SERMON OUTLINE:
A call to worship (vs 1-3)
• Shout (vs 1)
• Sing (vs 2)
• Remember (vs 3)
A call to thanksgiving (vs 4-5)
• Be full of awe (vs 4a)
• Be full of Gratitude (vs 4b)
• Be full of praise (vs 5)
SERMON BODY:
• This is the only Psalm in the 150 Psalms that is in its entirety a "Psalm of Praise".
• There is not one single note of sadness in the entire Psalm.
• This Psalm is ablaze with gratitude and thanksgiving.
• It is an appeal for everyone to gratefully worship the Lord.
Ill:
• The Puritan Bible commentator Matthew Henry was well known for his thankful attitude:
• He was always giving thanks in all sorts of circumstances:
• On one occasion he was beaten and robbed;
• An entry in his diary reads;
• "I am thankful to God that: (1). I have not been robbed before.
• (2). That I was robbed not killed; (3). That I was robbed and not someone else".
• You will not be surprised to know that his nickname was "Thankful Henry!"
• He was a man with a great quality - a thankful attitude
Ill:
• For you and me I guess it’s not always easy to give thanks like that!
• I like the story of the two boys who were walking through a field.
• Suddenly they could hear footsteps behind them;
• When they turned to look,
• To their horror they saw that it was a bull running towards them!
• One boy turned to his mate and cried out; “Run!”
• But the faster they ran, the closer the bull seemed to get.
• Realising they were not going to make it to the gate in time,
• The boy said to his friend; “We’re doomed, quick pray”.
• The other boy said; “I’ can’t”
• His friend said; “Why not?”
• The other boy replied: “Because I only know one prayer”
• His mate said: “Then you had better pray it!”
• “Okay” said the friend; “Lord, for what we are about to receive….”
Well this Psalm has the title ’A Psalm, for giving thanks’
• Now you can of course use many of the Psalms to give thanks to the Lord.
• And Psalm 118 uses the word ’thanks’ more than any other Psalm;
• Yet Psalm 100 is the only Psalm explicitly identified as ’A Psalm for giving thanks’.
• Psalm 100 contains seven great imperatives (important truths),
• Plus two clear explanations of why we should give God thanks.
The Psalm divides into two parts:
• Verses 1-3: A call to worship.
• Verses 4-5: A call to thanksgiving.
FIRST: A call to worship (Vs 1-3).
“Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
2 Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the LORD is God
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”
• This Psalm was probably sung in Jerusalem outside of the temple.
• The people gathered outside of the temple;
• And then the priest (or worship leader) gave the instruction;
• The people were to turn their back on the temple,
• And face the nations from which they had come from,
• And to shout to them and invite them -No! Command them to come;
• To come and to worship YAHWEH the true God.
• To come and worship the God of tiny Israel!
• To come and publicly declare; That “The Lord God".
• In the Hebrew it means "That the Lord (him alone) is God".
Ill:
• Can you imagine next Sunday doing that outside your building;
• Backs to the building – calling to the houses all around;
• “Come and worship” the living God.
Ill:
• With the introduction of Mosques in the UK;
• We are familiar with The ’adhân’ the Islamic call to prayer
Ill:
• Church of England always used to have clocks on the outside;
• Telling folks when to come and worship.
• Then some bright spark put them on the inside of Churches;
• Telling folks when to go home!
SECOND: A call to thanksgiving (Vs 4-5).
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.”
• Having shouted out a verbal invitation to all & sundry;
• The worshippers were instructed to turn around and face the temple;
• And then as they approached the gates;
• They ceased from looking outwards ("Ends of the earth")
• And they faced one another saying; "It is he who made us, and we are his”
• And the worshippers were encouraged to continue their praise;
• As they entered into the temple courts.
Note:
• It must have been both an incredible sight and sound;
• We forget in our British mindset that Israel’s worship;
• Was very visual as well as vocal!
Ill:
• There is a little Anglican Church on the edge of Chichester in the UK.
• I went there with a school to speak & lead their Harvest Festival Service.
• As you entered the foyer there was a table;
• And on the table was a plate containing a Latin inscription.
• (Many Anglican Church buildings contain a stone inserted in the wall;
• Or they may have a brass plate in their foyer containing the same inscription).
• The words on the plate – the Latin inscription was ;
• ‘Ad maiorem Dei gloriam’ (Ad ma-jor-em / Dei / gior-i-am).
• Which translated into English reads’ To the greater glory of God ’.
• In other words as you enter this place ’Make God your focus’
• After all we are entering "His gates" not ours!
• We are entering "His courts" not ours!
• And it is "Before him" we are primarily gathered and not just each other.
• And he is the focus, as we "Worship the Lord".
• No-one would leave our Churches feeling disappointed!
• We wouldn’t leave moaning about.. .
• Whether or not it’s too hot or too cold; to loud or too dull,
• Or too… well you can fill the blanks in.
• We would have focussed on the Lord, and having seen the Lord;
• We would leave with the right attitude ready to serve him!
