Put his words into Practice

 We see 2023 coming to an end.  It’s not quite like 2020 where everyone stayed up until midnight to make sure that sucker was out the door, but it included some interesting things, to include:

Tom’s first international medevac.

I heard that prices were higher.

COVID found its way into the montage of other illnesses.  You could get the regular flu again.

VBS was a game-changer.

Campers got the full camp experience, especially those who rode in the van.

We did F4 without food.

We changed our Thanksgiving and Christmas evening services and meals.

We ended the year with the front doors still needing to be replaced. Build Back Better seems to move at its own pace.  I think we are getting close though.

And today, we add a new elder to our ranks.

We also:

Gave out more food than any previous year and had more in reserve.

We helped with various needs for those in and out of our congregation.

We challenged our youth to bring their Bibles with them, something that had been lost over the past few decades.

We took the good news door to door.

We remembered Jesus in the way that he told us to remember him.

We worshiped him in and out of the assembly.

We gave out gospels by the hundreds.

But:

Did we forgive?

Did we reconcile?

Did we love our enemies?

Or:

Did we walk by on the other side of the road?

Did we say, Good enough when it came to working for the Lord?

Did we take a casual approach to our salvation?

Did we say—probably not out loud—but to ourselves: I love being saved from sin and death but this whole doing everything that Jesus told us to do is a bit much.

 Jesus, thank you for saving me. I really needed that.  For real. But could you just let me work some things out my way for a while?  When I’m old and not long for this world, I will come around, but for now, I just need some space.

The last thing that we really need is to have God tell us to do it our way. Our own understanding too often works against what the Lord has in store for us.

This whole trust in the Lord with all of your heart business includes putting the words of our Master into practice.  We need to practice doing things his way.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

We are made right with God by the blood of Jesus but are we truly willing to follow him?

How do we do this in 2024?

We put his words into practice. We do what he told us to do. 

We put his words into practice.

There is more to come. Let’s get ready to do what Jesus told us to do in the year to come.

Amen.

Into Practice

 Read Matthew 7:24-27

We will embark on a journey in the first part of 2024 that we will call the words of Jesus. How can you go wrong with something titled The Words of Jesus?

You can go wrong with the words of Jesus.  Jesus said so.  How?

The person who hears the words of our Lord and Master and Savior but does not put them into practice will see his life go to pieces, now and perhaps forever.

But this can’t be us, right?

We live in a time that I would say observes Casual Christianity. We know what the commandments are.  We know what Jesus said.  We cling to the words that we who are weary and heavy-laden should come to Jesus.  He will give us relief.  He will give us rest for our body and soul.

But we ignore the next verse that says take my yoke and learn from me.  Jesus said learn from him.  Jesus said to take his words and practice them.

We ignore the part that our rest is tied to putting the words of our Master into practice.

But instead of putting his words into practice, Casual Christianity says, make a post.  Use a Bible verse. Tell people if they don’t share, they are not really a Christian.

We live in a time where Christians have never had it so good.  We want for little. We have modern conveniences. We fuss about what to eat never wondering if we will eat.

We have a roof over our heads.  We can shelter from the Oklahoma winds. We don’t even have to go outside to draw water or use the bathroom.

It may seem like the end of the world when the Wi-Fi goes down, but we have it easier than any generation of Christians has ever known.

So, is our world at risk of crashing and leaving us devastated?  The world at large is headed for a very turbulent time—tribulation and great tribulation.  But what about us?

We are warned that the person who does not put the words of Jesus into practice risks everything.  He is like the person who builds a house on a flimsy foundation.

But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.

Have you ever been to the beach?  The sand looks the same day to day and week to week, but it’s not.  Some sand is washed ashore.  Some are washed back to sea.  Some migrate left or right depending upon the waves.

It looks smooth. It seems to be constant. But it is sand and it does not make a good foundation.

But there are high rise buildings along every coast with a nice beach.  Their foundation is not on sand.  Pilings are placed far into the ground until there is something to support the structure above.  Sand won’t do the trick.

No builder is going to put a $10,000,000 condo on a $10,000 foundation, but do we?

We who live in this time of Casual Christianity need to be sure of our foundation.  Jesus said that to be sure, we must put his words into practice.

