Speaker 1: Amen.
Speaker 1: Let's turn to the Word of God.
Speaker 1: I will try to preach because I am also excited, I am also happy.
Speaker 1: So I will try to preach and I know that the Lord is going to help us to hear His Word today.
Speaker 1: Luke, chapter 17, verse 11.
Speaker 1: This is what the Bible says now.
Speaker 1: On his way to Jerusalem, jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee.
Speaker 1: As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met with him, or rather met him.
Speaker 1: They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice Jesus, master.
Speaker 1: They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice Jesus Master, have pity on us.
Speaker 1: When he saw them, he said Go, show yourselves to the priests.
Speaker 1: And as they went, they were cleansed.
Speaker 1: One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back praising God in a loud voice.
Speaker 1: He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him, and he was a Samaritan.
Speaker 1: Jesus asked were not all ten cleansed?
Speaker 1: Where are the other nine?
Speaker 1: Was no one found to return and give praise to God, except this foreigner?
Speaker 1: Then he said to well, rise and go.
Speaker 1: Your faith has made you well.
Speaker 1: I declare wellness in our lives, in Jesus' name.
Speaker 1: And so, lord, even as we listen to your word this afternoon, our hearts are full of gratitude, they are full of joy, they are full of thanksgiving, because we have seen with our own eyes what you have done.
Speaker 1: We are a testimony of your loving kindness and of your faithfulness.
Speaker 1: We thank you especially that in this service, our senior pastor is in our midst, as a sign of what you have done for us as a church.
Speaker 1: That, lord, you have stretched your hand over him and today he has come to give praise and glory and honor.
Speaker 1: Father, may you receive this and we join him as a congregation.
Speaker 1: What a day.
Speaker 1: It is Such a significant day that we could come and be in your presence to give you thanks and to give you praise.
Speaker 1: In the time that we have, we pray, minister, your word to us.
Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, we pray and God's people say amen.
Speaker 1: Let me invite us to have our seats and I will be sharing the word of God briefly.
Speaker 1: I know time is much spent, but it has been spent in the right way.
Speaker 1: There was no better way to spend today's time than the way we have in the presence of the Lord.
Speaker 1: Greetings from my wife, who is not here with us.
Speaker 1: She was in the first service together with my family, and they have sent greetings.
Speaker 1: I know they are also online following this service and I'm glad that Kate is really a blessing as well to my life, and may the Lord continue to receive glory as these ladies serve us.
Speaker 1: We are able to stand here and serve with undivided attention because of their ministry in our lives and I'm glad they are also our friends, that we are able to count on them in many ways.
Speaker 1: The sermon title today is the Testimony of Thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: The Testimony of Thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: The Bible tells us from the passage that we just read, that one of them, when he saw he was healed, he came back praising God In a loud voice.
Speaker 1: He threw himself at the feet of Jesus and thanked him, and he was a Samaritan.
Speaker 1: And verse 19 tells us then Jesus said to him rise and go, for your faith has made you well.
Speaker 1: What is a testimony?
Speaker 1: A testimony is evidence or proof of something.
Speaker 1: In legal terms, it is a formal statement from a witness, one who has seen or heard or knows something concerning the subject matter at hand, and it must be truthful.
Speaker 1: And I know recently we have been treated to testimonies that have been presented and we remember.
Speaker 1: Are you with us?
Speaker 1: Yes, I am with us.
Speaker 1: It was part of a testimony.
Speaker 1: However, for a believer, a testimony is not only just Testimony, is not only just you know a proof.
Speaker 1: It is a proclamation, it is a message.
Speaker 1: It is a trustworthy message concerning God's unique person, god's position and God's work.
Speaker 1: And I will not belabor on this because in our midst today, we have already received a testimony.
Speaker 1: And this is what John says concerning a testimony.
Speaker 1: In 1 John 1, verse 1 to 3, he says that which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched, this we testify, this.
Speaker 1: We proclaim concerning the word of life, the life appeared.
Speaker 1: We have seen it and testify to it.
Speaker 1: And we proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and has appeared to us.
Speaker 1: And then verse 3 says we proclaim to you what we have seen, what we have heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.
Speaker 1: What kind of fellowship is this?
Speaker 1: And our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, jesus Christ.
Speaker 1: Brothers and sisters, I want to submit to us this afternoon that thanksgiving is one of the many ways that a believer testifies, proclaims what they have seen, what they have heard, what they have known, what they have believed.
Speaker 1: I don't know whether in the house today, we have people who have seen.
