Lamentation 3: 22 – 24, it says it is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. 23They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness (let’s leave it there). By the grace of God, we’ll be talking to us on Rejoicing in His Faithfulness, and we would like to do this one very briefly, it is just to prepare the ground for the national broadcast by no other person than our father in the Lord, Pastor E.A Adeboye.
Once again, I would like to welcome you all to this first Sunday service of the year. Today marks what I call a special day for every one of us and our families; seeing today is simply by the grace of God because grace saves us, mercy preserves and sustains us. And that’s why we are here today to register our profound gratitude to Him for all that He has done for us, what He did in the past, especially for seeing us through the old year 2025 that has just passed.
The elders will say one good turn deserves another, so we have come today to return all the glory back to Him. Thank God for the Sunday school lesson of today which talks about the attitude of thanksgiving, I want to strongly recommend that we should go to our website and avail ourselves with the lesson of today because it actually captured almost everything that we have to say today.
We are here today to count our blessings and rejoice in our God’s faithfulness, He has truly been faithful. The Bible tells us that great is His faithfulness; faithfulness simply means being reliable, trustworthy, steadfast and loyal.
Brethren, there is no one on earth and perhaps in heaven that ticks all these boxes other than our God, because when you talk about being reliable, God is awesome, when you talk about trust, God is awesome. The Bible says, “Let God be true and let all men be liars”; when it comes to steadfastness, consistency, God has no equal, and when you talk about loyalty, God’s loyalty is full and final.
I remember the confession of one of the former leaders in the state who was accused of loyalty to his predecessors when he was being screened at the national level, some people put it to him that you did certain things you ought not to have done, you did this, you did that, and he looked at them eyeball to eyeball, he said you guys talk about loyalty, I hope you know what loyalty means, and he said let me pray a prayer for you that may your loyalty not be tested.
He shot everybody that has that loyalty because loyalty means that you must be ready to take the bullet, and that was exactly what our God has done. When He created the first man, He saw how corrupt, how unreliable, and He said He repented me that I created man and He put a clause on man. But after a moment of reflection, He said let me give these people a second chance – loyalty.
The Bible says He loved us first before we love Him, even up to today, I don’t know how much of us that love Him and that’s why I laugh when I hear people, men of God say, “Oh, I am for God, I am total,” how can you be total? Let God be true and let all men be liar.
Our God is so faithful because faithfulness is in His DNA, God is inherently faithful. In other words, He’s ever and He’s eternally reliable, true to His words, and keeps His covenant, our God is a covenant keeper. In Psalm 36:5, it tells us that thy mercy, O Lord, is in the heavens: and thy faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds; while in 1st Kings 8:56, we are told that blessed be the Lord that has given rest unto His people Israel, according to all that He promised: there hath not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised by the hand of Moses His servant.
God is not only committed to His word, He’s also committed to the word of His servant – He keepeth covenant. The Bible is telling us, blessed be the Lord that has given us rest, not one of the promises He has made to His children has failed, so rejoicing in God’s faithfulness is simply to show great joy and delight in His consistency or changing nature through all situations and of course provoking what I call active remembrance. Praise Him and trust in His promises regardless or whatever believing that there will be light at the end of the tunnel.
The Bible tells us in Psalm 89: 8, it says oh Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee? (It’s saying who is like unto thee?) Or to thy faithfulness round about thee? God’s faithfulness is His character, God’s faithfulness surrounds Him and that’s why we should rejoice in His faithfulness, rejoice in His unchanging nature because God’s faithfulness is part of who He is – ever reliable, ever constant unlike ourselves, unlike a man.
In Malachi 3:6, it says, For I am the Lord, I change not, therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed; we are here today because He changeth not, we also need to rejoice in His faithfulness because new mercies He has promised us according to that scripture that we read in Lamentations, His mercies and faithfulness are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness.
They are daily renewed to offer us fresh grace, they are daily renewed to offer us strength for the journey. In Romans 9: 15, it says for he said to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion; that we are alive today is on account of His faithfulness.
Number three reason why we should rejoice in His faithfulness is simply because He’s a source of peace and strength. Trusting His faithfulness brings peace beyond understanding. In Philippians 4:7, it says, “And the peace of God, which passeth all whom understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ,” and the same faithfulness also has the capacity to renew strength.
In Isaiah 40:31, it says, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength: they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” In the mighty name of Jesus, all through this year, you will not be weary, you will not know weariness, spiritually you will not know weariness, physically you will not know weariness, financially, you will not know weariness in the mighty name of Jesus. God will fill your void, every void in your life, He will fill it up in the name of Jesus.
Number four reason why we should rejoice in His faithfulness is remembering and sharing God’s faithfulness preserves our faith for future generation. Just as we key into the testimonies of people like Moses, like Peter, Apostle Paul, so also we need to leave a legacy for the upcoming generation – a legacy of honor, a legacy of worship, a legacy of service, a legacy of rejoicing, and a legacy of the celebration of the faithfulness of God so that they too will not grow up to be ingrates.