That doesn’t mean Facebook wars over whose favorite scripture trumps someone else’s favorite scripture.

It doesn’t mean pointing out where others fall short of the words of Jesus.

It doesn’t mean finding the most convoluted interpretation of scripture to promote your own doctrine and make your own god.

It means taking what Jesus said and doing it.

That might take a little thinking of how to apply his teaching in our time, but that thinking process should not be debilitating. We are not to think on his directives for so long that we don’t do anything.

Here are the words of Jesus. Practice them. Learn from him by doing what he said to do.

Don’t skip over the ones that seem too hard.

Don’t just do something once and say, “I’ve got this.”  Remember, this is practice.  There is repetition in practice.

Don’t modify the instructions. Go and sin no more is not the same as do the best that you can. We are to strive to hit the target every time.

Do you understand the difference between shoot that way and hit that target.  Shoot that way is my metaphor for our best effort.  Hit the target is my metaphor for what Jesus told us to do.

Both shooters might miss the target but at least one is aiming for it. We must continue to aim for the target, not just something in the general area.

Sometimes, hitting the target involves only our hearts and minds.  Sometimes is physical action, but it’s always with focus on what Jesus told us to do.  That’s our target.  We must keep it in our sights.

God will never leave or forsake us but that does not mean that we get to lower the bar. Do the best you can is not the standard.  We must do the best that we can, but the target is whatever Jesus told us to do.

We probably won’t get it right the first time or the twenty-first time or for those like me the hundred and twenty-first time, but we keep practicing.

We practice. We put his words into practice.

Here’s one that I use often in the teaching of thinking skills.  Does practice make perfect?

No! Perfect practice makes perfect.

Back in my golfing days, I had a swing that was tolerable.  I could hit the fairways most of the time but I could also find the worst possible places on any golf course for the rest of the time.

I put my time in on the driving range, but I kept practicing the same old swing.  I got really good at a bad swing.

Why would I do this? It was comfortable. It seemed to work out most of the time. I wasn’t ready to do the work needed to get a good swing.

Are we ready to do what is required to live as our Master told us to live?

Do we understand that living his way is for our own good.  I’m not talking about going to hell. I am talking about abundant life. I am talking about weathering the storms of life. I am talking about finding your purpose in life.

Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.

For the next few months, we will be looking at the words of Jesus.  We won’t cover them all. We will probably do this again sometime down the road.

For now, consider that every word that Jesus gave us was to be put into practice.  Some are direct. Some come in metaphor. All are meant to be applied in our lives.

What is worse than not knowing what to do in a situation?

Knowing exactly what to do and not doing it.

Jesus tells us what to do, how to live, and even what’s in it for us. We must be willing to move beyond our comfort zones. We must be willing to put the words of our Master into practice.

We must be willing to endure a little scorn from those who do not believe.

We must be willing to sacrifice when Jesus calls us to sacrifice.

We must be willing to reach out to those who are not in our social circles.

We must be willing to change our schedules.

We must be willing to love people that we don’t even like.

We must be willing to take the yoke of our Master and learn from him. Do you know what they call people who do this?

Disciples.

We must be the disciples of our Master.  We live in an age of Casual Christianity, but we must be serious about being the disciples of our Lord.

How?

We put his words into practice.

Amen.

The Awe of Christmas

 Read Luke 2:1-21

Ok, there’s your traditional Christmas story.  Now go open your presents, eat too much, have some eggnog with or without additives, and call it a day.

But before that, consider the following.

The willingness of a young maiden to be the humble servant of God, whatever that required.

The willingness of Joseph to marry young Mary who was pregnant but not by him.

The events that had to unfold for the child to be born in Bethlehem.

The circumstances that led the parents to take refuge in an area set aside for animals—a mean estate for humans.

Shepherds as the recipients of such a grand announcement.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.

Shepherds who were in shock but went to see what all was happening in their time and in this place.

Shepherds who would broadcast the news of this birth to all they encountered.

A mother who could only treasure these moments in her heart.  Did she have an inkling of what was to come?

And a few days later, the child was named Jesus as the angel had instructed.

We remember the events.  We believe it all transpired this way.

But how should we feel?

We should feel amazed.  You know that Christmas feeling you had when you rose early Christmas morning to a tree surrounded by gifts. That feeling that we have for the secular things that excite us Christmas morning should be but a sample of the joy and amazement we have when we think of the gift of life and life eternal that we know in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ Jesus.

