Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 100:1-5
The NIV subtitles it as: A psalm. For giving grateful praise. This particular text concludes a collection of psalms that speak of the greatness of God, who is King, the Ruler of All (Psalm 93 - 100).
Psalm 93 begins with the words: The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed in majesty and armed with strength; indeed, the world is established, firm and secure. Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity (93:1-2). Both Psalm 97 and 99 begin with the words, The Lord reigns. He is identified as Judge of the earth, in Psalm 94:2. and the great King above all gods, in Psalm 95:3. In Psalm 97:9 we read, you, Lord, are the Most High over all the earth.
Along with this focus on the kingship of God, there is a call to His people and the nations to worship Him. Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song (Psalm 95:1-2). Sing to the Lord, praise his name...Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name (Psalm 95:1-3,8). Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music...shout for joy before the Lord, the King (Psalm 98:4, 6).
There is a call, for we who are His people, to praise our Creator and Shepherd. Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care (Psalm 95:6-7). Psalm 100 invites all peoples to join in giving praise, Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth (Psalm 100:1). This psalm looks ahead to the day when all people, all nations will come together under God's rule and will join together in praising Him.
In worship, we approach the One who is our God and King. We are called to engage in joy-filled worship, to come before Him with gratitude, to serve our King, and proclaim His greatness to the world around us. Worship has always been at the core of who we are at Valley. May it we continue to be a community of faith who, Worship the Lord with gladness (Psalm 100:2); a people who serve our Shepherd and King!