ARE YOU A STUFFED TURKEY?
Below are notes to a sermon preached Sunday morning, Nov. 28, 1999, at Gospel Light Baptist Church, Albany, Georgia:
ARE YOU A STUFFED TURKEY?
By Michael D. O’Neal Pastor, Gospel Light Baptist Church Albany, Georgia
Scripture Reading: Psalms 17:1-15
Text: Psalms 17:10
Psalms 17:10 They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.
Introduction: The Bible does say that they that trust in the Lord shall be made fat. However, there are those who are fat without any trust in the Lord, also.
I want to talk to you this morning about stuffed turkeys! The title of the message is, “Are You a Stuffed Turkey?”
Are YOU a TURKEY?
What IS a turkey?
Well, it is almost always used as a derogatory term. In the dictionary, it is defined as:
1. A far away land
2. A fowl eaten at Thanksgiving
3. A failure or flop, especially of a theatrical production
4. A foolish person
From reading the dictionary, it would appear that the only GOOD turkey, other than on a plate, is in bowling.
I’ll read this again, which I read last Sunday:
TWAS THE NIGHT OF THANKSGIVING -A THANKSGIVING POEM
Twas the night of Thanksgiving, but I just couldn’t sleep
I tried counting backwards, I tried counting sheep.
The leftovers beckoned — the dark meat and white,
but I fought the temptation with all of my might.
Tossing and turning with anticipation,
the thought of a snack became infatuation.
So, I raced to the kitchen, flung open the door
and gazed at the fridge, full of goodies galore.
I gobbled up turkey and buttered potatoes,
pickles and carrots, beans and tomatoes.
I felt myself swelling so plump and so round,
till all of a sudden, I rose off the ground.
I crashed through the ceiling, floating into the sky
With a mouthful of pudding and a handful of pie
But, I managed to yell as I soared past the trees ….
happy eating to all — pass the cranberries, please!
(Author Unknown)
I. YOU ARE IF YOU FATTEN YOURSELF PHYSICALLY AND NEGLECTED YOUR SPIRITUAL FOOD — THE BIBLE
I received the following email note:
YOU KNOW YOU’VE OVER-DONE THANKSGIVING IF …
* Paramedics bring in the Jaws of Life to pry you out of the oversize Lazy-Boy
* Your after dinner moans are loud enough to signal Dr. Kevorkian
* The potatoes you ate set off another famine in Ireland
* You get grass stains on your bottom after a walk, but you never sat down
* Your “Big Elvis Super-Belt” won’t even go around your waist
* Pricking your finger for a cholesterol screening only yielded gravy
* That rash on your stomach turns out to be steering wheel burn
* Your arms are too short to reach the keyboard & delete this
Job 23:12 Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.
A. God’s word has a greater priority
B. God’s word has a greater purity — it is incorruptible
* Most food you eat has impurities in it.
* Honey is thought of as the most perfect food, and the Bible is sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb!
C. God’s word has greater profit
If you spent as much time with your BIBLE feeding your SOUL as you do at the TABLE feeding your FLESH, you would KNOW the word of God!!!
II. YOU ARE IF YOU FORSAKE GOD’S HOUSE FOR GRANDMA’S HOUSE
Matthew 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
A. Your spiritual food is more important than Grandma’s pies, puddings, and cakes
B. Your spiritual family is more important than your physical family
C. Your spiritual fellowship is more important than your physical fellowship with relatives
III. YOU ARE IF YOU FORGET TO THANK GOD
Psalms 6:5 For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
People in graveyards don’t give thanks to God, but YOU are supposed to be ALIVE! Why don’t YOU thank God???
A. This is the state of many who are prosperous
B. This is the state of many who are poverty-stricken
C. This is the state of many who are the people of God
IV. IF YOU FIGHT AGAINST GOD
Judges 3:17 And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man.
Eglon was a persecutor of God’s people. He was one stuffed turkey, too!
A. If you fight against God, you are deceived
* A turkey may think that he is being fattened out of love, but he is deceived.
B. If you fight against God, you are dwarfed
C. If you fight against God, you are doomed
Conclusion: Thanksgiving weekend is not over! And SURELY, our thanksgiving is not over! Let’s give thanks 365 days a year, and, especially at Thanksgiving, let’s not be stuffed turkeys!