November 11, 2018 "Be Grateful", Rev. Dr. Howard-John Wesley

[Music] [Applause] [Music] what's your bow and being prayer with me they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength shall mount up with wings as Eagles run and not get weary walk and not faint wait on the Lord and be of good courage Lord some of us know all too well what it means to have to wait on you that gap that delay that pause between our prayer and your answer teach us Lord how to wait and be courageous and to wait with faith believing that you answer every prayer in your own sovereign way God thank you for the gift of your word in a world filled with opinion and commentary we need something that does not wither nor pass away the eternal truth of your word Lord my mind is not wise enough to understand all of your willing way therefore Holy Spirit I invoke you to rise above all that I prepared and speak to ears that are open hearts that are ready to receive in lives that are ready to bear fruit speak Lord for your servants are listening in Jesus name we do pray amen I wanted to hear reading of the word of God that continues to draw me to this passage especially in times like we live in today it is found in the 17th chapter of the Gospel of Luke 1 to begin reading in verse number 11 and the New International Version of God's Word and invite those who are physically able to stand with us that together we might reverence the reading of the word of God from Luke chapter 17 beginning in verse number 11 when she found that in your Bibles or on your smart devices won't you say Amen hear the word of the Lord now on his way to Jerusalem Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee as he was going into a village ten men who had leprosy met him they stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice Jesus master have pity on us when he saw them he replied go show yourselves to the priests and as they went they were cleansed one of them when he saw he was healed came back praising God in a loud voice he threw himself at Jesus feet and thanked him and that man was a Samaritan Jesus asked were not all ten cleansed where are the other nine has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner then he said to him rise and go your faith has made you well do me a favor before you sit down let your neighbor and share with him the sermon title tell him neighbor o neighbor be grateful you may be seated in the presence of the Lord I want to be honest with you that this week in trying to prayerfully discern and prepare the sermon I've been conflicted in my spirit I'm conflicted because in some sense I'm angry I'm beyond angry every day I turn on the news I get angrier I'm angry that there's been another mass shooting in the United States and no response from our government about gun reform I'm angry that we seem to focus more on immigrants crossing the border than we do homegrown terrorists who take our lives I'm angry that this president criticized the intellect of three black female journalists without any consequence I'm angry that became for Michelle Obama I don't take well to you coming after a sister from the southside of Chicago and while I've been wrestling with this anger I've also like many of you been in a reflection of the events that happened within our own church last weekend to receive a bomb threat for someone to threaten our existence and our worship and our membership and yet we looked at that and God kept us through it and so all week while I've been angry I've also heard God repeatedly say to me be grateful things could have gone another way be grateful and that's really how the sermon shaped because in the midst of a sign when we could be angry could be frustrated God reminds us that we should always be grateful I was at a pastors conference Louella go Deacon Stafford and we were put in small groups and as part of the small group the facilitator gathered us together with an ice breaker the ice breaker was meant to get us to help to know one another and to identify some area she would address where we needed to grow as shepherds of the People of God and here's the question she asked what is your pet peeve what angers you what gets under your skin what is something you can neither stand nor stomach well what is your pet peeve as other pastors were answering the question I came to the conclusion number one that I have too many pet peeves they're too many things aggravate me but when it was my turn to share I revealed that one of my deepest displeasure is one of the things that aggravates me most one of my most prominent pet peeves dealing with people who don't know how to be grateful I've got a problem with folk who can have somebody else go above and beyond to do what they didn't have to do and you not know how to respond would a simple thank you it happened this week I wanted I want to confess that a master to pray for me I'm a I'm a work in progress I still have some southside that creeps out every now and then but I've been trying to live in love this weekend I was coming out of a hotel restaurant and I saw a brother coming in he was not my color not my age and I decided to be respectful so I held the door open for him Alexander he walked in looked at me and kept on walking now I said