Psalm 100 A Psalm of Thanks September 17, 2017pm www.newhopefwbc.com 1285 Ne w Hope R oad Joelton, TN 37080 6 1 5. 7 4 6. 6 4 0 3 READ Psalm 100 I listened to a portion of radio story several months ago that I sadly have not been able to get out of my head. Amichai Lau-Lavie is a Rabbi of a Pop-up Synagogue in New York City. Rabbi Lau-Lavie grew up in a Jewish home that has a rich rabbinical heritage. In fact, he is the 39th generation of rabbis. He decided to follow this tradition of rabbinical studies after realizing that his queer/drag lifestyle and rabbinical studies were not mutually exclusive. I know. Just hang in there. It s going to get worse. He took his love for theater and desire to tell stories and applied them to what he calls Storahtelling (an obvious play on the Old Testament law Torah). His Pop-up Synagogue has as its tagline or mission. Everyone friendly. Artist driven. God optional. While that is a radical example of debauching the Word of God, I mention it to juxtapose it against the Theocentric Psalm 100. It is a Psalm where God is far from optional. He is not just the linchpin of the text; He is Corey M. Minter Page 1 of 7
at the very topic and heart of it. It is about Him. It is for Him. It is through Him alone that we can shout and serve and sing. Every Psalm is a song. Sadly, we do not know the tune, and I can guarantee you that it would sound very different from our hymns and worship songs. It would probably be more of a sing-song chant that is still a tradition in Judaism. We do not know the earthly author of this text, but as through all of Scripture, the Spirit is The Author. I was recently reminded of the 22nd Psalm and the coinciding Hebrews 2:12 that reiterates the idea. I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You. Jesus is the worship leader every time the church sings. I know Jeff is up here, and I am incredibly thankful for his servant leadership, but Jeff is not the worship leader. Jesus is. He is the One Who declares God s name to us (His brethren). He stands in the midst of the congregation, and He sings to the Father and commands us to join Him in His singing. Psalm 100 is short. In fact, I challenge everyone in here tonight commit it to memory if you have not already, not because it is easy but because it is incredibly useful in everyday life. It can be broken down into two questions: How do we give thanks to God and why do we give thanks to God? That may seem a little backward to address the how before the why, but it serves as a reminder that when God tells us to do something we are to do it. Then, later, He may relay the why. Corey M. Minter Page 2 of 7
When God called Abraham to take Isaac up to Mount Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice, He did not give Abraham any explanation until after He stayed Abraham s hand. Then, He told Abraham the why. When your child is crossing the street and you see a speeding car come by, that is not the time for explanations, that is a time to yell at them to get back on the sidewalk. Once the danger is over, then it is reasonable to give the why you yelled. It s the same here, God calls us to do something, and we ought to obey solely upon His command. Later, we will understand why. Let s get into the How Do We Give Thanks to God. Psalm 100:1-2 is a list of imperative statements commands. Just listen to them. In fact, if you underline in your Bible (and I hope you do), you may want to underline/circle them 1 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! 2 Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. 1. How do we give thanks to God? 1. Shout 1 Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! I know some people who take this to the extreme, and the decency and order that Paul wrote about in 1 Corinthians 14 that should accompany a worship service is thrown out the window. But I guarantee you that Free Will Baptists in general and New Hope in particular are far from erring on that side. When was the last time you shouted joyfully to the Lord? I am pretty reserved in my nature when it comes to worship. I was not Corey M. Minter Page 3 of 7
raised in a church where outward shows of worship was the norm, except for hearty Amens sprinkled throughout the congregation. I am convinced that this command is not meant to shame the quiet-natured but to encourage the worshipper who cares too much about what other people might say. When the Ark of the Covenant was brought back to Jerusalem in 2 Samuel 6, David the king led the procession. Scripture says that he was leaping and whirling before the Lord. After David sacrificed and the city-wide celebration was over, he returned home to celebrate God s goodness with his family, but he was met by Michal his wife and Saul s daughter at the door. She ridiculed him for acting as a commoner and as she thought a nobleman, a king might act. David answered: 2 Samuel 6:21 So David said to Michal, It was before the Lord, who chose me instead of your father and all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel. Therefore I will play music before the Lord. 22 And I will be even more undignified than this, and will be humble in my own sight. But as for the maidservants of whom you have spoken, by them I will be held in honor. Essentially, You ain t seen nothing yet! I will not keep quiet about what God has done! Your shouting to the Lord might be sharing how God has blessed you with a neighbor. It may be an actual verbal response in a song or sermon (just warn me beforehand so I don t have a Corey M. Minter Page 4 of 7
heart attack). Whatever it is. Do not live quietly before God. Scripture says Let the redeemed of the Lord say so. Shout about Him and to Him. 2. Serve 2 Serve the Lord with gladness; Find some area where you can serve the local church on a regular basis. Nursery workers are always appreciated. Junior church workers are needed. New choir members are always welcomed. But do not just join and serve. Serve the Lord with gladness. I have told you the story several times. Craig and I used to go to a Sunday school conference every year in Georgia at this huge church. The church made your meals which required a couple hundred volunteers just in the kitchen. I was walking by one of the kitchens when the door swung open, and I could hear about fifty people in there all singing and washing dishes or other stations. I asked about it, and one them said, We know how when you serve sometimes you get a little like Martha in the kitchen bitter that Mary is out at the feet of Jesus while you re slaving away. So we make sure to worship while we wash. We select a song leader, and its his job to keep us singing. We do not serve out of responsibility, even though it is our responsibility. We serve joyfully; it is our privilege to honor the king with service. Are you serving? Notice there is no age requirement. My parents gave us our first job in the church to go around through Corey M. Minter Page 5 of 7
every pew and pick up the mint wrappers and bulletins after every service. There is also no age exemption. You never retire from serving the Lord, no matter your age. The work load may need to be adjusted with age, but the child of God serves as long as he can, as gladly as he can. 3. Sing 2 Come before His presence with singing. Of all the things that the modern church does poorly in, I believe that singing is the worst. Singing has taken on a talent aspect that I am positive was not present in the Early Church or even in Old Testament worship. Excellence was. Old Testament priests who led the worship in the temple took decades in honing their craft and musical ability before they were allowed to lead. Sadly, the modern church has taken the idea of excellence and turned it into entertainment. I really am not just old fashioned; I am OK with many modern worship songs, but singing in the church should be for the most classically trained musician and the person who cannot carry a tune in a bucket alike. The virtuoso and can t sing worth a lick ought to be able to sit on the same pew, sing the same song, worship the same God and encourage each other all the while. The church is never more like Heaven than when we sing. We sing to God for the encouragement of others around us. How do we give thanks to God? We shout, we serve, and we sing. Corey M. Minter Page 6 of 7
2. Why do we give thanks to God? 1. Because of Who He Is 3 Know that the Lord, He is God; 2. Because of what He done 3 It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Because of what He continues to do 4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. 5 For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. Corey M. Minter Page 7 of 7