Speaker 1: I don't know whether in the house today, we have people who have known.
Speaker 1: I don't know whether we have people who have tested, who have believed, and they have come into the house of the Lord to proclaim and to testify through thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: Brothers and sisters, even if we don't have any, we have one who is in our midst and he has spoken about what he saw, what he has touched, what he has encountered, what he has seen God do, and indeed we join him, our senior pastor, to proclaim that there is a God who lives, a God who lives forevermore.
Speaker 1: Thanksgiving is more than just acknowledging with gratitude the things that God has done in our lives, some that we approve as good or positive.
Speaker 1: It is more than that.
Speaker 1: It is the default setting of a believer, in response to God's will concerning everything and at all times, regardless of what we think, regardless of what we feel, regardless of our expectations, even regardless of our logical explanations, a believer's default setting is one of thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: Paul underscores this in 1 Thessalonians.
Speaker 1: He says that in 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 16,.
Speaker 1: This is what Paul reminds us.
Speaker 1: He says rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances.
Speaker 1: For a believer, thanksgiving is for all circumstances, and he says why?
Speaker 1: Because this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus, our Lord, brothers and sisters, while it is important and even exciting to acknowledge the good things that God has done for us and God continues to do for us, that God is in us and in our midst, god raises a standard higher than that when it comes to thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: It is not limited to what he has done.
Speaker 1: It is not limited to what he will do.
Speaker 1: It is not limited to what he can do.
Speaker 1: It is about his good and perfect will concerning our lives.
Speaker 1: That every time, then, as a believer, when we stand up, we say thank you, god, that we are walking in your will, thank you, god, that we are walking in your grace, thank you, god, that you are in our midst and you are doing great things.
Speaker 1: The passage that we just read opens up to us with Jesus walking around the border of Samaria and Galilee, and he was heading to Jerusalem.
Speaker 1: Jesus is walking at the border.
Speaker 1: He's not in Samaria, he's not in Galilee and while he's walking, he's going into a village.
Speaker 1: Behold, the Bible tells us that 10 lepers met him, and from a distance, in fulfilling the requirements of the law that anybody who had a disease, they could not mingle freely among people.
Speaker 1: They stood from a distance and they called on him.
Speaker 1: The Bible tells us that they had leprosy.
Speaker 1: Leviticus, chapter 13, verse 45.
Speaker 1: This is what the Bible tells us about people who had leprosy and other such diseases.
Speaker 1: It says that anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes.
Speaker 1: It was a requirement.
Speaker 1: They could not wear suits.
Speaker 1: They must let their hair be unkempt, they must cover the lower part of their face and they must cry out in a loud voice unclean, unclean, unclean.
Speaker 1: This was to give warning to anybody around them so that they do not come into contact with them.
Speaker 1: Verse 46 tells us as long as they have the disease, they remain unclean.
Speaker 1: And listen to this.
Speaker 1: They must live alone, they must live outside the camp.
Speaker 1: No wonder these ten lepers are neither in Galilee, they are not in Samaria, they are somewhere in between.
Speaker 1: And as Jesus is entering that village, these men meet him.
Speaker 1: Remember that Jews and Samaritans had nothing in common, at least according to John, chapter 4, where the Samaritan woman argues says we have nothing in common.
Speaker 1: Chapter 4, where the Samaritan woman argues says we have nothing in common.
Speaker 1: But here we find 10 men and we have reason to believe that one was a Samaritan, according to the scripture, and the nine, we can make a safe conclusion that they were Jews.
Speaker 1: They had been united by pain.
Speaker 1: They had been united by isolation.
Speaker 1: They had been united by despair.
Speaker 1: They had put aside their religion, their culture, their status, their economic status, their positions.
Speaker 1: And these men were united outside the camp, outside the city, alone, walking together in this misery, and that's where Jesus meets them.
Speaker 1: And when I come to this point, I pause to wonder isn't this the situation of our world really, in as much as we like erecting barriers and dividing walls and looking at things that divide us, whether it is tribe, whether it is religion, whether it is skin color, whether it is race, whether it is economic status and positions in the society, but as long as we are in this world, we are united in pain and isolation and despair and degradation, because this world is covered by the leprosy of sin.
Speaker 1: We have that in common and, brothers and sisters, it is not our money, it is not our tribe, it is not our religion that makes a difference in our lives.
Speaker 1: It is an encounter with Jesus.
Speaker 1: It is when we meet Jesus, it is when we see Jesus and call unto him as Jesus, the savior, the master, and say have pity on us, that brings the difference in our lives, that we are cleansed.