somebody needs to teach you how to be grateful so I followed him into the hotel [Applause] as he was getting on the elevator he turned around and noticed me he said yes I said the phrase is thank you you need to learn how to be grateful when somebody's been courteous because you see I was raised by mom and dad who pressed on us that you have to learn how to be grateful because our parents understood an ungrateful child is the sign of a failed parent that if you don't know how to say thank you your mama and your daddy did not raise you right because they ought to teach you how to be grateful for what people have done likewise if you can come to church every week and not even think of thank you if you can be the recipient of the grace of God every day and drag yourself in here every week and sit like a bump on a log then some preacher and some pastor has failed to teach you how to worship God correctly worship requires expression of gratitude let me argue my case that's why I like Luke 17 because in Luke 17 you find out Jesus has issued with ungrateful folk context is this Jesus is somewhere between Samaria and Galilee he enters a town and in that town are 10 men with leprosy their leprosy is not so advanced that they're in quarantine but they are contagious because the Bible says when Jesus entered town they have to stand at a distance because they cannot threaten leprosy upon someone else and while they stand at a distance they have to open their mouths and yell and this is what they yell Jesus master have mercy on us in their plea is a prayer that Jesus will heal them when Jesus hears them yelling this is what he says go show yourselves to the priests now for those who don't understand why Jesus says that Old Testament law demanded that if a man or woman had leprosy they were excommunicated from friend and family and the only way they were given re-entry was that someone had to examine their bodies and determine that there was no more leprosy the medical professionals were not given the assignment the priests were so if you had leprosy and you said you were healed you had to go to a priest a priest has to examine you to be certain there was no leprosy and then they would sign off and give you a certificate and validation that allowed you to go back home so Jesus tells them go see the priests so the priest can verify that you've been healed and the Bible says that as they went they were cleansed which means that every step they took their situation got better every move they made healing came with it every step forward they took what was in their past they'll offer them and as they are walking they realize things are changing as they're progressing they're getting better and better and better and better and better and as they realize they're getting better two responses nine of them decide to keep going to see the priests one of them sees that stuff is different and he doesn't go to see the priests he runs back to Jesus the Bible says with a loud voice he began praising God and thanking Jesus for what the Lord has done he realized God has been so good to me and so much has changed and I'm not what I used to be that that I've got to open my mouth and tell the Lord thank you for what you've done Jesus sees the one and notice how Jesus responds he says uh hold up slow slow your roll were there not Ted didn't in get healed and you trying to tell me only one has come back where the other nine how could the other nine be the recipients of the grace of God and say nothing how can the others be blessed by God and keep their mouths closed how could they have asked me to heal them they see they were healed and they kept on going never came back never said thank you who didn't train these fellows right here within Jesus question some divine disgust how can you be blessed and not be grateful how can you receive and just sit there quiet how can your neighbor come to church every week and not even think of thank you sit and act like you're mad to be here come in mad when folks stand up angry when folks shout sit down I can't see shut up I can't hear it don't take [Applause] within Jesus question it's something I want you to understand that praise and thanksgiving to God is not something that ought to be manipulated nor manufactured at the end of a praise and worship song by somebody who's got a mic and tells you you ought to stand up praise and thanksgiving ought not be some preacher standing in the pulpit Hollan can I get a man praise and thanksgiving should not be forced upon you but when you look at your life and you realize what the Lord has done you are not need a choir you are not need a preacher you want that need praise and worship something inside of you off to demand that I thank God for what the Lord has done somebody holler be grateful here's what Jesus says I want you to be grateful watch the story because the Lord has done for you some things you could never do for yourself hold on let me try this again ah the Lord has done for you some things you know you could have never done for yourself third time's a charm the Lord has done for you some things you could have never done for your self is there anybody at 11:30 that can look into your life and say God did that God did that God did that target