I jump briefly to the first chapter of John.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

How should we feel this Christmas?  Amazed at the love that our God has for us.

Let us be joyful, knowing we are so blessed.  Let us live in amazement of God’s love that we celebrate in the birth of his Son.

When we say Merry Christmas, we are saying, take joy in the birth of our Savior. He is worthy of our worship.  Come and worship him.

Come and joyfully worship the King of kings as we celebrate his birth into this world—the Word made flesh who dwelt among us and who brought us to the Spirit that now lives within us.

Amen.

I am the Lord's Servant

 Read Luke 1:26-38

Luke begins his gospel by saying, I did my research.  I heard the accounts of those who were witnesses to the advent of God with us, and then I followed up.

Others wrote first-hand accounts.  I did a research paper and now put it into the form of a letter.

Luke began with the parents of John the Baptist.  They were Zechariah and Elizabeth, both descendants of Aaron. Zechariah was on duty and got picked to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense.

While inside he was visited by an angel named Gabriel. Gabriel told him that his wife would conceive and have a son and he was to name him John.

Zechariah questioned the angel as to how this was possible.  C’mon, we are both very old.  Evidently, this priest had forgotten the story of Abram and Sarai.

Gabriel told Zechariah that he stood in the very presence of God and he should have believed him, but as he did not, he would not be able to speak until the birth of the child.

The angel said that everything would happen in God’s time.

Sure enough, Elizabeth got pregnant.  Now we pick up the story 6 months later with a young maiden named Mary.  She was engaged to a young man named Joseph.  They surely had plans for a wonderful marriage.

They were godly people and were betrothed to one another.  The future was surely bright for them both.

And then, an angel of the Lord came to visit Mary.

The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was understandably stunned, maybe in shock.  This was likely her first encounter with an angel, so the angel has to do the angel thing and say, OK don’t be afraid.  It’s all good.

But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.

If that were not enough, the angel said, OBTW—you will bear the Son of God.  That was probably a little too much to a young gal to take in all at once.

You do know that I am a virgin, right?  I have never been with a man, much less pregnant.

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

The angel consoled and encouraged Mary a little. Even childless Elizabeth is 6 months pregnant. If God wills it, if God speaks it, it happens.

For no word from God will ever fail.”

Mary was in shock but she believed.  Her belief was manifested in this response.

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.”

We know what followed.  Mary visited Elizabeth and John leaped in the womb.  Gabriel told Zechariah that the Spirit of God would be with John and fill John even before he was born. 

Joseph had doubts and needed some angelic counsel as well.

There was a census and a trip to Bethlehem.  We know about the whole no room at the inn deal. I can hear Mary now telling Joseph that he should have downloaded that Expedia app while they still had Wi-Fi in Nazareth.

We know the story but today I ask you to see the trust and acceptance and faith of Mary.  She was a young girl without much life experience but she knew that she belonged to, worshiped, and now would serve the Lord in a very special way.

Think of the power in these words.

The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Today is not a day for intense biblical study, but one to be in awe of the magnitude of the message given to this young lady and her acceptance of her role—however unique—to be the servant of God.

A few weeks ago, I was privileged to speak to the students at their Veterans Day Program.  I talked about those who would serve. It was a topic with which I had some experience and familiarity.

I mentioned the sometimes cliché expression of a veteran being someone who at some point wrote a blank check to their country. It’s an apt comparison.

Now think of Mary, young Mary, writing a blank check to God.

Whatever you call me to do, I will do.  I am your servant.

Let’s celebrate the Advent and the Birth of the Christ into this world.  Let us also celebrate this young and willing servant of the Most Hight God.

As we prepare for the coming of the Lord to claim his own, let us prepare ourselves by being humble, willing servants who will say to the Lord, I am the Lord’s servant.

Let the simplicity, honesty, and trusting nature of those words sink in.

“I am the Lord’s servant.”

 “May your word to me be fulfilled.”

Let Mary’s willingness to write a blank check to her God be imparted to us.  Let us say these words from our hearts.

I am the Lord’s servant.

May your word to me be fulfilled.

Amen.

