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I Will Give Thanks to You, O Lord (Isaiah 12)
10 Plays29 days ago
Sunday Message recorded 24 November 2024
by Senior Pastor Victor Morrison
First Baptist Church - Columbus, TX, USA
1700 Milam St.
Columbus, TX, USA 78934
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Transcript
Introduction and Gratitude
00:00:06
Speaker
That song is entitled, We Gather Together. And to celebrate the Lord's blessings, I'm so thankful for our musicians and how they lead us in worship. Thank you, Marsha, for all that you do to lead us in worship each week. I'm so glad you're here to celebrate with us. I was so blessed when I heard you Josh Cartarelli's testimony. Thank you so much, Josh. Great job there, man. And I know that Brian, you and Kim are so proud of Josh. We're all proud of you.
00:00:35
Speaker
as a church family. We are your family, and so so excited.
Sermon on Isaiah 12
00:00:38
Speaker
Would you turn with me to the Old Testament book of Isaiah? We're going to be in Isaiah chapter 12 today. And since lunch is on us, I can go as long as I want. No, I'm kidding. I won't do that to you you. You may have other plans. If you don't have other plans, we hope you'll join us. We've already got the tables look fantastic down there. And I thank you all for decorating. They always do a great job. Yeah, all you got to do is walk in that room and you just feel the festive occasion that we're gathering to give the Lord thanks on. But then also, just those that it got here really early this morning, they've been preparing turkeys and we've had ladies preparing food of all different kinds. And so I'm so excited. Someone even met me this morning and said, there's a pumpkin pie with your name on it, pastor. So anyway, I was excited about that. But I'm so excited about my salvation in Jesus Christ.
00:01:35
Speaker
You know, that's what we should really be giving thanks for each year. Isaiah's ministry was from 740 BC to 680 BC. He preached sort of like a prophet, but many times it almost seems like he preaches as though he were a poet.
00:01:53
Speaker
because he could paint some incredible word pictures like he does in this passage, where he talks about salvation is like a well. And from the springs, from the well of salvation, we can just draw as much as we want.
00:02:08
Speaker
with joy in our hearts. You know, um Isaiah, across 66 chapters, I mean, he he talks about judgment, but he also talks about comfort. He talks about sin, but he also talks about hope. He talks so about the Messiah and the majesty of God and the sovereignty of God.
00:02:27
Speaker
But there are two chapters that are very short. One is Isaiah 4, and the other one is this one, Isaiah 12. It only has six verses. So how much damage could I do with that? I mean, we're going to be here just a little bit, and then we're going to go down down the hall and enjoy sitting around the tables. But do you know that um Isaiah 12 is actually a psalm of thanksgiving. It's a psalm of thanksgiving for the Lord's salvation.
Thanksgiving and Historical Declarations
00:02:56
Speaker
There's a theologian named Joseph Parker and he said, if you were to start at chapter one and you were to read through chapter 11, you would see this succession of spiritual thunderstorms, spiritual earthquakes of judgment until you come to chapter 12. And it's like when you read this hymn of praise and thanksgiving, you're you're relaxed and you're saying, thank you, Lord.
00:03:23
Speaker
You know, some begin at chapter 7 and go through chapter 12, and they call this section from chapter 7 to chapter 12, the Book of Emmanuel, because it just continues to point to the Messiah, and they call him Emmanuel. You know, in Isaiah 7, 14, it says, the virgin shall bear a son, and you shall call his name Emmanuel.
00:03:48
Speaker
And then in chapter eight, verse eight, it brings up that name again, Immanuel. In chapter eight, verse 10, it gives the the meaning of the name Immanuel. For God is with us. And I don't know about you, but when we were worshiping the Lord, I sensed his presence. He is with us today.
Themes of Trust and Salvation in Isaiah 12
00:04:08
Speaker
Isaiah nine, verses six and seven that we read oftentimes at Christmas says, for to us a child is born, to us a son is given.
00:04:17
Speaker
So it's just incredible whenever you begin at chapter one and you go all the way through to chapter 12, and even in chapter 11, verses one through 10, you begin to realize, wait, these things haven't taken place yet. These things haven't taken place yet. It's got to be describing the beauty of Christ's kingdom, what only he can accomplish. You know, so many of our country's founding fathers, I think they were grateful for our Lord's gracious blessings upon our nation. For example, when Thomas Jefferson was the governor of Virginia, he made this proclamation appointing a day of thanksgiving proclaimed on November the 11th, 1779. And here's what he said, I appoint a day of public thanksgiving to Almighty God to ask him that he would pour out his Holy Spirit on all ministers of the gospel.
