"A Thanksgiving Sacrifice"
Leviticus 7:11-15

We have come to this place today to say Thank you to Almighty God for the blessings he has bestowed upon us in the days, and year past. As we study the meaning of this day we are going to discover that true thanksgiving always is done with a sacrifice … a sacrifice of appreciation.

When one studies the scriptures one discovers that an offering sacrifice was the way Thanksgiving really began 3,000 years. When one wanted to say thank you to God one took a meat offering and a cereal offering of wheat cakes to the priest. The priest made an offering to God on behalf of the worshipper.

Leviticus 7:11-15

"Now this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings which shall be presented to the Lord.

If he offers it by way of thanksgiving, then along with the sacrifice of thanksgiving he shall offer unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers spread with oil, and cakes of well stirred fine flour mixed with oil.

With the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving, he shall present his offering with cakes of leavened bread.

And of this he shall present one of every offering as a contribution to the Lord; it shall belong to the priest who sprinkles the blood of the peace offerings.

Now as for the flesh of the sacrifice of his thanksgiving peace offerings, it shall be eaten on the day of his offering; he shall not leave any of it over until morning."

"Sacrifice means to give an oblation, tribute, to forfeit, to make a concession."

I made this point several years ago and one of the persons who heard me was upset with the point. He didn't believe in a sacrifice of any type. To him a sacrifice meant he had to suffer a little, and he was not willing to suffer for anyone, or anything. He thought the concept to be crude, and somewhat primitive in nature.

Yet, if one stops to think for just a moment it is evident that all important demonstrations of love have sacrifice involved.

That ring we purchased for our spouse to symbolize marriage was a sacrifice.

That wedding we and our families paid for.

New suit you gave up so the children could have a new pair of those expensive Reeboks.

Agreed to go to the in-laws in stead of your family for the holiday.

Most gift giving is sacrificial in some degree. The days of sacrifice turn out to be those experiences which we remember with fondness in our lives. Out of them comes the foundations for who and what we are.

WE have come here to offer thanks unto God this day for the blessings he has bestowed upon us in this life. We are looking for a symbolic sacrifice to make. How can we show God our praise?

How do we say thank you for:

1. parents

2. good health

3. close family relationship

4. to be truly loved, a special close friend

5. new family member (by marriage or birth)

6. a nice warm home and plenty of the essentials of life

7. live in a country where we are relatively safe from harms way.

8. for someone who understands and cares when you have done your very best.

9. take time to add to this list your own special thanks!

The ancients would take an animal of perfect quality ...(The best they had, the prize of the flock,
the perfect specimen of his herd) ...and offer that animal to God.

We too sacrifice to say thanks. We sacrifice by helping the needy.

Jesus said: "When you have done it unto the least

of these you have done it unto me."

fed the hungry

clothed the naked

visited the sick

visited those in prison.

helping someone for the sake of helping them,

knowing full well they have no way of repaying you.

ISN'T THAT A SACRIFICE!

Said Tillich such an attitude ushers us into a mood of Thankfulness. This morning we are in the presence of God. We experience an elation of life so moving we cannot attain words to describe it. In these moments we want to express our  thanks to God.  Let us pray!

Almighty God! We raise our hearts to Thee in praise and thanksgiving. For we have nothing except what You have given us. We are finite; we did not bring anything into this world; we shall not take anything out of this world. You have given us this life to live until you decide we have had enough. We thank You that we have being, that we share in the inexhaustible riches of life, in the smallest and in the largest part of it. We praise Thee when we feel strength in body and soul. We give thanks to Thee when joy fills our hearts. We are gratefully aware of Thy presence, be it in silence , or in words.

Awaken us to such awareness when our daily life hides Thy presence from us, when we forget how near Thou art to us in every place and in every moment. Nearer than any other being is to us, nearer than we are to ourselves. Let us not turn away from Thy giving and creating presence to the thing Thou has given us. Let us not forget the Creator behind the creation. Keep us always ready for the sacrifice of giving thank to thee. In Christs Name we pray. Amen.