The least of these

 Read Matthew 25:31-46

We will cover Luke 17 again in the next service.  For now, I want us to make a brief stop in Matthew 25.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.

 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

We know the parable before this one.  It is the Parable of the Talents that you might have heard a few times or a few dozen times or more.

We long to hear the words, Well done good and faithful servant.

We covet our Master telling us to come and share his happiness.

We also know the words in between the Well done good and faithful servant and those I just read to you.

There is a third servant who didn’t do anything with what his master gave him and even that was taken away from him in the end.

Remember we saw the wealth of the wicked is stored up for the righteous played out at the end of the Parable of the Talents.

The next parable talks of a sorting—sheep and goats are the metaphor in play.  They might represent the righteous and the wicked.

We know this one as well.  Some—possibly those who should have known better—saw people in need or hurting people and went about their business as usual.

Jesus might have been targeting the Pharisees but I think he was speaking to all of us to guard against our selfish human nature.  We want our problems solved and when one is solved, we want to move on to the next one, and the next one.

Sometimes it seems that we take life as nothing more than a series of problems to be solved.  We do solve many problems in our lifetime, but our lives are much more.

Along the way, there may have been people that we could have helped but we didn’t.  We were too busy. They didn’t smell good. They were different.  We had places to go and things to do.

We walked on by or drove on by or walked on the other side of the road or looked down on them as unworthy of mercy.

We know how this parable ends.  The group that walked on by continues along their path to eternal punishment, but the righteous—those who truly seek to live in right standing with God—go on to eternal life.

We want to be in that latter group.  We are in that group because of what the blood of Jesus has done for us, but do we want to live up to the right standing that was imputed to us by the atoning sacrifice of Jesus?

I have talked about the vending machine before.  We are not a form-in and food-out organization.  We are not a signup and pick-up program.

We are about bringing the good news of God’s love and eternal life to people.  Sometimes it comes with a bucket of food.

Sometimes it comes with a blue wristband for the person with a screaming kid in front of us at Walmart.

Sometimes it’s a hug.

Sometimes it’s a ride.

Sometimes it’s a turkey, but it is always delivered in the spirit of God’s love.  We are not Feed the Children or the Oklahoma Food Bank.  Those are good organizations and they do good things, but we bring words of life to people.

We have an abundance of food.  We have sent out an abundance of food to the other church bodies.  We still have an abundance of food.  People bring food here—that never worship here—because they know we will deliver it to hungry people.

Not all of them know that we will deliver it with good news.

Some only have eyes to see the hungry stomachs.  That’s fine.  Empathy and compassion for your fellow man are good qualities.

But we must deliver more.  We must long to feed not only the body but the soul.

I posted this prayer in the Missions Room.  Consider this petition to the Lord as we conclude this morning.

Lord, help us have eyes to see those who are hungry and prompt us to feed them.

Lord, help us to have eyes to see those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and bring them to you.

Lord, help us to deliver good news with every basket of food.

Lord, help us to be your love in action!

Amen.

That’s what I posted.  Let us never become callous to the needs of our brothers and sisters. Know that when we help, it is never really about the stuff.  Sure, people need food for their stomachs, but food without truth can only sustain the body.

Let us deliver food or rides or other help with compassion, mercy, kindness, generosity, and love—most of all love.

Let us speak the truth in a spirit of love and deliver Living Water and the Bread of Life!

Now let’s take this as our own petition to the Lord and as our closing prayer.

Lord, help us have eyes to see those who are hungry and prompt us to feed them.

Lord, help us to have eyes to see those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and bring them to you.

Lord, help us to deliver good news with every basket of food.

Lord, help us to be your love in action!

Amen.

 

One returned to give thanks...

 Read Luke 17:11-19

I have offered up this verse to you in a few ways over the past two weeks.  Today we will stick with the expository mode.  We will go verse by verse.

You got some main concepts before, but today we drill down a little. We begin with verse 11.

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee.

OK, so Jesus is out walking again, but we see more.  He is not only in Judea and the Northern Kingdom of Israel, he is also preaching, teaching, and saving humankind in Samaria, that country so despised by the Jewish people.

We remember in John 4, that Jesus purposely went through Samarian surely for an encounter with a woman who had lived in sin for so long that she had adapted comfortably to her worldly circumstances.  Jesus, however, wouldn’t let her off the hook.

