GIVE THANKS

Psa. 100:1-5 “Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: Come before his presence with singing. Know ye that the LORD he is God: It is he that hath 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 unto him, and bless his name. For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; And his truth endureth to all generations. - GIVE THANKS!!!

Psalm 100 is a psalm of giving thanks, and as you move from title to text, the psalm is made up of seven action verbs that are commands, charges, orders, obligations. “Shout, serve, come, know, enter, give thanks, bless his name.” The point of the whole message is this: It is our solemn duty to actively GIVE THANKS to God for who he is and what he has done. Thanksgiving is a duty. It is not about a day on the calendar, a set of circumstances, or a particular mood. You have a duty to give thanks to God for who he is and what he has done.

I. ENTRANCE Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing.

GIVING THANKS escorts you right into the presence of God.

1 - Enter With Shouting - "Make a joyful noise" makes one word in Hebrew which means "shout."

2a - Enter With Service - We are challenged to "serve the Lord with Gladness."

2b - Enter With Singing - “Come before His presence with singing” literally means "a ringing cry."

II. ENLIGHTENMENT 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.

You’ve been enlightened and the text says you ought to act like you know who your God is, and he says you don't even have to have a systematic, practical, historical, dogmatic, biblical theological education. But you need to know about God’s Power, Purchase, and Provision.

Look at God’s…Power - “It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves.”

Look at God’s…Purchase- The Psalmist says that "we are His people."

Look at God’s…Provisions - You want to know how God takes care of what belongs to him, “we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.”

III. EXPRESSION 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.

You got to GIVE THANKS as you enter the gates and courts of God with the right EXPRESSION.

GIVING THANKS Should Be Visible -

GIVING THANKS Should Be Vocal - In verses 1 and 2, the Psalmist used words like "noise" (which means to shout) and "singing".

Never let anyone steal the shout that God has placed in your soul!

GIVING THANKS Should Be Volitional - It is to be an act of the will. According to verse 5, God is good, He is faithful and His truth will stand forever.

Christ’s life is not only the end of our Thank You but the example of it.

Psalm 23:1 sums these things up for us when it says "The Lord is my Shepherd. I shall not want." That covers it all! You need to know that God has all the power and He will not give His glory to another. You need to know that God owns us, we are His. We need to know the God takes care of His own.

Everything I need, my God provides. When I get hungry, he makes me lie down in green pastures. When I get thirsty, he leads me beside the still waters. When I stray away, he restores my soul. When I don't know which way to go, he leads me in the path of righteousness for his name's sake. When I'm in a dark valley, I fear no evil because my Shepherd is with me. His rod and his staff, they comfort me. So with all due respect for whatever you are going through, God commands you to be GIVE THANKS. Even James says, "My brethren, count it all joy. Count it all joy when you fall into various trials." Count it all joy. GIVE THANKS. GIVE THANKS. GIVE THANKS!