that God did that the Lord has done some things for me here's what I want you to ask if the Lord did it how could nine people not be grateful if the Lord made the way if the Lord opened the door why come there's so many folks that come to church and act like they're ungrateful well well I go ask a question without positing a possibility how could nine not be grateful because of how the blessing came watch it when they request to be healed the healing is not immediate it's not instantaneous Jesus didn't lay hands on them and they were immediately healed no the Bible says as they went which means that this healing was not immediate Johnny it was progressive every step a little bit better every move a little bit better next step better than the last step out to that better than when we started they made step after step after step and could it be when they get to the place of realizing they are healed they think it's because of the steps they've taken [Music] that every move I made I got better every decision I made turned out right every degree I put on the wall brought another check it is possible to reach a place where you look at the landscape of your life and see all that God has done and you can fuse it with your own steps your work ethic your connectivity your entrepreneurial skill your climbing up the corporate ladder you're going back to school your smart decisions and there's some people in the sanctuary every week who confuse the grace of God with their own movements can i push it suddenly required because they think their steps left them to where they are and maybe some people are ungrateful like these nine because these nine are galilaeans stay with me nine galilaeans one Samaritan let me tell you about the Galileans they realized they're from Galilee and guess who else is from Galilee who go and act like you read your Bible Jesus maybe in their mind they do what Saints today do they convince themselves well since I'm from Galilee and he's from Galilee this is what he was supposed to do for me we grew up together we we from same size town are we on the same block and because we grew up together we are entitled to what the Lord has done because there's some people who are ungrateful because they believe they are entitled to the grace of God entitle mminton to religiosity the more religious you are the more entitled you will feel it goes on something like this I go to church every week I sit outside and waited to get in I drove around looking for a parking space I gave money in the offering I read my Bible I prayed last week there's some folk I should have slapped and didn't on general Christian principle and because I've done right there are some things God is supposed to do for me I came by to ask you a real question and I just want you to wrestle with this for a moment what does God have to do for you what is the lord obligated to do for you what is God mandated to perform on your behalf these Galileans believe that they were entitled but the one Samaritan he knows Samaritans and Jews and Galileans have no business interacting with each other he knows I'm unworthy of Jesus even speaking to me so he realize unlike the Galileans Jesus didn't have to do it now within every church there are galilaeans and Samaritans there some of you who believe that what God did God was supposed to do you sit down and Shh I want to preach to some Samaritans who realize God didn't have to do anything for me God didn't have to wake me up God didn't have to answer my prayer God didn't have to bless me with resource God didn't have to keep my family is there anybody here who knows God didn't have to do anything and the reason I praise God is cuz he didn't have to do what God did God God has done some things for me that God didn't have to do there's nothing about me so good that demands God did what God did can i push it he realizes one that God didn't have to do this and number two I realize that he has to remember I had leprosy leprosy is a contagious skin disease that spreads which means that leprosy left on its own always gets worse so when this man meets Jesus he's got a condition that if left to itself is going to get worse and maybe he runs back to praise God and thank Jesus because he knows if the Lord hadn't stepped in this thing would have gotten worse now let me tell you Lou tell you galilaeans there's some galilaeans you've lived better than me so you don't have to praise right here but there's some of us that know that where the Lord met me and where the Lord found me if the Lord hadn't interceded if the Lord hadn't snatched me out of that if the Lord hadn't delivered me for myself I shudder to think where my life would be right now if God had put his hands on me I need some soul of born-again sinners who know that if God had redeemed you if God had saved you you would be dead right now if if if God hadn't shut some doors I don't know where I'd be if God hadn't said no I don't know where I'd be if God hadn't taken away some folk that I wasn't trying to get rid of I don't know where I'd be if God hadn't stopped me on my way to a good sin [Applause] this thing would have gotten worse and so whenever I realized that God didn't have to do what God did and whenever I acknowledge that if God hadn't