Enhancing Our Worship
1 September 2019 PM – Psalm 100:3 – Ps100 – Scott Childs
Introduction: Years ago, noble men were gathered together in London waiting for the King of Great Britain. They all knew him personally, yet they all honoured him as their king. When he entered, they stood solemnly to their feet. “Take your seats, gentlemen,” he said, “I count you as my personal friends.” And then joking he added, “I am not the Lord, you know!” Immediately one of the noblemen, a Christian, said, “No, sir, if you were our Lord, we would not have stood to our feet; we would have fallen to our knees.”
Having a proper understanding of God’s worth plays a key role in proper worship of God.
Transition: In this short Psalm, God gives us several directions that will enhance our worship if obeyed. So far, we have studied three of them. This evening I want us to study four more.
The 1st direction that will enhance our worship is to…
1. Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands (v.1)
As you approach the Lord, give Him a glad shout of praise.
2. Serve the LORD with gladness: (v.2)
Humbly and gladly bow in service to the Lord.
3. Come before his presence with singing. (v.2)
As you enter His presence, give Him a shout of jubilation.
The 4th direction that will enhance our worship is to…
4. Know ye that the LORD he is God: (v.3)
a. Consider the One whom you are approaching in worship. It is God Himself. We must acknowledge the LORD as God.
1) Jehovah is not one of many gods, He is the ONE and ONLY true God. He is sovereign! He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is our Saviour!
2) We know this in our heads, but we must believe it in our hearts. He is not the “Big Man Upstairs”. He is God Almighty. He deserves our utmost respect and our highest honour.
b. Consider some of the many Scriptures that teach this truth about Jehovah God.
1) (Deuteronomy 4:35, 39) There is none else beside Him.
2) (1Kings 18:39) When Elijah prayed down fire from heaven that burnt his sacrifice, the stones and the water in the trench, they all bowed and acknowledged Jehovah as the God.
3) (Isaiah 25:1; 45:21) Isaiah claimed Jehovah as his God, the one and only God.
c. True worship acknowledges Jehovah as God. It is bowing before Him as your Sovereign. It is approaching Him with fearful respect and honour.
O Acknowledging Jehovah as God Almighty will enhance our worship.
The 5th direction that will enhance our worship is to…
5. It is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; (v.3)
a. We know that the LORD created us, but we must acknowledge Him as our Creator.
b. He is THE Creator
1) (Genesis 1:27) He created man in His own image.
2) (Genesis 2:7) He created man from the dust.
3) (Isaiah 45:12) He created man upon the earth.
c. He is OUR Creator
1) (Psalm 139:14) God fearfully and wonderfully made us.
2) God created us just how He wanted us to be.
3) God did not create the homosexual confusion that we see today. He created male and female with no confusion. Romans 1:25-27 tells us why this confusion exists.
4) We did not make ourselves. We have no right to deface our bodies to change the way God made us.
d. If you are a Christian, God has made you a new creature.
1) (2 Corinthians 5:17) “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We are new creatures.
2) (Ephesians 2:10) “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” We are His workmanship.
O Acknowledging that God created us and can do as He pleases with us will enhance our worship.
The 6th direction that will enhance our worship is to…
6. We are his people, (v.3)
a. Because God created us, we belong to Him. He is our Master. We are His people.
1) (Psalm 79:13)
2) (Psalm 95:7)
b. We are His people by creation.
² If I paint a picture, I can do whatever I want with that picture. I could hang it up, put it in the closet, give it away, sell it or paint over it. It is mine. I can do as I please with it.
1) God has the same right over us because we are His people by creation. He made us.
2) We have no right to boss our own lives. We did not evolve by accidents. Our all-wisely God designed and created us.
3) He has the right to allow what He pleases into our lives.
4) He is the Potter. We are the clay. He can mould us any way He sees fit. If we mess up, He can remould us in a new way. We belong to Him.
5) (Romans 9:20) “Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?”
c. We are His people by salvation.
1) We belong to Him. We are not our own. He bought us with a price. He is our propitiation.
2) (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
O Approaching God with the understanding that we belong to Him will enhance our worship.
The 7thdirection that will enhance our worship is to…
7. And the sheep of his pasture. (v.3)
a. God wants us to acknowledge that we are like sheep.
1) David pictured himself as a sheep in God’s pasture.
a) Sheep need a shepherd’s provision. (Psalms 23:1) “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalms 23:2) “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.” (Psalms 23:3) “He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”
b) Sheep are defenceless creatures and easily frightened. (Psalms 23:4) “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”
c) Sheep need a shepherd’s care. (Psalms 23:5) “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” (Psalms 23:6) “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.”
2) Sheep often go astray. (Psalms 119:176) “I have gone astray like a lost sheep; …”
b. God wants us to acknowledge that we are the sheep of HIS pasture.
1) He owns the pasture in which we feed and He owns us.
2) We depend on Him. We need Him desperately.
3) If we become independent and proud, we cannot worship God. (Jeremiah 9:23-24) “Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.”
O Approaching God with a clear and humble understanding that we need Him desperately will enhance our worship.
Conclusion: Here in verse 3, we learn that to enhance our worship, we must know mentally and practically that God is over us and that we need Him. If you are a Christian, Jehovah is your God, your Creator, your Master and your Shepherd. You are His sheep. You feed in His pasture. You depend on His provision and protection. Knowing and pondering these facts as we approach God in worship will humble us and enhance our worship.
Song: I Need Thee Every Hour, 318