COME YE THANKFUL PEOPLE, COME

Dearly Beloved, COME YE THANKFUL PEOPLE, COME “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name” (Psalm 100:4 NKJV). In commemoration of the ongoing 109th annual session of the Nigerian Baptist Convention with Psalm 100:4 as the theme verse, let me repost one of my weekly messages based on the verse this week. The message is based on a hymn. As somebody who grew up partly in a farm settlement setting and partly in what can be referred to nowadays as a traditional church setting, I can easily identify with Henry Alford, a 19th century Anglican clergyman, who composed the hymn “COME YE THANKFUL PEOPLE, COME” which has become a traditional harvest song that is now associated with Thanksgiving Day. Like any other person who has ever lived in a farming community, I know the importance that is associated with the harvest time. The fruit of the work of the whole year depends on the harvest. This cannot be accomplished until the crop is ready and which must be harvested diligently lest pests or weather spoil the harvest. During the busy harvest season, farmers literally work tirelessly to get the job done. The farmers would relax and celebrate only after the harvest. Well, if you have not had that experience, you should be able to appreciate the urgency of deadlines, the joy of an important job well done, and the relief of a break after a busy time at work. Against this background, Reverend Henry Alford composed the popular harvest or thanksgiving hymn. He called on thankful people to come and raise the song of “Harvest Home” because all the harvest of the year is safely gathered in before the winter storms begin. He attributed this harvest to divine provision. So, thankful people should come to thank God in His temple. Alford affirmed that the whole world is God's own field where several things are happening. He then prayed that the Lord of harvest would enable us to have good harvest from this “field”. He further reminded people that the Lord shall come one day to take the harvest home, that He shall ask His angels to cast “the tares” in the hell fire, but the “fruitful ears” will be stored in the “garner” for eternity. This is in comparison to the parable of Jesus Christ in Matthew 13:24-30 and the words of John the Baptist in Matthew 3:12. Lastly, Alford prayed that God should quickly come with His angels to bring His final harvest home by gathering His people in so that they may be free from sorrow and sin and be forever purified and abide in His presence. At a glance, this hymn is a hymn of thanksgiving and/or harvest. It is indeed good to thank God for thus far He has helped you in your life. However, the lyrics of the hymn are more about the final harvest that God will do in the future. Are you ready for the last harvest when God will “reap” you and place you in the place where you rightly belong? Will that place be in His everlasting presence or the eternal damnation in the lake of fire? In His service, Bayo Afolaranmi (Pastor). Prayer Point: Pray that you will be able to live your life in thankfulness of God and in a way that He will be able to harvest you into His presence forever.