Give Thanks and Examine Your Harvest

Summary

On this Thanksgiving and harvest celebration the church is reminded that being in God's house means three things: to pray, to sing joyfully, and to listen carefully to His word. The opening message reads the harvest as a picture of our lives - from Galatians and the example of Isaac, each person reaps what they sow, and now is the time to seek the Lord and honestly weigh how fruitful we are before Him.

The whole service overflows with gratitude: for daily bread, while a fourth of the world goes to sleep hungry, and far more for the word of God that gives eternal life. The pastor recalls returning from a mission in Haiti and thanking God even for electric lights and cool air, urging hearts to be filled with thanksgiving for everything.

The day also marks the ordination of a new senior pastor. From Acts 20:28 the leaders charge him to watch over himself and the whole flock, to shepherd the Church that Christ bought with His own blood, and to serve people in love rather than to please everyone. A closing word contrasts a life coasting on inertia with the believer's call to be a good soldier of Christ - fighting not against people but for their salvation, and holding up one another's hands as Aaron and Hur held up Moses.

Key Points

• We reap what we sow: sowing to the flesh brings ruin, sowing to the Spirit brings eternal life.
• Now, while grace is still extended, is the time to seek the Lord and examine our own fruitfulness.
• Isaac reaped a hundredfold because God blessed him - put your own name into that promise.
• Give thanks for daily bread, and even more for the word of God that brings eternal life.
• A pastor must first guard his own walk with God before he can watch over the flock.
• The church belongs to Christ, who bought it with His own blood, so serve it in love, not to please people.
• The Christian life runs uphill; we cannot coast in neutral but must stand as good soldiers, for people and not against them.