Psalm 100 - A Psalm of Thanksgiving

A Psalm of Thanksgiving Psalm 100 “Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.”   Today, on Thanksgiving Day, we are going to jump ahead to Psalm 100. It is interesting to note that this is the only Psalm that has the title “A Psalm of Thanksgiving”.  It is thought that David is the writer of this Psalm even though we don’t have his name in the title.    Some believe that Psalm 100 is the doxology to the previous Psalms of 93 to 99 that prophetically proclaim that Jehovah is King. If you take the time to read all of these Psalms together, you will see a wonderful picture of the Lord coming to judge the earth and setting up His kingdom.   Psalm 98:1-3 summarizes this beautifully: “Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory. The LORD has made known His salvation; His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations. He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”  Then in verses 8-9, it concludes with: “Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD, For He is coming to judge the earth. With righteousness He shall judge the world, And the peoples with equity.”   In the Old Testament the common Hebrew could never go into the Holy of Holies, where the Presence of Jehovah dwelt on the Mercy Seat over the Ark of the Covenant.  The Gentile was not even allowed to go into the courtyard of the Tabernacle or Temple.  But Calvary has changed all that for the person, and any and everyone who will accept the perfect sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ.   “All the earth”, that is everyone can join together to make a “joyful noise or shout” to the Lord! Because of our grateful hearts knowing our sins are forgiven we can “serve the Lord with gladness”.  We serve and surrender our all to Him not because we are forced to do so, but because we want to!    We are so happy serving Him wherever He sends us that we can’t help but sing!  Happy and fulfilled people are a singing people!  Our music is a reflection and response to the true condition of our hearts and lives!  We can’t help but sing when we sense His presence in our midst!    The only way to “know that the LORD, He is God”, is to have relationship with His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus prayed this in John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” In John 10, Jesus proclaims that He is the Great and Good Shepherd Who laid down His life for the sheep. He is the gate, the only door, through which we can enter to find “green pasture” and enjoy “abundant life” forever! (John 10:9-11).   “We are His people and the sheep of His pasture”!  What else can we do but be thankful and praise Him with our worship in adoration and song.  We bless Him because He has blessed us! No matter what happens good or bad in our lives, He is always good, and His mercy is everlasting!  Sounds like the last verse in Psalm 23, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever”!   You will never have to worry about anything changing concerning God’s love, His mercy, His faithfulness, His goodness, and His grace, because “His truth endures to all generations”.  God doesn’t love anyone else more than He loves and cares for you today!  So today, take time to worship and thank Him!   God bless!