Psalm 100 is one of the most recognizable chapters of the Bible for those who have grown up in church. It is a chapter that calls us to a joyful life and a life of thanksgiving and praise. In verse 4, the author of the Psalm writes these words; “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” Verse 4 really summarizes this short chapter well. As followers of Christ, we are to be thankful people, who live a life of praise. This chapter calls us to worship and calls us to reflect on who we belong to! We are His sheep!
What I want to focus on in this writing is verse 1; “Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.” So, often we attribute this verse to singing and rightfully so, but with that I believe we miss so much of the depth of this verse. When it comes to singing, we should sing no matter how our voices sound because it is an offering to the Lord and a command of the Lord. But it is not just about singing. Our voices as we talk should be about making a joyful noise to the Lord. What we say and the words we use matter! Way too often it is easy to become negative and discouraging in the way that we talk. We look to the bad or the negative way to often and with that bring no glory to God or even make a joyful noise to Him. An example of that is the nation of Israel. They constantly grumbled to the Lord and about the Lord. We see that as we read through the Old Testament, and I believe that this verse is a reminder to the nation! God had blessed Israel and even chosen them as His people, they had much to be thankful about! Too often we are caught up in what has gone wrong, instead of how God has walked with us through the valley of shadow. Even during the darkest of days God is with us. It was during the dark days of slavery to Egypt that God was with the nation and heard their cries for help. It was in the middle of a lion’s den that God protected Daniel, and it was with 300 soldiers that God brought victory to Gideon. God repeatedly shows His faithfulness to His people. And what God has asked and commanded us to do is be joyful and worship Him.
If we truly want to make an impact for the gospel of Christ, we need to watch what we say and how we say things. Language matters and truly speaks to what is in the heart. Jesus deals with this issue with the Pharisees in Matthew 15:1-20. Verse 10 says; “And he called the people to him and said them, Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” What we say is reflection of what we consume to the heart and mind. As followers of Christ, our words should be that which make a joyful noise to the Lord. Our words will either point people to Christ or away from Christ.
In closing, I am just like many in that this is something that I must work on. I want to be a man who makes a joyful noise to the Lord as I speak. I do not want to be a hinderance to the gospel and the work of God in the Kingdom. I want to be someone who shines for Jesus and that includes the words that come from my mouth.
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