00:05:13
Speaker
that He would spread the light of Christian knowledge through the remotest corners of the earth, and that He would establish these United States upon the basis of religion and virtue. Man, 1779. Two years earlier, though, the Continental Congress had made a similar declaration of thanksgiving on November 1, 1777.
00:05:39
Speaker
Congress recommended a day of thanksgiving and praise so that the good people may express the grateful feelings of their hearts and join their humble and earnest supplication that it may please God through the merits of Jesus Christ mercifully to forgive our sins and to enlarge his kingdom, which consists in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. 1777.
00:06:09
Speaker
It just kept going because as the governor of Massachusetts, John Hancock, who put his John Hancock at the bottom of the Declaration of Independence, he
Simplicity of Salvation Through Trust
00:06:19
Speaker
also used his platform of leadership as a governor in Boston on seventy in 1790 to proclaim a day of thanksgiving and praise in that year.
00:06:30
Speaker
He said, I appoint a day of public thanksgiving and praise to render to God the tribute of praise for His unmerited goodness toward us by giving to us the holy scriptures, which are able to enlighten and make us wise to eternal salvation and to present our supplications that He would forgive our manifold sins and cause the benign religion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to be known.
00:07:00
Speaker
understood, and practiced among all the inhabitants of the earth." Wow. Well, here we are this morning looking at Isaiah chapter 12, originally addressed to a nation, the nation of Israel. Isaiah was encouraging his nation to give thanks to the Lord, just like Jefferson and Adams and Hancock were many years later to give ask our nation to give thanks to the Lord.
00:07:28
Speaker
So, would you please stand in honor of God's Word. I want to read these
Comparisons of Salvation Experiences
00:07:32
Speaker
great words that I hope will set us in the direction of giving thanks ah to the Lord for His salvation. You will say in that day, I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me,
00:07:49
Speaker
your anger turned away, that you might comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust and will not be afraid, for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. With joy, you will draw water from the wells of salvation, and you will say in that day,
00:08:15
Speaker
give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing praises to the Lord for he has done gloriously. Let this be made known in all the earth. Shout and sing for joy, oh inhabitants of Zion, for great in your midst.
00:08:40
Speaker
is the Holy One of Israel. Let's pray and ask God to speak to us today. Lord, thank you. Thank you so much for your word. It always connects with us. It guides us. It corrects us. It blesses us and encourages us and comforts us. And so
God's Everlasting Strength and Encouragement
00:08:57
Speaker
Lord, please use your word today to help us to give thanks this thanksgiving season. Regardless of what our situation is, I pray we would be so grateful for our salvation. Salvation in Christ in Jesus name we pray. Amen. Thank you. You may be seated. You know I believe that Isaiah gives
00:09:18
Speaker
God's people of any age, not just that period of time when Isaiah was writing, but gives God's people of any age five specific ways to offer the Lord thanks, this thanksgiving. So if you're trying to prime the pump, you're trying to get it going, then here's here's a few pointers for you from Isaiah 12. First, look with me at verse 1.
00:09:40
Speaker
One way that you can thank the Lord is by sharing your story of salvation. That's exactly what Josh Cartarelli did a little bit earlier for us. You know, they say that whenever you're going to teach, whenever you're going to preach, that there's three things you ought to weave in there. You already explained the text.
00:09:58
Speaker
Then you ought to give illustrations of whatever is being taught in that text. And then you are to also include the application of that text so people understand today how to apply that. So let me try my best to explain what's happening in verse one. That is, whenever he says, you will say in that day, I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away that you might comfort me.
00:10:27
Speaker
Isaiah's not talking about himself. It's a personification of the nation of Israel. He's talking as though they were one person, one man, one woman, that they were one. And he's saying, all of us together are in this same situation. We all deserve punishment for our sins. And so what you're hearing when he says, you will say in that day,
00:10:52
Speaker
That's a later day. Right now, many of the people of ju Judah and many of the people of Jerusalem, many of the people of Israel, they're not putting their faith and trust in the Messiah. But we know from prophecies that there's coming a day. There's coming a day when Zacharias says one third of them will turn to the Messiah and trust him. And so what's going to happen is those who do trust the Lord, here's what they're going to say someday.
