Thanksgiving – St. John's Episcopal Church, Suffolk, VA https://stjohnsepiscopal-suffolk.org Serving our community since 1642 Mon, 20 Nov 2017 20:16:27 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.3.1 https://stjohnsepiscopal-suffolk.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/cropped-Door-for-website-55x55.jpgThanksgiving – St. John's Episcopal Church, Suffolk, VAhttps://stjohnsepiscopal-suffolk.org 32 32 116451644 All Lands Summoned to Praise God – discussion of Psalm 100 on 11/26/2017https://stjohnsepiscopal-suffolk.org/2017/11/20/all-lands-summoned-to-praise-god-discussion-of-psalm-100-on-11-26-2017/ https://stjohnsepiscopal-suffolk.org/2017/11/20/all-lands-summoned-to-praise-god-discussion-of-psalm-100-on-11-26-2017/#respond Mon, 20 Nov 2017 20:16:27 +0000 http://stjohnsepiscopal-suffolk.org/?p=673 Nov 26 – Last Pentecost
Psalm 100
All Lands Summoned to Praise God

Background: This Psalm carries the superscription: A Psalm of thanksgiving or alternatively a psalm of praise. This Psalm is found in the 4th Book of Psalms (Psalms 90 – 106) and has no attribution to an author. Scholars assign this Psalm as a hymn of praise and thanksgiving for the goodness of the Lord.

Theme: This Psalm is a call to worship and an imperative hymn. Scholars attest liturgical and theological functions to this Psalm and see a principal function of the Psalm as leading the community to worship.

Questions to Ponder:
* Please read Psalm 100.
* Reflect on the action words and phrases in the text: worship; come into; know; enter; give thanks. How might those directives lead a singer to prepare for worshiping God?
* How might the imperative “make a joyful noise…” be different than “sing to the Lord…” found elsewhere in the Psalms?
* What does it mean to “worship with gladness”?
* Why should we come into God’s presence and worship God with singing? Or better, why might we need to be reminded to worship in this manner?
* Why might verse 3 look different than the other verses in this Psalm? What do you think the difference in format signals to the reader/prayer/singer?
* How do we “know” the Lord is God? How does an alternative translation of the text, “acknowledge that the Lord is God” change the meaning of the text?
* What implication do you see in the descriptive portion of verse 3 (It is he that made us…)?
* What do you think the subject of this Psalm is? How does that understanding influence your interpretation of the Psalm?
* How does this Psalm shape the way we are called to worship? Or said differently, how does this Psalm describe “how to worship” the Lord?
* Based on the framework and outline provided in this Psalm, what ways are believers supposed to praise the Lord?
* For what reason does this Psalm tell us we are supposed to worship God?
* What application does this Psalm have as a call to worship for modern believers, both Christian and Jews?
* What challenges you and spurs you to a deeper relationship with God through this Psalm?

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