Psalm 100
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.
Praise and thanksgiving are important principles of a Christians life. Throughout the old and new testaments we are told to give thanks and to praise God. When I first read Psalm 100, I fell in love with the simplicity of it. It is a short and simple chapter on how, who and why, we should have joy and give thanks.
MAKE a joyful noise unto the Lord!
Who? All ye lands
SERVE the Lord with gladness!
COME before His presence with singing!
KNOW that the Lord is God!
Why? HE made us! We did NOT make ourselves! We are HIS people and the sheep of HIS pasture!
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving AND into His courts with praise!
BE thankful unto Him AND
BLESS His name!
Why should we do these things?
BECAUSE the Lord IS good! His mercy IS everlasting! AND His truth endureth to ALL generations!
I am the first to admit that there are a lot of commands in this text. How can we DO all of these things that are asked of us? Our motivation is because we trust that the Lord is good. If you pay attention, His goodness can be found all around us. God’s mercy will never end! When we fall into sin, we just need to repent and God forgives and restores our relationship with Him. NO QUESTIONS ASKED!!! The most important motivation for following the commands in this text is the truth of CHRIST. Jesus died for our sins 2,000 years ago and generation after generation, we are still learning about Him. The truth of Jesus’s sacrifice for us will NEVER die out. It is God’s will that NONE should perish and be sent to hell (2 Peter 3:9). God’s word will continue to be preached until the end of the age. He will continue to bless those that accept Jesus into their hearts and lives. He will continue to love us all. I know His love for me and I will praise Him, thank Him and worship Him forever. Won’t you?
Patti Burris 