Wednesday, April 30, 2014

"SHARING HOPE THROUGH SCRIPTURE FOR THOSE NEEDING ENCOURAGEMENT"

"SHARING HOPE THROUGH SCRIPTURE FOR THOSE NEEDING ENCOURAGEMENT"

Psalm 100:3 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.

Psalm 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

Psalm 100:5 For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

Some explanatory thoughts/application and a prayer:

In this Psalm, much is said about our LORD. May these truths be a real encouragement to you today. Please take a moment to prayerfully reflect on what is said here about God, and may they minister greatly to your soul.

1. God is the LORD (meaning the existing one) He made you, and you belong to Him, and you are the sheep of His pasture.

Psalm 100:3 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.

God created You, and then He bought you through the precious blood of Christ, and He has placed you as one of His own sheep in His pasture, i.e His family, in the kingdom of God, His church.

2. God can be approached by you. You can enter into His courts (His presence) with praise. You can be thankful to Him, and you can bless His name.

Psalm 100:4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

What a joy to know that we have this great privilege and access to our God. You can approach Him this very moment. And, You can give Him praise, ( just think about all the blessings He has brought into your life ) and, you can be thankful to Him, ( for all of those blessings )

3. Here are three more wonderful truths about our God.

(1) The LORD is good. This word "good" means, better, goodness, precious, beautiful. And, it carries the idea of benefit and prosperity, of being right, and pleasant. He is all of that, and so much more. The LORD is good.

(2) His mercy is everlasting. Or to put it another way, His kindness, his goodness, His favor, His faithfulness, and His love are unfailing. How wonderful He is, and He never changes. He is merciful this very day, and His mercy is towards you personally. His unfailing love is towards you this day also.

(3) His truth endures to all generations. Truth here, has the idea of faithfulness. God is faithful, stable, dependable, truthful. He is firm, loyal, steadfast, and just plain steady. He is all of these things each and every day, to every generation, including the one we live in. And, you as an individual, are the beneficiary of His truth this very day.

A prayer:

Father, You are our God, and we are Your people. You have made us to be Yours. You have placed us as Your children, and as the sheep of Your pasture. There is not better shepherd than You Lord. Thank You for who You are, and thank You for helping us to understand You, and to enjoy You, and to be encouraged by You.
We pray for ourselves, and any we know that are this very day in need of encouragement, ( and surely there are many ), that You would flood them with that encouragement and comfort. Father if you want us to contact someone today, and just tell them hello, we love them, we are thinking of them, we are praying for them, would You put them on our hearts. Thank You Lord. In Jesus name, amen.

Pastor Bob Grenier
Calvary Chapel Visalia