For the year commencing
"Shout joyfully to the Lord, all land. Serve the Lord with gladness, present yourselves before him with singing "(Psalm 100.1-2).
The old year ended, starting the new year, let us ask: How should my life with God in this new year? What are my priorities? What do you expect of me? For we find the answers, we turn to Psalm 100: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all land. Serve the Lord with gladness, present yourselves before him with singing "(vv.1-2).
- Psalm 100 begins by saying not only "Celebrate the Lord," but: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth."
- He does not just say "Serve the Lord," but: "Serve the Lord with gladness."
- It is not written only "present yourselves before him," but "present yourselves before him with singing."
At this point, let us resolve to grow in gratitude to the Lord, winning souls to Jesus.Not only will we serve Him in this new year, but to serve Him with joy. Also, do not simply present ourselves before Him, but come into His presence "with singing."
"Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth"
Draws attention many times in the Bible we are called to praise and worship the Lord. Scripture makes it clear who should praise and worship Him, who is to celebrate the Lord with gladness:
- His saints: "Sing to the Lord, O ye his saints, and give thanks to his holy name" (Ps. 30.4).
- Israel: "House of Israel, bless the Lord: the house of Aaron, praise the Lord, the house of Levi, bless the Lord: ye that fear the Lord, praise the Lord" (Psalm 135.19-20).
- The Gentiles: "Praise the Lord, all ye nations: praise him, all peoples" (Ps. 117.1).
Even the heavens and the earth and the mountains should exalt Him: "Sing, O heavens, rejoice, O earth, and ye hills, break into song" (Isaiah 49.13). In the same verse we find the reason for all this joy, "the Lord hath comforted his people and has compassion on the afflicted." The Bible speaks more reasons to praise God, for example: "Praise the Lord, for he is good; Sing praises to his name, it is pleasant "(Ps. 135.3). Or: "Exalted be the God of my salvation" (Ps. 18:46). "Because of his mercy ... Therefore I will praise him among the Gentiles, and sing praise to thy name "(Rom 15:9). Or think of the many times in His infinite goodness is praised and exalted in song: "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth forever" (Psalm 106.1, 107.1, 118.1, 136.1, etc.)..
"Sing, O heavens, rejoice, O earth, and ye hills, break into song" (Isaiah 49.13).
Many people, including many Christians, unfortunately, forget to praise and thank, celebrate with joy the Lord! But the praise of God must not only be expressed through words. The Lord Jesus exhorts believers to live a holy life for others, those who watch us, to praise the Lord: "So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven "(Matt. 5:16). And Peter writes in his first epistle: "Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that what they speak against you as evildoers, watching you in your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation" (1 p 2.12). If our life is an authentic witness of the renewing power of God, then others will be taken with us to sing God's praise.Let us together in the coming year, make echo praise the Lord of our lives anew! If we live according to our high calling, great things happen!
"Serve the Lord with gladness!"
We should not simply serve the Lord, let's do it "with joy" (Ps. 100.2). This means taking seriously Philippians 2:14: "Do everything without complaining or arguing.""Murmuring" claim is, is to show lack of will and react negatively. Serve the Lord "with joy" means to serve Him without murmuring, without complaining, always willingly.
One might ask: "If anything happens to me, how do I know what comes from the Lord, resulting from circumstances or that proceeds from the people around me?" If we responded that question directly and immediately, certainly would consider always as from the Lord those things that please us. Then everything would be easy, we would not have the slightest problem to serve Him with joy, without a murmur and without complaint. But often not easy to separate what is from God that which comes from men or circumstances. Why? Because in the end everything comes from Him!God is not always the direct cause of what is happening to us, but He allows things to happen in our lives. If we accept this truth and eliminate all the slander of our heart, persevere in this attitude, then we are serving the Lord with gladness!
Praise and thank: many Christians, unfortunately, forget to do it.