Now let’s move from the general to the particular:
A call to worship (Vs 1-3).
Ill:
• Occasionally when someone has done something special for us,
• We find ourselves asking; "What can I do for so-and-so to show my appreciation?"
• It is a valid question;
• But not always an easy one to answer.
• Now if it is hard to show appreciation for another human being,
• How much more difficult must it be to show appreciation to God.
These opening three verses of Psalm 100 suggest three things.
(1). A Call to Worship - Shout
"Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth"
• Normally in our culture and tradition we enter our buildings quietly;
• We have been given the impression we should be reflective & medatitive.
• At times that may well be the right response.
• These people are encouraged to enter God’s house - the temple shouting.
• They were encouraged to give to God a shout of triumph;
• The idea is we give to God a shout of victory;
• After all he has won the battle! We are on the victory side!
This is a whole hearted response to being on the victorious side;
• Notice this shout of victory is not limited to one people or one nation;
• “The whole earth”, both Jew & Gentile;
• Are called to shout the praise of the God who has created them!
• When you read verses like this one;
• It makes me ask the question; "How did our services get so quiet?"
• Quote the Bible teacher Vance Havener who said;
• "Many of our services start at 11.00 o’clock sharp and end at 12.00 o’clock dull"
Quote: The great Bible teacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon said about this verse:
"Our happy God should be worshipped by a happy people; a cheerful spirit is in keeping with his nature, his acts, and his gratitude which we should cherish for his mercies".
(2). A Call to Worship - Sing
“Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs".
Ill:
• A visiting preacher was completing his sermon:
• And with great expression he said,
• "If I had all the beer in the world, I’d take it and throw it into the river."
• With even greater emphasis, he said,
• "And if I had all the wine in the world, I’d take it and throw it into the river."
• And then, finally, he said,
• "And if I had all the whiskey in the world, I’d take it and throw it into the river."
• He sat down and the song leader then took over;
• Obviously not agreeing with the preachers strong temperance stance;
• He stood up and announced with a pleasant smile,
• "For our closing song, let us sing Hymn: ’Shall We Gather At the River.
Verse 2: is a great invitation:
• “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs".
• It does not matter if you are a good singer;
• Or whether you ’could not carry a tune in a bucket ’.
• The command is a ‘Joyful song’ K.J.B. says; ‘Joyful noise’;
• And although we want the expression to be a pleasant tuneful melody – it’s not essential!
• The point being: If a person is inwardly happy;
• That happiness can be expressed outwardly in a song.
• Quote Charles Swindoll in one of his books says:
• "The spirit-filled saint is a song-filled saint"
So in verse 2 the psalmist encourages us to come before God:
• That is to enter into his presence with joyful songs.
• To express ourselves audibly:
Ill:
Now throughout Christian history this has been happening:
• One church may chant the Psalms in prose,
• Another may sing them in metrical form,
• Another congregation may read them out loud,
• Another may sing them in the form of a hymn or chorus,
• But whichever way you prefer or practice;
• The important thing is that we do it!
• Praise is rooted in a person’s heart & mind,
• And should expresses itself as an audible noise.
• Because you cannot "Shout or sing or speak”
• Without coming out with some kind of sounds.
(3). A Call to Worship – Remember (vs 3).
“Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”
• Some translations prefer the word ‘Remember’ to ‘know’ in this verse.
• The idea is to reflect, to consider, to ponder, to think-about.
The psalmist brings to our attention three important truths as we come to worship:
• One: "Know that the LORD is God”
• Two: “It is he who made us, and we are his”
• Three: “We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.”
ONE: KNOW THAT THE LORD IS GOD – HE IS OUR CREATOR:
Ill:
• A story about of a little girl who climbed up on the lap of her great-grandmother;
• Looking at her grey hair and wrinkly skin asked, "Did God make you?"
• Grandma replied: "Yes, God made me".
• Then looking at her blonde hair and her smooth skin;
• She asked, "Grand Ma, did God make me, too?"
• Her Grandma said, "Yes, God made you too"
• "Well," said the little girl,
• "Don’t you think He’s doing a better job now?"
When you create something you own it!
• ill: Look in your hymn books – see the copyright of the art or music publisher etc.
• ill: How many of you have your names in the front of your Bibles?
• ill: Kids go to school with name tags in their jumpers etc.
• Worship him because he is your creator says the Psalmist;
• Know it, be sure of it and praise him for it!
TWO: THE LORD IS OUR CREATOR – WE BELONG TO HIM.
• Notice the double mention:
• “We are his; we are his people”
• Although referring primarily to Israel as a nation in this Psalm,
• The New Testament makes it very clear that Christians are his people.
Ill:
1 Peter chapter 2 verse 9-10.
“For you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy."
Ill:
• In the New Testament the Romans set up colonies.
• i.e. Philippi was a Roman colony.
• The Romans did this to help protect their empire:
• The Romans settled some of their loyal citizens (often army veterans)
• In various cities around their empire.
• The great characteristic of these colonies was that,
• Wherever they were in the world, they remained fragments of Rome.
