Key Verse:
Psalm 100:3 KJV
3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
We serve a loving, caring Master, who looks after our every concern.
Where to begin?
Psalm 95:1 KJV
1 O sing unto the Lord a new song: sing unto the Lord, all the earth.
This begins the second unit in this quarter’s lessons. The unit is titled, “Called to praise God. And so we are. Beloved, we are called by the wonder we behold in a beautiful sunset. We are called by the gentle whisper of wind through the leaves on a cool spring day. We are called by the smile of a friend or a loved one whose path we cross. There are so many things that call us to ...joy. That joy, the very fruit of the Spirit of God, calls us to … praise. Thus, we are compelled to praise God.
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The Lesson
Psalm 100:1 KJV
1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
I learned this Psalm when I was six years old. I’m certain that it has been taught to children throughout the ages It is simple, yet full of the kind of foundational instruction that a child could easily grasp and then apply. That its appeal is so universal speaks to the thought that so many lives have been impacted in generations past, just as God intended.
This very first verse makes the point. God’s intent is that all people would praise Him. Every nation, every tongue, every ethnicity. We were created for the praise of the glory of His grace. All of us. And it all starts with a very simple song of … joy.
Psalm 100:2 KJV
2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
This verse contains two imperatives. The first is that we serve the Lord with gladness; that we commit ourselves to the service of the Lord with the knowledge that His love for us is immeasurable, and thus the call to praise him is one that elicits a willingness to serve. To a child, the thought of God is a wonder; inexplicable because of His intangible nature. Yet, children, given the gift of imagination believe so easily that which confounds the aged. That simple child-like faith compels a child to simply ‘come’ to God, to trust Him. We are compelled to come to God just as we are, simply trusting Him to care for us. Then we are compelled to serve Him with that same, simple trust, and with the joy that such trust brings.
The second imperative builds on the first. Having committed ourselves to God, we are commanded to come before Him in celebration. No quiet entreaty. Come before Him fully ensconced in an attitude of praise; a determination from within of the intent to lift Him up in praise. Beautiful songs of praise prepared beforehand by hearts and minds predisposed to the task well beforehand in anticipation basking in the presence of God.
Psalm 100:3 KJV
3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
It is said that ”Humble is the way to God’s favor.” We must always remind ourselves that everything that we see, touch, hear, taste, or touch was created for God. All of creation is for His good pleasure, not ours. Oftentimes, we want God to remain within our self-created bonds of understanding, rather than contentedly submitting wholly to His will. However Beloved, God is not captive to our whims or fancy. He is God. While our life is but a vapor against the vast expanse of time, He is eternal. We are sheep in His pasture, He is our Great Shepherd.
I was reminded by a good friend, of the Seraphim who continuously encircle God’s throne. This episode is recored in Scripture in The Book of Isaiah, Chapter six, verses one through five. Seraphim are regarded in Christiandom as the highest order angels, above even the archangels. The Scriptures tell us that, with their wings, they cover their faces and their feet, a sign of reverence and humility (in that order) in the presence of a Holy God. The Bible further states that these mighty creatures continually fly around God’s throne and cry out to one another declaring nothing else but the holiness; the majesty and glory of the Lord God who sits on the throne that they encompass in worship. The Bible further states that the power of their declarations about God are so great that the very posts of the ‘doors’ of Heaven are shaken abd the entire temple is filled with smoke. When Isaiah saw it, his response was a hapless, “Woe is me! I am undone!”.. I have another frien who say, “Don’t get it twisted my brother! God is … simply greater than can be captured by our limited, sin stained imagination.”
Psalm 100:4 KJV
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
If the seraphim, the highest order of created beings in Heaven declare the holiness of God with such majesty, we must do no less. In times past and present, attending Church was and is an event that requires planning and preparation at every level. Rightfully so. The ministers prepare to bring the Word of God through supplication and prayers. The musicians and the choirs carefully rehearse their hymns in the days prior to service, careful not to “leave it all out on the floor” during rehearsal, but saving themselves for the moments that they will minister in song before God and people, hoping for the same effect in the church that the seraphim had before the throne of God: shaken the door posts of our hearts. The Sunday School teachers spend the week preparing lessons for every age group, lesson that, like this one hundredth psalm, establish and build upon a foundation of Grace that will grow into Eternity.
Finally, the families prepare. Clothes are pressed, hair is combed, dinners are prepared beforehand, all in anticipation of coming into the house of the Lord on the Sabbath to give thanks and to worship. The same friend who I mentioned before in reference to our conversation about the seraphim made the following observation: “We thank God for what He’s done for us. We worship God because He is God.” He is simply worthy. Worthy of all of our praise. When we gather ourselves togethe for thanksgiving and worship, at what ever level we gather ourselves up… we serve. We serve the Lord, even in our preparation to serve.
Let us then do no less than the angels. Let us exalt the Name of the Lord over all names. In this great dispensation of Grace, God has revealed Himself in the person of His only begotten Son, Jesus. God has given Him a Name above all names. Let us then exalt Jesus at all times and in our every thought. Not only should we exalt His name in the hearing of others, but we should bless Him directly in worship, praising Him continually for this great gift He has given us: eternal life. Thank you Jesus!
Psalm 100:5 KJV
5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
Therefore let us proclaim what He has revealed to us to be true. God is good. He’s good all the time! James, the half brother of the Lord Jesus, declared about God that “every good and perfect gift comes from our Father above…” He further declared about God that He is “...the father of lights and that in Him, there is no variableness or turning of shadow…” In other words, God casts no shadow. He is the same from whichever angle you perceive Him. The writer of the Book of Malachi quoted God with these words, “I am the Lord, thy God! I change not!” The writer of the Book of Hebrews states that Jesus, God’s Son “is the same yesterday, today and forever.” He’s good all the time.
And though the reasons are too numerous to count, let me just tell you; I cannot thank God enough for the mercy that He has shown me. If I didn’t know anything else, I know that loves me. He loves us. The thing about Him that never changes is… love. Because God, He is Love. And He never lets up. That’s why we praise Him, Church. His mercy, His lovingkindness towards us is relentless and unrelenting (I said that on purpose). To say it another way, God’s love for us has no beginning that can be observed and knows no end. It cannot be measured. Hallaluiah!
And has great as His love is, so is His truth. With truth, God set the foundations of creation, and those foundations yet remain and will remain. With truth, God hung the stars in the heavens. With truth He breathed life into and onto a planet in chaos. With truth, He put forth His greatest creation: us. Then, when we veered from truth, He sent the Truth, in the person of Christ to rescue us to Him, that we might abide eternally with Him in love. And Belobed, there is no greater love.
Selah,
wb
Psalm 100 KJV
1 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands.
2 Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
3 Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
5 For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
Isaiah 6:1-5 KJV
1 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
2 Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.
3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.
4 And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.
5 Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.
Micah 3:6 KJV
6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
James 1:17 KJV
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning
Hebrews 13:8 KJV
8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
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