Sacrifice (2)

TRINITY HOUSEHOLD OF FAITH

SUNDAY SERMON
21st of April, 2024
Topic: Sacrifice (2)
Preacher: Reverend Ebenezer Olawuyi
Text: Genesis 9:20 – 27

MESSAGE
Last week, I told you about the Sacrifice of Praise and the Sacrifice of Sufferings. Life is controlled by laws, and I keep saying, witches, wizards, ogbonis and occults operate by laws, that’s why till today, whether it is the occult or any religion, there is sacrifice and shedding of blood, because there is one law that says ‘without the shedding of blood….’ You remember the case of that King in 2 Kings 3:27 who the children of Israel were fighting against and the battle was getting bad for him. He thought he was about to be defeated and so sacrificed one of his sons; the battle stopped afterwards. Now, if an unbeliever king took advantage of the law of sacrifice, how is it that a lot of believers don’t know? God Himself gave His Only Son, not His second son. ‘Gather My saints together to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice’ (Psalms 50:5).
I told you about the Sacrifice of Praise, not just the praise we sing in church but the habit you develop personally – to be in your closet and decide not to ask anything from God, even in the midst of the challenges you have with your children, job, etc. When you say, ‘The situation doesn’t warrant me to praise You, but I am going to praise.’ To lock up yourself to praise and dance before Him. Sometimes, when we are together like this, you think people are looking at you but when in your closet, you are free. Consider David, when the Ark of God arrived safely, he was so excited, danced so much and removed his clothes to remain the linen only. He was scorned by Michal who rebuked him for bringing himself down in the presence of the people. David didn’t even curse her, he only told her that it was the God who raised him above her father that he was dancing to and that this God will also raise him even in the eyes of those whom she thought were mocking him for dancing. I am sure Heaven must have been angry, thus curse came upon Michal not by David but by God Himself. So, do you want God’s vengeance upon your enemies? Praise Him; He will take over your battle and fight for you.
We also talked about the Sacrifice of Substance. You can’t outdo God, never! Ask Solomon. That night, Solomon offered 1,000 burnt offerings. I told you the highest anybody has ever done was 300. Now, from 300, he jumped to 1,000. The Bible says that night God came to him and gave him a blank cheque to ask whatever he wants. The Law of Sacrifice.
Today, I will speak on the Sacrifice of Honour. This is an area a lot of people in the Body of Christ don’t know. Honour! Micah 1:6 says, “…If I am your father, where is my honour?” A son honours his father. Ephesians 6:1 – ‘Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.’ Even though I don’t have biological fathers and mothers today, I have fathers over me. There are a lot of people who are fatherless in the church and that’s the cause of the travail in their lives. A son honours his father. ‘Children (you are a child too), obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.’ The verse 2 of that chapter says, ‘“Honour your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with promise.’ Note that the Bible does not give a condition that says, ‘Honour your father only when your father is nice to you.’
I was in a place yesterday and I saw a young man who came and told his spiritual father that he had obeyed what he told him to do. Later on, the spiritual father told me what really happened. This young man’s father was like a junior to him many years ago but suddenly, a strange woman, a prophetess, entered into his life. Before you know it, this man sent away his wife and married the prophetess. He rejected his children, among which is this young man, and did not care for them. The three children of this man grew to have terrible hatred for their father. However, this spiritual father called the third one (the young man) and told him not to do so, and this young man decided to obey the instructions of his spiritual father. He traveled home from his station to Ilorin to see his father who had not taken care of him and to honour him. He came back to give report and said, ‘Sir, I have done what you told me to do.’ The spiritual father then reminded him of this condition – that God never gave the condition that you should honour your father only when he takes care of you or pay your school fees, but as long as he is the one who gives birth to you, honour him. There are promises attached to honouring your father and your mother which are not attached to any other thing and a lot of people die young because of disregarding this. In fact, some parents will have to pray a prayer of litany to be able to talk to their children. Longevity, prosperity are attached to honouring your parents; when the Bible says ‘it will be well with you,’ that means you will prosper. This is why some people struggle.
To honour is to esteem. It is like having gold that you treasure. Honour! Esteem your father that you may live long and it may be well with you. The opposite is: dishonour your father that you will struggle through life and your life may be cut short. A sacrifice of honour tells you to go extra mile. Some people have ten cars, servants, houses but if you see the house of their father and mother in the village, you won’t know that they are the parents that gave birth to those people. If you have to sell your house to build a house for your father and mother, it is worth it. A sacrifice is going extra miles to do something to honour someone. And I tell you, this law is not applicable to Christians or born-again people alone. Whether born-again or not, do it, it works for you. That’s why it is a law – laws guide the universe.
I told you sometimes ago that there is this young man who is a Muslim; I have been trying to change the name they call him and preach to him but you know, you don’t force anyone, you just keep on talking to them. I don’t know what he saw in me, I just discovered that there is this honour he has for me. One day, he came to my house …everything is not about money… He came to my house and brought a gift of cloth. He held my leg and I said to him, ‘My God who you have honoured by doing this to me will honour you.’ I didn’t pray a long prayer but I tell you, that same week, this young man was invited from a Federal University. He is a tailor and they just called him to ask if he is so and so. He even thought it was a fraud. They invited him to their university, he got there and they gave him a contract to sew convocation gowns. He came back and was rolling on the ground. What happened to him? He only understood the law of honour.
