Thank You Lord, The Battle Is Over by Pastor Jerry Eze: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

The blessedness of thanksgiving

Luke 7:36-50

A Pharisee invited Jesus to eat with him. A sinful woman came with an alabaster box of ointment, washed his feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, and anointed them. The Pharisee despised her in his heart. Jesus told him of a creditor who forgave two debtors, one who owed 500 pence and one 50, and asked which would love him more. Simon answered, "he to whom he forgave most." Jesus said to Simon, "Thou gavest me no water for my feet... no kiss... my head with oil thou didst not anoint," but this woman washed his feet with tears, kissed them without ceasing, and anointed them with ointment. "Wherefore I say unto thee, her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little." He said to her, "Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace."

God hears every word of thanks

Some people don't know that when you thank God for what he has done, he has already planned to do more. Whatever you are thanking God for today, he was already working on the next blessing before you even opened your mouth to give thanks.

Don't be the believer who only sees what God hasn't done

When you think well, you can thank well. In a hurry to forget, people forget the reason to give thanks and only look at what God hasn't done. But the reason for our existence is not to make God do things for us — we are created for his pleasure, so we have a reason to thank him even if he does nothing further.

Testimony: the birth of a prayer ministry

About seven years ago, at the height of COVID fear, a burning passion arose to encourage church members. Meetings were held early each morning before restrictions could catch people; two members were arrested and detained, then released just before a broadcast went live. What was planned as a temporary response to the pandemic did not end when the pandemic ended — "it did not come for COVID, it came for such a time as this." Since then blind eyes, cancers, impossible and irreversible situations have turned around.

Thanksgiving does not begin from what God has done

Thanksgiving begins from who he is, not from what he has done. As long as thanksgiving is tied only to visible results, it will run dry when nothing seems to be working. Left for some people, you should not even be alive today — you don't know every battle God stopped for you that you never knew about, only the ones you can see.

Thanksgiving does not ignore human vessels

The woman with the alabaster box did not simply say "Lord I'm grateful" from a distance — she went and expressed it practically. Appreciate the people God has used in your life; people are tired of love that is only spoken and has no supporting action. When you thank your spouse with words, back it with something practical. We often take for granted those who truly love us while campaigning for the attention of those who would never show up for us. Call your parents, your siblings, anyone whose words have shaped you, and let them know they matter to you.

Three things thanksgiving is

1. Thanksgiving is a multiplier — nothing shows your love for God like thanksgiving. Jesus said of the woman, "she loved much," so thanksgiving is a measure of love.
2. Thanksgiving is a weapon against the enemy.
3. Thanksgiving is an understanding — an illumination of the God you serve, declaring in the midst of battle, "I know whom I am serving."

Thanksgiving is a posture, not a sound

You can make the sound of thanksgiving without the posture of a grateful heart, and it cancels out. Thanksgiving begins in the heart, in choosing not to focus on what isn't working but on who God is.