A lesson from Psalms
The Rev. Brad Bowen, Calvary Chapel Fellowship
Friday, March 20, 2009
Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful singing.
Know that the Lord Himself is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
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 loving-kindness is everlasting
and His faithfulness to all generations.
— Psalms 100
By the Rev. Brad Bowen
Calvary Chapel Fellowship
We can let the things of this world distract us from the good things that the Lord Jesus Christ provides for us, especially today when everything seems to be going down the drain.
But as we look to his scriptures and read his word our eyes are lifted from the troubles of the world around us and we look to our Lord and shout joyfully to him. With a joy filled heart we are able to see past our circumstances and serve him with gladness by serving others around us.
When we joyfully serve others, instead of ourselves, there seems to be a new song in our hearts, a joyfulness that causes us to praise him.
He is our Lord, our God, and our King. He is creator of all things.
He is Jesus Christ our redeemer, it is he who has made us, and not we ourselves, for he is sovereign.
Those who trust him are his possession, and we follow him, for we are the sheep of His pasture.
We have a peace that covers us knowing that we are his and he is in control, and the more we give our lives to him the easier it is for us to give to others.
This second part of the psalm is a call to the saints to enter Jerusalem (God’s gates) and to go to the temple (his courts) to offer their thanksgiving sacrifices for His blessings to them.
Jesus Christ alone is worthy of being worshiped. What is your attitude toward worship? Do you willingly and joyfully come into God’s presence or are you just going through the motions, reluctantly going to church?
The times in which we live can be a bit overwhelming, but our future lays with Christ our protector. As the world struggles to find the answers to life’s problems we who know Jesus Christ have a map, it is Gods word, the Bible.
We still have the storms of life but we can trust God’s word. James 1:2 states; “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,” it does not say “if” you encounter various trials, it says “when,” but it goes on to say in verses 3-4 “knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance, and let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
What a testimony for our Lord, to be able to take these trials of our life and completely trust that God will take us through these storms. As we share with others of God’s goodness, his grace and mercy towards us. It presents a great opportunity for us to share God’s saving grace through his son, Jesus Christ.
There are many people who we meet every day that have no hope, they are looking to the world to provide the answer, but the hope for the world lies in Jesus Christ, and we have the honor of proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ through our testimonies and our love of him who has saved us.
We should praise the Lord for His goodness, love, and faithfulness. Worship is our response to his love towards us.
I pray that our God, our Lord, our King, Jesus Christ becomes your focal point in the days ahead and that you can enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. I also pray you are able to boldly share Jesus Christ with others who so desperately need him. Give thanks to him; bless his name, for the Lord is good; His loving-kindness is everlasting and his faithfulness to all generations.
F “Sunday Sermon” is a forum for Emporia area ministers to share their sermons, thoughts and observations. This week’s sermon is from the Rev. Brad Bowen of Calvary Chapel Fellowship.