00:11:18
Speaker
I will give thanks to you, O Lord, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away." You know, that's like a profession of faith, isn't it? Couldn't you stand before this congregation or any congregation and say, though God were angry with me before, yet now because I repented of sin and put my faith and trust in Christ, all of my sins are forgiven. God has cleansed me and forgiven me.
00:11:46
Speaker
It's like this incredible profession of faith that is followed by what? Peace. Peace. Because he goes on to say that you might comfort me. So I got to thinking, why don't this Thanksgiving we ask God individually, Lord, help me have a conversation. Help me have a conversation with somebody.
00:12:04
Speaker
so that I can tell them how grateful I am for my salvation. Would you pray and ask God that and see what he does? Also, think about the personal confession of his grace. If you're going to have a conversation about your testimony, then don't say, look what I have done.
00:12:22
Speaker
Say, I just want to tell you what Jesus has done. He did all the heavy lifting. He's already done it. He's the one that saved me by His grace, what He did for me on the cross. But then also, why don't you tell them about the consolation, the peace that you have in Christ.
00:12:39
Speaker
You know, if you're ever looking for an outline of how to share your testimony, how to bring God praise, how to thank Him by telling someone else what He's done, I recommend studying the life of Paul in the book of Acts, because three times the apostle Paul gives his personal testimony, just like Josh Cartorelli did once again. That's exactly what Paul did in Acts chapter 9, in Acts chapter 22, and in Acts chapter 26.
00:13:08
Speaker
And all three times he says the same three things. This is what my life was like before I met Christ. This is how I met Christ. what How did you do it? What happened? But then also, what has Christ been doing in me since? Ever since I trust Christ, here's what it's like for me today. And this is what it can be like for you in the future.
00:13:31
Speaker
I couldn't help but think about what Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica in 1 Thessalonians 1.10, where he says, to wait for his son from heaven.
00:13:42
Speaker
whom he raised from the dead, Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come. Do you ever feel guilty for your sins? Do you feel bad about what you've done? There's a place to take all that. It's Jesus Christ. Go to Him and say, Jesus, thank you. I read in scripture how you died on the cross to take the punishment for my sins upon you. And so that's what he's talking about. We don't have to face the wrath of God when we're covered by the blood of the Lamb whenever we've trusted in Jesus' sacrifice that he made on the cross for us. So that's one way you could tell your story of salvation. But have you ever thought about also just
00:14:25
Speaker
telling someone the plan of salvation? I think that's the second way that we could enrich our thanksgiving is to have this season of the year when we thank the Lord for our salvation. Have you ever just stopped to say, Lord, I'm so grateful that you saved me by your grace?
00:14:45
Speaker
I think many times we prefer to thank the Lord for our situation rather than our salvation. But you know, the situation changes, doesn't it? Maybe 2024 has been pretty tough for you. Maybe it's been hard and maybe right now is hard. And so if you're only going to give thanks for the situation, then you're going to have maybe less you could say. But if you're going to focus on your salvation,
00:15:13
Speaker
man, you could just go on and on and say, I'm so grateful for what Jesus has done in my life. And so you could give thanks, for example, for the source of salvation. What is the source of salvation? Some people mistakenly think they assume that it's us trying to do the best that we can, our good works. We're trying to be a nice person, a good person, a kind person. And while that is fine to do that, that's not enough.
00:15:42
Speaker
to get us into God's family. We must trust in the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ because he never sinned. And so that's why in verse 2, I love the way it says, behold, God is my salvation. God, not my works, not my church attendance, not all the things I'm doing. No, God himself, he is my salvation. We could say that. We could say Jesus is the source of my salvation. Look at what it says at the end of verse two when it says,
00:16:16
Speaker
he He has become my salvation. Is the Lord Jesus Christ what you're counting on for your salvation, or are you mistaken? Are you looking somewhere else to try to depend on something else other than Christ finished work for you on the cross? You could give thanks for the source of sin of salvation, but you know there's a second thing that this passage brings up. Behold, God is my salvation, and what does He say next?
00:16:45
Speaker
I will trust. I will trust and will not be afraid. Have you ever been afraid? What if you've been too bad? What if you've done too many evil things in your life? Is it possible that God could forgive you? You know what you're going to have to do? You're going to have to trust the simplification of salvation. You see, salvation is very, very complex, the way that it's all happened. But you know what the Father did? He simplified it.