stepped in it would have gotten worse I realized I didn't get here by myself not my moves not my steps not my business decisions not my intellect it was only the grace of God holding me that get me to where I am [Applause] Marcia there's some slow folk in the house I may help you my youngest son Cooper when he was about five years old he was having trouble learning to ride a bike sorry Cooper I just got to tell the story so don't and so in order to help him I put training wheels on the bike so he would learn how to ride the bike that year he got an invitation to a birthday party and they were supposed to bring the bikes it was a boy's birthday bike celebration and Cooper was reluctant to go because he didn't want to be the only boy that brought a bike with training wheels that's an embarrassment so he's demands to learn how to ride the bike sosa Cooper you know what daddy's gonna help you were gonna learn to ride this bike we are you gonna learn today son you're gonna learn today we we you don't we're gonna get this thing down today so we take the bike out take the training wheels off and I need to know where I live there's a problem because I live on an incline which means if you go this way you're going downhill if you go this way you're going uphill now I love him too much to let him go downhill that's the accident waiting to happen so the only other option is to go uphill so I said to mr. cook we're gonna go up here you're gonna learn the ride look uphill it's hard but your legs are gonna get strong uphill takes a little bit sooner or later you gonna learn to ride that bike son daddy promises you so he gets on his bike and I did what a good daddy supposed to do when the training wheels are off I grabbed the back of the seat and I started walking with him as he's pedaling he's moving a little bit he's doesn't get it he starts to sit upright and he's pedaling now the more he gets it he starts peddling even faster which means I've got to start running the faster because I'm holding on to the back of his seat so he does not fall then he starts peddling real fast and now I'm running real fast holding on to his seat and this little Joker pedaling uphill has the audacity to turn around to me and say daddy look I can ride the bike uphill I said son the only reason you can ride the bike uphill and says your daddy is holding on to the back and your daddy is running right alongside with you can I preach to somebody that's made it up somewhere the only reason you are where you are is does you have a God who had his hand on you and ran with you would you tell somebody tell them God got me here [Applause] Hey the Lord the Lord has has helped me get to where I am and if you know that God did some things God didn't have to do and if you know that if God hadn't stepped in your life would have been worse and if you know you got where you are because the Lord had his hand on you and ran behind you watch what the Bible says you ought to do this let's go get a little quiet right here it's gonna get quiet point of difference in debates go show up right here when this brother realizes Jesus didn't have to it would have gotten worse if he didn't and I didn't make it here by myself mister the Bible says he comes back and with a loud voice praises God with a loud voice he praises God with a loud voice he praises God here's here's where here's where the debate and divided comes because I was just - you praise is not a thought Thanksgiving is not meditation a grateful heart is never exemplified in a closed mouth that if you know God did what God didn't have to do and if you know that it would have gotten worse had God not intervened and if you know that you got where you are because God held on to you then it's some moment your mouth ought to open by reflex at some moment that hallelujah in your bosom outages begin raising of it at some point your hands just sort of go up at some point the Bible says the redeemed of the Lord honor say so that there's a moment when you just gotta tell God thank you [Applause] now I'll hear me before you send an email I'm not suggesting that you gotta turn Pentecostal overnight I'm not suggesting you got to run around the sanctuary when you get happy I'm not suggesting that [Applause] I'm not just you gotta out shout my sister you ain't got I'm not suggesting you gotta fall out at the altar and somebody got to come and put a cloth over you and the ushers form a circle around you and begin Fanning you and bringing out smelling salts no I'm not suggesting that but I am suggesting that if you know how good the Lord has been then your response has got to be in worship at some moment to say thank you not to think thank you to say thank you now it's alpha Street so I know I know I know what one of the emails is I don't know what I'm prophetic I see it in the spirit someone was saying to me you know a pastor that that's all well and dandy but you know what that's just not my personality no I'm just I don't I don't I don't shout like that I don't I'm not emotional I'm not rest like that you know the reason I came here and not the sanctified Pentecostal Church down the street is cuz I don't know I don't need the worship like that I ain't trying to be in church to four o'clock I'm you know I'm