God is with us in Word and Sacrament

The Eve of the Day of National Thanksgiving

The Eve of the Day of National Thanksgiving

  • Old Test: Deuteronomy 8:1–10
  • Epistle: Philippians 4:6–20
  • Gospel: Luke 17:11–19

The nation resounds with thanksgiving for the earth’s bountiful harvest, crops of wheat and grains, all beneath the canopy of God’s almighty care. But “man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Deut. 8:1–10). The Church is the vessel through which the Word of God penetrates the world with its Law and Gospel. It is this divine Word which proclaims Jesus as the sole source of life, health, and wholeness. It is Jesus who heals lepers with His Word, “Go show yourselves to the priests” (Luke 17:11–19). Of the ten cleansed, only one expresses thanksgiving back to Jesus. But true gratitude proceeds from a heart sustained by faith. Jesus bids this one Samaritan to “rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.” So also, we are sent from the Divine Service, bolstered in our faith by Baptismal and Eucharist blessing to be thankful in our circumstances of plenty and hunger, abundance and need (Phil. 4:6–20).

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