Welcome to Day 2752 of Wisdom-Trek. Thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Day 2752 – Wisdom Nuggets – Psalm 100:1-5 – Daily Wisdom

Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2752

Welcome to Wisdom-Trek with Gramps! I am Guthrie Chamberlain, and we are on Day two thousand seven hundred fifty-two of our Trek. The Purpose of Wisdom-Trek is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before.  

The Title for Today’s Wisdom-Trek is: The Rhythm of Gratitude – Entering the Gates with Praise.

Today, we arrive at a beloved landmark on our journey through the Psalter. We are exploring Psalm One Hundred, covering the entire hymn, verses one through five, in the New Living Translation.  

This short, vibrant psalm serves as the grand finale to the collection of Royal Psalms we have been trekking through (Psalms Ninety-three through Ninety-nine).  

In our previous trek through Psalm Ninety-nine, we were on our knees. We saw the Holy King enthroned between the Cherubim, and the command was to "tremble" and to "bow low." It was a psalm of heavy, transcendent holiness.  

Psalm One Hundred resolves that trembling into uncontainable joy. It tells us that the Holy King is also the Good Shepherd. It is the invitation to stand up, dust off our knees, and march through the temple gates with a song of thanksgiving. It is the only psalm in the Bible with the specific superscription "A Psalm of Thanksgiving" (Mizmor l'todah). It was likely sung as the procession entered the temple courts to offer the thanksgiving sacrifice.  

It teaches us that while God is the High King of the Divine Council, He is also our God, and His courts are open to us.  

So, let us join the procession and enter His gates with thanksgiving.  

The First Segment is: The Universal Call to Worship.

Psalm One Hundred: verses one through two.

Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth! Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy.

The psalm opens with a burst of energy, issuing three imperative commands to the entire world: "Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth!"  

The command to "shout" (rûa‘) connects us back to the earlier Royal Psalms. This is the shout of homage to a King; it is the fanfare of coronation. But notice the audience: "all the earth."  

This is a missionary call. Just as we saw in Psalm Ninety-six, the invitation to worship Yahweh is not restricted to the ethnic borders of Israel. It is a summons to the nations—who were formerly under the dominion of the rebel gods of the Divine Council—to switch their allegiance. We are calling the whole earth to defect from the darkness and shout allegiance to the True King.  

The second command defines the attitude of our service: "Worship the Lord with gladness."  

The word "Worship" (‘ābad) literally means to serve. It implies slavery or bond-service. In the ancient world, serving a god or a king was often a terrified, burdensome duty. You served to avoid being crushed.  

But Yahweh demands a different kind of service. We are to serve Him with "gladness" (simḥâ). Our servitude is to be marked by joy, not drudgery. Why? Because He is a good Master. He does not exploit His servants; He empowers them. If our service to God has become a grinding burden, we have misunderstood the nature of our King.  

The third command brings us into His presence: "Come before him, singing with joy."  

To "come before him" implies a formal audience. We are entering the throne room. But we don't enter with a somber dirge; we enter with a "joyful song" (rĕnānâ—a ringing cry). We are happy to be there.  

The Second Segment is: The Theological Basis: Knowledge of God.

Psalm One Hundred: verse three.

Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Now, the psalmist pauses the singing to give us the reason why we worship. Emotion without truth is just hype. True worship is based on knowledge.  

"Acknowledge that the Lord is God!"  

This command to "acknowledge" (literally "Know" - dĕ‘û) is a call to theological conviction. We must know, deep in our bones, that Yahweh (the Lord) is Elohim (God).  

In the context of the Ancient Israelite worldview, this is a polemical statement against the gods of the nations. It is an assertion that Yahweh is the Species Unique. The other elohim are merely created beings, lesser spiritual functionaries. Only Yahweh is the Ultimate Reality.  

Then, the psalmist gives two fundamental reasons for this acknowledgment: Creation and Covenant.  

First, Creation: "He made us, and we are his."  

There is a textual variant here in the Hebrew. The Masoretic text reads "He made us, and not (lo) we ourselves." This is a powerful truth: we are not self-made. We did not evolve by accident, nor are we the architects of our own destiny. We are creatures; He is the Creator. This destroys human pride.  

