Grateful Living

Grateful Living
Rev. Mark Schaefer
Kay Spiritual Life Center
November 18, 2007
Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Philippians 4:4-9; John 6:25-35

Deuteronomy 26:1-11
"When you have come into the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, "Today I declare to the LORD your God that I have come into the land that the LORD swore to our ancestors to give us." When the priest takes the basket from your hand and sets it down before the altar of the LORD your God, you shall make this response before the LORD your God: "A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous. When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, we cried to the LORD, the God of our ancestors; the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. The LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O LORD, have given me." You shall set it down before the LORD your God and bow down before the LORD your God. Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the LORD your God has given to you and to your house.

Philippians 4:4-9
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

John 6:25-35
When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal." Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."
Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty."

I. BEGINNING

A few weeks ago, Niles and I were in my office talking about various elements of pop culture. Somehow we came to discussing the relative merit of Family Guy versus The Simpsons. Niles said something very interesting in that regard. He said that while Family Guy was often funnier, The Simpsons was truer.

I have thought a lot about that over the past week or so in preparing this sermon because of one occasion on The Simpsons that's been on my mind. The family is sitting down to dinner and Bart is asked to say grace. He starts, "Dear God, we paid for all of this food ourselves, so... thanks for nothing."

That comment has the virtue of being both funny and true. Man, does not that line capture something quintessential about our modern attitude toward giving thanks? Thanks? Thanks for what? What do I need to give thanks for? All the stuff I have--I've earned.

II. THE TEXT

In tonight's lesson from Deuteronomy, the Israelites are told exactly what they're giving thanks for. They are being instructed in the way they are to offer the first fruits of the harvest to God:

When you have come into the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for his name.

III. A DANGEROUS MYTH

This lesson is often lost on us. We're not a particularly grateful nation, any more. We have a lot of expectations for our lives. And we are inclined to think that the things we have we're entitled to. And I don't think it has anything to do with the fact that we're not reading our copies of Deuteronomy enough.

No, in the West, we have an inclination against gratitude, especially in this country. In this country, we are up against a very powerful myth that is a challenge to the idea of a life of thanksgiving: the myth of the self-made person.

You all know it. It's the idea that with enough hard work, with enough applying of oneself, with enough stick-to-itiveness, you can make something of yourself. Our destinies are in our hands. Our lives are what we make of them. It's a very pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps kind of mentality. A modification of the Protestant Work Ethic. It's the idea that stands behind Bart Simpson's grace. You all know the idea.

Except it's entirely wrong.

I guess that's because we like to trick ourselves into thinking that our success and our blessings are something we make. We tend to take great pride in our accomplishments and in our achievements, and don't think much of our dependence on God (or anyone else, for that matter). There's an old joke about the scientist who challenges God saying that human achievement has rendered God unnecessary. The scientist says, our technology has become so advanced that we could even create a human being out of dirt, just like you. God says to the scientist, "Go ahead." Whereupon the scientist reaches down for a handful of dirt, but God interrupts him saying, "Hey, get your own dirt!"

There's an interesting irony in all of this, given that we as a society may make much, but as individuals we make very little, but take credit for most of it. Whereas the pilgrims of our Thanksgiving tradition made a lot, but gave all the credit to God.

None of us--not one--is where we are solely by the result of our own labors. I didn't make this shirt, or anything I'm wearing. Any of you entirely wearing clothing you yourselves made? Anyone here get to campus by a vehicle that you built from scratch? Anyone here eating solely foods that they themselves planted, harvested, or hunted? No.

We're all dependent on others. The things we have are not our own doing.

Nor are the things we have entirely paid for or deserved. Some may respond, "Well, no, I don't make my food, I earn money to pay others to provide my food. It's a bargained for exchange where I substituted my money for someone else's experience, but in the end, I earned that food."

Oh? And who gave you the job? A boss who's freely bargaining for your employee value? And where did you get that value? From teachers who taught you things. And you paid for them to teach you. Ah ha, but not your own money--at least not yet. You spending your own money usually comes after college. You're spending Sallie Mae's money now.

Who built the system of laws that provides you with protection? Who provided you with a free society in which to grow and explore what you want to do with your life? Who built the economy that provides the jobs you can select from?

