Reverend Michael Mwangi
Senior Pastor, Fedha Church, Kenya Assemblies of God
Luke 17:12-19
12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy[a] met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”
14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.
15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.
17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”
We are very passionate about praying and asking God, but are we that passionate about Thanksgiving.
Some people take life and blessing for granted and they are not grateful. Everything we have is a gift from God and we do not deserve it.
1 Corinthians 4:7.
For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not.
God expects us to show gratitude since we can never pay for what he has done for us. May we have a heart of thanks or gratitude like this leper.
This story reveals a lot about Thanksgiving. What differentiates the Samaritan leper from the other nine lepers Jesus healed is his heart and attitude.
He had a heart of gratitude that the others didn’t have. This was why he returned to the Lord to express thanksgiving.
Our heart reveals who we are. Our heart reveals our character. You cannot give what you do not have. For you to give thanks, you need a heart of thanksgiving.
Psalms 100:4
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
A heart of gratitude appreciates God’s mercies, no matter how small the blessings may be. It is not stirred by the size of the blessings.
1. A heart of gratitude is always joyful
It rejoices before God and in humility and gives heartfelt praise to God.
Psalm 9:1-2
I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
2. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.
Psalm 138:1-2
I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart; before the “gods” I will sing your praise.
2. I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise your name for your unfailing love and your faithfulness, for you have so exalted your solemn decree that it surpasses your fame.
People without a heart of gratitude are always complaining and unhappy. They only notice what they don’t have instead of what they have. They fail to enjoy what they have because of what they don’t have.
2. A heart of gratitude always recollects the past of what God has done
Psalm 103:2
Bless the LORD, O my soul and forget not his benefits.
3. Helps us to see God's will
1 Thessalonians 5:18.
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1. Gratitude Helps us to see God in everything giving us peace because it helps us be contented and avoid greed and envy. Even the little you have becomes fulfilling.
It Helps us live in the present. you enjoy what you have right now making us see the beauty of every day.
It gives us power and the ability to draw closer to God. God loves people who are grateful.
No matter where you are in life remember your level is a prayer for someone else.
It deepens our faith, if you can see where God has carried you in the past, you can trust him to take you in the future. Keeping a record of God's faithfulness boosts our faith.
4. It keeps you safe from the lies of the enemy
In our low moments, the enemy whispers come very loudly.
Gratitude speaks loudly of God’s faithfulness in defying Satan's lies.
A heart of gratitude does not measure God’s love by tangible things alone, but also by invisible blessings of life.
The heart of gratitude appreciates that it is not always that things work out fine, and therefore, also rejoices when things don’t work out well. It rejoices when the sun shines on us and when the sun does not shine on us.
Habakkuk3:17-18
Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labour of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls— Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation
5. A heart of gratitude will always return with sacrifices of thanksgiving to God
Psalm 116:12 - 17
12 What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me?
13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.
14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.
16 Truly I am your servant, Lord; I serve you just as my mother did; you have freed me from my chains.
17 I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord.
Hannah had a heart of gratitude, and this was why she returned to the temple to say to Eli
1 Samuel 1:26
and she said to him, “Pardon me, my lord. As surely as you live, I am the woman who stood here beside you praying to the Lord.
Luke 7:39
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
In Luke 7, the woman Jesus met in the Pharisee’s house had a heart of gratitude, that was why she came to Jesus to lavishly show her affection. She washed Jesus’ feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, kissed Jesus’ feet, and anointed His hair with oil, all because Jesus forgave her sins.
2 Chronicles 20:27
Then, led by Jehoshaphat, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the Lord had given them cause to rejoice over their enemies.
Jehoshaphat had a heart of gratitude, hence he returned to thank God after God gave him victory over the three nations that invaded him.
1 Chronicles 29:8-20
8 Anyone who had precious stones gave them to the treasury of the temple of the Lord in the custody of Jehiel the Gershonite. 9 The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the Lord. David the king also rejoiced greatly.
10 David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, Lord, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
11 Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
12 Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things.
In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.
13 Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.
14 “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. 15 We are foreigners and strangers in your sight, as were all our ancestors. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. 16 Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. 17 I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things I have given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. 18 Lord, the God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep these desires and thoughts in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you. 19 And give my son Solomon the wholehearted devotion to keep your commands, statutes and decrees and to do everything to build the palatial structure for which I have provided.”
20 Then David said to the whole assembly, “Praise the Lord your God.” So they all praised the Lord, the God of their fathers; they bowed down, prostrating themselves before the Lord and the king.
David had a heart of gratitude hence he led Israel to return to thank God and gave generously towards the building of the temple.
Exodus 15: 1-19
Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:
“I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.
2 “The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
3 The Lord is a warrior; the Lord is his name.
4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh’s officers are drowned in the Red Sea.
5 The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone.
6 Your right hand, Lord, was majestic in power. Your right hand, Lord, shattered the enemy.
7 “In the greatness of your majesty you threw down those who opposed you. You unleashed your burning anger; it consumed them like stubble.
8 By the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up. The surging waters stood up like a wall;
the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy boasted, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake them. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword and my hand will destroy them.’
10 But you blew with your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11 Who among the gods is like you, Lord? Who is like you— majestic in holiness,
awesome in glory, working wonders?
12 “You stretch out your right hand, and the earth swallows your enemies.
13 In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling.
14 The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philistia.
15 The chiefs of Edom will be terrified, the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan will melt away;
16 terror and dread will fall on them. By the power of your arm they will be as still as a stone— until your people pass by, Lord, until the people you bought[d] pass by.
17 You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your inheritance— the place, Lord, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, Lord, your hands established.
18 “The Lord reigns for ever and ever.”
19 When Pharaoh’s horses, chariots and horsemen[e] went into the sea, the Lord brought the waters of the sea back over them, but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground. 20 Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing. 21 Miriam sang to them:
“Sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.”
Moses had a heart of thanksgiving, which was why he mobilised the children of Israel to praise God after they miraculously crossed the Red Sea (Exodus 15).
Seeing what the Lord has done for us, let us come before God with gratitude in our hearts. Like the psalmist let us enter into his presence with thanksgiving and praise in our hearts
When we give thanks, it opens room for more. The leper was made whole, he received the full measure of life. He was not only healed but received the grace to succeed in everything else in life. Every dimension of his life was healed and his life was made prosperous and successful.
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