A Grateful Heart - Pastor J.T. Kalejaiye

Topic: A Grateful Heart
Text:  Luke 17:12-19
Preacher: Pastor J.T. Kalejaiye

Many people love to pray. It is good to pray because whenever you are praying, you are doing the right thing. 

Thessalonians 5:17 - Pray without ceasing.

Some people love to Praise God. It is good to praise God and give God quality praise. Psalm 50:23 - Whosoever offers praise glorifies God.

But very few people Give Thanks to God. 

George Herbert says "Thou has given so much to me, give me one thing more - A grateful heart.

Whenever we pray, we get God informed but when we Give Thanks, we get God involved.

For everything God has done to you and for everything He had done through you, He deserves gratitude.

A grateful heart is a magnet for more miracles.

Thomas Aquinas said "Ingratitude is a special sin" Gratitude is the best attitude.

If you don't know how to Give Gratitude or Thanks, you are more than a worst sinner.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 - In everything, give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

- In everything means, in every condition whether it is good or bad, you must give thanks to God. 

- In everything means in every circumstance whether pleasant or unpleasant, you must give thanks to God.

- In everything means in every situation whether beautiful or ugly, you must give thanks to God.

- In everything means in every position in which you find yourself, you must give thanks to God.

Giving thanks is a Divine Expectation, God desires and deserves it. It is a task that must be done all the time. It is mandatory and not optional.

Many of us, when we want to eat, we pray, we don't give thanks, after eating, we don't give God thanks.

According to the Bible text, Ten men had an encounter with God, they had a common problem, an incurable disease. They were regarded as unclean and untouchable. They suffered stagnation, social distancing and they suffered isolation for life. Leviticus 14:45-46. There was no provision for palliatives and vaccines for them. Fortunately, they encountered Jesus, they cried out for mercy, all of them were cleansed despite that Jesus knew nine of them will be ungrateful, He still cleansed them because they cried out for mercy.

What we can learn from the actions of the Ten Lepers?

Lesson 1
There are two categories of people; The grateful and The Ungrateful.
- The grateful are the people who show appreciation to God irrespective of their conditions.
- The ungrateful are the thankless or the ingrates.

They are easily identifiable, how?

- They always complain 

- They always grumble

- They always  murmur

- They always take God's glory. they use words like  I, Me, without me, Made him etc. 

- Sometimes they blame God for their actions because they are ungrateful people.

A complaining tongue reveals an ungrateful heart

The grateful dog had more worth than any ungrateful man - (An Arab Proverbs)

Lesson 2
The Ten Lepers cried with a loud voice when they needed help from Jesus but after they got their miracle, only one cried out with a loud voice in order to offer thanks back to God.

Many people are like this, when they need a miracle, they cry out with a loud voice but after they get their miracles, they neither show appreciation to God who gave them that miracle or testify about the miracle received.

Lesson 3
Jesus commended the grateful and complained about the attitude of the ungrateful nine. 

Brethren, you need to make amend, it's not too late for you to make amends. If God is not saying Weldone or commending you, He has something against you, show appreciation to God.

Lesson 4
The grateful pleased the Lord by showing appreciation. The ungrateful displeased the Lord because they failed to show appreciation.

Thank God for the families where you came from, He didn't make mistakes by putting you in that family, thank God for your spouse's family, thank God for the hair on your head, don't add anything to the hair God has given to you. Thank God for every part and department of your body both the one you can see and the one you cannot see that are functioning. 

Beginning from today, cultivate the habit, whenever you are in a car, always say, thank you Jesus, when you see your complexion, say thank you Jesus, don't try to change the color God has given to you, be contented with the way God has created you, be proud of your stature. God created you well, there should not be any amendment to what God had created, don't recreate yourself.

Lesson 5
The ungrateful forms the majority while the grateful are in the minority.

From the passage, 9 out of the ten lepers were ungrateful. Only 1 showed appreciation. 

Note: The fact that many people are doing a certain thing doesn't mean that they are right, be careful.

Lesson 6
Being grateful opens the door for other blessings to come in. 

The grateful Leper got an additional blessings. He was made whole, the ungrateful nine only received healings.

Giving thanks will make your tanks full.

Whatever comes your way, Give Thanks.

Mathew 11:28 - Do you want God to help you? God is telling you to come, He will help you because vain is the help of man. If you want God to help you, you need to surrender your life to God first before He can help you. When you seek Him first, He will add other things to you. If you want God to help you, you need to come and surrender your life to God first and when you do that, He will help you. Come now and surrender your life to Him.

Ask Him to have mercy on you and wash you clean of His precious blood, ask Him to save you and accept you into the family of God, promise Him never to go back to your sins again.

Prayer Points

- Father I thank you for everything you have done for me in the physical and in the spiritual.

- Father I thank you for everything you have done through me, please take all the glory in Jesus name.

- Father I thank you for everything you have done for my neighbor and through my neighbor, thank you for life.

Always say thank you Jesus.