Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Thanksgiving for the Future

On my flight to Israel a couple weeks ago, I thought of the many "must see" places I would be visiting in the Holy Land -- Bethlehem, where Jesus was born; the Western Wall, a place steeped in prayer; Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed before his arrest. But a surprising thing happened as I toured the holy sites of Israel and the West Bank: I felt moved the most by "lesser" places that I visited without much anticipation. One of them was the Church of the Multiplication in Tabgha.

The Church of the Multiplication was built in 1982, which isn't noteworthy in a land where you can gaze upon the excavation of a 10,000 year-old section of Jericho's city wall. What is noteworthy, though, is the location where the Church of the Multiplication is built. The Church sits over a place near the Sea of Galilee where Jesus is said to have performed the miracle of the Feeding of the Five Thousand. In the Church's austere sanctuary, beneath the altar, a rock protrudes through the mosaic floor, marked only by the flame of a single, small candle. There, Jesus, faced with a hungry crowd of more than 5,000 people, took five loaves of bread and two fish, gave thanks to God for them, broke the bread, and had his disciples distribute the food to the people -- who miraculously ate their fill, with twelve baskets full of bread and fish left over. You can read Mark's account of this miracle here.

Altar of the Church of the Multiplication 
As I stood before the altar and looked at that stone, I experienced what I can only describe as an overwhelming sense of God's provision. I've long acknowledged that God has greatly blessed me and my family, but in that moment, I was swept up by a wave of awe and gratitude that carried me far beyond my narrow, self-focused interests. In the spot were Jesus fed a hungry multitude, I felt acutely aware that it's God's very nature and deep desire to provide for all of God's beloved children. And it's not enough for God that we don't starve. God prepares a lavish meal of loving kindness for us all that more than satisfies; God serves a meal so big that baskets full of leftovers remain. That's God's nature. That's how much God loves and cares for us. In Tabgha, I experienced a moment of clarity about who God is that I hope to never forget.

When I returned home from Israel, I flipped through the dozen or so sermons that my father preached around the holiday of Thanksgiving, and I found one he wrote in 1967 about the Feeding of the Five Thousand. Setting the scene for the miracle, Dad wrote, "The situation seems hopeless. A crowd of 5,000 people. What will they eat, miles away from the nearest market? 'What can we do?' the disciples ask Jesus. The conversation that follows between Jesus and his disciples underlines the helplessness of the disciples. But at the same time one gets the feeling of serenity, for through it all Jesus never panics; he has complete control and mastery over the situation. How desperately we want someone like that in the midst of our panic today -- someone to insure the future for us, someone who is in control."

Look at what Jesus did! "Five loaves and two fish -- just five loaves of bread and two fish. With the smallest of resources he provided a veritable banquet for more than 5,000 people. Folks who know much more about the scriptures than either you or I point out the very great significance of this banquet. Both the Old and New Testaments are full of references to a great banquet, a great heavenly banquet which all will enjoy when the end of the age comes and the Messiah is exalted to his position as Lord of all creation. ... Over and over again, the symbol of a meal or banquet is used to show that in the end it is God who triumphs. God is victorious, and the time will inevitably come when God will be able to celebrate God's victory at a joyous table of fellowship with God's faithful children.

And that too is the meaning of the Feeding of the Five Thousand. With this miraculous banquet, Jesus is giving a preview or a prophecy, if you like, of that great final banquet that is to come. The meaning here is that no matter how hopeless and dim the present situation (5 loaves and 2 fish), there is still reason to give thanks. For God can take the most hopeless set of circumstances, a famine, and turn it into a veritable feast. And this banquet for a mere 5,000 is nothing compared to the great truth to which it points -- namely, that God is in charge of the course of history. Although disaster and hardship may threaten, in the end God will triumph, and God's kingdom will come as we have so often prayed for it: 'Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.' That is, the time will come, figuratively speaking, when we all will come from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south, and sit at the table with the Lord in the kingdom of God.

You see, this is the meaning of Christian thanksgiving. ... We not only look backwards and praise God for all of God's kindness in the past. We also dare to turn around and face the future and thank God for that too. In a time when many may despair about the future and others may clamor feverishly for plans and human solutions to our many problems, the Christian hope comes like a refreshing breeze. Of course, things may get worse. But the Christian can meet those prospects serene and unshaken, knowing that the Risen Christ already has overcome the powers of sin and death and in the end will reign. When? How? We do not know the answers to such questions. But if God be God, then God's kingdom will come. Of that we may be sure."

I used to have a wonderful neighbor named Hester, who lived well into her 90's. Dorry and I were young parents when we lived next door to Hester, and she loved visiting with our kids. Whenever we spoke with Hester about our hopes and fears for our children, she always had the same comforting response. She would say, "There's no need to worry about what the future holds when you know who holds the future." As I sit down with family for our Thanksgiving dinner, I will be thanking God not only for God's past provision, but also for the future -- for I know who holds it for us all.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

From: "A Christian Thanksgiving"
Scripture: Mark 6:31-44
Preached Nov. 19, 1967
Adams Shore Community Church, Quincy, Mass. 

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