A Thanksgiving for God’s Goodness
Psalm 65 (text); 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
November 22, 2015 • Download this sermon (PDF)
Congregation of Christ: Today, we take a break from our study of the Gospel of John, as we look forward to a great Christian tradition in America, Thanksgiving Day. Many people think of Thanksgiving Day only in terms of family get-together, or turkey, or football, or just an opportunity for relaxing on a four-day weekend.
But as Christians, how should we celebrate Thanksgiving Day? Its origins date back to the first settlers in the New World, most of whom came to escape persecution because of their religious views. On this day, we remember the Pilgrims’ Thanksgiving Feast in October 1621 in Plimouth Colony, Massachusetts. Fifty surviving Pilgrims, together with 90 Wampanoag Indians, had a three-day harvest festival of wild turkey, duck, geese, venison, lobsters, clams, bass, corn, vegetables, and dried fruits. This was not a religious event, except for giving thanks for the food. Two years later, they held a day of Thanksgiving and prayer to God because of plenty of rain for their crops, and for the arrival of a supply ship.
The Bible, especially the Book of Psalms, is full of songs in praise of God. Our text today, Psalm 65, is one of them. King David wrote this song for the people of Israel to sing, most likely to thank God for a fruitful harvest after abundant rainfall. It could be that there was a drought, much like what California has experienced in the last three years. But then the rains came, and with it, a plentiful harvest of grain, olives, grapes, and water for their animals. Or maybe they sang this song during one of their harvest festivals, such as the Feast of Tabernacles or Feast of Pentecost. Singing this psalm enabled them to express deep gratitude to God.
So the Pilgrims are an example for us to emulate. They gave thanksgiving to God for his mercy in saving them from sin and persecution, and giving them traveling mercies through their perilous journey. They praised the Almighty God for his sovereign power over the ocean, the sun, winds, and the clouds. Lastly, they blessed God for giving them abundant provisions of food, shelter and clothing.
Today, our theme is: “A Thanksgiving for God’s Goodness” under three headings: (1) For His Mercy; (2) For His Power; and (3) For His Provisions.
For His Mercy
Psalm 65 was most likely sung during Israel’s harvest festival called the Feast of Booths, or the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev 23). What is this feast all about? The LORD commanded them to live in booths or tents for seven days during an appointed time. God wanted them to remember their 40 years in the wilderness after he redeemed them from Egypt and traveled towards the Promised Land. During those years, they lived in tents in the harsh desert, when God provided them food, water and protection from the weather. This feast was a weeklong feast during September or October in our calendar today. This was the most joyful of the seven feasts of Israel and it celebrates the end of the agricultural year when they harvested grapes and olives.
During the time of the feast, each Israelite family were commanded to construct a tent and live in it for a week. These booths were small and simple tents made of palm and other branches decorated with different kinds of fruits that were found in desert oases and in the land of Canaan. God’s instructions for celebrating this feast includes, “you shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days” (Lv 23:40).
So this feast is a fitting analogy to the Pilgrims’ thanksgiving feast 400 years ago. As God helped Israel escape from slavery and suffering in Egypt, so God also helped the Pilgrims escape from the persecution in their homelands in the Old World. Today, it is also fitting for us to give thanksgiving to God for his mercy in rescuing us from the tyranny of Satan, from slavery to sin, and in the future, from the curse of death itself. How? God sent his own Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross as a ransom for us, for all our sins (Matt 20:28). Because we are slaves of sin, Christ redeemed us through his blood and forgave us all our sins according to the riches of his grace (Eph 1:7).
So David praises God for his mercy in the atoning work of Christ, for hearing his prayer of repentance for sins he has done. In the original Hebrew, verse 1 actually says, “Praise is silence before you, O God” so the NASB is more literal, “There will be silence before You, and praise.” So some scholars say that this is a better translation, since it is possible to be silent even when we praise God. We see this in a few other psalms: “For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation” (Psalm 62:1). “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations” (Psa 46:10). Even the prophet Habakkuk commands God’s people in worship, “But the LORD is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him” (Hab 2:20). Therefore, praising and giving thanks to God does not necessarily mean that we have to make all kinds of noise, whether by our voices, by clapping, or by using instruments. The old proverb, “Silence is golden” is not Biblical, but is useful in our worship of God.
But where is the thanksgiving made in this psalm? The psalm says in Zion, where the tabernacle and the later temple were located. David mentions several things that are done in the temple in thanksgiving to God. The first one is performing of vows to God, which are the thanksgiving offerings of the people. The second is prayer, which includes adoration, confession of sin, thanksgiving, and petitions for help. The third is attending the worship services, “to you shall all flesh come.” We go to God’s house and pray when “iniquities prevail against [us],” when sin overwhelms us so that we feel helpless. The fourth is thanksgiving to God for atoning for their sins, choosing them, drawing them near to God, allowing them to dwell in his house, and giving them all the good things found in his temple. The people rejoice in the holiness of his temple, because in it they find satisfaction of all their needs for body and soul.
We thank God for his mercy in saving us from sin through Christ our Savior and Lord.
For His Power
Because David sees the abundant harvest, in verses 5-8, David gives thanks to God for his creation, and his almighty power over all of it. He is the One who has blessed the people with a plentiful harvest. The God who saves is also the God who controls his creation, so that he is “the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.” When God created the heavens and the earth, it was formless and empty; in the words of Moses, it was in “chaos.” But beginning the second day, God started giving it form and filling it. He created the lightbearers: the sun, moon and stars. He separated the sea from land. He established the mountains, and filled the land and the sea with creatures. And it was a good and beautiful creation. Even today, we are in awe of the majestic, grandiose creation around us, land, sea and sky.
