin. Last year I shared with you some of the unique Thanksgiving celebrations we’ve had together. This year will be different because Rebecca has been away. Pam and I are looking forward to spending some time with her. One of our new traditions that was started last year and James is looking forward to is our evening Thanksgiving meal at Sheetz in Winchester. So that is already in the works.

Friday, I will get up early to go into RadioShack and help launch the unofficial start of the Christmas season in retail. Is thanksgiving about turkey and potato filling and baked corn and pumpkin pie? Yes. Is thanksgiving about family? Yes (We will get to see both sets of parents on our trip to Pennsylvania. Is thanksgiving about football? It could be. So what does it mean to enter his gates with thanksgiving? How does that apply to all I have just said? We are going to try something different this morning. It was more difficult than I thought it would have been initially. Let’s take a look at what it means to be thankful by using the letters of the word, THANKSGIVING.

T – Thankful Heart – This one is pretty obvious. Paul writes in his letter to the church at Philippi:

4 Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! 5 Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon.
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4:4-9)

We are to give thanks for all God has done. On Wednesday night, I asked our students what they were thankful for. Believe it or not, we received some insightful answers. The one I thought was the best was, we need to be thankful for what we have and not complain about what we don’t. So many people like to belly-ache about the things God hasn’t done for them, but God doesn’t owe us anything. We were rebellious and yet (and I’m getting ahead of myself) he has showered his grace down on us. So, thank God for what He has done – Give thanks that Jesus came for our salvation.

H – Help Hands – for this one let’s go to the letter of James, chapter 1, verse 27.

27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

Or as the writer of Hebrew says:

15 Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. 16 And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God.

When we realize what God has done for us, we should want to help others. The scriptures are clear that this is something that a Christ-follower should do.

A – Adoration
This means that we are very fond of our God. (Can you say that you adore your God?) You should be able to. The psalmist wrote that we should acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us. He cares about us like a shepherd cares for his sheep.

N – Nearness of God’s Presence
When we have an attitude of thankfulness, we will sense that God is near.

1 We thank you, O God!
We give thanks because you are near.
People everywhere tell of your wonderful deeds.

K – Kneeling
When we are thankful to God for who he is and what he has done in our lives we are humbled. Kneeling is symbolic of our humility to God for who he is and what he has done for us. Humility is something that was modeled for us by Christ.

5 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

6 Though he was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
7 Instead, he gave up his divine privilege;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
8 he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

S – Singing/Shouting
If kneeling is an attitude of humility, then singing or shouting is an attitude of praise and worship to our God. Paul writes in Colossians 3:16:

16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.

G – Giving Generously
Part of being thankful involves giving. If we are truly thankful, giving is a natural part of that thankfulness. Paul writes to the church in Corinth:

11 Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. 12 Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. (2 Corinthians 8:11-12)

6 Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. 7 You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7)

I – Infinite
Our thanksgiving should be never ending. Paul said, “Always be full of joy (a natural occurrence of thanksgiving) – again, I say rejoice.” In Colossians 3:15, we hear these words, “15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

V – Victory over Sin and Death
One of the things that we can be thankful for that God, through his son, Jesus has done for us is given us victory over sin and death. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:57, “57 But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Through Jesus death on the cross and resurrection from the tomb, we have the hope and the promise that we can be free from sin and that death and the grave have no power over us. This is great cause for being thankful.

I – Indispensible

The next two are interconnected. First, thanksgiving is indispensible. Can you think of a person who is not thankful for anything? If you know someone like that, they are usually the most miserable people in all the world. Someone who is not thankful for what has happened in their life has some serious problems.

Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Not only is thanksgiving indispensible it is also

N – Needed

Only when we are thankful to God for all He has done, will we receive real peace – a peace that we cannot understand – a peace that sometimes others look and say they’re crazy – a peace that will help us live our lives for Christ.

One of the things that God has shown me recently is the amount of love, mercy, and grace that he has for me – that he has for you – that he has for all of us. Grace is God’s riches at Christ’s expense. Grace is nothing that we deserved. Sometimes, we like to say, “I don’t deserve this,” and you know we’re right. We actually deserve much worse, but because of God’s grace – because of God’s mercy – because of God’s great compassion on us – we experience his grace – Not because I deserve it – not because you deserve it – but because of His great love for us.

Amazing grace how sweet the sound.
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I’m found
Was blind but now I see.

My chains are gone, I’ve been set free
My God, my Savoir ransomed me.
And like a flood, His mercy rains
Amazing love, amazing grace.

This morning let’s finish by remembering to be thankful – let’s count the blessings that God has lavished upon us – and be thankful.