November/December 2024
Thankful
This month, here in the United States, we will observe Thanksgiving Day. The holiday as we know it was established by a presidential proclamation over a century and a half ago. But Christians have incorporated Thanksgiving into the cycle of our worship life. This certainly fitting. A proper thanksgiving not only notes the gifts but also acknowledges the giver. And though thankfulness to our God as the giver of our blessings ought to always characterize our lives, it is good to pause and reflect on our blessings and remember that a gracious God bestows them all.
Among the greatest of our blessings as citizens of the United States are the freedoms we enjoy. Countless men and women have fought and died so that we can enjoy freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and above all, freedom to worship God as we please with the freedom to share the Gospel to those around us.
Even great than the blessings we enjoy as citizens of a free country and occupants of a good land, are the blessings we Christians possess as citizens of another kingdom, to which we also belong. We should always be reminded that believers in Jesus are subjects of His kingdom of grace. That other kingdom is not a worldly kingdom. It’s not a place but an activity – Jesus’ saving rule in our hearts through the Gospel. Jesus’ kingdom is not a rival to the earthly nation of which we are citizens. It exists in a different sphere. Its nature and blessings are spiritual. It duration is eternal. It ruler is Jesus. King Jesus teaches us that no matter how great or how many our earthly blessing may be – and we will surely be thankful to Him for them all – our greatest reason for thankfulness is that we are citizens of His heavenly kingdom. Our names are written in God’s book of life.
So, as we set aside time with other citizens of the earthly nation in which we live to enjoy and give thanks for our many physical blessings, let us above all, join with the great company of believers everywhere on earth and in heaven and give thanks for the blessings we enjoy as the subjects of Jesus’ kingdom of grace.
God’s Blessings,
Pastor Michael Stoerger