And at some point, you were taught things by your parents--things you couldn't possibly have earned. And before that, they loved you: you, who were a child with nothing to give but interrupted sleep cycles and a never ending chain of diapers that needed changing. You were loved by your parents without merit.

And you were born to those parents without any consideration as to whether you deserved them. How could you? None of us deserves to have been born. How could we? And yet the families we're born into, the towns, the class, the race, even the locality we're born into shapes so much of the things that we have. All these are things that we are not in the least way responsible for--we didn't do them.

Our very start in life was unmerited. And much of what follows is unmerited. But we are so conditioned into thinking that we make our own lives that we forget that and are inclined to think that we've earned the things we have.

A. Grace

That is what Deuteronomy is about--reminding the people of their unmerited favor. What had the Israelites done to deserve liberation from Egypt? Nothing. Most of them were unaware of the God of their ancestors. God freed them from oppression because of a covenant that was made with their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. A covenant made without any regard to merit.

And the Exodus is the fruit of that unconditional grace. The author of Deuteronomy reminds the people: we didn't do anything to merit this good land or our freedom. Both are blessings of God who took the initiative for us. The practice of bringing the first fruits of one's harvest as an offering to God is an effort to remind the people that everything they have is the result of God's grace. Everything.

IV. LIVES OF THANKSGIVING

And so it is with us.

We are so blessed. We have so much. I am not sure why it should be that people who have so much, as we do in this country, have such a hard time remembering where it came from. The challenge of the Biblical command to live lives of thanksgiving is so much harder for us. It requires more effort.

It's particularly hard in this town and particularly ironic, too. We don't have any industry. We don't have any agriculture. We just have other people's politicians. So we don't make anything and we import other people's garbage.

And yet, there is a prevailing ethic of self-importance in this town that is unbelievable. There is no sense of gratitude or humility.

Now, of course, I am not talking about the poor neighborhoods. I'm talking mostly about Capitol Hill, Downtown, Georgetown, and that strip between Dupont Circle and Friendship Heights--you know, the Republic of the Red Line. In the poorer neighborhoods of the city, the ones the movers and the shakers don't pay much attention to, there is much more readily a sense of gratitude for the things one has. People who aren't distracted by their own self-importance remind us that it is important to remember to be thankful.

And so here we are gathered in community to do exactly that.

It is who we are as a community. Our primary sacrament--the Eucharist--is just the Greek word for "thanksgiving." In fact, I am going to teach you all how to say "Thank you" you in Greek. Eucharisto. Say that. Great. (Remember that, we'll come back to it).

And what do we have to be thankful for? Everything.

Our lives. None of us earned being alive. It was a gift. God, for being alive: Eucharisto! (Say it with me!

For this bountiful earth, that yields up to us the fruit of its soil for our food. God, Eucharisto!

For the gift of a free nation in which people are free to worship as they choose, live as they choose, think as they choose. For those who died to assure its freedom. God, Eucharisto!

For family. Both biological and chosen. For people who love us just for who we are. God, Eucharisto!

For friends. For those people who challenge us, who support us, and are there for us in times of need. God, Eucharisto!

For the blessings of having a place to sleep, subjects to learn, work that we can contribute. God, Eucharisto!

For this community. This amazing place of love and support where all people are welcomed, where all are invited to find a home of love and acceptance. God, Eucharisto!

We could go on all night (but there is turkey downstairs waiting for us!). There is so much we can be grateful for.

V. END

Our whole lives are lives of thanksgiving. Why do we gather to worship? To give thanks. Why do we seek to grow in understanding of God's word and the teachings of the church? To give thanks for what God has done. Why do we engage in acts of charity and compassion? To give thanks for the gifts God has given us and to share those with others. Why do we commit ourselves to justice, to challenging oppressive systems and working for the disenfranchised? Out of thanksgiving for the freedom God has given us for each other's sake. And why do we share our experience of God with one another? Out of thanksgiving for how God has touched us in our lives.

The life of a Christian is a life of Thanksgiving--to live our lives as songs of praise, as we join in the words of the great Thanksgiving hymn:

Let all things now living a song of Thanksgiving
to God the Creator triumphantly raise
Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,
who guides us and leads to the end of our days.
We, too should be voicing our love and rejoicing
with glad adoration a song let us raise,
Till all things now living unite in thanksgiving:
To God in the highest, hosanna and praise!