Speaker 1: The Bible there is the hymn that reminds us what can wash away my sins?
Speaker 1: Nothing, nothing, nothing but an encounter with Jesus Christ.
Speaker 1: But we praise the Lord because Jesus has left his important city.
Speaker 1: Jesus has chosen to come into this village that is plagued with the leprosy of sin.
Speaker 1: The Bible tells us that he left his seat up there.
Speaker 1: He came into this world so that we can have an opportunity to have an encounter with him.
Speaker 1: That is what Philippians, chapter 2, verse 6 to 8, tells us.
Speaker 1: Tells us that he who was in the very nature of God, he did not consider equality with God something to be tells us, tells us that he who was in the very nature of God, he did not consider equality with God, something to be grasped, but he made himself nothing.
Speaker 1: He came to this village of the leprosy of sin, he took the nature of a servant.
Speaker 1: He became in the human likeness and even humbled himself.
Speaker 1: God humbled himself to die on the cross so that today, you and I, when we have an encounter with him, we are cleansed from the biggest leprosy, the leprosy of sin.
Speaker 1: You know, there are many things that we can sort ourselves.
Speaker 1: If you have a debt, somehow you can sort that debt.
Speaker 1: You can actually take another debt to pay that debt.
Speaker 1: If you have a sickness, you can try to find the best doctors in this world.
Speaker 1: You can have a friend who can bail you out.
Speaker 1: But when it comes to the leprosy of sin, it is only Christ and the blood of Jesus Christ that can make us whole again, not a friend, not a family, not anything else.
Speaker 1: But I praise the Lord once again that each one of us has an opportunity to have an encounter with this Jesus.
Speaker 1: John tells us in John, chapter 3, verse 14, that just as Moses was lifted up, just as Moses lifted up the snake in verse 14 in the desert, just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of man must be lifted up.
Speaker 1: Why is he lifted up?
Speaker 1: So that everyone can see him, so that children can see him, so that men can see him, so that fathers can see him, so that our young people can see him, so that women can see him, so that pastors can see him, so that worship people can see him, so that women can see him, so that pastors can see him, so that worship leaders can see him, so that he is visible to everyone.
Speaker 1: Jesus is visible even to the invisible person in the congregation.
Speaker 1: You know, there are people who are not known in this congregation.
Speaker 1: They have managed to remain faceless.
Speaker 1: You never see them, you never get to know them, nobody knows them.
Speaker 1: They come in and go out, but I have good news for you Whether you are faceless, whether you are formless, jesus is placed at a place where you can see him and get identity in this Jesus.
Speaker 1: And so Jesus sends this man, tells them go and show yourselves.
Speaker 1: You know, I like the fact that when they shout out to him and say, hey, jesus, master, have mercy on us, you know Jesus does not make any demand on them.
Speaker 1: That, to me, is very powerful.
Speaker 1: He does not ask them which church do you worship.
Speaker 1: He does not ask them what tribe are you.
Speaker 1: He does not ask them what offering do you have?
Speaker 1: He does not even ask them how long have you had leprosy?
Speaker 1: He just says go show yourself to the priests.
Speaker 1: I'm saying this because I know in this generation that we are living, there are people who have made demands of God's people that if you want to see God, you must bring a certain offering.
Speaker 1: If you want to be prayed for, you must bring a certain gift.
Speaker 1: I praise the Lord that in Parklands Baptist Church we do not do such.
Speaker 1: We have Jesus who is lifted up and our work is to say behold the lamb who takes the sin of the world and say come as you are, because that is his invitation.
Speaker 1: He says those who are heavy laden, come as you are and I will take off the burden from you.
Speaker 1: There are places if you give your 500 shillings as an offering, you will be prayed for by the ushers.
Speaker 1: Not to say the ushers are not important, because ours are very important, but in those churches 500, who do you pray with Usher?
Speaker 1: Then, if you give a thousand, pastor Riggs, I say Dahlia, you can meet a worship leader like Kasina.
Speaker 1: He can pray to my good friend Kasina.
Speaker 1: We operate that when you bring 5,000, we start praying to the deacon, deacon Mukusa, 5,000.
Speaker 1: We start praying to him.
Speaker 1: When you bring 100,000, the pastor's wife, she's the one who prays for you.
Speaker 1: Now, anything, 100,000, you can easily meet the man of God.
Speaker 1: Jesus does not make any demand on the lepers, and Jesus is not making a demand on you.
