Entering the Gates of Thanksgiving

November 26, 2015

“Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing. 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. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.” (Psalm 100)

 In this profound thanksgiving psalm David tells us that coming into the presence of God is like having an audience with a great King.  That audience begins with the gates of thanksgiving that are followed by the courts of praise.  In a corporate worship service or in your closet worship, always try to begin your approach to God at the gates of thanksgiving followed by the courts of praise.

I personally know of no other worship helps that mean more to me than to begin my approach to God with thanksgiving.  When I begin thanking Him and praising Him for all my blessings I soon find myself coming before His presence with singing.  In His presence I know that He is God.  I know that He is my Shepherd and I am His sheep.  I know that He is good, His mercy is everlasting and He wants me to share the truth of His Word in all the lands of this world because He wants people in all the lands of this world and in every generation to know what it is to make a joyful shout of worship in His presence.

 Let this great worship psalm of David show you how to

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day!

Dick Woodward, 23 November 2011

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A Fellowship in the Gospel

September 3, 2013

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” (Acts 2:42)

In the first chapter of Paul’s letter to his favorite church we hear him express his definition of a church.  According to Paul, the church is “a fellowship of the gospel.” (Philippians 1:5; 27)  He agrees with Luke who describes the church the same way in his history of the church as quoted above.

According to Luke the fingerprints of the church are as follows: the thumbprint is evangelism.  The people he is describing would not be there if they had not been reached by the evangelistic sermon of Peter on the Day of Pentecost.  The index fingerprint is teaching.  The middle fingerprint is fellowship.  The ring fingerprint is worship and the little fingerprint is prayer.

Just as your thumb naturally touches your four fingers, the teaching, fellowship, worship and prayer of the church are meant to lead to evangelism.  These four functions of the church equip, edify, inspire and empower the church to reach out and bring lost people to salvation in Christ.

Our churches can often be described as a group of people sitting in a circle with their chairs facing in.  According to Paul and Luke we should turn our chairs back to back and face out in a fellowship of the gospel.  I have visited the Dead Sea which without an outlet is stagnant and dead and earns it its name.  Also the Sea of Galilee which is filled with life because it has an outlet.

So it is with our churches.  When we face out and reach out we have an outlet that fills our church with the young life of new believers.  Is your church a fellowship in the gospel?

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A Psalm for Thanksgiving Day

November 23, 2011

“Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing. 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. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.” (Psalm 100)

 In this profound thanksgiving psalm David tells us that coming into the presence of God is like having an audience with a great King.  That audience begins with the gates of thanksgiving that are followed by the courts of praise.  In a corporate worship service or in your closet worship, always try to begin your approach to God at the gates of thanksgiving followed by the courts of praise.

I personally know of no other worship helps that mean more to me than to begin my approach to God with thanksgiving.  When I begin thanking Him and praising Him for all my blessings I soon find myself coming before His presence with singing.  In His presence I know that He is God.  I know that He is my Shepherd and I am His sheep.  I know that He is good, His mercy is everlasting and He wants me to share the truth of His Word in all the lands of this world because He wants people in all the lands of this world and in every generation to know what it is to make a joyful shout of worship in His presence.

 Let this great worship psalm of David show you how to

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day!

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Posted by Dick Woodward

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