Thanksgiving Eve Luke 17:11-19 Giving Thanks
In October 1942, Captain Eddie Rickenbacker was on a mission to deliver an important message to General Douglas MacArthur. Because of stronger than anticipated headwinds, somewhere over the South Pacific the B-17 Flying Fortress ran low on fuel, and the men ditched their plane in the ocean. After eight days, their rations were gone. For over three weeks, Captain Rickenbacker and his crewmembers drifted in the ocean, exposed to the stormy weather, and the scorching sun. To make matters worse, large sharks rammed their small rafts. As their strength was waning, they were about to give up all hope.
One of the men said a final prayer for deliverance out loud and they sang a hymn of praise. Then they laid down in the raft and covered themselves to avoid the hot sun. Captain Rickenbacker later recalled. “With my hat pulled down over my eyes to keep out some of the glare, I dozed off. Something landed on my head. I knew that it was a seagull. I don’t know how I knew, I just knew. Everyone else knew too. No one said a word, but peering out from under my hat brim without moving my head, I could see the expression on their faces. They were staring at that gull. The gull meant food...if I could catch it.”
Well, Captain Eddie caught that gull!
The men ate the good parts and used the less desirable parts for bait to catch fish. Then they did the same procedure with the fish. The survivors were given a new chance. Their prayer was answered and their hope was restored because one small sea gull had strayed hundreds of miles from land and became their means of survival.
Captain Eddie Rickenbacker and his crew eventually made it to an island and were rescued but he never forgot what that seagull meant to him and his crew.
After the war ended and he was home, every Friday evening, until his death in 1973, Eddie would walk down to the pier with a large bucket of shrimp. Every week, you could see the old man walking with his bucket filled with shrimp to feed the gulls...to remember that one gull which, on a day long ago, gave up its life, so that Eddie could live.
That is how this heartwarming story ends. It was his gratitude that prompted Eddie to visit the pier on the eastern seacoast of Florida. Now, I do not know if Captain Rickenbacker showed his gratitude to God each week as well, the story does not tell us. But Eddie knows what it is like to feel lost and abandoned and Eddie knows what it is like to have prayers answered.
In this evening's Gospel, we read about ten lepers who were lost and abandoned by society. Even though they were on land, they too had been set adrift. No one would come near them, no one would touch them and for good reason. Anyone who touched them or came too close ran the risk of contracting their disease. So they were isolated; outside of normal everyday life. They were not able to have contact with others and even had to shout out “Unclean!” whenever someone came too close. But they needed food, drink and other basic necessities in order to live. Just think how embarrassing it was for them to have to cry out for help and hope that kindhearted people would leave food and clothing for them.
On this particular day, Jesus was traveling down the road and setting aside all of their pride, they cried out to our Lord for help. They were in dire need of any help He could give them, a small morsel of food, some clothing, some soothing oil or if He would cure them—Oh but that was too much to hope for.
They called out to the Lord in their desperation. “Jesus, master have pity on us.” And Jesus spoke to them with words of healing—“Go, show yourselves to the priests.” Now our Lord’s words did not sound like healing words, but nevertheless, their prayers were answered. Only a priest could declare a healed leper clean. By telling them to show themselves to the priests Jesus was implying that they had been healed.
Although they did not feel healed and they could still see the white patches and sores all over their bodies, Jesus had given them hope.
So they did as Jesus told them to do--they traveled towards the temple and as they went, they were cleansed. Ten lepers received the gift of healing that day, but only one came back to thank the Healer. Ten lepers were blessed, but only one returned to God to give Him glory, thanks and praise.
Oh, the other nine were probably very grateful for their healing, and we can be sure they were all excited to live their out their lives now that they had been cleansed. But the sad part is only one returned to thank Jesus and to worship at His feet. We should not be surprised that only one returned, however.
That’s the prideful side of our human nature kicking in. We all find it embarrassing to ask others for help. Without a doubt, we would rather help those around us than to need help ourselves. We feel a certain sense of pride and power as we decide who we will help and in what way. And we can easily Lord it over those less fortunate when we dole out some daily bread to them.
And our sinful pride finds it just as embarrassing to face those who have given help to us especially if we can never pay them back. So it should not come as a surprise to us that many fail to acknowledge what Jesus Christ has done for them. It takes a certain amount of courage to come humbly before our Lord and ask Him for help especially at a worship service when so many others can see you.
God’s faithful worship Him by setting their pride aside however, because we know that we are all infected with sin and have no way of curing it ourselves. We too are adrift in our sins, not separated from the world but separated from God. When we are left abandoned to sin, we are in danger of eternal death. But we know where to find help.
So we swallow our sinful pride and cry out to Jesus to have pity on us. Like the 10 lepers, we say a prayer. It doesn’t have to be a long and fancy prayer. We simply cry out for help and God goes into action. As we read in Timothy prayer, intercession and thanksgiving is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and come to an understanding of the truth.
Understanding that Truth begins with the word of God and the Word of God is Jesus Christ. He is the Word made Flesh. He is the Bread of Life that comes down from heaven and begins to heal us, to save us.
God's Holy Word, Baptism, Absolution, the Holy Supper, the Church and Holy Ministry, the forgiveness of sins, and the promise of the resurrection of our bodies on the Last Day are the means that lead to eternal life.
When you look within your heart you may not feel like you are healed, you may still think you are covered with the patches and sores of sins but as you continue down the path of faith and discipleship that Jesus has sent you down you will discover that he has healed you from within.
Without His means of grace, there can be no thanksgiving to God, for no one can come to the Father except through the Son. Jesus freely gives us His word and offers to heal everyone’s soul. Forgiveness is availed to all who ask in His name.
But those means that so richly bless us should not be taken lightly because Jesus paid a high price. Jesus came into this world to give His life to save you. His atoning death on the cross, His victorious resurrection means you will rise from the dead on the Last Day, and receive an inheritance of eternal blessing.
When we realize what Christ has done for us, we want to give Him thanks and praise, even when we have to go out of our way to give it; even if it means going in a direction that is opposite of the crowds. Jesus asked, His disciples, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Surely Jesus was saddened that so few returned.
We can be just as sure that Jesus was pleased with the one who returned. He said, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” That Samaritan was doubly blessed. He was healed of His leprosy and his soul was made right with God. Tomorrow, many people will give thanks for what they have, but it will be thanks given with selfish pride with no real thanks or thought given to God in the name of Jesus Christ. They will be like those nine lepers who have been given much but who missed out on so much more.
But I pray that all of you here this Thanksgiving Eve will be like the one who returns to the feet of Jesus, thanking Him for your daily bread. That daily bread as Luther tells you goes beyond just what you eat. It includes food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, home, land, animals, money and all of those many things that you can personally add to your list. The Lord is indeed gracious and generous. There are more gifts to be received than can be acknowledged in a single day. There is more to be thankful for than can be contained in a single day of thanksgiving.
But the most important thing to thank God for is every word that comes out of the mouth of God. That word was made Flesh. That Word became our Savior Jesus Christ who gave Himself up on the cross so that your soul could be rescued and you could live with Him forever and ever. In Jesus’ name, Amen.