Worship Fit for a King
Today ended up as a busy Saturday. I got up early for a men’s breakfast. I left that event to travel to Denver for a board meeting with Abundant Word Ministries. I then connected with my friend Spencer Swalm for coffee. I got by to visit my mother, who turned 92 yesterday. I then headed by to Fort Collins just in time to leave for our Saturday evening church service.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY…. “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 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. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” Psalm 100:1-5 ESV
Tomorrow is Palm Sunday, the day that we remember when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey to the praise of the adoring throngs. Palm branches and coats paved the way for the master as they worshiped him as King.
This well-known psalm of praise reminds us that the Lord is to be worshiped and served as King and our great God. Joyful worship and gladness in serving the Lord should go hand in hand.
The reminder, “know that the Lord, he is God” is a good reminder for us today, as well as those who were tempted by false gods and idols in David’s time. This God is creator and we belong to Him and are under His watchful eye as the sheep of His pasture.
Some translations include the words, “…It is he who had made us, and not we ourselves...” Perhaps that is a good reminder on many fronts. For those who feel that they don’t need God or God doesn’t care, need to know that God is the creator and not “we ourselves.” It is good to be reminded that “the Lord, is God” and not “we ourselves.”
In a world where all we can be concerned about is this “world” – it is good to know the reality of a God is above all and is over all and the peace that comes with joyful worship, glad service and thankful living.
This psalm of praise, like many, provides the motivation and the reminder of God’s character that compels such dedicated and exuberant worship. For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”
We can’t understand all there is to know about our great God. But what we can know and find comfort in the reality that “God is good!”
We can find joy in the Lord’s steadfast love that endures forever. It is persistent. It is enduring. Even when the Lord disciplined His people it was out of His love for them to bring them back to Himself. God doesn’t give up, He doesn’t quit.
Throughout time, God’s faithfulness is known from generation to generation. Times change, God’s leaders come and go. One generation passes from the scene another rises up to take its place. In all that changes, God remains faithful. What He was to those in any time in human history, He is to us today.
Prayer for today….. Lord thank You for the powerful expression we find in this psalm of praise. We “know” that Your are God. We know that through faith, we know that through Your character, we know that through what You have done for us. All of that should be a cause for singing Your praise and serving You with glad and thankful hearts.