All of Me - Part A

When God is in your midst. If the Lord is real to you. You will engage him on some level of worship. Why is it that Christians think that enthusiasm for the most worthy thing in all of the universe. Somehow God is not too excited about secret admirers told you, love people have devoted months, years, maybe even a lifetime to bizarre things like collecting their sick beds were extremely but there's only one thing with your total commitment today on connect with Skip Heitzig Skip explores how you can experience the use of God's unconditional love by committing your whole life to now we want to tell you about a recent help you take your relationship with God to a new level.

As you state 20/20 team almost here now for your sphere something in starting in January.

This month their offering that devotional containing strong dots for each sample from January 1, Martin Luther, one that life has it runs after me as you stay each day and prepare for the greatest adventure of your life. An excerpt at the direction found in daily… Receiving hardcover dollars or more today this Bible teaching history growing playlist messages as our thank you. The victim here in the playlist theory to spend energy in life we all do make sure it's about people that you're building up not just projects and this resource.com or call 892 1888. Psalm one starts to live your life over again what would you do differently, whereas I cause a loss like somebody up front started out everything if you live your life all over again what would you do differently. Some people might piously say nothing. I don't think that's a great nor is it an honest answer. A group of 95-year-old men and women were asked that question was a little sort of a target survey. They asked these elderly men and women. If you could live your life all over again what would you do differently. There were three answers that dominated the response listen to them.

I would reflect more. I would risk more and I would do those things that would outlive me more.

I would reflect more.

I would risk more and I would do more things that would last for outlive me. In other words, if I had to live my life all over again I would be more thoughtful. I would be more intentional with my life with my family. I think about things I'd weigh things out more.

I would also get out of my comfort zones more and more and I would make sure that my life counts. Let me ask you as a believer in Christ. If you as a believer in Jesus could live your life all over again what would you do differently. Would you pray less.

Would you love God lasts would you obey God less. Would you help people less. I have never met folks on their deathbed who have ever said anything close to that have never heard anyone say you know I really regret in my Christian life that I played as much as I did and help people as much as I did in worship and love God as much. I really wish I'd done a little less of that. So with that said, let's today plan what our response to God is going to be from this day forward I will get to spend the rest of our lives. What is our response going to be, you know, everybody on earth has some response to God. Everyone every person response to God in some manner. Some people will ignore him completely ignore him. He may be there.

I'm not sure there's a God but I live my life as though God doesn't exist, ignore another response. People have is to abhor him. They just hate God. They hate the notion of him. Whenever you bring up God they fidget, they squirm or they leave the room or the say something derogatory. They abhor him third responses. Some adore him. They adore him. They love him the name of Jesus. They just respond. Their heart warms up. I know most of us would like to think were in category number three, but not so fast but explain category number three based on Psalm 100 to you because I actually think that some who claim to add door God really ignore him tip their hat to him every now and then once a week, but Bill lived there daily lives as though God really didn't exist as they live on and make their choices. One person said a Christian is someone who feels sorry on Sunday for what he did on Saturday and will do again on Monday. That's not an appropriate response to get you out of Psalm 104 appropriate responses that every follower of God should have four appropriate responses. There's four words them to give their worship, serve, love, think, worship, serve, love think they're easily memorable. You can say that. Let's say them worship, serve, love think no one explain those four words because those principles are found in our text is a short Psalm, but it's a very powerful powerful Psalm. The language is lively and that the theme is profound. Psalm 100 says a Psalm of Thanksgiving. Make a joyful shout to the Lord all you lands all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness. Come before his presence with singing.

Know that the Lord he is God 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.

The first word is worship.

Let me be more specific, worship the Lord joyfully worship the Lord joyfully verse one make a joyful shout. Some translations a joyful noise to the Lord all you lands second part of verse to come before his presence with singing. We believe that this song was used in the temple that it was a formal call to worship for programs who were approaching the temple and coming into the courts to offer their sacrifices and to praise the Lord as it is still to this day used in synagogue but you notice that it begins by saying make a joyful shout.

I discovered no less than 18×17 or 18 need again depends on which translation you use 17 or 18 times. We are told to make a shout or a noise of joy unto the Lord. Here's the thought behind that if you've ever wondered in ancient times it was customary. When you are in the presence of your king as a people, or if the king came into the presence of his subjects that they would let out a shout of victory.