He wasn’t there to condemn her but to liberate her.  He met her where she was in her life.  She was knowledgeable of God’s word and that a Messiah was coming, but her life was one of sin and being ostracized by her community.

Jesus met her where she was but was not content to leave her there.

Jesus came asking for a drink but giving her living water.  Jesus ministered in Samaria, and it seemed that he loved using the Samaritans as the best of examples. I think Jesus enjoyed ruffling the feathers of the self-righteous and disturbing some comfort zones. 

On to verses 12 and 13.

As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

What do we see?  There were 10 men with leprosy.  Where were they? Outside the village.  Lepers were outcasts.  They were different. They looked terrible.  They were far from mainstreaming in society.

And they knew it…

They remained at a distance and called out to Jesus.  They didn’t approach him.  That would be socially unacceptable.  Jesus was at least a rabbi and had some standing.

We should note that they called him Master.  Did they know that he was the Messiah?

They asked for pity.  They asked for mercy.  They wanted to be healed but they would take what they could get.  Sir, grant us some compassion.  We are at the bottom of life.  We can only associate with each other or those who associate with us might be considered unclean themselves.

Have mercy on us.

Now verse 14.

When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

What do we see?  Obedience. Jesus said go and they went.

Unlike the man at the pool in Bethsaida who had his list of excuses at the ready as to why nothing helped, these men obeyed. Jesus directed and they obeyed.

They were headed to show themselves to the priests and they were cleansed as they walked.

Verse 15.

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.

All were obedient. They were on their way to see the priests, but one was overwhelmed with thanksgiving.  He was compelled by the spirit within him that sought out God to give thanks and praise to God.

All were obedient, but one was thankful.  He did not become disobedient in his thanksgiving.  Yes, Jesus told him to go to the priests but here he was in front of Jesus praising God in a loud voice.

In a loud voice. He was not timid.  He was not concerned about what others thought of his praise.  He was compelled to praise God.

Verse 16.

He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

He threw himself at the feet of Jesus. It would have been socially unacceptable to approach Jesus so closely before, but he knew that he had been cleansed and nothing would stop him from thanking the King of kings and Lord of lords.

He would fall at the feet of the one who saved him from such a horrible illness and who would go on the bring salvation to the world and he would give thanks.

He was thankful. OBTW—he was a Samaritan. Think about it.  He was despised because he was a leper and he was despised because he was a Samaritan, and he was the only one that returned to thank Jesus.

Mr. Double Despised returned to thank Jesus.  That had to get under the skin of the self-righteous.

Now verse 17.  Jesus has healed.  Now he will teach, but in a provocative manner.

Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?

Jesus was not asking the leper who was now clean.  His question was for all gathered and it is for us.

All ten were obedient but one was compelled by thanksgiving to return to Jesus.  One realized what Paul would later describe the surpassing glory of Christ over the law. 

The law was good and continues to be good, but this one Samaritan man saw the One who was so much greater.  We don’t know, but he might have later gone to the priests as instructed, but he didn’t need to go. 

Peter would write that Paul is sometimes hard to understand.  He didn’t say that Paul missed the mark, but he was a theologian among fishermen and sometimes stretched the thought process a bit farther than they could cast their nets.

I love Paul’s writings.  Many misconstrue them innocently or with devious or self-serving purposes, but this one Samaritan understood the surpassing glory of the Christ and could not help but return to praise God and give thanks.

He fell at his feet and gave him thanks. Today, we grumble when Tom has us stand for four songs, albeit short ones.

When we think of our salvation and our victory over sin and death, should we not be both thankful and prostrate before the Lord?

Should we not raise our hands or shout aloud?  Maybe a hallelujah here and there would be appropriate.

The leper who had been cleansed knew what to do.  He fell down before the Lord, praised God, and thanked Jesus.

We are saved from a disease just as vile—sin and death—yet we are cured in the blood of Jesus.  Should we not be just as excited about our healing?

Verse 18.

Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?”

One out of ten who were healed from a horrible disease and a life of exclusion returned to give thanks.  Yes, the others had an excuse—they were on the way to see the priests.  They were obedient.

There is nothing wrong with obedience.  In fact, there are incredible blessings in obedience but nothing in obedience precludes us from thanksgiving.

