A lesson developed by Dr. Terry W. Dorsett based on Psalm 100.
Psalm 100
1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! 2Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
Verse 1 - Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
• David wrote this Psalm as a prayer of thanksgiving to God.
• David began by telling people they should make a joyful noise to the Lord.
• What does it mean to make a joyful noise?
• Who should this “noise” be made to?
• Who is to make this joyful noise?
Verse 2 - Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!
• David tells his readers that they should serve the Lord with gladness.
• What are some ways that we can serve the Lord?
• What does it mean that we should serve Him with gladness?
• Is it possible to serve God without gladness?
• David tells his readers to come into God’s presence with singing.
• Why would we come to God through singing?
• Why is music so important to our lives?
• Why kind of songs make us feel closer to God?
• We should look for songs that we can sing TO God, not just ones that we can sing ABOUT God.
Verse 3 - Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
• God is the Lord of the universe. Lord means master, ruler, or controller.
• We live in a world that has worked very hard to tell us that God is either not real, or that He is weak and not really in charge of the universe.
• Why is it important to know that God is real and that He is Lord over all things?
• Because it gives us a great sense of peace to know that someone is in control.
• The Bible teaches both in this verse and in many other places that God made us.
• This is different than what most of us have been taught in school.
• We are the special creation of a mighty God not the accident of a muddy glob!!!!
• Why is it important to believe that God made us?
• Because is we are a special creation of God then we have a purpose for living and a reason to exist. If we are but an accident of nature, then we have no real purpose for existence.
• What does it mean that we are His people?
• It means that God chose us and we BELONG!!
Verse 4 - Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
• When we come before the Lord, we should come with thanksgiving and praise.
• What is the difference between thanksgiving and praise?
• Thanksgiving is being grateful for what God HAS DONE FOR US.
• Praise is being excited about WHO GOD IS.
• The verse uses the image of us entering God’s gates.
• How can we enter into the presence of God?
• We can enter God’s presence through prayer, music, Bible reading, communion, meditation, etc.
• What does it feel like when that happens?
• It is hard to describe the presence of God but when we feel it we know that we are no longer alone.
• What can keep us from feeling God’s presence?
• SIN keeps us from feeling God’s presence.
Verse 5 - For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
• David wants his readers to know that the Lord really is good.
• Sometimes we doubt God is good when bad things happen to us that we do not understand. But God is always working for our good, even when it does not seem like it.
• We know God is always working for our good because God’s love is steadfast.
• Steadfast means it holds true no matter what.
• Sometimes our love for God goes up and down depending our how we feel or what may be going on in our lives. But God’s love for us NEVER waivers.
• God’s love endures forever.
Conclusion:
• We should be thankful to God. To do that sincerely, we must:
• Serve the Lord with gladness
• Come into the Lord’s presence with singing.
• Remember that God is the Lord of all things.
• Give the Lord thanks and praise even when we do not understand what is happening to us.
• Never doubt God’s goodness, for His love for us endures even when our love for Him waivers.
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