Speaker 1: He's making an open invitation.
Speaker 1: He's saying come as you are.
Speaker 1: He's saying come with your burden and I am going to lift it up from you.
Speaker 1: Amen, and we are not going to place any burden on you.
Speaker 1: Your giving today was a free will offering.
Speaker 1: It was a giving out of the abundance of what the Lord has done for you.
Speaker 1: It had nothing to do with any of our demands or of our manipulation, and I pray that you give out of what you had decided to give because of what God has done for you.
Speaker 1: That's our standard.
Speaker 1: And so, as they are going, the Bible tells us that they all were cleansed, but only one came to give thanks.
Speaker 1: Let us look at what was the characteristic of his thanksgiving, and I'll quickly just run through this, because we've already, you know, seen it practically and we've already mentioned what I had prepared for us today Three things.
Speaker 1: First of all, thanksgiving is a testimony of our God.
Speaker 1: Number two, thanksgiving is a testimony of our worship.
Speaker 1: And number three, thanksgiving is a testimony of our faith.
Speaker 1: As a testimony of our God, the Bible tells us that one of them, when he saw that he was healed, he came back praising God in a loud voice, came back praising God in a loud voice.
Speaker 1: Before this time we knew nothing about the Samaritan and his God.
Speaker 1: Before this moment, we didn't know that there was a God that this Samaritan had in his heart, until he came proclaiming in thanksgiving oh, glory to God.
Speaker 1: Something has happened in my life.
Speaker 1: That's when we discover that his testimony ushers us and opens us to see that there was a God in a Samaritan.
Speaker 1: We don't know about the other nine.
Speaker 1: We don't know where they went, we don't know who they praised, we don't know who they acknowledged as their healer, but we know that the Samaritan acknowledged God as his healer.
Speaker 1: You will remember the blind man in the book of John, chapter 9.
Speaker 1: And when Jesus healed this man, all he could say was I was blind, but now I can see.
Speaker 1: And it is because of this man.
Speaker 1: His name is Jesus and it is because of this man.
Speaker 1: His name is Jesus.
Speaker 1: Whether you believe in him, whatever you call him, I do not care, and I can see this as the testimony of the Samaritan.
Speaker 1: He comes back saying I had leprosy and I met a man.
Speaker 1: He said go show yourself to the priests.
Speaker 1: And as I was going on my way, god performed a miracle in my life and I was cleansed.
Speaker 1: It was no longer important to go and show himself to the priests.
Speaker 1: He came back to glorify God.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving is because we have a God.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving says it is God who has done it.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving says it is God who is doing it.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving says it is God who will do it.
Speaker 1: It is a testimony of God.
Speaker 1: With thanksgiving, we are not only saying thank you, god, for the healing, but we are also saying thank you that you are the healer.
Speaker 1: We are not only saying thank you, god, for the protection, but we are saying thank you, you are the healer.
Speaker 1: We are not only saying thank you, god, for the protection, but we are saying thank you, you are the protector.
Speaker 1: We are not only saying thank you, lord, for the provision.
Speaker 1: We are saying thank you that you are the provider.
Speaker 1: He is not defined by the action or the act of what he has done to us, but he is who he is.
Speaker 1: We are not only saying thank you that I am alive today, we are saying thank you that you are the life giver.
Speaker 1: We give him praise for who he is.
Speaker 1: But secondly, thanksgiving is a testimony of our worship.
Speaker 1: Verse 16 tells us 16, 17, and 18, that he threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him and that's where we are told.
Speaker 1: And he was a Samaritan, all right.
Speaker 1: Then verse 17 says Jesus asked him were not all ten cleansed?
Speaker 1: Where are the other nine?
Speaker 1: And then verse 18.
Speaker 1: Was no one found to return and give praise and glorify and exalt and worship the Lord, apart from this foreigner?
Speaker 1: You know we do not know where the nine men went, we do not know what they attributed their healing to, but we can see that the Samaritan came back to the feet of Jesus and worshipped.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving is a testimony of worship.
Speaker 1: You know that Samaritans and the Jews had this argument about worship and in John, chapter 4, verse 23, 24, Jesus says to the Samaritan woman Yet a time is coming, and has now come, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
Speaker 1: God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the spirit and in truth.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving, therefore, is an act, a testimony of our worship.
Speaker 1: Listen to what Habakkuk says as a way of testimony Again.
Speaker 1: He says in Habakkuk, chapter 3.
Speaker 1: Verse 17.