The mountains are strong and unmovable, created by God who is also “girded with might.” But sometimes, even the mountains shake from an earthquake and is broken by volcanic eruptions. The reverse is true of the seas, which are often a symbol of chaos, such as during the formless period of the earth. The seas roar with their waves. We have seen tsunamis roar and devastate land. But even these are under the power of the Almighty, who creates darkness and calamities (Isa 45:7), and sends disasters to cities (Amos 3:6).
So the psalmist does not fear when these things come. Why? Because God “stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of the waves.” Who demonstrated this power to us in person? It was Jesus who silenced the fear of his disciples when they were caught in a storm at sea. Jesus rebuked the wind and the sea, “Peace! Be still!” and there was great calm. And this power filled them with great fear, saying, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mark 4:39-41). They were fearful because they realized that this Jesus, who was a man, has the power of God!
This is why David is confident in God, the Almighty Creator. He says, “the ends of the earth are in awe at [God’s] signs.” All mankind sees this beauty with joy, from the east where morning dawns, to the west where evening falls. He is “the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas.” In Psalm 46, he also sings this assurance, “We will not fear… though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though hits waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling” (Psa 46:1-3).
David likens the roaring of the seas with the “tumult of the peoples.” In Psalm 2, he says that “the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain… against the Lord and against his Anointed.” But God in heaven laughs at them, because he has set his Anointed King over his church. Christ his Anointed One will then “break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” So we read in Revelation 21:1 that in heaven, “the sea was no more,” which means that there will be no chaos there, only perfect peace and security.
Throughout Biblical history, God has shown his power to his people and to the nations around them. During the crossing of the Red Sea, God sent a strong east wind to divide the waters so the Israelites would be able to cross on dry land (Exo 14:21). When Joshua pursued the fleeing Amorites, God made the sun to stand still until the Amorite army was destroyed (Josh 10:12-13). And in the book of Revelation, God will send earthquakes, fire, hailstones, and other natural disasters to judge his enemies.
But there is an event outside Biblical history worth noting. In 1588, the Roman Catholic Philip II of Spain sent the so-called “invincible” Spanish armada and 30,000 men to invade England and then the Netherlands. These two countries were the bastions of the Protestant Reformation. As if by God’s command, a storm came as the the Spanish Armada sailed towards England. The storm delayed the Spanish ships, so the British were able to destroy many of the ships. Then, as the Armada retreated of the coast of Scotland, another storm destroyed more ships. So only half the ships and half the army limped back to Spain in defeat. The Reformed believers in England and the Netherlands praised and thanked God for his Almighty power and Providence.
Today, the whole world, including America and Europe, are in fear of terrorists who want to impose their false religion over the whole world. They are particularly murderous against Christians, with the intent of wiping Christianity off the face of the earth. But we need not fear! God laughs at their evil schemes, and then destroy them in his fury through our Warrior-King, Jesus, God’s Anointed Son. As prophesied by John, on that day, Jesus will usher in perfect peace in all the earth.
We give thanks to God for his sovereign control over the whole universe and all people.
For His Provisions
After giving thanks to God for his mighty works in nature, David now turns to God’s bountiful provisions. Again, the picture is of valleys rich with grain and trees and orchards, of green pastures in the wilderness, of peaceful meadows filled with grazing flocks. We can imagine that the Garden of Eden was very much like this: a crystal-clear river flowing through it, mountains and valleys, green and abounding with fruit trees and plants for food. Even David paints this picture in Psalm 46:4-5a, “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved.”
We’re all too familiar with this beautiful picture of God’s blessings. At harvest time, we are overjoyed with God’s bounty and abundance. All of these because God visits the earth with water to enrich it. God waters the driest places, as we have seen in the last few weeks in dry California. The land is softened and irrigated with showers for planting. Then the carts are filled with the bountiful harvest.
At the end of the psalm, David says that there is so much blessing from God that even the pastures, meadows and valleys “shout and sing together for joy.” In Psalm 98:8, David sings again, “Let the rivers clap their hands; let the hills sing for joy together” (Psa 98:8). And Isaiah also has these beautiful words for us, the church, as the Israel of God, who have been redeemed by his Jesus Christ, his Anointed Son, “Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it; shout, O depths of the earth; break forth into singing, O mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, and will be glorified in Israel” (Isa 44:23).
Beloved people of God, Psalm 65 is a song of thanksgiving for God’s goodness and blessings. But what if Israel suffered a drought and the harvest was little? Or when Israel was invaded, its temple destroyed, and the people exiled to Babylon? Would they still praise and give thanks to God in these times of suffering?
Our pilgrimage on this earth as Christians is similar to Israel’s wilderness wanderings and experience in the Promised Land. What if we are going through hardship, sufferings, sickness, great temptations and sins? We all have mountaintops of joy and valleys of despair, nights of weeping and mornings of joy. Do we remain grateful to God during these times in our lives? But God exhorts us, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess 5:16-18).
In difficult and uncertain times, it is possible to rejoice and give thanks to when we are safely in the arms of our Savior Jesus Christ. He gives us peace that surpasses all understanding, and gives us the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Whether we are praying, singing, or meditating God’s Word in our homes or in this worship service, he gives us joy and peace whatever our situations may be. We are to be satisfied with the goodness of God’s house. God’s grace is sufficient for us, in plenty or want. Let us meditate further on Habakkuk 3:17-18:
Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