just you know that that's just not me I don't shout like that I don't know that that's that's not my personality that's not my personality and I get it I get it that's not your personality I accept that but let me tell you why that don't matter I'm out at dinner a few years ago when a pastor from the city and we go over to steak house at the Gaylord and we're in the restaurant and Mark he embarrassed me because the waiter came and we order in steaks and he ordered his well-done now I know there's gonna be debate because of you all don't know how to order your steak but you really are not supposed to order a steak well-done that that that's you you you've cooked all the flavor all the juice it didn't hear me if you order steak well-done they might as well bring you a piece of shoe leather and put it on the plate because you won't be able to tell the difference it's it's the same thing you do not order steak well-done true beefeaters know that the steak is not supposed to be on medium medium-rare is really what you want medium is about as butchers you should take but medium well and well-done just shows you don't know what you're doing that's all it's chance he he so I'm embarrassed we were ordering these fine expensive steaks and he tells waiter I want mine well-done the waiter goes in the kitchen waiter comes back few minutes later and says excuse me the chef wants you to know that the cut of meat you've ordered is one of the best in the house and we don't want to cook it well done it's it's ruining the cut of meat it's it's too fine a grade of Kobe beef for us to to make it well-done it's got to be medium rare or medium at most we we recommend that you do at medium because because this is just too fine a piece of steak to order and well-done the past trials we look back at the waiter this what he said he said listen you tell the chef that I said when it's his steak he can order it the way he wants but since it's my steak and I'm paying for it tell him to prepare it the way I asked and bring it to me because it's my steak now I understand praising out loud is not your personality I understand you're too high up with your military-grade to be seen on camera shouting like that I understand that you got business connections in the church and you don't want nobody to think that you don't have it all together I get that the problem is it ain't your praise it's not your worship it's not your Thanksgiving and since it belongs to God you've got to give it to God the way God ordered it the Bible says make a joyful noise unto the Lord would you touch somebody and tell them it's not your praise [Applause] I know I know I know I know this bothers you so watch what happens I want to show you the hypocrisy of a blessed Saint who can't praise God I'm sure the Apocrypha when Jesus comes to the town ten brothers have leprosy they're contagious so neither they have to stand at a distance and standing at a distance they open their mouths and yell Jesus help them run out they have no problem yelling when they need something they can open their mouths when they want God to work on their behalf but then when God performs it they sit silent as if they got nothing to say if you can shout in your prayer you wanna shout in your brace that there's something wrong about someone who can open their mouth and a prayer but keep their mouth closed and worship have you ever had to pray a real prayer I mean I'm not I'm talking about some oh wee prayer oh no no you didn't even start with now I lay me no no no no you you ever had a real problem and you have to kneel you even knelt on the side of your bed you folded your hands together you close your eyes and bow your head and you start have you ever really prayed if you've ever really prayed do you oughta really praise and thank God for what the Lord has done god thank you [Applause] this brother realizes that the same loud voice are used in asking if the loud voice are to use in praising so the Bible says he prays God watch this and he thanked Jesus it's right there in your Bible he he praise God and he thanked Jesus praise God and thank Jesus praise God and thank the one God used here's a problem to me church folk they may be good at praising God but they're poor at thanking the ones God used tojo story'll awhile ago I'm a real curious person when I meet people in different industries I asked him about their profession I was in Houston Texas the other weekend doctor general Paz Cosby and I'm one of the waiters that came to the table work said Cosby's church and I remember asking I said you know what what's it like being a waiter and he shared me and I said what's the worst thing about being a waiter and this what he said he said we don't like it when we see people bless their food I said wait you don't like it when you see folk bless their food he said no cuz use that means they're Christian I said what I got doing thing he's a Christians don't tip [Music] they're good at thanking God for the food but they don't know how to thank the server they bought it it's one thing to praise God it's another to be grateful for the people God used to bless you and everybody in here today your homework assignment is simple make a list of the people that you ought to thank after you've praised