It was their way of expressing our king is strong and we are victorious because of him as an example in the book of Numbers the 23rd chapter when Baylon the false prophet is hired by King may elect to curse the people of Israel and God would let them do that.

You know that story so he looks over and sees the people spread out before him, and he says the Lord their God is with them and that shout of a king is among them. They believe by that shout, that the presence of God was with them in Joshua chapter 6 they surround the city of Jericho and the instructions of general Joshua to his troops are that shout for the Lord has given you the city is another great story in in first Samuel when the Philistines are fighting the Israelites. There's a crucial point in the battle when the Israelites asked for the ark of the covenant to be brought into their camp. Remember that story. We want the ark brought into our camp. So the ark of the covenant was brought into the camp of the children of Israel and this is what the text says when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth shook, and the Philistine said what is all this shouting in the Hebrew And then they learned that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp to them.

This signified the presence of their king. The presence of the Lord third chapter of the book of Ezra is another one. The temple has been rebuilt and the Bible says all the people gave a great shout of praise to the Lord. Now, with just a sampling of the verses that I just read it sounds like there worship was pretty live that that they actually believed they were in the presence of God himself and it was a joyful shout.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon said our happy God should be worshiped by a happy people are cheerful people is in keeping with his nature and his acts. Do you know that the Bible does not tell us how we are to sing to the Lord.

That is, in terms of technique or beat or song choice. The Bible never says something like this, thou shalt sing to the Lord thy God with 44 beat three, four and 24 is strictly forbidden. There's none of those kinds of instructions. However, the Bible does say we are to sing in the Bible does say here we are to shout in the Bible does say it is to be joyful. Can we all agree that the Bible that we just read says those things. Whenever this is brought up and I do bring it up.

There are rebuttals to their excuses to let me give you a few but I'm not a good singer.

I don't say because I'm not a good singer.

If you were to sing others around you would sing louder just to drown you out. That's a positive. But I'm not saying there. Let me say this very respectfully and very tenderly get over it. The Lord God Almighty has given you an adequate enough voice and adequate enough instrument to make a joyful noise unto him, you can. Anybody can do this. Anybody can do a joyful noise a joyful shout unto the Lord. I've told you what my camp counselor told me told us when we were years ago to summer camp. He said if God has given you a good voice then use it in worship to him. If he is give you a bad voice give it back to him. I'm not a good singer. Let me just say to you, non-musical people. The voice you have is the voice God is given you, and it applies to you and to me and all of us what Jesus said in Mark chapter 12 love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind. It was the fourth one all your all your strength. All your strength is a second excuse. I just don't feel like okay that's an act of will. You don't feel like it.

I understand we have bad days, bad weeks tragedy may have happened in you coming to the house of God. You feel like it, feel happy, you will feel good you feel like expressing it.

But can I just add something or say something in response to that you don't feel like getting up early Monday morning and going to work either.

But I bet you'll do it, you will often do you don't feel like doing because you gotta do it.

You do it it doesn't make it less real. When you do it there's 1/3 rebuttal will I'm not the emotional type.

Fair enough. I understand this one. I'm not the emotional type, but let's suppose that he was a nonemotional person are teaming up on a par three is a perfect day and you swing that club and your your ball goes so straight and so far, and you see it hit the green and you watch it with one shot roll into the cup.

Now you gotten a hole-in-one. I have a question for you.

Do you stand there and fold your arms and go how nice know you will be five or 6 feet off the ground and you be shout and telling everybody I've seen some of your logo games when our team scores.

There's some emotion that goes on there. There's some excitement that goes on there or or maybe more to the point when one of your sons or daughters of the game scores a point. You get pretty emotional about that you know why people do that for those events because those things are real to them. And when God is in your midst. If the Lord is real to you. You will engage him on some level of worship.

Why is it that Christians think that enthusiasm for the most worthy thing in all of the universe must somehow be carefully contained God is not too excited about secret admirers.

He likes to be told that you love him you know I hate to say this but some folks are going to even complain when they get to heaven.

I think they will be too loud form in heaven says they sang a song so loud.

