An Attitude of Gratitude (Psalm 100)

Thanksgiving An Attitude of Gratitude Psalm 100 Introduction: 1. Luke 17:11-17 - Great lesson on the power and mercy of Jesus. Another lesson is on gratitude. Ten men were cured of leprosy, but only one gave thanks. Jesus praised one and rebuked the others because of their ingratitude. 2. God wants us to be grateful, to express our gratitude and count our blessings. 3. 100th Psalm is one of the greatest Psalms of Thanksgiving. a. It is believed the Jews sang this hymn as they entered through the temple gates. b. The Psalm has a “Call for Worship,” and a “Grounds for the Call.” I. Shout - “Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.” A. The whole earth is called to worship God. No one is excluded, everyone is commanded to worship the Lord. B. Right Attitude and Right Motives when we approach God. 1. We must approach God with faith - unwavering, trusting and confident (Hebrews 11:6) 2. We must approach God with humility - We must recognize God is infinite and perfect in every way and we, on the other hand, are finite and imperfect (Psalm 51:17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.”; James 4:6, “But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”) 3. We must approach God with reverence and obedience a) Psalm 95:6, "Come, let us worship and bow down, Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” b) Humility must be accompanied by obedience (Ecclesiastes 12:13, “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person.” ; 1 John 5:3, “ For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.”). 4. We must approach God in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24, “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who Ed Rangel Page 1 of 3 2019 Thanksgiving worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”). The worshipper must worship with the heart and in God’s truth (not man’s truth). 5. We must approach God with a joyful noise. We should want to sing joyfully. Worship should be a time of joy. II. Serve (worship) the Lord with gladness. A. In all acts of worship we should do so with gladness of heart. B. We are to worship God outside of the church setting, too - with gladness. III. Come before Him with Joyful Singing -The psalmist says we are to come before Him with joyful singing. A. The Lord intends for our singing to be joyful, jubilant and, that should permeate in our entire worship services. B. This joyful singing comes from the heart (Ephesians 5:19, “speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;” Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”). This should be an outward expression of God’s grace in our lives. IV. The Grounds for the Call -Six reasons for the call to worship A. The Lord is God 1. The nations had many false god’s. 2. There is only one true God (Exodus 20:2, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery”; Matthew 4:10, “Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’”). B. It is He who made us 1. The psalmist understood his role in the creation process, he was created by the One True God, the Creator. 2. Genesis 2:18-25 C. We are His People - Keep things in perspective, we are God’s (the Creator, the One True God) people. He gave us His Son to bear the guilt of our sins. (1 Peter 2:24; “and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.”) D. The Lord is Good 1. Man can be good, have good intentions, but in the end, man will sin and let each other down. Ed Rangel Page 2 of 3 2019 Thanksgiving 2. God is good in the absolute sense and will never sin or let us down. (Psalm 84:11, “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”) E. His Kindness is Everlasting 1. God is not kind today and mean the next. 2. He is kind always, everlasting. 3. He is kind to everyone (makes the sun rise and go down on everyone, makes it rain on everyone.) F. His faithfulness endures to all generations 1. Men are weak and fickle and are often unfaithful. 2. All of us have failed others…we have all disappointed someone in our lives. 3. God, however, has never let us or anyone down, ever, in any generation! 4. God will always keep His promises (Hebrews 13:5, “Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”). Conclusion: 1. Psalm 34:1, “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” 2. All blessings come from God a) James 1:17, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or [a]shifting shadow.” b) Ephesians 1:3, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,” 3. In everything, in every situation, and for everything we ought to give thanks to the Lord (a) Philippians 4:6, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (b) 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “ Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 4. Thanksgiving is a lifestyle for a lifetime for the life of the Son of God! Ed Rangel Page 3 of 3 2019