Only our human nature and a concern about what others might think preclude us from giving very vocal praise to God and falling at the feet of Jesus.

When the world—even the Christian world—goes about business as usual saying they are playing by the rules—at least the rules they think are important—you be the one who returns to Jesus to give thanks and praise God.

Be the one who doesn’t care what the world thinks but is compelled to give thanks to God.

And finally, verse 19.

Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

The process was to show yourself to the priest but the power was in the faith of this most pitiful man in our almighty God. God’s healing was manifested in the faith of this Samaritan.

When I stand before Jesus, I want to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant!”  Between now and then, I would love to hear the words, “Your faith has made you well.”

Your faith has made you complete.

Your faith has made you whole.

How about, I can see your faith!

What a powerful thing for Jesus to see your faith. What powerful words. Your faith has made your well.

Let us be the faithful ones.

Let us be the thankful one.

Let us be the ones not afraid to praise God and let us not be shy about it.

Let us be the ones who seeing what the Lord has done in our lives, come to him with praise and thanksgiving.

Amen.

Psalm 100 - Make Melody in it to the Lord

 Read Psalm 100

This morning we will be expository.  That is, we will look at our scripture line by line. 

You may wonder why.  We know the psalm.  We say it often, more often at this time of year. But let’s examine it verse by verse nonetheless.

I don’t use many commentaries.  Some extend metaphors well beyond what was likely intended.  Some go down rabbit trails.  Some state the obvious, but as we look at this psalm, I think Matthew Henry’s introductory notes hit the target.

It is with good reason that many sing this psalm very frequently in their religious assemblies, for it is very proper both to express and to excite pious and devout affections towards God in our approach to him in holy ordinances; and, if our hearts go along with the words, we shall make melody in it to the Lord. The Jews say it was penned to be sung with their thank-offerings; perhaps it was; but we say that as there is nothing in it peculiar to their economy so its beginning with a call to all lands to praise God plainly extends it to the gospel-church. Here. We are called upon to praise God and rejoice in him.

The first verse says, Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Everyone, everywhere should exude joy as their state of living. Even in our trials, we should have joy.

Paul wrote, rejoice in the Lord always.  Once wasn’t enough. He added again I say rejoice!

We remember This is the day that the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Henry noted, if our hearts go along with the words, we shall make melody in it to the Lord. Think about it. If our hearts are in tune with the words, it’s music to the Lord.

The second verse says Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

I have a little difficulty sometimes discerning whether it is irony or paradox when people don’t want to come into God’s house with gladness in their hearts and a joyful song for the Lord, but they want him to hold their reservation in heaven.

Some come to worship in an Eeyore state of heart and mind.  Guess I’ve got to go. I want to get to heaven after all.  Could be doing something else.

If we are not excited about lifting up a joyful song to God, why do we want to spend eternity with him?  Some might have come to their salvation thinking I don’t want to burn in hell. 

For those who came to salvation knowing that God loves them and he loves us so much that he did everything required for us to spend eternity with him—even committing his Son to death on a cross—how could we come before God with anything but joy and gladness.

Now verse three.

Know that the Lord is God.

    It is he who made us, and we are his;

    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

God is sovereign.  He reigns. He was not elected and is not up for reelection.  He is sovereign.  There are none beside him. He reigns.

The sooner that we accept this, the sooner we can reconcile so much in our lives.  We are not the master of the universe. The world does not revolve around us.

There is a term for people who think the world revolves around them.  That term is teenager. It’s that unique period in a person’s life where they know everything about everything while knowing nothing about anything. Most grow out of it.

We never grow completely out of it.  Sometimes we relapse and think everything revolves around us, but the psalm reminds us that it’s all about God. He alone is sovereign.

Again, I will use part of Henry’s Commentaries.

It is he that has made us, and not we ourselves. I find that I am, but cannot say, I am that I am, and therefore must ask, Whence am I? Who made me? Where is God my Maker?

We know that we exist but we must ask how? Who? Why?  Those answers come only from God and not our own doing.

The pagans made their own gods from their own workmanship and by definition they are not eternal or infinite or even divine.

We belong to God. He made us. We are his.

We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.  In those few words, we find that God is not just all-powerful, but he is our Shepherd.  He cares for us.