00:17:14
Speaker
He simplified it, and he said, all I ask is that you turn from sin, that you turn to Christ, and that you trust what Jesus Christ did for you on that cross. I mean, think about that. Anybody, anywhere could do that. What if God said, okay, every year in order for you to be saved, I want you to make a trip to Jerusalem, I want you to go to that cross where Jesus died, and I want you to kneel down there every year, and that'll be the way that you gain salvation.
00:17:41
Speaker
Or what if God said, if you want to be saved, I want you to give $10 million dollars to some ministry. Many of us couldn't do those things, not every year going to Jerusalem, not not giving $10 million dollars you know to a ministry.
00:17:57
Speaker
But here's what the Lord said. The Lord said, all you got to do is trust. Trust what Jesus did on the cross for you. Man, I don't know about you, but I'm thankful for that. I'm thankful for that, that he made it where I could be saved, where you could be saved, where anybody anywhere in any country, it doesn't matter if it's still a developing country, anybody anywhere could say, you know what? I'm depending on Christ. I can't buy my way into heaven.
00:18:24
Speaker
He already paid the price for my salvation. But then I think you could thank the Lord for this. How about giving thanks for the satisfaction of our salvation? Look at the way this painter, this incredible prophetic painter painted this. We've got people in our church family who can paint paintings, and it's incredible. There's one hanging in our fellowship hall that someone in our church painted. And I'm just so amazed sometimes at how some are gifted to paint. But look at how he paints it in verse three. With joy, with joy, you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
00:19:06
Speaker
Man, you know what that's a picture of? Satisfaction. It's like with joy. With joy. You don't have to try your best to earn it. It's already been earned and paid for by the Lord Jesus Christ. What we're called to do, as we gather here today and we sing these songs, as we go down the hall and we gather around tables, we're here to say, I'm just so satisfied in my salvation that Jesus saved a wretch like me. It's incredible.
00:19:37
Speaker
You know, I suppose one of the clearest examples of gratitude for their salvation was the tax collector named Zacchaeus. In Luke chapter 19 verse 6, it says that Zacchaeus the tax collector received Jesus joyfully. He received him joyfully. I think that's the way everybody receives Jesus is joyfully. Can't believe he loves a sinner like me. But isn't it sad that just a little bit before that in Luke 1823, there was another guy and he was also you know invited to follow Christ. But the rich young ruler, he thought about his riches and he thought about Jesus and he thought about, uh, you know what,
00:20:18
Speaker
I don't think I'm going to do this." And so what does it say he experienced when he walked away from Jesus? Sadness. Sadness. You never walk away from Jesus happy. You walk away from Jesus sad. And so I'm just telling you, if you want to find out where the joy is,
00:20:37
Speaker
The joy is found in Jesus. And that's why some of us, we can't help but sing. And when we sing, we sing loud. Maybe we're saying, I wish pastor wouldn't sing so loud. I'm sure that Sammy Cox is thinking that he was sent by me on the front row today. And he probably can't hear right now in his left ear. But anyway, I'm sorry, but Sammy. But anyway, here's the thing. The wells of salvation, the wells of salvation in Isaiah 12 remind me of the Samaritan woman.
00:21:06
Speaker
She went to get water for her family in a water jar at ah a well in Samaria in a place called Saikar. And Jesus offered her incredible water of life, and she accepted it. And you know what happened after she did? She got so excited. It says in in John 4, she left her water pot. She ran back into the town and said, hey, come and hear a man who told me everything I've ever done. I mean, it wasn't maybe the most dramatic testimony or the most flashy testimony, but she shared it. And you know what everybody in that town did?
00:21:46
Speaker
They went out. You don't know. I don't know. If we start talking about salvation more, if we're thankful for it, if we start sharing our story more, What would Columbus do? What would Colorado County do? I just wonder. Well, let's move to a third thing that this passage brings up. Thirdly, we can follow Isaiah's footprints from the well of salvation in the direction of strength. You ever need strength? You ever just feel so beaten down, you feel so tired? You know, I wonder if somebody was to were to ask Isaiah the prophet right when he was writing this stuff, say, Isaiah, what are you thankful for?
00:22:26
Speaker
I wonder if he would say, you know what I'm thankful for? I'm thankful that I don't have to be driven by fear. I don't have to be driven by fear. You see, when he began his ministry, like I said earlier, it began in 740 B.C. Well, six to eight years later, the Assyrian Empire, they were coming into this northern kingdom of Israel and they began to sack cities.