Paul wrote to a group of slaves in Ephesus: "For ye Slaves, obey your masters according to flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ" (Eph. 6.5). These slaves, to submit to the authority of his master, were not submitting to him alone but also to his heavenly Master. And the way they exercised their service showed they were serving the Lord himself with joy, the way Paul defined it: "as the Christ." The same goes for us, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might" (Ecclesiastes 9:10). And: "Whatever you do, do it with all your heart, as unto the Lord and not unto men" (Col. 3:23). This is how we serve the Lord "with joy"!
"Present yourselves before him with singing"
The Lord Jesus himself demonstrates what it means: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and exclaimed I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to babes. Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will "(Luke 10:21). Jesus had presented himself before His Father to bring you his gratitude and his praise, and His heart is overjoyed. How had arisen great joy? Is that it was a simple emotion that engulfed him? No, that's what happened. It is written: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit ..."
In 1 Thessalonians 5:19 we read: "Do not quench the Spirit." Often the Holy Spirit longs to lead us to an intense spiritual joy, especially when he can perform his greatest work, which describes Christ as "He (the Holy Spirit) shall glorify me" (Jn 16:14). Precisely in those moments when the Spirit is awakening in us a great joy for the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, when the Son is glorified before our spiritual eyes, we should not stop you from doing His work in us, we should not smother it but allow that joy, that joy intense have free access to our hearts. Many may feel embarrassed and try to stifle the expression of intense joy that the Lord gives us, for fear that they may come from a source that is not pure. Of course we must be careful not to fall into one of Christianity only feelings, as has unfortunately happened to many churches. But is there really such a great joy in the Spirit, the joy that Jesus gave us the example: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit ..." This "joy" means, in the original text, "an intense joy, which takes to show joy, sing and express our great satisfaction, our deep delight. Jesus rejoiced not only in their emotions, because His joy was generated by the Holy Spirit.
"Praise the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth forever" (Ps. 106.1).
Early this year that Psalm 100 serves to push to present ourselves to the Lord with singing. Let's do it? Let's burn deep in our hearts that call? Do not forget: a joy produced by the Holy Spirit glorifies our Lord and rejoice!
"Shout joyfully to the Lord, all land. Serve the Lord with gladness, present yourselves before him with singing "(Psalm 100.1-2).
The old year ended, starting the new year, let us ask: How should my life with God in this new year? What are my priorities? What do you expect of me? For we find the answers, we turn to Psalm 100: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all land. Serve the Lord with gladness, present yourselves before him with singing "(vv.1-2).
- Psalm 100 begins by saying not only "Celebrate the Lord," but: "Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth."
- He does not just say "Serve the Lord," but: "Serve the Lord with gladness."
- It is not written only "present yourselves before him," but "present yourselves before him with singing."
At this point, let us resolve to grow in gratitude to the Lord, winning souls to Jesus.Not only will we serve Him in this new year, but to serve Him with joy. Also, do not simply present ourselves before Him, but come into His presence "with singing."
"Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth"
Draws attention many times in the Bible we are called to praise and worship the Lord. Scripture makes it clear who should praise and worship Him, who is to celebrate the Lord with gladness:
- His saints: "Sing to the Lord, O ye his saints, and give thanks to his holy name" (Ps. 30.4).
- Israel: "House of Israel, bless the Lord: the house of Aaron, praise the Lord, the house of Levi, bless the Lord: ye that fear the Lord, praise the Lord" (Psalm 135.19-20).
- The Gentiles: "Praise the Lord, all ye nations: praise him, all peoples" (Ps. 117.1).
Even the heavens and the earth and the mountains should exalt Him: "Sing, O heavens, rejoice, O earth, and ye hills, break into song" (Isaiah 49.13). In the same verse we find the reason for all this joy, "the Lord hath comforted his people and has compassion on the afflicted." The Bible speaks more reasons to praise God, for example: "Praise the Lord, for he is good; Sing praises to his name, it is pleasant "(Ps. 135.3). Or: "Exalted be the God of my salvation" (Ps. 18:46). "Because of his mercy ... Therefore I will praise him among the Gentiles, and sing praise to thy name "(Rom 15:9). Or think of the many times in His infinite goodness is praised and exalted in song: "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth forever" (Psalm 106.1, 107.1, 118.1, 136.1, etc.)..
