Church of Christ Sermons and Lessons for 2012
Speaker	Sermon/Lesson Title   (Right Click to Download)	Audio   Video  Text    Ipod MS Word	Category	Date Added	Lesson
Bobby Stafford	The Righteous Give Thanks		Thanksgiving	November 18, 2012	Sunday AM Sermon

The Righteous Give Thanks

Introduction:

First National Thanksgiving Proclamation

Whereas, it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; Whereas, both the houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me

“to recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceable to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness!”

Now therefore, I do recommend next, to be devoted by the people of the states to the service of that great and glorious being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be, that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country.

George Washington, 1779

Our Heavenly Father truly is the source of all that is good in our world.  How thankful we should be.

Body:

I.     The Thankful Samaritan

·       Text:  Luke 17:11-19   Leprosy was a horrific disease.  It started with sores and then began eating away at bodily tissues until the body begins to be consumed.  The nose and lips disappear; fingers decay and fall off. The joints separate and finally the vital organs shut down.  In the first century, it was incurable.

·       The lepers made a desperate appeal because Christ was their last and only hope.  They must have heard of His power to heal.  (Luke 5:12-13)  All ten needed His mercy.  All ten were healed.

·       Only the Samaritan returned and poured out his thanks at Jesus’ feet.  Why didn’t the other nine return? 

Coffman listed some possible excuses they may have made.

·       One waited to see if the cure was real.

·       One waited to see if the cure would last.

·       One said that he would see Jesus later.

·       One decided that he never had leprosy.

·       One said that he would have gotten well anyway.

·       One gave the glory to the priests.

·       One said, “Oh, well, Jesus didn’t really do anything.”

·       One said, “Just any rabbi could have done it.”

·       One said, “I was already much improved.”

Do any of these expressions sound like something you would have said?

II.   Being Thankful

·       Unceasing   (Ephesians 1:16) This behavior should be a part of who we are.

·       Even for the “little things”  (Ephesians 5:20)

·       Spontaneous  (Philemon 1:3-4)

·       God’s will for us  (I Thessalonians 5:18)

III.          The Unthankful

·       The Foolish  (Romans 1:20-23)

·       I Timothy 4:1-5

·       Have you ever been frustrated when somebody didn’t thank you for something you did for them?  How do you think God feels?

IV.          Why Should We Be Thankful?

·       God’s goodness and mercy   (Psalms 106:1-2, Psalms 107:8-9)

·       Answered prayer  (John 11:41)

·       For Christ and salvation  (II Corinthians 9:15)

·       Other Christians  (I Thessalonians 1:2)

A list of some things we may not think about very much.

·       first sip of coffee in the morning

·       ability to pay my bills

·       health-care benefits

·       laughter

·       beauty of each season

·       sound of rain

·       kindness of strangers

·       my sensitive nature

 Conclusion:

Abraham Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Proclamation of 1863

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies.  To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union.

Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle, or the ship; the axe had enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore.

Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things.  They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American People.

I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.

 Bobby Stafford

November 18, 2012

 More on Christian Living