Thanksgiving Day

Forty years of wandering … Just as the Feast of Tabernacles symbolized a time of hardship for the Hebrew people, the Pilgrim movement was a period of hardship for a group of English Separatists. Both groups of people searched for a place where they could practice their faith without hindrance from government opposition. Opposition for the Hebrew people came in the form of slavery. The Egyptians feared rebellion from this “foreign” people. They forced them into hard labor, and refused to allow them to gather for true worship. God sent Moses to Pharaoh with this request: “The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to say to you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the desert.” (Ex 5:1; 7:16) Pharaoh refused, and a struggle resulted. A struggle resulted, where God fought for His people. Following ten plagues, the nation was freed.

Following their freedom, the Hebrew people still struggled. First from lack of water (which God provided), then from lack of food (God gave Manna), and then from ignorance of their faith (God called Moses up to Mt. Sinai). Rebellion among the Hebrew people resulted in forty years of wandering in the wilderness. God used the crucible of hardship to forge a faith that would endure for centuries.

The Pilgrim movement was born out of a struggle in England. In unsettled times, The Church of England was formed to allow King Henry to divorce his wives. A battle ensued between Catholic and Reformed factions to determine the doctrines and worship of the church. The religious settlement emerged in the reign of Elizabeth I which resulted in a Church that consciously retained a large amount of continuity with the Church of the Patristic and Medieval periods. Catholic creeds, its pattern of ministry, its buildings and aspects of its liturgy (a rite prescribed for public worship). Embodying Protestant insights in its theology were all used in the overall shape of its liturgical practice. The way that this is often expressed is by saying that the Church of England is both 'Catholic and Reformed.'

Not all were pleased with this resolution. Within England there were some who desired to practice their faith in the Calvinistic tradition of the Reformation. They sought to remove some of the liturgical enslavement forced upon them in the form of Episcopal Church government and required readings from the Common Book of Prayer.

At first these men sought to practice their faith from within the church. As this met resistance, some clergy separated from the church. In 1602 one such minister, John Smyth was dismissed by the Bishop of Lincoln and moved to Gainsborough, where his group of 60 or 70 Separatists were allowed to worship secretly in Gainsborough Old Hall. The number of Separatists grew. In late 1606 a second Separatist church was founded at Scrooby Manor. Some of the men who joined this movement were John Robinson (a Cambridge professor who was forced to resign because he got married), William Brewster (worked for the government), and William Bradford.

In 1603, the Millenary Petition was presented to the new King James I by a number of Puritan ministers. King James convened the Hampton Court Conference in January 1604. Through the conference the Puritans established their strong belief in the words of the Bible, resulting in King James commissioning a translation of the Bible into the English vernacular. Following Hampton Court, King James sought to enforce ceremonial conformity and the use of the Book of Common Prayer within England.
Because of arrests in 1608, both congregations moved to Holland. While there, the Separatists struggled with the culture and language, so in 1619, they decided to immigrate again, this time to America. They obtained passage on two ships, the Mayflower and the Speedwell. Leaving from the Dutch port of Delfshaven, they met others in Southampton. The Speedwell was determined not to be seaworthy and returned. The Mayflower was blown off course and arrived at Cape Code in November, 1620. Actual landing did not take place until December.

Forty five of the 102 emigrants died the first winter. Additional deaths during the first year meant that only 53 people were alive in the fall of 1621. Friendly relations developed with the Indians who were invited to celebrate the harvest feast which modern Americans know as "The First Thanksgiving.

Fall Celebrations

"Celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress. Be joyful at your Feast--you, your sons and daughters, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levites, the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns. For seven days celebrate the Feast to the LORD your God at the place the LORD will choose. For the LORD your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete.." (Deuteronomy 16:13-15)

Fall is the completion of the farming cycle. During growing season, farmers had to tend their fields so they would produce. After the fall harvest and the first frost, the life of the farmer becomes less hectic. Farmers can finally take a rest and celebrate.

