“1 <<A Psalm of praise.>> Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye 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 hath 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 unto him, and bless his name. 5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations” (Psalm 100:1-5).

     For those who understand God’s gift of salvation and the wonders of His grace, being grateful should be the easiest thing in the world for them to do. Yet, how often we forget to praise the Lord. For many professing Christians, their Christianity seems to be one endless struggle with God rather than a struggle with sin and temptation. They argue for Christian liberty to do things they know in their hearts are wrong.

     We live in that day. The day we live in is the day of the Lukewarmites. Lukewarmites never learn to praise God because they never really grasp onto the wonders of the new life that is theirs in Christ. They want all the benefits but are just unwilling to accept many of the responsibilities. Why should every true Christian praise the Lord?

     Adam and Eve were the only two human beings created by God. Adam was created from the “dust of the ground” and Eve was created from Adam’s rib. All other human beings are the product of procreation. The reason this is important is that God created Adam and Eve as sinless beings. Adam is the progenitor of sin, not God.

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” (Romans 5:12).

     When the human race fell in sin, God’s plan of redemption was immediately implemented. That plan of redemption was prepared before God ever created Adam.

“14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:14-15).

“And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him {the Antichrist}, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8).

     When Adam fell in sin, God lost the first family He ever created. God immediately sought to restore them to the original specifications of holiness that they had been created in. They were created eternal beings. The fall did not change that fact about them. The fall and the state of the fall did change where they would spend that eternity. Apart from God’s redemption and re-creation, all of mankind (descendents of Adam) were condemned to spend eternity separated from the presence of God in a place of punishment created especially for the rebellious angels that fell with Satan. This state of separation from God is what the Bible refers to as “death.” The final place of this separation from God is called the “lake of fire.” This ultimate and eternal separation is called the “second death” in the Bible.

“14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:14-15).

     However, the promise of redemption is God’s promise of a new creation that would come through a new progenitor. That new progenitor is Jesus the Christ, the incarnate, eternal Son of God.

“1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death” (Revelation 21:1-8).

     To become part of this new creation, a person must be “born again.” The sinner must repent of the life of sin that is universal to the family of Adam. The sinner must fully trust (rest) in the finished work of redemption provided by the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary where He took our death sentence of separation from God upon Himself and paid our “wages of sin” (Romans 6:23a).

     The instant any sinner turns from sin and turns to faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ, acknowledging the sovereign authority of Jesus Christ over his life (Romans 10:9-10), the power of God, intrinsic to the gospel message (Romans 1:16), regenerates (recreates) that individual and he is “born again” into the family of God becoming part of the new creation in Christ Jesus. This new creation is the restoration of eternal life in the presence of God (Heaven) as opposed to eternal death in separation from God (Hell).

     The words “we are His people” of Psalm 100:3 refer to those people who are redeemed from the fallen creation having been made part of the new creation by grace through faith in the promised Redeemer. To what practice should all these truths translate in the believer’s life? God deserves to be praised!

     What does being “his people” involve? It means we have been twice born, redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb, bought out of the slave market of sin and delivered into the household of God.

“19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:19-22).

     It means we have become a new society of people all members of a new creation in Christ Jesus having common goals and purposes, believing and practicing common beliefs.

“15 And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. . . 17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (II Corinthians 5:15 & 17).

     It means we are “His people” determined to be like Jesus, living out our lives on this earth as part of this new creation in Christ Jesus, in a shared commonality and communion of a sweet and glorious harmony that comes from an inner peace that passes all human understanding.

“4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. 5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:4-7).

     It means we are a people looking for the any moment return of Jesus Christ to catch us away to the eternal glories of Heaven and the “marriage supper of the Lamb.”

“13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (I Thessalonians 4:13-18).

     It means we are a people who have been separated from the world of sin and carnality by the grace of God and who should be devoted to serve the Lord with gladness by seeking to rescue as many people as possible from the condemnation of Hell by preaching the wonderful message of God’s plan of redemption through the Blood of Christ.

“1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:1-2).

     It means we are a family of redeemed souls who should love one another and be willing to share what we have in Christian love and self sacrifice, to heal one another’s hurts and bear one another’s burdens. It means we will seek each other’s forgiveness when we fail in submissive humility and promote one another in the advancement of the kingdom of Christ.

“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently” (I Peter 1:22).

“We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death” (I John 3:14).

     Secondly, “we are His people.” We have been bought and paid for and the price that was paid was beyond human comprehension!

“19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (I Corinthians 6:19-20).

     We do not need to convince God that He is our Father. We should seek to convince Him that we understand that we are “His people” and that we acknowledge His sovereign authority over His creation (both new and old) of which we are a part. We measure life by time. God measures life by the content of our lives for which time is used. What is the content of your life? What have you used the time God has given you for?

“12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: 15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him” (Colossians 1:12-16).

     We are created and re-created “for Him.” You are not here by chance or by accident. You are here for a purpose, God’s purpose. “It is He that has made us and not we ourselves.”

     When God says “we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture,” it means something very specific to Him. It should mean something very specific to us. It should take us to the foot of Calvary’s Cross to see our own reflection in the eyes of the Holy One of Israel, our Saviour, Who died in our place to pay our sin debt before a holy and righteous God so that we can be “born again” and become part of the new creation in the family of God.

     When you trust Jesus Christ as your Saviour and receive Him as the Lord of your life, He makes you a new creation in Him. You are removed from the fallen, condemned family of Adam and you become a new born child of God. “It is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves.” Because of that kind of grace, He deserves our praise, thanksgiving and worship.