"Sing, O heavens, rejoice, O earth, and ye hills, break into song" (Isaiah 49.13).
Many people, including many Christians, unfortunately, forget to praise and thank, celebrate with joy the Lord! But the praise of God must not only be expressed through words. The Lord Jesus exhorts believers to live a holy life for others, those who watch us, to praise the Lord: "So let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven "(Matt. 5:16). And Peter writes in his first epistle: "Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that what they speak against you as evildoers, watching you in your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation" (1 p 2.12). If our life is an authentic witness of the renewing power of God, then others will be taken with us to sing God's praise.Let us together in the coming year, make echo praise the Lord of our lives anew! If we live according to our high calling, great things happen!
"Serve the Lord with gladness!"
We should not simply serve the Lord, let's do it "with joy" (Ps. 100.2). This means taking seriously Philippians 2:14: "Do everything without complaining or arguing.""Murmuring" claim is, is to show lack of will and react negatively. Serve the Lord "with joy" means to serve Him without murmuring, without complaining, always willingly.
One might ask: "If anything happens to me, how do I know what comes from the Lord, resulting from circumstances or that proceeds from the people around me?" If we responded that question directly and immediately, certainly would consider always as from the Lord those things that please us. Then everything would be easy, we would not have the slightest problem to serve Him with joy, without a murmur and without complaint. But often not easy to separate what is from God that which comes from men or circumstances. Why? Because in the end everything comes from Him!God is not always the direct cause of what is happening to us, but He allows things to happen in our lives. If we accept this truth and eliminate all the slander of our heart, persevere in this attitude, then we are serving the Lord with gladness!
Praise and thank: many Christians, unfortunately, forget to do it.
Paul wrote to a group of slaves in Ephesus: "For ye Slaves, obey your masters according to flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ" (Eph. 6.5). These slaves, to submit to the authority of his master, were not submitting to him alone but also to his heavenly Master. And the way they exercised their service showed they were serving the Lord himself with joy, the way Paul defined it: "as the Christ." The same goes for us, "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might" (Ecclesiastes 9:10). And: "Whatever you do, do it with all your heart, as unto the Lord and not unto men" (Col. 3:23). This is how we serve the Lord "with joy"!
"Present yourselves before him with singing"
The Lord Jesus himself demonstrates what it means: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and exclaimed I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to babes. Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will "(Luke 10:21). Jesus had presented himself before His Father to bring you his gratitude and his praise, and His heart is overjoyed. How had arisen great joy? Is that it was a simple emotion that engulfed him? No, that's what happened. It is written: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit ..."
In 1 Thessalonians 5:19 we read: "Do not quench the Spirit." Often the Holy Spirit longs to lead us to an intense spiritual joy, especially when he can perform his greatest work, which describes Christ as "He (the Holy Spirit) shall glorify me" (Jn 16:14). Precisely in those moments when the Spirit is awakening in us a great joy for the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, when the Son is glorified before our spiritual eyes, we should not stop you from doing His work in us, we should not smother it but allow that joy, that joy intense have free access to our hearts. Many may feel embarrassed and try to stifle the expression of intense joy that the Lord gives us, for fear that they may come from a source that is not pure. Of course we must be careful not to fall into one of Christianity only feelings, as has unfortunately happened to many churches. But is there really such a great joy in the Spirit, the joy that Jesus gave us the example: "In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit ..." This "joy" means, in the original text, "an intense joy, which takes to show joy, sing and express our great satisfaction, our deep delight. Jesus rejoiced not only in their emotions, because His joy was generated by the Holy Spirit.
"Praise the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth forever" (Ps. 106.1).
Early this year that Psalm 100 serves to push to present ourselves to the Lord with singing. Let's do it? Let's burn deep in our hearts that call? Do not forget: a joy produced by the Holy Spirit glorifies our Lord and rejoice!
Pastor Eduardo Alves
"God was, is and always will be the only Master in my life. Troubles comes and go, but with Jesus in our lives, we will have hope for better days and happiness"
Sacramento Faith Prayer and Worship Ministries 
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