00:22:50
Speaker
18 years later, the northern kingdom fell. The city of Samaria actually was captured by these Assyrians. And so he had a lot. He could have been afraid. You know, he could have said, oh, I'm so afraid, but look at what he says. I'll trust.
00:23:07
Speaker
And I will not be afraid. I love that. I will not be afraid. And so I thought that was incredible. Do you know that I looked it up and I thought, how many fears do we struggle with? And I found a list that has 500 specific fears with names. I can't even pronounce that are so long. But anyway, I thought 500 different kinds of fears. One of them was, I'm afraid of string. And I thought, why would you be afraid of string? Another one said, I'm afraid of feet. And I thought, man, what's going on? you know But anyway, the things that we can be afraid of, it's it's incredible. But they said there's five things that most people are afraid of. One's death.
00:23:48
Speaker
One's disease or disability. One is the fear of being imprisoned where you can't do what you want to do. The fourth one would be abandonment and the fifth one would be shame. They said those are five fears that most everybody struggles with.
00:24:04
Speaker
But you know what? I'm thankful that the Lord is my fortress. And I want you to notice two components regarding his strength. Here's what he says. I will trust. I will. What's he going to trust in? what's the What are those Israelites going to trust in in the future? And what will you be trusting in next week and next month and next year?
00:24:28
Speaker
I think we can trust in the promises of God. I think if we'll put our trust and our faith in the promises of God, I believe we're gonna be okay. I believe that whatever happens, even if I lose my life, I'm gonna be in God's presence if I put my promise ah my faith and my trust in the promises of God. But I also like it because it can also be based upon God's presence. He says, I will trust and will not be afraid. afraid Why?
00:24:56
Speaker
For the Lord God is my strength. The Lord God is my strength. Isn't that interesting that he doesn't say the strength of the Lord is my strength? No, he says the Lord God himself is my strength. And so it's like, you don't have to ask God, please give me strength today. What you need to say is, Lord, you just go with me today. If I've got you, then I've got all the strength I need. And so that is a place to rest.
00:25:22
Speaker
Would you turn with me just real quickly over to Isaiah 40? Look at Isaiah 40 verse 27. A little later, Isaiah is gonna start writing about strength, and maybe this describes you at this particular you know season in your life. Isaiah 40 verse 27 says, why do you say, oh Jacob and speak, oh Israel, my way is hidden from the Lord and my right is disregarded by my God? You ever felt like God, he's not watching? God doesn't know what I'm facing. Oh yes, he does.
00:25:55
Speaker
Redone, have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint. And to him who has no might, he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary and young men shall fall exhausted.
00:26:24
Speaker
But they who wait, for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint.
00:26:38
Speaker
That's what it's like when God is your strength. You're saying, you know what, I've got him with me. He's going to give me what I need. No matter what my physical body's doing, I know that God is going to be my strength. You know, that's why Paul in 2 Corinthians 12, he said, you know what, when I'm weak,
00:26:56
Speaker
That's when I'm still strong. You know why? Because he's my strength, not my physical strength, my spiritual strength that is available to me in Christ. He says, God told Paul, my power is perfected in weakness. So sometimes when you're weak, you should say, I'm glad. I'm glad because you know what? My strength is in the Lord, not in myself and not in my circumstances. Let's go to the fourth thing.
00:27:24
Speaker
Let's go back to Isaiah 12 if you've been following me on these trail rides. Go back to Isaiah 12 verse 2 and verse 5 and 6. For the Lord God's my song, he says, my song. Sing praises to the Lord, for he is done gloriously. Let this be made known in all the earth. Shout and sing for joy, O inhabitants of Zion, for great is in your midst is the Holy One of Israel. Wow.
00:27:52
Speaker
Once again, what's the inspiration for his singing? If you want to have a common way that a lot of us express thanksgiving to God, sing Christian songs. Sing Christian songs and sing songs that praise the Lord and lift him up and thank him. But the inspiration for his song was what? Well, he says, the Lord for the Lord God He is my song. Think about his attributes. Think about his grace. Think about his mercy. Think about his wisdom. Think about his faithfulness. There's so many things you could say about God. Think about his holiness. Think about his standard. Say, God, I'm so thankful for who you are. I can depend on you. You know, this morning I found myself singing a song on the way here, There's Within My Heart. You remember that song? There's Within My Heart, a melody.
