Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
2 Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
3 Know that the Lord, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
5 For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.
Worship the Lord with Joy.
How are we supposed to worship the Lord? Psalm 100, known as the Jubilate (‘O be joyful’), a psalm often used in liturgical worship, is quite helpful in describing some of the elements and expressions we can use. When we enter into the presence of the Lord we ought to do so with joy as we give Him thanks for His love and faithfulness. Everything we have, possess or own all come from His hand of blessing. In worship we praise the Lord God by calling to mind that He is always faithful to His promises. All that He has said He will do, He does, blessings as well as judgments, so no one should think God is soft or easy.
But many do. They think the Lord will overlook their sins or at least counterbalance them with their good deeds. But the Word of God says then all our righteousness are as filthy rags in His sight. We are all sinners incapable of living up to God’s standard of perfection. In fact, if we want to have proper and intimate fellowship with God we must not only avoid sin but also live in obedience so that we do what He commands us rather than seek own way. This is quite difficult in our day as our lives are saturated by worldly ideas which daily bombard us with immoral and corrupt ideas and images through the media and the Internet. Only as we rely on the Holy Spirit to guide and strengthen us we will overcome the world and shun its ungodly values. Only by faith in Jesus who died for our sins can we enter the Kingdom of God.