One major problem around today is that children are losing – many of them have lost the virtue of gratitude unlike in the past, the first thing you are trained as you are growing up is how to greet. In our village, if you are a girl, a baby girl, they will teach you how to kneel down to greet elders; if you are a young boy, they will teach you how to prostrate, the next thing they teach you is gratitude.
When somebody gives you something, they will say thank you, ‘say thank you, daddy or say thank you, mommy,’ and people grew with that, but today, you give something to the children of this, they take it and they walk away. We need to leave a legacy of honor, a legacy of gratitude. If you are here, you are not teaching your children those virtues, you have missed it.
Somebody came to my house, a family member getting married, I gave him a particular amount last week, he went away and did not tell the father. When I raised issue with the father, he understated the amount that I gave to him and I told the father, watch this guy, I would never recommend him to any place. He failed to disclose, and by the time he was forced to disclose he understated, that kind of person will be a terrible guy.
In gratitude, many of you are saying hmm, you are involved, it’s a new year and you need to change. The reason we come here every day is to drive change, is to inculcate virtue, if it’s not properly done at home at least we will try, but the foundation should come from the home, that’s why the Bible says if the foundation be destroyed, there’s nothing the righteous can do, but the righteous will try for record purposes, at least heaven will bear us record that we talked to you.
In Psalm 89:8, it is noteworthy that God’s faithfulness surrounds Him like I said before, and I pray that today He will prove His faithfulness in your life again and again in Jesus name.
What should be our response? Number one, look back, reflect on the things He has done. Remember like Abraham, recall God’s past provisions, protection, salvation in your life, business, family, church and all the rest. Psalm 103: 1-5 is my reference, David said, “Bless the Lord, oh my soul: and all that is within me. bless His holy name.”
Number two, stand firm in the present. Even in your faithlessness, God remains faithful. According to 2 Timothy 2:13, it tells us very clearly that if we believe not, yet he abideth faithful; your unbelief will not change God, my unbelief will not change God, God is faithful, and the reason why our faithfulness cannot change Him is simply because God cannot deny Himself.
He said if we believe not, yet He abideth faithful because He cannot deny Himself, and this helps us to find refuge in Him even during trials according to Psalm 46:1.
Number three, our response should be to have hope in the future. Brethren, the Bible says, “For I know the thought that I have towards you, the thought of peace and not of evil, but to give you an expected end, God’s promises are sure, the Bible says His words are yay and amen.
And in Psalm 119: 89, the psalmist says, “Forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven and in earth.” Therefore, I want to urge us this morning to find rest in His completed works through Jesus Christ; He said let not your heart be troubled, trust in me, trust also in God.
Brethren, help me tell your neighbor, in the journey of 2026 let not your heart be troubled, you are a glory carrier, walk in the awareness of who you are. Nothing dies in your hand this year in the name of Jesus.
Number four, respond with praise. Let your praise renew your perspective and commitment, acknowledge His past faithfulness to fuel the future trust. When you appreciate God for the past, it fuels, it strengthens your faith for the future.
David said I remember when I was tending my father’s sheep that a lion came and I destroyed it; at another time a bear surfaced and I destroyed, he said the Lord that gave me the lion, the Lord that gave me the bear is able to give me this uncircumcised Philistine. I decree in the name of Jesus that every Goliath on your way this year will crumble.
Let heaven know that indeed you are grateful this year, a songwriter says we are grateful oh Lord… [Music], we are to show gratitude in all things. The fellow that taught us Sunday school this morning said we should thank God in all things and not for all things because there is a difference – in all things being in all, both good and bad.
And brethren, it is a good thing to praise the Lord, and we have people like David to follow his footstep. A hunter that appreciates God after the day hunting exercise does not do so because of that day; when you see a hunter is coming back and he’s singing ‘to God be the glory,’ it is not because of that day, he has enough catch for the day, he’s thanking God so that when he goes back tomorrow he will not have to toil like Peter. I pray in the name of Jesus that all through this year you will not struggle in Jesus name.
I will take this one and will close it, live out rejoicing. You can’t rejoice without people knowing it, is it possible to celebrate without anybody knowing? Demonstrate it, be faithful in everything, let the world know that you are appreciative of all God has done for us.
Rejoicing in His faithfulness has what I call the divine effect of launching us into the realm of His fullness. Jesus Christ, when the bread and the fish were brought, the Bible says He gave thanks and He broke it, at the end of the day, how many baskets were left? When you give God thanks, you show that attitude of gratitude, it makes what is not enough to become more than enough.
Therefore, I want to encourage everyone this morning to give glory to God, to worship Him and as you do that, heaven over you shall be opened in Jesus name.
Shall we rise on our feet… But I need to quickly say this that the sacrifice of a sinner is an abomination unto God, therefore, if you are here, you have not at any point in time surrendered your life to Christ, you have not had that personal encounter with the saving grace of God…
[Altar call]
Shall we bow down our heads and begin to sing a song, pick a song of your choice, a song of thanksgiving, a song of appreciation, a song of rejoicing and offering unto the Lord.
[Altar call]
Thank You Father because You have answered, in Jesus mighty name we have prayed.
