The Praise Invitation
1. Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all you lands.
2. Serve the Lord with gladness: come before His Presence with singing.
3. Know ye that the Lord, He is God: it is He that made us and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
4. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise; be thankful to Him and bless His Name.
5. For the Lord is good; His Mercy is everlasting and His Truth endures to all generations.
Psalm 100
The Happy Song
This is a very unique song in several ways. It is unique in that it is an inclusive song and invites everyone to participate. It calls the young, the old, the rich, the poor, men and women, people from downtown and uptown, to join in the celebration of God’s Goodness and Kindness. It even invites enemies to join in worship and adoration of the Most High God.
The second unique feature is that the song is written by someone unknown. It obviously had an author but no one ascribed their name to it and I believe for good reason. This song was written to be everybody’s song and anybody’s song. It is short enough to memorize but long enough to get the point across as to why God Almighty is worthy of praise. This is a happy song that was meant to be song by those who are jubilant about God’s Grace. So if a Jew wanted to sing the song, they could certainly do that and not feel that they were taking anyone’s song. The non-Jew could also sing the song with just as much vigor and energy and not feel that they were treading into a forbidden area of worship. This is everybody’s happy song to God.
The third feature is equally unique in that this song is totally devoted to praise and giving of thanks. While the other songs are also focused on praise, they generally deal with enemy threats, challenging conditions, or the outcomes of sin and heartache. This is not the case with this song. It begins with a joyous invitation to everyone on the face of the whole planet. The song is an acknowledgement that God has filled the earth with good things. This song takes praise to a new level and to great extremes to bring everyone into worship and honor of the Living God. Imagine for a moment, the entire world stopping every activity and participating in one grand song of worship to God Almighty.
In 1971, perhaps before some listening were born, Coca-Cola released a song in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the US. The lyrics was simply to teach the whole world to sing in perfect harmony. While many learned the song and it even climbed to the top of the billboard charts, not everyone sang the song. Even if they did, Coca-Cola did not then, and cannot today give everyone the joy and fulfillment to sing a truly Happy Song. That is reserved for God, Who created everything.
No lessons are required. No harmony is needed. Just make a joyful noise unto the Lord all you lands. This song highlights the kind of noise that God is listening for. Not the sounds of sirens in the streets. Not the sounds of bombs bursting in air. God is wearied with the sounds of violence, vanity, and the vicious attacks against His Character. God is listening for the joyful noise of people who know and are willing to express where their blessings come from.
Giving God what He Wants!
Many of us know that God is worthy of all praise, but we become uncertain about how to express that praise. This song answers all those questions in five verses. What does God want. First God wants a joyful noise. For certain, individuals have learned how to make such sounds. They do so at concerts, sports events, and other gatherings. The truth of the matter is that such joyful noise is generally due to the presence of alcohol or some other substance, but not the Goodness of God. The Hebrew word used here is simply to “shout joyfully.”
We read in the Old Testament passage Numbers 32, that the children of Israel knew how to make a “joyful noise” when they erected the golden calf idol. Joshua asked Moses if there was a war going on because the sound was so loud. Moses responded that it was not the sound of those shouting victory nor was it the sound of those losing the battle, but it was the sound of singing. How disappointing and utterly disgusting to see the people that God had purchased out of Egypt and brought them into their freedom now giving their worship to a gold calf. I will tell you of something even more shameful. It is shameful for those that Christ has redeemed from sin and brought them into His marvelous light to sing praise to everyone else and fail to give Him thanks. That is utterly disgraceful. So yes, we all know how to make a joyful noise we just need to address it to the Lord for His Goodness.
The Lord would also have us to serve Him joyfully if we are to sing this happy song. Serving the Lord with gladness means that every believer may approach God’s Throne with confidence and reverence. Notice that this joy is reserved for God and God alone. The believer must not struggle between two masters; such divided loyalty only leads to separation and the loss of that joyful spirit. This verse reveals that God is also joyous and desires that every person know Him as our Gracious God. The assembly of God’s Saints should be a happy one. There should be no gloom of serving and threat that God would release His wrath for the child of God knows that the best offering one could ever give to God is to give our hearts to Him in praise.
All such joy springs from a heartfelt knowledge of God’s Goodness. It is impossible to approach God with a happy song without knowing Him. What is it that every worshipper should know about God? Here are four things about God that causes the lips to sing and the heart to rejoice. First, know that He is God. God has no competitors or rivals. He alone is God. Some may ask, how do I know that He is God? My answer is simple: believe in the One who has done the most for you. Many religions talk about what the person has to do for their god. Christianity talks about what God has done for every person. We also must know that God has created us. God created us in Himself. We are not outside of God because everything that has breath is in God. There is no life apart from the Creator. That is why you should know Him. Whatever good that you are accomplishing is due to His making. There is another aspect of knowing God and that is to credit Him for His power working in us. The Psalmist simply says, “we did not make ourselves.” True freedom of worship comes when we know that we are where we are because of the hand of God. Know that you did not make yourself.
Here is the most cherished thought and that is to know that we are God’s people and the sheep of His pasture. The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States begins with the words “we the people.” It goes on to talk about forming a more perfect union with all of the blessings that democracy brings. The only problem is that democracy is not a god; it is a concept. That is why this nation is struggling today because they desire the bounty of a nation under God but struggles with acknowledging that God is in control. As for me and my house, I have no problem with knowing that I belong to God and that I am one of His sheep. That is good to know.
If we are going to give God what He wants in our worship, we must serve Him with gladness and we must also know Him as Supreme Lord. This joyous song goes even further in its invitation by instructing the believer on entering into God’s Presence.
The heart of the child of God must overflow with gratitude. In this passage, the eloquent prose of the writer flows from the page and into our hearts. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise; be thankful to Him and bless His Name. The writer knows that everyone has thanksgiving stored up in their heart. The writer is confident that everyone has praise. The question is whether or not that thanks and praise will be given to God or will we foolishly hoard it for ourselves? If you are going to sing THIS happy song, then the praise must be released to God. Why? The answer was given in the previous verse: God made you. God gave to you. God provided for you. God opened doors that were closed for you. Let the praise be poured out as a drink offering before the Lord because the praise and thanksgiving BELONGS to Him.
The happy song reaches the high point or the crescendo with verse 5. For the Lord is good; His Mercy is everlasting and His Truth endures to all generations. If you ask me, this is the miracle of this song. At this point, the heart of the believer should be so filled with praise and appreciation that there is nothing else to do but keep singing. These three virtues of God are expressed every day. Heaven is open every day to pour out Mercy and Goodness on the people that dwell on earth. First, God is good. His nature will never change and that Goodness will never be exhausted. The bottom line is that we have good things because of our Good God. The Goodness is more than enough but the verse goes on to say something else about God’s Holy Character. God’s Mercy is everlasting. I can not answer for anyone except myself and say that I need Mercy. I try but have found that I am not good by myself. God has to make me good. Then when I am not good, God has Mercy on me. O yes, He disciplines and corrects, but it is done with such extreme Love and Kindness. I will sing of God’s Mercy forever because that Mercy is everlasting.
The song closes with a declaration of God’s Truth. For the Lord is good; His Mercy is everlasting and His Truth endures to all generations. There is no threat that one day we will wake up and discover that there is something not true about God. God is a God of Truth and that means He cannot lie. Every promise He has made, He must fulfill because this verse obligates Him. Guess what? God’s Truth will be poured out on every generation. That means we can keep singing this song. We sing this song because what God did yesterday, He is still doing today. We sing because His Mercy will never fail; it is new every morning. Praise be to God Who gave us this happy song.