Speaker 1: He says Though the fig tree may not blossom Nor fruit be on the vines, though the labor of the olive may fail and the fields yield no food, though the flock may be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls Verse 18.
Speaker 1: Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving is our worship, but, finally, our thanksgiving is a testimony of our faith.
Speaker 1: Our thanksgiving is a testimony of our faith.
Speaker 1: Verse 19 tells us then, he that is Rise and go.
Speaker 1: Your faith has made you well Up to this moment.
Speaker 1: We shall never have an opportunity to know the faith of the other nine.
Speaker 1: The only faith we know is the faith of this man who, through thanksgiving, testified to his faith in God.
Speaker 1: You know, maybe these guys chose to go and seek validation either from the priests or from the society where they went back to, or, most likely, they went there without a sense of gratitude.
Speaker 1: Remember that leprosy was seen as a sign of not being right with God, this kind of diseases and therefore maybe they went back to the village to say hey, you guys, you thought we will never come back.
Speaker 1: You guys, you thought that we will never be cleansed.
Speaker 1: You guys, you thought that I am the biggest sinner See, I am now healed by the Samaritan.
Speaker 1: You thought that I am the biggest sinner See, I am now healed, nimerudi.
Speaker 1: But the Samaritan, jesus, tells us that it is his faith.
Speaker 1: Jesus tells us about his faith.
Speaker 1: In fact, let me also submit to us most likely these guys were not healed because of their faith.
Speaker 1: They may have not healed because of their faith.
Speaker 1: They may have been healed because of their obedience, because God is faithful.
Speaker 1: Jesus had determined to heal them anyway.
Speaker 1: In fact, I even stretch it further Maybe they were healed because of the faith of this Samaritan, that there was a Samaritan among them that had already pleased God with his faith, and therefore, out of God's response to the faith of the Samaritan, waka angukiwa na uponyaji.
Speaker 1: You know there are people who have received what we call secondary blessings because you hanged around someone.
Speaker 1: You know there are people who have received what we call secondary blessings, because you hanged around someone who has put his faith in the Lord, you become a beneficiary.
Speaker 1: It has nothing to do with your faith and that's why such a person will not come to give thanks.
Speaker 1: They will ask others when people were making money, where were you when people were cutting good deals?
Speaker 1: When people are not sleeping, what are you normally doing?
Speaker 1: But for these ones, they came back.
Speaker 1: Let me say this obedience is good, but it has to be an obedience that is in response to our faith, because the Bible tells us that faith is the substance.
Speaker 1: And then, in verse 6 of Hebrews, chapter 11, it also tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God.
Speaker 1: You may obey out of religion.
Speaker 1: You know, there are some people who can even be desperate, so desperate that they look like Christians.
Speaker 1: It has nothing to do with their faith.
Speaker 1: I want you to look at Naaman.
Speaker 1: Naaman comes before Elisha.
Speaker 1: He has no faith.
Speaker 1: He is even struggling with obedience.
Speaker 1: It is his servants who prevail over him and say oh man of God, naaman, if he had asked you to do such a big thing, would you not have done it?
Speaker 1: So this one is just dipping yourself seven times.
Speaker 1: I want you to imagine if Naaman had not been healed at the seventh time.
Speaker 1: Now let me tell you why Naaman was healed.
Speaker 1: Naaman was not healed because of his faith.
Speaker 1: Naaman was healed because Elisha had proclaimed that God is about to declare, even to Samaria and to Damascus, that there is a God in Israel.
Speaker 1: That's why he was healed.
Speaker 1: It had nothing to do with his faith, and there are things God does for us, for some of us, not because we have faith, but because he wants his name to be lifted.
Speaker 1: I pray that you will go to the realm of faith so that whatever God does in your life, it is in response to your faith, because your faith becomes pleasing to the Lord.
Speaker 1: And so Jesus tells us it is only this Samaritan whose faith has made him well.
Speaker 1: Why thanksgiving?
Speaker 1: Because it is a testimony of our God.
Speaker 1: I don't know why you gave today.
Speaker 1: I don't know why you came with a special offering today, but may it be a testimony that we have a God who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly and Reverend Simon.
Speaker 1: I want to suggest that we open up the whole of this week in light of a God who is in our midst, that we can continue bringing.
Speaker 1: We continue bringing.
Speaker 1: Tomorrow, monday, pastor Edith, I don't know what you will do, but tomorrow, monday, some people will continue bringing Because there is a God.
Speaker 1: And Tuesday, some people will continue bringing Because there is a God.