However, another reading (followed by the NLT here) is "He made us, and we are His (lo with a vav)." This emphasizes ownership. We are His property.  

Second, Covenant: "We are his people, the sheep of his pasture."  

This moves from the general truth of creation to the specific intimacy of relationship. We are not just His creatures; we are "His people."  

The metaphor of the "sheep of his pasture" is deeply significant. In the ancient Near East, kings were often called shepherds, but they were usually predatory shepherds who fleeced the flock. Yahweh is the Good Shepherd who provides the pasture.  

Sheep are dependent. They need guidance, protection, and provision. By calling ourselves sheep, we are admitting our vulnerability. But because Yahweh is the Shepherd, that vulnerability is not a liability; it is the guarantee of His care. He is responsible for us.  

The Third Segment is: The Liturgy of Entrance.

Psalm One Hundred: verse four.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name.

Having established who God is, the procession now moves physically into the sacred space.  

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise."  

This describes the physical act of walking through the gates of the Temple mount and entering the courtyards where the sacrifices were offered.  

The password for entry is "Thanksgiving" (tôdâ). In the Levitical system, the tôdâ offering was a specific type of peace offering given to thank God for deliverance or blessing. It was often accompanied by a public testimony.  

The psalmist is saying that we cannot approach God empty-handed or empty-hearted. We enter His presence by reciting what He has done for us. Gratitude is the gateway to intimacy.  

"Give thanks to him and praise his name."  

To "praise" (bārak) literally means to "bless" His name. We bless God by speaking well of Him, by declaring His attributes.  

Notice the focus on His "Name." In the Bible, the Name represents the character and reputation of the person. To praise His Name is to celebrate His reputation as the God who keeps promises, the God who defeated the chaos waters, and the God who shepherds His people.  

The Fourth Segment is: The Eternal Motivation: God’s Character.

Psalm One Hundred: verse five.

For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

The psalm concludes with a final, threefold declaration of God's nature. This is the bedrock upon which all our joy, service, and thanksgiving rest.  

"For the Lord is good."  

This is the most basic, yet most contested, truth in the universe. In a world full of suffering, chaos, and evil, is the Power behind it all actually benevolent? The psalmist asserts: Yes. Yahweh is ṭôḇ—good. His intentions toward His creation are kind. He is not capricious like the pagan gods; He is fundamentally benevolent.  

"His unfailing love continues forever,"  

Here is our covenant word again: "Unfailing Love" (ḥesed). This is God's loyal love, His stubborn refusal to let go of His people. The psalmist assures us that this love is not a temporary mood. It is eternal. It "continues forever."  

This connects back to the assurance given in Psalm Eighty-nine, where God promised that His ḥesed would never be removed from the line of David. Even when we fail, His love endures.  

"and his faithfulness continues to each generation."  

"Faithfulness" (’ĕmûnâ) means firmness, reliability, and truth. God is reliable. He does not change His mind. He does not break His word.  

And this reliability is trans-generational. It is "to generation and generation." The God who was faithful to Abraham was faithful to Moses, was faithful to David, and will be faithful to us and to our children.  

Psalm One Hundred is short, but it is mighty. It is the perfect conclusion to the Royal Psalms because it tells us what kind of King reigns over the universe.  

He is a King who invites the whole earth to shout for joy. He is a Shepherd who claims us as His own. And He is a God defined by goodness, loyal love, and eternal dependability.  

So today, as we walk our trek, let us not be silent. Let us check our hearts—are we serving with gladness? And let us mentally pass through the gates, carrying the offering of thanksgiving for who He is.  

If you found this podcast insightful, please subscribe and leave us a review, then encourage your friends and family to join us and come along tomorrow for another day of, ‘Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.’  

Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly, I am your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal.   As we take this Trek of life together, let us always: Live Abundantly.   Love Unconditionally.   Listen Intentionally.   Learn Continuously.   Lend to others Generously.   Lead with Integrity.   Leave a Living Legacy Each Day.  

I am Guthrie Chamberlain, reminding you to’ Keep Moving Forward,’ ‘Enjoy your Journey,’ and ‘Create a Great Day…Everyday! See you next time for more daily wisdom!