Worship, It Does A Body Good.

Title: Worship – It’ll Do You Good. Script: Ps. 100

Type: Expos. Where: GNBC rw 10-18-20

Intro: I read an article recently about President Kennedy. Kennedy had many serious health problems that he suffered from throughout his life. He had a serious kidney disease, along with several other maladies that caused severe chronic pain. He took pain medication and received multiple steroid injections daily. Despite his precarious health, he managed to convey to the public that he was young, energetic, and physically fit. He had some good spin doctors! Politicians know that bad press can ruin their reputation and result in defeat at the polls. Sadly, most politicians don’t focus on truthful, upright behavior, but rather on how to convey the image of being truthful and upright, even if they aren’t. From day one, Satan has been on a campaign to smear the truth about God’s goodness so that people will not follow Him. When he tempted Eve in the Garden, his main ploy was to get Eve to doubt that God intended good for her by forbidding her and Adam from eating the fruit. Satan told her (Gen. 3:5). The devil has used this falsehood in varying forms to keep people from following the Lord. Satan promotes the lie, “If you follow God, you’ll have to stop doing the things you enjoy and start doing things that you hate. I believe our joy in the Lord is directly tied to our worship of the Lord. (Story credit: Dr. Stephen Cole)

Prop: Examining Ps. 100 we’ll notice 4 aspects about worship for the believer.

BG: 1. This Psalm is entitled a Psalm for Thanksgiving or a Psalm of Praise.

2. Psalm 100 is the only psalm with the title, “A Psalm of Thanksgiving.” The Hebrew word for thanksgiving literally means, confession.

Prop: Ps. 100 will remind us of 4 aspects of the worship of God.

I. The Psalmist Reminds us that Worship is to be Universal Praise v. 1

A. Since God’s Goodness is Manifest in all Lands, God should be worshiped in every land.

1. As Christians, we should desire to see Jesus Christ exalted in every land!

a. “shout joyfully – KJV – “make a joyful noise” – ruwa – means “to split the ears w/ sound”. To sound a trumpet or to shout for joy. In I Sam. 10:24 the people shouted “Long live the king” when Saul was anointed ruler over Israel. That is the type of “shout” that is alluded to here by the Psalmist. Often when the king went through the gates to battle. People shouted.

b. Illust – This past winter I saw the film clip of the victory celebration in New York City when World War II ended. Folks, that celebration was a shout of praise. The war was over – the victory had been won. We need to shout praises to God – I have read the end of the Book – I know who wins the war – I know Who has victory – Praise God, He has won! Jesus is Lord.

2. As believers we are to be cheerful in our worship of God.

a. v. 1 is a repetition of Ps. 98:4 - God is to be worshiped by happy or joyful people. Cheerfulness is a part of God’s nature and our attitude of joy should characterize our worship.

b. That’s how our joy in the Lord should overflow at times. The Bible does not suggest that it should be that way always, of course. We all go through high points and low points. We are to rejoice with those that rejoice and weep with those that weep (Rom. 12:15). The shortest verse in the Greek New Testament is, “Rejoice always” (1 Thess. 5:16). In English, it is, “Jesus wept” (John 11:35). So there’s a balance. But, if God has worked a victory in your life, whoop it up! If He has answered your prayer, shout for joy!

B. The Psalmist Reminds us of what should be our motivation in life..

1. The Worship of God should be a primary motivation.

a. “all the earth” – You see, it is zeal for the glory of God that motivates world missions. Concern for missions and lost flows out of a right relationship with God. In Rom. 15:8-9 Paul reveals 3 purposes in Christ’s coming to earth. 1st – Show God’s truthfulness, 2nd – to confirm God’s promises, 3rd: “in order that the nations might glorify God for His mercy.” You see it is that servant spirit and a heart of mercy that motivates missions to seek the universal praise of God. You see not only did Jesus come so as to do the Father’s will at great cost to Himself, He also lived His life so as to extend mercy to the nations. (Let the Nations…, Piper, pg. 29)