Verse four gets us to thanksgiving.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

    and his courts with praise;

    give thanks to him and praise his name.

Because God is sovereign and chose to make us, we should be thankful.  We might have never existed. We not only exist, we exist in God's image and live in God's love and grace.

Is that not enough to evoke thanksgiving in our lives, especially when we come to worship God.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

    and his courts with praise;

    give thanks to him and praise his name.

Let’s wrap up with verse five.

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

The Lord is good and the Lord does good. We know that God will take everything in our lives and use it for good. That is good news for us.

You know the mantra. God is good all the time and all the time God is good. These last two lines contain three powerful thoughts.

First, God is good.  God would still be God if he were just sovereign. But we are blessed that God is good.

Second, his love endures forever.  He loves us with an everlasting love.  It’s not love you today and kick you to the curb tomorrow.  He loves us now and will never stop loving us.

Third, his faithfulness continues to all generations as well. Even when we are not faithful, God is faithful. It’s just who he is.

He is good. He is loving. He is faithful.  That’s who he is.

Should that alone not evoke words and songs and lives of thanksgiving?

Let us wrap up this morning by saying Psalm 100 together.  This time let God know that we have joy in our hearts because of him and his love and we want him to not only hear but feel our praise.

Let our hearts be in tune with the words as we worship in this psalm of thanksgiving.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

    Worship the Lord with gladness;

    come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God.

    It is he who made us, and we are his;

    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

    and his courts with praise;

    give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

 

Amen.

 

One Returned

 Read Luke 17:11-19

Read Psalm 100

Lord, please help me with this month’s bills

Lord, please get my kids home safely.

Father God, please help my nephew overcome addiction.

Lord God Almighty, please don’t let me lose custody of my kids.

Jesus, Precious Jesus, help him pull through this operation.

God, I know you know my situation, please help.

What happens when somehow, the bills get paid?

What happens when somehow the kids all arrive safely?

What happens when the chains of addiction are broken?

What happens when you get to keep your kids?

What happens when the operation is successful?

What happens when the very thing you asked God for is delivered?

Is thanksgiving our first response or is it on to the next problem?

Is thanksgiving our continual response or is it a one-and-done?  C’mon God, I said thanks.

Do we awaken each morning thanking God that we have a roof over our heads and something to eat?

Do we consider in the course of our day that we are provisioned to live in this modern age?  We have electricity, a phone, a car or at least someone to give us a ride? Do we give thanks to God for these things that are so easily taken for granted?

Do we thank God that we had a job yesterday and it is still there today? We don’t have to go to a gathering place like day workers who hope someone will hire them.

Ten men had leprosy.  All ten were healed but when they realized they were healed, only one returned to give thanks to God.

That means that 9 out of 10 just went about their business.  Now that business was to make the sacrifice required by the law, but it was absent genuine thanksgiving.

That’s human nature.

Human nature leads us to just go through the motions, to just do the next thing, to live without giving much thought to thanksgiving.

Our nature as new creatures must always include thanksgiving.  Thanksgiving is a part of who we are now.

We are told that Satan has blinded unbelievers, but we are believers and we have eyes to see.  What do we see?

Blessings. In every direction and in most every circumstance we can see blessings.

I was playing golf one day in January with Jim Fisk and Ned Fite. If you can play golf in January in Oklahoma, that’s a blessing unto itself.

I had hit a terrible tee shot into the woods.  There was no good way back to the fairway.  Even if I hit back to the tee box, I would have to squeeze between trees.

Ned looked at my situation and remarked:  I always try to find one good thing about each shot.

I looked at him suspiciously and he continued:  The good thing here is that it’s not my shot.

Seriously, we have eyes to see blessings in most everything, even in our trials.  Because we can see God at work everywhere, we should be thankful.

We should give thanks.

We should be known as a grateful people who give thanks in all circumstances

Let us approach not only this month but every day with Thanksgiving.  Let us be known as thankful people.

Let us always look for reasons to thank God.

Let us conclude as we began this service with Psalm 100.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

   Worship the Lord with gladness;

    come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God.

    It is he who made us, and we are his;

    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving

    and his courts with praise;

    give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Even if all others seem to just being going about their lives business as usual, let us be the ones to return and give thanks.

Amen.