Before my father pass on, I was the one taking care of him, taking him to hospitals, etc. Because I understood this law, I did what I was supposed to do, not minding if my other siblings did same. At the last moment before my father passed on, I traveled from Ilorin to Ado to see him. My heart was heavy and when I saw him, he couldn’t talk much. I told him to say a word into my life before he pass on. That day, he said one word that I will never forget. The Bible says, ‘honour’. It is not your father that needs you, you are the one that needs him. It is not your mother… of course, when you give them money, they are happy but you are the one that need what they have. You are the one doing yourself a privilege by honouring them.
In 2 Kings 5:27, the story of Gehazi. After Naaman was healed, he came bearing gifts of clothings and money for the prophet, but the Prophet rejected them. However, Gehazi went back to collect Naaman’s gifts and was pronounced a leper by Elisha. If your father gives you ₦1,000 naira, you may look at it and say, ‘What is this to me?’ But don’t look at it as ₦1000 because every seed carries something. This is why it is a pity that people steal in the church because such people don’t know what they are carrying. When a person comes and sows a seed into the church, it could be because the person wants healing from something they have been struggling with. When a thief then carries it, he or she carries the struggle of such person along. When a Prophet gives you ₦1,000, there is something about it. That is why the Scripture says, ‘He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward’ (Matt. 10:41). When Naaman brought the money, Elisha refused and said that he was not going to take it. The leprosy of Naaman was attached to that money and when Gehazi collected it, the leprosy of Naaman got attached to him. Anytime your father pronounces a word or gives you something, there is something that goes with it. This is why I say, don’t joke with prayers like ‘Omo mi waa jeun omo; iwo naa a dagba’ (My child, you will eat the fruits of your labour; you will also grow old). You prepare something that your mummy likes and she prays these prayers for you, say ‘Amen’, if possible kneel and hold her legs, you will discover that no witch can kill you. Let me tell you, when your parents put a curse on you, no pastor can cure it. Some of you are rude to your parents but will start looking for a Pastor to lay hands on you and bless you, I tell you that such cannot work.
Remember the story of Canaan. Noah was drunk and under normal circumstances, God shouldn’t have heard his prayer – this is a lesson for those of you who say your father is a drunkard and so, dishonour him. Canaan saw the nakedness of his father and laughed… I tell you, you shouldn’t see the nakedness of your father; if you see it, you must cover your eyes because it’s a mark of honour. Shem and Japheth came, saw it and couldn’t look at it, they walked with their back and covered their father. You don’t take advantage of your father because he does something dishonourable. Shem and Japheth covered the nakedness of their father and when Noah woke up and discovered what has been done, he pronounced a curse on Canaan’s generation starting from him that they will be servants of servants. I was asking why God confirmed the words of a drunkard, but the first slaves recorded in the Bible came from that family. He pronounced blessings upon Shem and Japheth because they honoured him. Sacrifice of honour! Honour your father. A father deserves honour. Honour him. Honour those who deserve to be honoured. Don’t capitalise on their weakness because God won’t take it lightly. When Moses failed by marrying an Egyptian, doing what he shouldn’t have done, Miriam insulted him and washed him down. God said, I won’t tolerate that, you can’t take advantage of my servant and He cursed her with leprosy. In this church, there should be nobody under my ministration who dishonours his or her parents. You want to be blessed and live long? Honour your parents. Don’t ever disrespect your father, even if he didn’t take care of you when you were young. If you want to be blessed, honour your parents. Build a house for them, buy cars for them. The sacrifice of honour.
One thing I love so much and will never joke with, is to honour my fathers anytime I have the opportunity. I don’t have biological fathers but I have spiritual fathers. That day, I got to the house of my spiritual father and discovered that he was struggling with water. Right there, I told myself that was an opportunity to honour him. Drilling borehole was still less than a million naira in those days. I went ahead and consulted a driller and told him to drill the borehole for him. I looked for the money; he is not my biological father but I honoured him. When he got to know, he said one word to me and I said, ‘Amen’. This is why I tell you that I can’t die young; I am already into a covenant. Death knows me, it can’t come near anything that belongs to me. I have entered into a covenant. It is when you do what you are not supposed to do that you are afraid of what you shouldn’t be afraid of.
You are here today? Learn to honour. Now that you have the opportunity, honour your parents. Jesus was in Bethany and none of His disciples thought of getting water to wash His feet, but that woman came, with a grateful heart, she took an alabaster flask of oil, broke it and anointed the feet of Jesus. The disciples rebuked her and thought she was wasting it but Jesus said she has done the right thing for His death. Few days later, Jesus was crucified. Some other women went to the tomb of Jesus to anoint Him but it was too late. They didn’t do what they should have done when He was still with them. If you still have biological parents now, don’t wait till you become a billionaire, whatever you have, go and make the sacrifice to honour them. If you don’t have biological parents, look for father figures in your life and honour them. Look for something that touches your bone, a sacrifice, and do it. By doing this, you enter into a covenant of life. Honour your father and mother that it may be well with you and that you may live long on earth.
Prayer
Ask the Lord to help you to obey Him and to honour your parents.
Call to Salvation
You are here today and want to say, ‘Jesus, I surrender my life to you, I want my sacrifice to be acceptable to you.’ Maybe you are still suffering from the hurt of what your parents did and that is hindering you from receiving Jesus, give it up today, be saved and receive peace in your heart. Do you want to do this? Say this prayer: Lord, I give you my heart, I give you my life. I surrender to you. Take this heart and use it for your glory. Amen.