Isaiah said that the doorpost of the temple shook in Revelation 5 that the song was a loud voice of praise into the Lord. Some people like that some people are going to complain because of the lights is in heaven were told that the heavenly Jerusalem has an iridescent shine and that the light of that of the city comes from the Lamb of God, Jesus himself and he is compared to shining so brightly. It's like the strength of the sun at the bright light, like light, and some will complain about the haze and have the vision that Isaiah saw in chapter 6 is the glorious singing shook the temple to the foundations and the entire sanctuary was filled with smoke. That's the evidence of the Shekinah glory of God in that covenant worship God joyfully make a joyful shout to the Lord come before his presence with singing. That's an appropriate response.

Here's a second serve God gladly serve God gladly versed to serve the Lord with gladness so we have glad singing number one number two we are glad service singing joyfully as great as the first response when you're in the presence of the king, but God wants more than fans. God wants followers. Yes, I think we should respond to God and some level of emotion, but we should also respond with motion following up the emotion with the motion of obeying what he says, serving him is an old saying that says it's not how high you jump itself straight. You walk when she hit the ground. Okay, it's great to get all excited about the presence of the Lord.

But then living and serving out that lifestyle is so important. See spiritual maturity isn't measured by glorious singing as much as by glad serving. Serve the Lord with gladness. Have you ever seen somebody serving the Lord, but they moan when they do it.

They moan they're doing it with her complaining. The griping morning source was somebody like this in the New Testament. Her name was Martha member Mark that what's her sister's name Mary and she comes a Jesus.

This is in Luke chapter 10 and she complained in her serving Lord, how come I'm the only one doing the working and you're letting Mary sort of get away with. I'm the one that serving I'm doing all the work. Mary, you remember, was at the feet of Jesus listening to his voice listening to his message worshiping him. And Jesus said to her, Martha serving one. The one doing the work she wasn't doing with gladness but with a moan. Martha Mark that you were distracted by much serving various shows and the better part the better part which will not be taken from her what'd he say that is worshiping is a lot better than whining serve the Lord with gladness that we have an Old Testament example of somebody who serve the Lord while moaning. Can you remember his name. He's a prophet that's a clue. He has a book named after him, and it's a very short book. Jonah, when God called Jonah to go to Nineveh that he go yes Lord joyfully will serve you.

I'd love to go into whatever you want me to do and say what ever you want me to did you do that, he went in the opposite direction. He went on a Princess cruise all all the way to Portugal as we wanted opposite direction in the business. When he went that way you know why he went that way you know why he wasn't joyful. He couldn't stand the thought that God would forgive and be merciful to those he hated the most. The Ninevites can stand that thought will eventually he went, but even go joyfully. He went under duress. He went out of duty and he went after he was dumped on the shore by a great fish to serve the Lord at all, please do it with with gladness was sadness, not with complaining that with moaning with gladness with joy was a time in church history, always in the Middle Ages when it was thought that if you're in the clergy.

If you're like me, you should wear all black, all black that is befitting what clergyman ought to wear all black and you want to be very serious and austere and not smile much for this is serious business. No wonder Paul Oliver Wendell Holmes years later said I would've entered the ministry except all the preachers I know look and act so much like undertakers.

My apology if you're an undertaker and you have a joyful life.

You do not have to be sad in order to be sanctified. You do not have to be gloomy in order to be holy God wants whatever is done for him to be done with gladness and that goes for every activity, including our financial giving. Remember what Paul writes in second Corinthians 9. Let each one of you give us he purposes and is hard, not grudgingly, nor out of necessity for God loves a share forgive her the word in Greek is a whole various giver. Can it let me just append that verse a little bit. God loves a cheerful giver. God also loves a cheerful liver. I don't mean I don't mean that. I mean, he loves a life that is lived cheerfully for him.

You know that serving the Lord gladly is great advertising. There's nothing more infectious and inspiring than genuine joy sometime back newspaper in Boston, Massachusetts. I found out about a woman who was a cleaning lady at an office complex and she held the job for 40 years. They were interested in in any lady doing the same boring.

They said monotonous job for 40 years so they interviewed her. The they asked her point blank. How could you do this, how could you for 40 years. Do the same boring monotonous job of cleaning after people. Here's her answer. I don't get bored. I use cleaning materials that God made I clean objects that belong to people that God made, and I make life more comfortable for them. My mom she said is the hand of God is that for joyful service.

My mom is the hand of God to appropriate responses. Worship God joyfully serve God in the land is message from the series to tell you about a special knowledge of the Bible to a deeper level.

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