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*Grateful Living* Rev. Mark Schaefer Kay Spiritual Life Center November 18, 2007 Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Philippians 4:4-9; John 6:25-35 Deuteronomy 26:1-11 "When you have come into the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, "Today I declare to the LORD your God that I have come into the land that the LORD swore to our ancestors to give us." When the priest takes the basket from your hand and sets it down before the altar of the LORD your God, you shall make this response before the LORD your God: "A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous. When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, we cried to the LORD, the God of our ancestors; the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. The LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O LORD, have given me." You shall set it down before the LORD your God and bow down before the LORD your God. Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the LORD your God has given to you and to your house. Philippians 4:4-9 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you. John 6:25-35 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Jesus answered them, "Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal." Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." So they said to him, "What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" Then Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." They said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." I. BEGINNING A few weeks ago, Niles and I were in my office talking about various elements of pop culture. Somehow we came to discussing the relative merit of Family Guy versus The Simpsons. Niles said something very interesting in that regard. He said that while Family Guy was often funnier, The Simpsons was truer. I have thought a lot about that over the past week or so in preparing this sermon because of one occasion on The Simpsons that's been on my mind. The family is sitting down to dinner and Bart is asked to say grace. He starts, "Dear God, we paid for all of this food ourselves, so... thanks for nothing." That comment has the virtue of being both funny and true. Man, does not that line capture something quintessential about our modern attitude toward giving thanks? Thanks? Thanks for what? What do I need to give thanks for? All the stuff I have--I've earned. II. THE TEXT In tonight's lesson from Deuteronomy, the Israelites are told exactly what they're giving thanks for. They are being instructed in the way they are to offer the first fruits of the harvest to God: When you have come into the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the LORD your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the LORD your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. III. A DANGEROUS MYTH This lesson is often lost on us. We're not a particularly grateful nation, any more. We have a lot of expectations for our lives. And we are inclined to think that the things we have we're entitled to. And I don't think it has anything to do with the fact that we're not reading our copies of Deuteronomy enough. No, in the West, we have an inclination against gratitude, especially in this country. In this country, we are up against a very powerful myth that is a challenge to the idea of a life of thanksgiving: the myth of the self-made person. You all know it. It's the idea that with enough hard work, with enough applying of oneself, with enough stick-to-itiveness, you can make something of yourself. Our destinies are in our hands. Our lives are what we make of them. It's a very pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps kind of mentality. A modification of the Protestant Work Ethic. It's the idea that stands behind Bart Simpson's grace. You all know the idea. Except it's entirely wrong. I guess that's because we like to trick ourselves into thinking that our success and our blessings are something we make. We tend to take great pride in our accomplishments and in our achievements, and don't think much of our dependence on God (or anyone else, for that matter). There's an old joke about the scientist who challenges God saying that human achievement has rendered God unnecessary. The scientist says, our technology has become so advanced that we could even create a human being out of dirt, just like you. God says to the scientist, "Go ahead." Whereupon the scientist reaches down for a handful of dirt, but God interrupts him saying, "Hey, get your own dirt!" There's an interesting irony in all of this, given that we as a society may make much, but as individuals we make very little, but take credit for most of it. Whereas the pilgrims of our Thanksgiving tradition made a lot, but gave all the credit to God. None of us--not one--is where we are solely by the result of our own labors. I didn't make this shirt, or anything I'm wearing. Any of you entirely wearing clothing you yourselves made? Anyone here get to campus by a vehicle that you built from scratch? Anyone here eating solely foods that they themselves planted, harvested, or hunted? No. We're all dependent on others. The things we have are not our own doing. Nor are the things we have entirely paid for or deserved. Some may respond, "Well, no, I don't make my food, I earn money to pay others to provide my food. It's a bargained for exchange where I substituted my money for someone else's experience, but in the end, I earned that food." Oh? And who gave you the job? A boss who's freely bargaining for your employee value? And where did you get that value? From teachers who taught you things. And you paid for them to teach you. Ah ha, but not your own money--at least not yet. You spending your own money usually comes after college. You're spending Sallie Mae's money now. Who built the system of laws that provides you with