00:28:43
Speaker
Jesus whispers sweet and low, fear not I am with thee, peace be still in all of life's ebb and flow. Man, it's going to come and it's going to go. That's what circumstances do. But when he is the inspiration of your song,
00:28:58
Speaker
you can sing even when it's out. You'll say, I don't care if the tide's out, I'm praising him. But there's also the direction or the dedication. you know Sometimes ah an artist or a singer will say, I want to dedicate this song to you know so and so.
00:29:14
Speaker
Well, the dedication of the songs are to the Lord. When you sing, are you singing for the people around you? You're missing out if that's who you're singing for. I'm so thankful for the way God's blessing is on our worship team because they sing to the Lord. Do you sing to the Lord? That's what he's talking about here. You know, when he's talking about singing, look at verse five, for example, sing praises to the Lord, not to the one sitting around you. Sing praises to the Lord, for He is done gloriously. I thought, wow, that's also the reflection side of our worship when we're singing. The reason we don't have a song of thanks in our mind is we've forgotten what He's done.
00:30:00
Speaker
Don't just look at yesterday. Don't look at this day. Look at the whole course of your life. How faithful has God been over the course of your life? And see if it doesn't cause you to loose your voice in praise to Him. Sing it to Him.
00:30:17
Speaker
but also the celebration in my songs. Did you pick up on that? Shout, sing. It's like it's got to be expressed. And then the proclamation through the songs. Let this be made known in all the earth, he says.
00:30:31
Speaker
You know, I got off on a sidetrack. It's sort of a little trail on the side that I want to share with you just because I found it interesting. The Hebrew word for give thanks is mentioned in verse one and verse four. Hebrew words for give thanks, verse one and verse four. The word in Hebrew is yada, yada. Yada is mentioned 111 times throughout the Old Testament. So all through the Old Testament, they're thanking the Lord over and over again.
00:30:59
Speaker
But yada actually means to express praise to God for who he is, or for what he has done, or for what you anticipate he will do. And so it's it could be used for praise, and it could be used for giving thanks. But yada, out of a 111 times, 73 times, it's about giving thanks. But here's what I also thought was so fascinating, is that the root of yada is Yehuda, Judah. Yehuda. And I thought, what does Yehuda mean? That root that Yadah comes from. And what it means is you declare a fact. You declare a fact and you declare a fact that's good or you declare a fact that that's bad. And it's even sometimes used, Yadah is used sometimes for confessing sin. That's why you say, I've been bad, I've done the wrong thing. So you confess that.
00:31:54
Speaker
But it's also whenever you're saying this is the truth about God. You know what the enemy wants to do in your mind? He wants to build up fortresses in your mind that are raised up against the knowledge of God. But you know what God can do? He can bring down all those fortresses that are up there that are telling you the wrong information about who God is.
00:32:17
Speaker
So I just thought, wow, but you know, in addition to singing our thanks in worship, we may also overflow by sharing, sharing the source of our blessings, sharing it with someone else. So let's talk about how do we share with other people around us verses four and five.
00:32:37
Speaker
You know, last week, while I was preparing a devotion for the staff from John 7, verses 37, 38, and 39, I discovered that this passage in Isaiah 12 is actually related to John 7, 37, 38, and 39 because it all hinges on one of the festivals in Israel. They had these feasts.
00:33:01
Speaker
And one of them was called the Feast of Tabernacles, the Feast of Booths. And so after they got the harvest in, they would they would stop and they would live for one whole week in a booth. Hey, we're just asking if you come on down to the Family Life Center, be with us for what, a couple of hours, enjoy a delicious meal, share a few thanksgivings and stuff, and then go back home. But they're saying, no, you got to hang out for a whole week in a little straw, you know, in a booth, you know. And so I'm thinking, wow, that's something. But what are they doing that for? they're back They're thinking, I'm so thankful for how God's proven himself faithful in our past, how God's always been there, like when he provided water for us in the desert, how he provided food for us in the desert.
00:33:50
Speaker
Don't forget what God has done in your life and give him thanks because that's what this is all about. As a matter of fact, do you know that verse four mentions a lot of verbs, right? A lot of verbs, give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. There's five verbs. I learned this week that all five verbs, they're in the imperative. It's command.
00:34:18
Speaker
We're commanded not to forget God. That's why I think it's it's okay if you want to say, I'm so thankful for my family. I'm so thankful for my health. I'm so thankful for this slice of pumpkin pie. I'm so thankful. And on and on you could go, but you know what? God's saying, I want you to say, I'm thankful for what God's done for me. And that's what these verses are talking about. And so I want to prove it to you with verses four and five.
