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.(Ps. 100)
From the moment we are born, we move toward a state of
independence. It is in our human nature
to long to throw off the shackles of what we perceive to be holding us
back. The crawling baby wants to
walk. The adolescent wants to leave
home. The employee wants to be his own
boss. At every stage of life, our flesh
desires to be free of that which holds us down.
We don’t want to be told what to do. We want to be subject to no one. We want to be our own person. We want independence, breathing room,
freedom. And we believe that if we could
only get to that place, we would enjoy life fully.
How interesting then that the Psalmist would find reason for
joyful thanksgiving in a state of complete dependence and servitude, subjection
and need.
Psalm 100 is a psalm of thanksgiving, a call to
worship. Vv1-2 are just what you would
expect: Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!
But v3 is striking.
It falls right in the middle of the psalm and serves as the central idea
of the poem. In the center of this call
to worship there is the imperative to know God’s rightful place in authority
over us: 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.
In one verse, there are five allusions to the authority of
God: God, Creator, Master, King, and Shepherd.
Conversely then, these imply five pictures of our dependence and obligation
to Him: worshiper, creation, servant, subject, and sheep.
Know
that the LORD, he is God! He is our God – He has sovereignty over
us.
It
is he who made us... He is our Creator – He has a purpose for
us.
...and
we are His. He is our Master – He has all rights over us.
We
are His people… He is our King – He has dominion over
us.
…and
the sheep of His pasture. He is our Shepherd – He has love, patience,
and care for us.
The Psalmist cites this reality as a cause
for celebration. He revels in his low
position and in the LORD’s exaltation above him. How far removed that is from the world’s
perspective. How far removed that is
from the perspective of many of us.
Many confessing Christians spend their days straining
against the authority of God in their lives.
They want the benefits, but none of the obligation. They want the reward, but none of the
sacrifice. They want a Savior, but not a
Lord.
The mark of a true believer is the ever-present awareness
that he is not his own. He has a Master,
an Owner. He understands that every
decision he makes and every deed he does should be undertaken for the service
of his King, for the glory of his Creator.
He knows that every step he takes and every provision that he enjoys
have been provided by his Shepherd. His
is a life of obligation, servitude, subjection, and joy.
Why joy? Look at v5: For the LORD is good; his steadfast love
endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
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