Provoking Victory Through Thanksgiving by Apostle Michael Orokpo: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

Psalm 92:1-2 — "it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord... to shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning." Thanksgiving is such a mystery that sometimes, before you even step out, God has already gone ahead to make the crooked places straight.

Psalm 78:41-43 — Israel's lack of thanksgiving in the wilderness is what God called "an evil heart." God can be limited in a life the same way he was limited there — not because he lacks power, but because complaint closes what thanksgiving would have opened.

Four Reasons to Give Thanks

1. For who he is — Psalm 136:1, "give thanks unto the Lord, for he is good."

2. For what he does — 1 Chronicles 16:8, Revelation 4:11, all things were created for his pleasure.

3. Because it reveals who we are — Luke 17:17, only one of ten healed lepers returned to give thanks; that one alone was called reasonable.

4. Because thanksgiving provokes things.

What Thanksgiving Provokes

1. Access

   Psalm 100:4 — "enter his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise." Gates are not just entry points but points of authority. Those who thank God cannot be shut out.

2. Multiplication

   John 6:5-11 — Jesus gave thanks over five loaves and two fishes before they multiplied to feed 5,000, with twelve baskets left over. Acts 2:46-47 — the early church, praising God, saw the Lord add to their number daily. Jeremiah 30:19 — "out of them shall proceed thanksgiving... I will multiply them, and they shall not be few."

3. Greatness

   Jeremiah 30:19 continues — "I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small." David, called the sweet psalmist of Israel for his perpetual praise, became the reference point of kingship. Those who give thanks are never left small.

4. An atmosphere for miracles

   John 11:41 — at Lazarus's tomb, surrounded by mourning, Jesus said, "Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me," before he called Lazarus out of the grave. Thanksgiving activates resurrection power — the greatest power in Scripture, since creation opened God's power and resurrection closed it.