00:34:47
Speaker
These two verses say the same thing twice in a little different way. It says, make known his deeds among the peoples and he has done gloriously. Let this be made known.
00:35:00
Speaker
in all the earth. That's why I love ah classical conversations. Classical conversations, what are they teaching the kids down there? There's a lot of things. And if you ever go and listen to them, man, they're way out there on the things they've memorized and so forth with timelines and math and all this stuff. you know They could just wipe the floor with me. I mean, they're way out front of me. But anyway, here's what they're all about. Knowing him and making him known.
00:35:29
Speaker
knowing Him, knowing God, and making Him known. Is that the theme of your life? You know, I'm so thankful that in our church, we've had all of these different people, you know, coming up through the youth group, coming up through the children's ministry, you know, and going out into missions. Or they once were here, and now they're serving the Lord across the across the big ocean. And so we have an opportunity to support them.
00:35:55
Speaker
I thought, Lord, I'm so thankful for Alyssa and Aaron Listler, that now they're in Tuleksack, Alaska, loving on some kids. I'm so thankful for Christian and Madison Farr, who are now at Sam Houston State University, loving students and showing them the truth in Scripture. I'm so thankful for Jacob Tice, and he's over in Osaka, Japan, helping the Japanese know that when Jesus went to the cross, he went for them as well.
00:36:21
Speaker
I'm so thankful for Pat and Meg Preston and Tanner and Katie Coleman. They're all in Lesbos, Greece, and they're telling the people of Greece all about the Lord, even people beyond Greece that are going in there. And I'm so thankful for Amber and Ben and how they're in Central Asia. I'm so thankful for in our in our church family, we have Mark Prasadik.
00:36:41
Speaker
and Mark works for the seed company. And they help get the scriptures to all these different people. They facilitate that. And so I'm so thankful. Do you know what the scriptures say about why God blesses us? Psalm 67 says, may God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us. Why? That your way may be known on earth. You're saving power among all nations.
00:37:12
Speaker
Wow. Praise the Lord. You know, our forefathers injected into the spiritual DNA of this nation, the nucleotide of Thanksgiving, the nucleotide of Thanksgiving, and our biblical forefathers like David, like Isaiah that we're looking at, like John the apostle or Paul the apostle, they also injected into our spiritual DNA as believers, the nucleotide of Thanksgiving. It's part of who we are.
00:37:42
Speaker
So in Christ and in this country, we should give thanks to God for his goodness to us. Don't let the world, don't let the devil, don't let the flesh, don't let circumstances steal your identity in Christ. We should be thankful more than anybody else on the face of this earth that we are saved by a grace that the Lord has saved us. And today in this week, I want you to remember this one thing as I close.
00:38:13
Speaker
that he says here, I will give thanks to you, O Lord. He doesn't say, I feel like giving thanks to you, O Lord. Even when you don't feel like giving thanks, we are still under the mandate of Scripture to choose to give thanks out of obedience to Him.
00:38:33
Speaker
I will give thanks, so we should give thanks through sharing our testimony with others. We should give thanks through presenting the plan of salvation in Christ to others. We should give thanks for the strength that He's given us day by day. We should give thanks through songs of praise, and we should give thanks by sharing the gospel message with those that are around us.
00:38:54
Speaker
man The Lord has been so good to us in Christ. So why don't we stand together and we're actually going to give an opportunity if someone doesn't know Christ, to have an opportunity to come and to put their faith and their trust in Christ. Just like Josh Cartarelli said that he has done already. And so would you come and put your faith and trust in the Lord? Would you come to the well of salvation that Christ has provided and drink joyfully? from what he wants to offer to you. Let's pray together. Lord, we give you this time. Thank you so much for this time to extend the invitation to others to know that when Jesus died on the cross, he died for them. He died for them. When he rose from the dead, he can transform their lives because he's alive. And I know that someday we have such an incredible hope that you're coming back for us. And so Lord, help us as we go through this Thanksgiving season and end of the Christmas season.
00:39:52
Speaker
to be so grateful to just say, I'm going to let the well just overflow in my life for gratitude. We especially pray for any that don't know Christ this morning, that you would help them trust Him before they leave. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
00:40:12
Speaker
This is a ministry of First Baptist Church located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.