June 7, 2016 - In the 100th Psalm the Psalmist calls for all people, Jew and Gentile alike to "Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!"(Psalm 100:1) He exhorts us all to "Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing." (Psalm 100:2)
Why does he push us to come and worship the Lord in a joyous way? Why do we need to give the Lord the credit for what we have, did we not earn it ourselves, by our own labor?
Verse 3 answers this question for us. "Know that the Lord, He is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture." (Psalm 100:3)
So for those who would still say, it is mine; I made my own way, NO, it is the Lord and Him alone to whom you owe your good fortune.
At times we may be tested, to see how we handle good fortune, do we give a portion to the Lord? Do we thank Him and credit Him for all things? The Bible tells us that the more we are given, the more is required of us.
Are you giving to the Lord as you should?
God will not share His glory with anyone, He is jealous for His glory. As He admonished Job; "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?" (Job 38:4) God went on to ask Job if he had done the multitude of things that were necessary to create the earth, the heavens, and all the creatures therein.
Letting us know that He is God, we are not, and what we have, we have only because He either causes or allows us to have it.
While all He asks in return is our acceptance of Him as Lord and our praise to Him for all He does and has done.
Really all He asks of us is faith and loyalty, there is nothing else we can do to please Him but to praise Him, have faith in Him and be loyal to Him.
The Psalmist sums it up in verses 4 and 5. "Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures for all generations." (Psalm 100:4-5)
That is active worship, that is what it is about; acknowledging that God is supreme, that He is the Creator and Heavenly Father and that all we have, all we are, all we will ever be, is because of Him and not of ourselves. By praising Him and blessing His name, being thankful for all things, and living as true Christians every day, we are following His will for us and being active in our worship of Him, as He asks...
May He bless you and keep you each day. Please feel welcome to join us each week at 6:00PM for Wednesday evening Bible study. Call 936-615-1427 for more information.