because God used somebody to get you where you are I praise God [Applause] but I also thank the people who pray for me every day I praise God and I think the mentor is God is put in my life to help me grow as a pastor I praise God and I think the leaders that stand in the trenches with me to help guide and govern Alpha Street Baptist Church I praise God and today I want to thank the women and men who put themselves in harm's way who sacrificed their families who went abroad and stayed at home who served in the United States Army and Navy and Marines and Air Force to be certain that I was protected that my children were protected I thank God and I thank the ones God used can you help me thank them for what they've done and how they serve and how they sacrifice for our well-being thank you thank you because you served I didn't have to because you served my children don't have to I pray they may want to but they don't have to this man praises God thanks Jesus the nine didn't come back and there's some scholars who try to exonerate the nine they try to give him a pass they try to clean them up and this is what they say they say well you know Jesus told the nine to go see the priests so the reason they didn't come back to praise was because they were following the instructions of Jesus to go see the priests to go see the priests meant that they had to go to the synagogue so we shouldn't judge them because maybe they saved their praise for the synagogue right that make sense Dale I get it they were on their way to the synagogue and maybe they held their praise too they got to the synagogue I don't fault Galileans who hold their praise for the synagogue because the synagogue is a safe place to breathe Sunday is politically rectus correct a shower ain't nobody gonna call they char on you in here if there's any place where it's acceptable to make a joyful noise to the Lord it's the sanctuary on Sunday at 11:30 service y'all were here last week you see how y'all cut up they don't do that at 7:30 and 9:30 that's only 11:30 was this sister service that gets loose this is a safe place to give praise to God and I don't fault anyone who praises God in the synagogue in the sanctuary in the church on Sunday in holy places I get that but I like this Samaritan who said I can't wait to get to the synagogue I'm not gonna wait for Sunday I'm going right back to the place where the Lord blessed me and wherever God blessed me is where I'm gonna praise him if he blessed me in the board room I'm most shout in the board room if he blesses me at Bank of America I most shout at Bank of America wherever he blesses me can ask you a question real quick and I'm done I'm almost out Malucci um have you ever gotten caught up thinking about the goodness of God and it wasn't Sunday I mean seers have have you ever had a Sunday shower on Thursday have have you ever been somewhere where there was no cross no choir no congregation but you start thinking about how good god was to you and you didn't care where you were right there I'm gonna bless his name have you ever gone to the mailbox and there was a check you didn't expect and you shout it right there have you ever walked out of a doctor's appointment with a piece of paper in your hand you had to bless God right there cuz there's some of us I can't wait for Sunday I can't wait for Alfred streets I'm gonna bless God where I see the goodness of God y'all this happened to me the other day I was thinking about this bomb threat thing messed me up to think that someone wanted to threaten our lives I think that someone wants to kill me and what upset me the most was not the thought of dying is the thought of not being here to see my kids see them grow so that kept me up one night and I went upstairs we went in their room was dark it was late at night and he was sleeping and God they look so good when they sleep they're not fighting they're not on their cellphones and I sat there and I looked at my children look at them being alive and well intelligent and handsome like their father [Applause] I'm trying not to cry and right there in the late hour in the darkness in a bedroom I shouted out thank you Jesus I know it's not Sunday I know I'm not in the pulpit I know there's no choir behind me I know there's no congregation in front of me but when I saw the goodness of the Lord right there in that room I had to just bow down and thank God for being so good and so gracious have you ever praise God outside of the sanctuary have you ever gotten happy outside of church have you ever worship God and it wasn't even Sunday because da spends that good [Applause] that there's some moments when the song of Andre Crouch is so real how can I say thanks for the things you've done for me things so undeserved yet you did to prove your love for me the voices of a million angels could not express my gratitude all that I am and ever hope to be I owe it all to thee and I love that chorus this simply says to God be the glory - gah [Music] with [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Applause] amen you may be seated in this place

Channel: Alfred Street Baptist Church

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Id: CN9SBKoNSxM

Length: 54min 29sec (3269 seconds)

Published: Wed Nov 14 2018