Industrious & Faithful (11/22/10)

Shalom,

 

    Please begin by reading 1 Thes 3:6-10.

 

    The tradition of the Pilgrim's first Thanksgiving is steeped in myth and legend.  Few people realize that the Pilgrim's didn't celebrate Thanksgiving after the first big affair.  They went on with their lives with gratitude, but didn't form a tradition of harvest feasts.  Some of their descendants eventually came up with a Forefather's Day, but it wasn't what we've made our modern day Thanksgiving into.  Today our celebration is filled with family traditions and events that don't have much to do with the original day of Thanksgiving.

    Several of our presidents, including George Washington, made one-time Thanksgiving proclamations setting forth a day for the giving of thanks.  The Continental Congress did the same in 1782.  The current holiday, celebrated on the 4th Thursday of November was approved by Congress in 1941.  Prior to that the celebration had been on the "last" Thursday in accordance with Abraham Lincoln's designation.  But due to it's sometimes too close proximity to Christmas, our business people and store owners pushed for it to be set back a little.

    Thanksgiving is a good celebration.  We mostly hold it for the right reasons.  But too many people have forgotten that it's supposed to cause us to focus ourselves on Yahweh for the day, not just on the turkey and goodies and family and football.  It's too bad that we allow our secular culture to corrupt, and for the most part ruin, our days of being reminded of our Creator and his wonderful grace.  Not enough time is spent considering the Father who loves us so very much and how thankful we should be for his blessings.  Too much time is spent considering the sales and bargains we'll find the day after our day of giving thanks.

 

    Governor William Bradford's account of the activities of the Plymouth Plantation discusses how the Pilgrims who landed in Massachusetts and their leaders initially were obliged to follow a socialistic scheme devised by the merchants who funded their expedition.  The merchants maintained that all things be held in common, and that the people would work for the common good.  The merchants expected this would produce great happiness and satisfaction among the people because they would be working together, breeding comradery rather than competition.

    The result of this grand experiment was a tremendous crop failure in the very first year.  Many people were extremely hungry.  Many people were even starving.  In spite of the needs of the people and the fact that many had already died from hunger, starvation, and disease, the following year another crop developed.  But by that time half of the population of Plymouth had died.

    Therefore, in 1623 Governor Bradford declared that from that point on this experiment in community goods would be abandoned.  Every family received a parcel of land for their own.  They would work it and take care of their own family's needs.  When it was a community garden, most of the people thought someone else would do their portion of the work.  When it became their own land and responsibility, people did the required work.  Our God created us to be industrious and faithful in caring for ourselves and our families.  Socialism takes away our desire to work hard because someone else may be the recipient of our hard work.

    If the Pilgrim's hadn't abandoned socialism and embraced private enterprise, it's likely they would have died off and we wouldn't have this yearly feast.  Notice: when socialism was abandoned, Thanksgiving was established!  Today, millions of people enjoy the incredible wealth our nation has without much of a clue of the Christian origins that brought our economic and political system into being.  Socialism doesn't raise up a lot of wealthy people, who can then provide jobs for many others.  There's not much reason to have ambition to achieve great things in that system.  We really should be thankful for Yahweh's hand in guiding our early settlers and founding fathers.  Without their industriousness and faithfulness we wouldn't have nearly as much to be thankful for.

 

    Paul the Apostle worked with his own hands to support himself while he preached the Gospel.  He repeatedly taught the early Christians to work faithfully for their Master, and to care for their own needs.  Of course, the Church of Jesus Christ is to care for the honest needs of those who are unable to work.  But we aren't obliged to help those who are able to work but refuse to.  Personal responsibility matters.  The lesson learned by the Pilgrim's should be taught to everyone again today.  We should each be responsible for ourselves and our own families.  This is what our Creator set forth as policy, so we should trust him and continue to require it for the good of all.

    We live in a country where many seek "something for nothing."  We've trained far too many people to depend and rely on our welfare system.  We must pray for Yahweh's wisdom and direction to overcome this wrong and misguided charity.  Yahweh has solutions for us, even today.  The Pilgrim's were able to make corrections, so we should be able to make the necessary changes, too.

    The Pilgrim's put into practice the admonition of 2 Thes 3:10.  "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."  Notice it says, "will not."  Other portions of scripture teach us to care for those who are unable to care for themselves.  Knowing their deep faith, I'm sure the Pilgrim's searched the scriptures and found instructions like these from the Book of Proverbs.

    Prov 10:5.  "He who gathers crops in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son."

    Prov 12:11.  "He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment.

    The result: The people of the Plymouth Plantation went to work with cheerful willingness.  Men who had faked sickness were now eager to get into the fields.  Even the women went out to work eagerly, where before, the idea of women working in the fields was thought of as ridiculous.  Now they took their children with them and happily labored for their own families.

    The result of all this intensive labor was a harvest that was tremendous and bountiful.  The people of the Plymouth Plantation held a celebration of Thanksgiving because their Lord God Almighty had so richly blessed them.  Part of our modern day celebration should include the lesson of changing from socialism to private enterprise.  People are much more fulfilled when they they're working for the direct benefit of themselves and their families.  Our nation could be greatly blessed and maybe even transformed if we would relearn this great truth.

 

    Are you "industrious and faithful?"  Poverty isn't avoided just by chance or luck.  It must be diligently guarded against and fought off.  Proverbs tells us it's like a prowler or an armed man.  These statements in the Book of Proverbs are great and eternal truths.  They're truth which can equip us for day-to-day life.  If they're not working for you, there's something wrong with you.  They come from Yahweh's Holy Word.  We can't use them as some sort of magic cure-all.  Quoting them is good, but living according to these principles is much better.

    We should be thankful every day when we consider how blessed we are, but we have a tendency to forget that all too easily.  Isn't it great to have a special day to remind us of our need to be thankful.  Let's be mindful of how our heavenly Father wants to bless us.  He wants to bless us through, and as a result of, our faithful efforts to live out his design and plan for our lives.  The Pilgrim's didn't have anything to be thankful for until they ventured out on their own.  Community property didn't bring them prosperity, working their own land with their own hands did.

    As you gather with family and friends on Thanksgiving, remember the goodness of your loving heavenly Father.  Praise him for his faithfulness, and for his insistence that we work for what we eat.  Pray that our society can see Yahweh's truth and then be willing to make the necessary changes to keep from completely turning away from our Creator.

 

    Blessings & Peace,    Mike