protection? Who provided you with a free society in which to grow and explore what you want to do with your life? Who built the economy that provides the jobs you can select from? And at some point, you were taught things by your parents--things you couldn't possibly have earned. And before that, they loved you: you, who were a child with nothing to give but interrupted sleep cycles and a never ending chain of diapers that needed changing. You were loved by your parents without merit. And you were born to those parents without any consideration as to whether you deserved them. How could you? None of us deserves to have been born. How could we? And yet the families we're born into, the towns, the class, the race, even the locality we're born into shapes so much of the things that we have. All these are things that we are not in the least way responsible for--we didn't do them. Our very start in life was unmerited. And much of what follows is unmerited. But we are so conditioned into thinking that we make our own lives that we forget that and are inclined to think that we've earned the things we have. A. Grace That is what Deuteronomy is about--reminding the people of their unmerited favor. What had the Israelites done to deserve liberation from Egypt? Nothing. Most of them were unaware of the God of their ancestors. God freed them from oppression because of a covenant that was made with their ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. A covenant made without any regard to merit. And the Exodus is the fruit of that unconditional grace. The author of Deuteronomy reminds the people: we didn't do anything to merit this good land or our freedom. Both are blessings of God who took the initiative for us. The practice of bringing the first fruits of one's harvest as an offering to God is an effort to remind the people that everything they have is the result of God's grace. Everything. IV. LIVES OF THANKSGIVING And so it is with us. We are so blessed. We have so much. I am not sure why it should be that people who have so much, as we do in this country, have such a hard time remembering where it came from. The challenge of the Biblical command to live lives of thanksgiving is so much harder for us. It requires more effort. It's particularly hard in this town and particularly ironic, too. We don't have any industry. We don't have any agriculture. We just have other people's politicians. So we don't make anything and we import other people's garbage. And yet, there is a prevailing ethic of self-importance in this town that is unbelievable. There is no sense of gratitude or humility. Now, of course, I am not talking about the poor neighborhoods. I'm talking mostly about Capitol Hill, Downtown, Georgetown, and that strip between Dupont Circle and Friendship Heights--you know, the Republic of the Red Line. In the poorer neighborhoods of the city, the ones the movers and the shakers don't pay much attention to, there is much more readily a sense of gratitude for the things one has. People who aren't distracted by their own self-importance remind us that it is important to remember to be thankful. And so here we are gathered in community to do exactly that. It is who we are as a community. Our primary sacrament--the Eucharist--is just the Greek word for "thanksgiving." In fact, I am going to teach you all how to say "Thank you" you in Greek. Eucharisto. Say that. Great. (Remember that, we'll come back to it). And what do we have to be thankful for? Everything. Our lives. None of us earned being alive. It was a gift. God, for being alive: Eucharisto! (Say it with me! For this bountiful earth, that yields up to us the fruit of its soil for our food. God, Eucharisto! For the gift of a free nation in which people are free to worship as they choose, live as they choose, think as they choose. For those who died to assure its freedom. God, Eucharisto! For family. Both biological and chosen. For people who love us just for who we are. God, Eucharisto! For friends. For those people who challenge us, who support us, and are there for us in times of need. God, Eucharisto! For the blessings of having a place to sleep, subjects to learn, work that we can contribute. God, Eucharisto! For this community. This amazing place of love and support where all people are welcomed, where all are invited to find a home of love and acceptance. God, Eucharisto! We could go on all night (but there is turkey downstairs waiting for us!). There is so much we can be grateful for. V. END Our whole lives are lives of thanksgiving. Why do we gather to worship? To give thanks. Why do we seek to grow in understanding of God's word and the teachings of the church? To give thanks for what God has done. Why do we engage in acts of charity and compassion? To give thanks for the gifts God has given us and to share those with others. Why do we commit ourselves to justice, to challenging oppressive systems and working for the disenfranchised? Out of thanksgiving for the freedom God has given us for each other's sake. And why do we share our experience of God with one another? Out of thanksgiving for how God has touched us in our lives. The life of a Christian is a life of Thanksgiving--to live our lives as songs of praise, as we join in the words of the great Thanksgiving hymn: Let all things now living a song of Thanksgiving to God the Creator triumphantly raise Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us, who guides us and leads to the end of our days. We, too should be voicing our love and rejoicing with glad adoration a song let us raise, Till all things now living unite in thanksgiving: To God in the highest, hosanna and praise! Back to Sermons page Back to AU UMC Home Copyright © 2007. Mark A. Schaefer. No part of this text may be reproduced or otherwise disseminated without the express written consent of the author.

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