On October 3rd, 1863, amidst the tragedy of the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln penned these lasting words:
“In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military conflict… No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy… I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.”
And thus, President Lincoln instituted and fixed my favorite holiday on the American calendar—Thanksgiving. First, I want you to notice that Mr. Lincoln did not address Allah, Buddha, Vishnu, Zeus, Baal, Joseph Smith, Muhammad, or any of the like; he addressed a day of thanksgiving to God Almighty, to Yahweh. Sadly, the legacy of this holiday’s origin seems to have been lost in folklore. Rather than a day for the sacrifice of thanksgiving, it’s turned into a springboard for gluttonous commercialism. I find it ironic that the one day of the year that we celebrate and thank God for supplying all our needs is followed by the greatest shopping day of the year, and a brutally ugly one at that.
I think we’ve lost the heart of the holiday’s purpose. Psalm 34:1 says, “I will bless the Lord at all times [my emphasis added]; His praise shall continually be in my mouth” (NASB). David wrote that song of thanksgiving, not when he was sitting in the luxury of his palace, but when he was fearful, hungry, and exhausted (fleeing from Saul and under the suspicion of the town of Gath—Goliath’s hometown; 1 Sam. 21). C. H. Spurgeon wisely said, “He who praises God for blessings will always have blessings for which to praise God.”
The idea of thanksgiving comes from a sense of sacrifice. Ten times the phrase “sacrifice of thanksgiving” is used in Scripture (Lev. 7:12-15; 22:29; Ps. 50:14, 23; 107:22; 116:17; Jer. 17:26; Jon. 2:9). You see, David did not write those words out of his surplus, but out of his want. I can assure you that when the Puritans celebrated Thanksgiving (annually), it wasn’t a day filled with a smorgasbord of food; it was a day of fasting and thanking God Almighty for supplying the first harvest, because their trust wasn’t misplaced in the sower or the reaper, but in the Almighty Grower (1 Cor. 3:6).
Now before you start thinking that I’m advocating a boycott of turkey and stuffing, let me plainly say that I’m not. I don’t think boycotting the feast of thanksgiving is biblical. God is all about His people feasting. In fact, that’s why He instituted so many Jewish festivals (the Feast of Unleavened Bread; the Feast of First Fruits; the Feast of Weeks; the Feast of Trumpets; the Feast of Tabernacles). Nearly every Levitical sacrifice was the precursor to some Jewish holy barbecue. Over and over again in the Gospels, you see Jesus enjoying a meal with someone. Where did the disciples find Jesus after they had gone fishing (post-resurrection)? They found Him on the Galilean shoreline cooking up some fish and bread. (side note: That was the only true fishing story in all of history, because John reports “that they caught nothing.” John 21:3) Here’s the saving, nail-scarred hands mixing the flour and oil, the fish, the charcoal, all because He wanted to have a meal with His boys. And in addition to that, what’s the crème de la crème of Revelation? It’s the marriage supper of the Lamb—a wedding feast (Rev. 19:9). That seems apropos considering Jesus said to His disciples at the last supper: “I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom” (Matt. 26:29 NASB).
The point is this regarding thanksgiving. Feasting is not bad, and neither is fasting. It is rather the intent of the heart and intimacy with our provider-God. Remember not that you have turkey and stuffing, casseroles and cranberries, or pies and cider, but rather that you have the fullness of the Father, the salvation of the Son, and the sweet nearness of the Holy Spirit. Let us also never forget the original intent of this holiday—the giving of thanks through sacrifice. What will your sacrifice to the Lord be this Thanksgiving? (For suggestions read Luke 14:12-14.)
¹ Jon Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary: Volume Two: Psalms-Malachi (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2006), 40–41.