Psalm 100

Serve the Lord with Gladness

Psalm 100 is a Psalm of Thanksgiving.  It gives a strong invitation to all readers to worship God. 

Matthew Henry exhorts us to know what God is in Himself, and what He is to you.  He further comments:

Knowledge is the mother of all devotion and obedience.  Let us then know these six things concerning the Lord Jehovah:

1. That the Lord, He is God, the only living and true God.  He is a Being infinitely perfect, self-existent, self-sufficient, and the fountain of all being.  He is an eternal Spirit, incomprehensible and independent, the first cause and last end.
2. It is He that has made us, and not we ourselves.  He is our Creator.  He gave us being; He is both the former of our bodies and the Father of our spirits.  We did not, we could not, make ourselves.
3. Therefore, He is our rightful owner
4. He is our sovereign ruler - we are His people
5. He is our bountiful benefactor - we are the sheep of His pasture, whom He takes care of
6. He is a God of inifinite mercy and goodness - For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting

Do you worship the Lord with gladness?  Faithfully?

 WHAT CAN I LEARN ABOUT GOD THROUGH THIS PSALM:

• The six things outlined above by Matthew Henry are a perfect summation of what Psalm 100 teaches us about God.

HOW CAN I PRAISE GOD THROUGH THIS PSALM?

• I praise God that He is God, the one true & living God. 
• I praise God as Creator, of the universe . . . and of me!
• I praise God that He has made me His child - that I belong to Him, and He is my Shepherd
• I praise God for His goodness - that it will never fail, and that His mercy and truth are everlasting

PRAYER:
      O Lord, I come before You with a song in my heart, knowing that You are God.  In prayer, I come before Your throne with thanksgiving and praise.  I bless Your name, for You are good.  I bless You for Your mercy, that it is everlasting.  I bless You that Your truth endures to all generations, and I pray that You will make Your truth known to the members of my family, even those yet to come, and that You would bring each one to saving faith in Jesus Christ. 
     Father, Your creation is a marvelous work, too complex to fully comprehend - but Your handiwork does give testimony to You.  As we see flowers bloom and new life this spring season, it is a reminder that Your creation does indeed declare Your glory. 
     O God, that You have made me Your child - that You are the God and You are my God - for this I am thankful to You and bless Your name.  I make this prayer in the name of Jesus Christ ~ Amen