Fall is the time of harvest festivals. One example of these festivals is found in the County and State Fairs which are held around the state at this time of year. Farmers can show off their produce and hopefully take time to give thanks to the God who brings forth the produce.

Jewish people celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) in the fall. This holiday was a celebration of the fall harvest. During this time God’s people also remember their redemption from Egypt’s slavery and God’s protection for His people while traveling forty years in the desert. Instructions for the Feast of Tabernacles are found in Exodus 23:16; Leviticus 23:33-36; Deuteronomy 16:13-15.

Moses instructed the children of Israel to gather for a reading of the Law during Sukkot every seventh year (Deut. 31:10-11). King Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem on Sukkot (1 Kings 8; 2 Chron. 7). Sukkot was the first sacred occasion observed after the resumption of sacrifices in Jerusalem following the Babylonian captivity (Ezra 3:2-4). Jesus and his family would have celebrated this festival in Jerusalem (John 7).

Temporary dwellings are constructed as a reminder of the sojourn in the wilderness. These booths are built so you can see the stars through the roof (a reminder of God’s creation). Fruit is hung from the ceiling as a reminder to give thanks for the good things that God gives. These dwellings are temporary, as a reminder that as the sojourn in the wilderness was temporary, so is our sojourn on this earth. We must give thanks to our Maker.

Spring: Connecting with God

Several months ago as I was traveling to Knoxville to see my dad it happened. I was considering what to write in a book about Passover. Should it be commentary, should it be on how to hold the Seder? ... No, in my heart I knew that would not be a good read.

Option two was to write a book on The Lord's Supper, and how our view should be shaped by the Passover experience. The first Lord's Suppper was a Passover Seder. The Church continued the Lord's Supper as part of the Agape Feast. People would find interest in this topic; how do we meditate as we celebrate the Lord's Supper? This book could help.

I prayed, and then it came. I needed to write a book on God's desire for us to connect with Him.

God's desire for us to connect with Him began before we were created. God built a relationship with man as He walked with man in the Garden of Eden. God sought out man as He spoke with Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, and Moses.

God saved His people from Egypt and gave us the Passover to celebrate His love. God gave us the opportunity to share His story and thank Him through the Passover, and all through the year. But man over time forgot about God. Israel stopped celebrating the Passover. And they developed a set of laws and observances that gave the form of godliness, but were observable without the relationship that God desires.

Jesus came to set us free from tradition. He came to rebuild the relationship with God. Jesus died to save us and cleanse us from our sin. When we learn to love Christ, we learn to love God. Jesus gave His body and shed His blood so we could be saved and we could return to God.

This is the connection, that we spend time with God every day. That the Lord is number One in our lives. We seek His wisdom, and we give Him thanks.

Book

For years I have thought about writing a book. I never really did think I had the time to do it. But I did think about it.

I thought that I would write a commentary on the Passover Hagaddah as my first book. I first wrote a Passover Haggadah when I was in Seminary. I participated in a Messianic fellowship during that time.

One Passover the group decided that they wanted their own Haggadah. Each year, they had purchased someone elses. They realized that several in the group could put a Hagaddah together, so they asked us to consider. And we did put a Haggadah together. THere were three of us: a Pastor, a Doctor, and myself. Since I was the Seminary student the others suggested I write and they edit. So I put together a Passover Hagaddah.

In the process of putting together this Hagaddah, I studied a lot of other Hagaddas, read a lot of books in the Library. Read the Mishnah tractate on Passover, and talked to some people. I wrote the Hagaddah, which was edited by the others. And then printed for the group.

Over the years, I have shared this Passover adapting it each year to make it a little better. I wrote some explanations of the foods and various parts of Passover so people would understand. Then I re-wrote the story (people seemed to be bord so I included several skits as part of the story to break it up.) I have shared the Seder with churches and Snday School classes. Anywhere from 5 to 500 people have participated.

I thought I would write my first book on the Passover (since I already had much of it written), but that is not what happened.

As I was thinking of the Passover, the Lord gave me another idea. More on that later.