Sermon for Thanksgiving: "Contentment in Christ Crucified"

+ Day of Thanksgiving – November 23^rd, 2017 +

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

Deuteronomy 8:1-10; Philippians 4:4-20; Luke 17:11-19

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

At first it sounds like Paul is joining the chorus of clichés we say to comfort ourselves or others in times of need. No doubt you’re heard it or said it before: “Don’t worry; be happy!”; “Que Sera Sera”; “Hakuna Matata”.

To be sure, comparing Paul’s words, which are the Lord’s words, to coffee cup platitudes is like comparing your grandma’s homemade cranberry sauce to that imposturous red gelatinous substance in a can.

And honestly, if we’re looking to Bobby McPherrin, Doris Day, or Timon and Pumba for comfort, we’re going to end up about as happy as a turkey on Thanksgiving.

And yet, so often we trip over Paul’s words in Philippians 4:

 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

What does this mean?

We can certainly understand how Paul would say this in good times. It would have been easy to rejoice when he was baptized, and his eyesight restored; or after he made it safely through the shipwreck on Malta; or when Christians in Philippi provided for his needs in the work of spreading the Gospel.

But Paul didn’t sit down to write his letter to the Philippians after a good meal and a glass of wine, resting in his easy chair, with chestnuts roasting on an open fire.

No, Paul was most likely in Roman captivity, imprisoned for preaching the Gospel. Before being locked in chains to sit in a cold, cramped, dark, damp jail cell, he would’ve been stripped, beaten, and humiliated. And yet, surrounded by the stench of blood, sewage, and death, Paul writes.

 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

Paul's not upset, he seeks no revenge, he doesn’t even complain. He rejoices.

I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.

After the persecution, mockery, and suffering Paul endured, how can he say that?

We wonder the same thing as we read this section. How can we say that? Teach us your secret of contentment, Paul.

After all, it’s easy for us to rejoice and be content when we’re enjoying a Thanksgiving dinner-coma with family and friends; when our loved ones are healthy and well-provided; and when we can gather together in the Lord’s house to receive his bountiful goodness at his banqueting table in peace and quietness.

But we know that life, especially around the holidays, isn’t always a picture fit for a Hallmark card or a scene from a Lifetime movie. It’s far more difficult to rejoice when there’s one more empty chair at the dinner table than there was last year; or when we and our loved ones battle cancer, disease, and despair; or when we look at the world around us and see see suffering, sorrow, and sin running rampant.

There’s no platitude or cliché in the world that will give us any lasting contentment, comfort, and consolation.

So, what do we do? Being the sons of Adam and daughters of that we are, we all too often take matters into our own hands.

We look for contentment within, our desires of the flesh, our selfish wants, our self-serving thoughts, words, and deeds. This is what Martin Luther called navel-gazing; sin has starved us of true contentment and joy, and yet in our sin we are so warped and twisted that we only look to ourselves for contentment and joy.

Like the children of Israel in the wilderness (in our OT reading), we promise to be faithful children of God and then by the next chapter (or in our case the next moment, thought, and breath), we’re busy building our own little golden calves.

Paul’s words are so tough to hear because when he says, Rejoice in the Lord always, we’re reminded that we don’t always rejoice in the Lord, but rather in ourselves.

Where, then, is contentment and joy to be found? Not within us, Paul says; but rather, outside of us.

Rejoice in the Lord, he says.

Humanly speaking, Paul appeared to have had every reason to boast in himself: If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more; circumcised on the 8^th day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

And yet, Paul’s confidence, contentment, and joy were not in his flesh, but in Jesus who took on our human flesh to save us. Same is true for you. For us and for Paul, our contentment and joy are in Christ. In the Lord, he says. The Lord is near, he promises. The God of peace will be with you.  

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
    and saves the crushed in spirit.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
    but the Lord delivers him out of them all. (Psalm 34:18-19)

Paul points us to Jesus crucified and risen for you and boldly proclaims: there is your confidence, your comfort, your consolation, and your contentment; there is your peace that surpasses all understanding; there is your true joy.

Paul was no Pollyanna. He knew that further suffering, and eventually death, awaited him at the hands of the Romans. But more importantly, he also knew that none of that could rob him of Christ, that no one and nothing can remove him from Christ’s hands. Same is true for you. You belong to Jesus as surely as Paul did, by grace, through faith, in Christ crucified.

That’s how Paul could declare, against the devil, the world, and his sinful flesh, that I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content…I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

True contentment is given to you in Christ who though he was rich, yet for our sakes became poor, so that you, by his poverty might be made rich.

True peace is given to you in the fullness of time, when God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, burn under the Law, to redeem you who were under the Law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

True joy is given to you in Jesus, who for the joy set before him, endured the cross and scorned its shame to bear our guilt, shame, and sin.

Paul is content in all circumstances because his contentment isn’t grounded in his circumstances, but in Christ crucified. And so is yours. God gives you his everlasting contentment, peace, and joy in Christ Crucified.

This Thanksgiving, you may feel like Paul did, alone and in a dark prison, tempted by despair. And yet, contentment is yours in Christ. Paul shouts into our darkness: The God of peace will be with you. The Lord is near. You are baptized; you are God’s beloved child; you are marked by the cross; you have his promised Holy Spirit, comforter.

This Thanksgiving, you may feel weak, tired, and worn out from living in this weary world of sin, suffering, and death. Paul cries out: Christ crucified is your strength! And he strengthens you with a promise that rests – not on our feelings of joy or contentment, but upon his shoulders on the cross for you, his word of pardon, healing, and forgiveness.

This Thanksgiving, your savings account, table, or chairs may be lacking. And yet again, Paul declares: God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Today Jesus spreads his banqueting table of forgiveness, life, and salvation is spread before you today. Today, the Lord is near to you in his body and blood for you, bringing you eternal contentment into our discontented lives. Today, Thanksgiving Day, and every day, your contentment in Christ Crucified.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

A blessed Thanksgiving to each of you…

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.