• i.e. Roman dress was worn;
• i.e. Roman magistrates governed;
• i.e. The Latin tongue was spoken;
• i.e. Roman justice was administered;
• i.e. Roman morals were observed.
• Even if they were living in the ends of the earth they still remained unshakeably Roman!
• Just as those Roman colonists never forget that they belong to Rome,
• So every Christian must never forget who they belong to!
• We may live on earth, we may have earthly passports & documentation;
• But every Christian is a citizen of heaven!
THIRD: THE LORD OUR CREATOR – HE CARES FOR US:
“We are his people, the sheep of his pasture”
Ill:
• The little Boy who was supposed to quote the twenty third Psalm in Church.
• When he stood on the platform and saw all the eyes of the people looking back at him,
• His nerves got the better of him, his mind went blank and his mouth went dry.
• He started “The Lord is my" and he stopped.
• A second time he tried; “The Lord is my Shepherd” and then he stopped.
• After an very long pause he said:
• “The Lord is my Shepherd and that’s enough!"
That little boy is absolutely right:
• Whatever happens to us in this life - Remember: “We are still his!”
• Troubles will inevitably come our way - Remember: “We are still his!”
• Sickness may come - Remember: “We are still his!”
• Death may come - Remember: “We are still his!”
• Family difficulties may come - Remember: “We are still his!”
• We may lose a job - Remember: “We are still his!”
• Remember: “We are still his!”
• And we always will be! Nothing will ever separate us from his love!
A call to thanksgiving (Vs 4-5).
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.”
• The psalmist gives to us three ways of responding to God’s goodness;
• Three strong imperatives are found in these verses.
(1): Be full of awe!
• Quote the definition of ‘Awe’ (from International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia);
• ‘Fear mingled with reverence and wonder’
• Too many of us get over familiar with God;
• We forget that ‘Our God is a consuming fire’
• We need to constantly remind our selves:
• That we are entering "His gates" not ours!
• That we are entering "His courts" not ours!
• That we are it is "Before him" we are primarily gathered and not just each other.
• That he is the focus, as we "Worship the Lord".
• Too often I think we rush in and out of God’s presence;
• At times we need just to ‘be still’ and ‘know’ a fresh that ‘He is God’.
• If there is one characteristic more than others;
• That contemporary public worship needs to recapture it is this awe
• I guess it comes out of our worship of God.
Quote: Lenard Ravenhill:
“Prayer is contemplation with my needs.
Praise is contemplation with my blessings.
Worship is contemplation with God alone!”
(2). Be full of Gratitude!
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving”
Ill:
Alex Haley, the author of mega-selling book "Roots,"
• Had an unusual picture hanging on his office wall.
• It was a picture of a turtle on top of a fence post.
• When asked, "Why is that there?"
• Alex Haley answered,
"Every time I write something significant, every time I read my words & think that they are wonderful, & begin to feel proud of myself, I look at the turtle on top of the fence post & remember that he didn’t get there on his own. He had help. "
• Always remember that we got here with the help of God,
• And that He is the provider of every blessing we have.
• So let us have hearts full of gratitude!
(3). Be full of prise.
“And his courts with praise";
In verse 5 we are given three reasons why we should praise God:
FIRST: GOD IS GOOD. "FOR THE LORD IS GOOD"
• The word ‘Good’ is the word ‘God’ stretched;
• That word is a reminder that the God of the Bible in his very nature is good.
• Everything about him inspires gratitude in the believer.
• And we see that goodness demonstrated visibly in so many different ways.
SECOND: GOD IS LOVE. "AND HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER"
• The only reason we are here this morn/evening;
• Is because of his love!
ill:
A certain medieval monk announced he would be preaching next Sunday evening on "The Love of God." As the shadows fell and the light ceased to come in through the cathedral windows, the congregation gathered. In the darkness of the altar, the monk lighted a candle and carried it to the crucifix. First of all, he illumined the crown of thorns, next, the two wounded hands, then the marks of the spear wound. In the hush that fell, he blew out the candle and left the chancel. There was nothing else to say.
THIRD: GOD IS UNCHANGEABLE.
“His faithfulness continues through all generations.”
Ill:
• Sometimes as we walking home from school, I play a game with my children,
• We try to jump on each-others shadows,
• While at the same time,
• Trying not to let anyone jump on our own shadow.
• The problem with shadows is they are constantly changing length.
• Depending on the relation of the sun to your body.
Ill:
• James in his letter (chapter 1 verse 17) wrote:
• "God does not change like shifting shadows"
• In other words God is not like a shadow that changes it size throughout the day;
• Shadows may vary, but not God!
• He is the same "Yesterday, today and forever"
Notice:
• That Psalm which started with a shout of joy;
• Ends with a statement of security!
• Verse 5: “His faithfulness continues through all generations"
Quote: Abraham Lincoln
• “I do not boast that God is on my side. I humbly pray that I am on God’s side.”
• We have the assurance that in Christ we are on God’s side!