Speaker 1: And Wednesday, some people will continue bringing Because there is a God.
Speaker 1: And even if you come around and you don't find anybody, just come and place it here at the altar of the Lord.
Speaker 1: We have set up this altar to receive the gifts of God's people throughout the week and God himself will be here to receive.
Speaker 1: You can come because God has done it for you.
Speaker 1: But secondly, I pray that it is a worship and when you come, you can even kneel down here and just worship the Lord.
Speaker 1: Take time to worship.
Speaker 1: It is a thanksgiving altar.
Speaker 1: It has been opened for thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: Just worship him, just take time to worship him, but also come and express your faith.
Speaker 1: Tell him this has not happened, but I believe in you.
Speaker 1: There is no fruit in the vine, but I believe in you.
Speaker 1: There is no kettle in the stall, but I believe in you.
Speaker 1: There is no money in the bank, but I believe in you.
Speaker 1: The things that I started listing in January have not been done, but I believe in you started listing in January have not been done, but I believe in you.
Speaker 1: Come and lay your faith at his feet because he is able.
Speaker 1: Let me invite us to stand up and thank you for your patience and for allowing me the opportunity to be able to bring the word of God.
Speaker 1: We continue to celebrate what the Lord is doing in the life of our senior pastor and indeed, that anointing, that grace, that blessing that is upon our senior pastor, may it be upon each one of us in every area of our lives, each one of us in every area of our lives.
Speaker 1: May we experience an acceleration of God's power, god's renewal, god's refreshment, even as we come into the month of December.
Speaker 1: I invite you, if you do not have dancing shoes yet, I invite you get yourself a pair, because the Lord is about to surprise you in the month of December.
Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, amen, amen, amen, amen.
Speaker 1: Maybe you are here and you are not born again.
Speaker 1: You have not had an encounter with this Jesus.
Speaker 1: You are still walking in pain of sin and isolation, even as I pray.
Speaker 1: I want to invite you just walk to the front.
Speaker 1: We will pray with you.
Speaker 1: We will pray with you so that you can have an encounter with Christ.
Speaker 1: That is the first and most important encounter.
Speaker 1: It is the only encounter that opens heaven for you, and so do not leave the sanctuary today, those who are at the pavilion we have our deacons there.
Speaker 1: Do not leave the sanctuary today.
Speaker 1: Those who are online, let us know.
Speaker 1: Do not let the sun set today before you have an encounter with Jesus.
Speaker 1: He is inviting you, he is saying come as you are, and so if you want to give your life to Christ, even as I say a prayer, just come to the front.
Speaker 1: Our pastors are here, our deacons are here.
Speaker 1: They will minister to you.
Speaker 1: You want to have an encounter with the Lord, jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and even after we have finished the service, our pastors and deacons will still hang around.
Speaker 1: You can come if you want to agree with someone in prayer, because our God is able.
Speaker 1: Father, in Jesus' name, we thank you.
Speaker 1: Thank you for your word that reminds us that our thanksgiving is a testimony, a testimony that you are God and you are God in our midst.
Speaker 1: A testimony of our worship, that all our worship is to you.
Speaker 1: A testimony of our faith, the substance that connects us to you and pleases you.
Speaker 1: Father, we thank you and, especially today, we thank you that with our own eyes we have seen our senior pastor Coming into this sanctuary to be part of us.
Speaker 1: Come and see what the Lord has done.
Speaker 1: That is our proclamation of thanksgiving.
Speaker 1: Continue to strengthen him.
Speaker 1: May your grace and favor continually be upon him.
Speaker 1: And now, as I release your people, I declare upon them that Monday is blessed, tuesday is full of joy, wednesday is full of love.
Speaker 1: There is grace for Wednesday.
Speaker 1: There is victory for Thursday.
Speaker 1: There is a new song.
Speaker 1: For Friday, indeed, there is a praise song for Thursday.
Speaker 1: There is a new song for Friday, indeed, there is a praise song for Saturday and Sunday.
Speaker 1: There is a song of thanksgiving that you will come with into the house of the Lord, because God is with you both now and throughout the week.
Speaker 1: You are blessed as you go out.
Speaker 1: You are blessed as you come in.
Speaker 1: The work of your hands is blessed.
Speaker 1: Whatever you set your hands and your heart to do this week, it has God's blessings because our God is faithful.
Speaker 1: May you receive this blessing now, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and God's people say Amen.
Speaker 1: And now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us now and forevermore.
Speaker 1: Amen, shalom, shalom, and God bless you.