READ | SERMON NOTES
SUMMARY l Psalm 100 is more than a hope for worship; it is a glimpse into God’s heart for the nations—His two deep longings.
First, He longs for a day when all the earth will worship Him with gladness.
We do see glimpses of what God is longing for: moments when an entire village, city or region turns to Him in repentance and joyful worship. Bishop Emeritus Dr Hwa Yung touched on this topic at the 4th Lausanne Congress in 2024. He described the Sarawak revival that took place in the Borneo jungles among the Lun Bawang people. This revival started 50 years ago and is still active today, and has triggered mass repentance, prayer, reconciliation and healing. The result? A deep sense of the fear of God and joyful worship, with more than one million believers added to the East Malaysia Church.
Take note that Psalm 100 points us to something far greater than the Sarawak revival—a day when people from all lands worship God, not just some cities or villages.
God’s second longing is for the whole world to know three foundational truths.
Truth #1: The Lord Alone is God
Let all recognise Yahweh as the only and one true God. He has no equal—no competitor beside Him, no authority above Him. This is clearly stated in Isaiah 45:5: “I am the Lord, and there is no other apart from me.”
Truth #2: God is Our Maker and We Belong to Him
Psalm 100 states, “we are His”, which means that God claims us and cares for us. He does not create us and leave us to our own devices. He is deeply committed to our welfare—leading us to what is good and providing what is needed.
One may wonder … why did God create us? God’s act of creation, my friends, is not driven by a lack or need, but by His overflowing goodness. He did not create us to complete Himself. God created us to share Himself.
“He needed nothing, being perfect and eternal. There is only one possible motive: altruistic love, sheer generosity and the desire to share His goodness and glory with others.” – Peter Kreeft, author of The God Who Loves You: Love Divine, All Loves Excelling.
Truth #3: God is Good, Loving, and Faithful Forever
We humans are inconsistent. We could be patiently counselling someone for hours, only to grow impatient the minute we see something distasteful. We could be truthful one moment and bend the truth the next, just to protect our reputation. We could be generously supporting a cause with our resources and then flip to selfishly guarding our time, comfort and convenience.
This is why Psalm 100 is so striking! It contrasts our instability with God’s trustworthiness. While we are inconsistent, God is steadfast in goodness, constant in love and faithful through every generation. We are sorely in need of a reliable God, as His reliability is not limited by time, not influenced by culture and not subject to human change.
Now, knowing that the God who loves us is good, loving and faithful must produce joy in all of us. And the evidence of this joy in our lives is a church that serves God with gladness.
Joy shows up in three ways:
- Willingness to serve: This willingness creates an energy in us. It does not mean that we are never physically tired from our earthly responsibilities. This energy comes from the joy of the Lord.
- Wholehearted commitment: Service is considered a grateful response, not a reluctant obligation and it helps us stay the course. We do not respond to the circumstances on earth. Instead, we respond upward, to the God who is unchanging. This keeps us joyful and committed.
- The way we speak: Our words reveal our hearts. Two persons doing the same task may have totally different views of their job. Take two bricklayers: one sees it as a burden (“I am laying bricks; it is hard work”), while another sees it as a joyful calling (“I am building a church where people will worship God, children will learn about God, and families will find hope”). The task is the same, but the heart is different. Joy does not necessarily remove responsibility, but it shapes our view, turning duty into delight.
The question is: What motivates us to honour God?
It is because of that great day—the day when everyone bows before Him, the day when people from every nation know that God is the Law, the day when all will recognise that He made us and we are His. When that day comes, there will no longer be any doubt that God is good, loving, and faithful forever. My friends, that day is a certainty. Are you looking forward to it?
How then should we live while awaiting the arrival of that day?
We must live each day in wholehearted worship. God is constantly working with us as we devote ourselves to Him. In Wesley, it is a clear testament that God has been bringing newcomers to our church—our Saturday service, which used to be half-filled, has been filled for many weeks. We may think that we are worshipping God in an enclosed place, but God is working in the spiritual realm. When we do our part, God will do His part by adding to what we already have.
The other task for us is to make God known. Alan Kreider wrote in his book The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire that the early Christians primarily made God known through a distinctive way of life shaped by patience, worship and faithful discipleship. There were no aggressive evangelistic campaigns; their lives became a visible witness to the character of God. Christianity did not initially spread through political influence, intellectual dominance, military power or cultural prestige. Instead, it spread through what he calls a slow transformation of people who lived differently in public then (let me add: and in private).
The Romans noticed Christians to be unusually patient, enduring persecution without retaliation. They did not mirror Roman violence and never used force to achieve their ends. In a culture built on force, patience must have looked like a strange power. Christians formed communities where the poor and slaves were included and enemies could be forgiven. People saw something special in Christians before knowing the Christian theology. In short, the Romans tasted and saw God’s goodness, not through argument, but through a slow, patient and embodied Christian way of life.
I urge you to live your life in such a way that God’s goodness is clearly visible. Go and make the Lord known wherever you are placed this week!
PONDER | REFLECTION QUESTIONS
- Psalm 100 begins with a call for all the earth to shout for joy to the Lord. What does this reveal about God’s desire for the nations, and why do you think the Psalmist longs for the whole world – not just Israel – to worship Him?
- A Longing for the Nations to Know God
“Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” (Psalm 100:3)
a. Why is knowing who God is essential before people can genuinely worship Him?
b. What does it mean to live with a deep sense of belonging to God, and how might this identity change the way we handle fear, uncertainty, or pressure in life? - Psalm 100:5 declares God’s goodness, love, and faithfulness across generations.
a. How does this truth speak into a world marked by instability and broken trust?
b. In today’s culture, what would it look like for Christians to embody God’s enduring love and faithfulness in attractive ways?
c. If someone observed your life over time, what aspects would point them toward the reality that God is good, loving, and faithful? - What might need to change in your life that helps others recognise God and move toward worship?
- Commit to Action
a. This week, intentionally let gratitude and patience shape your tone, conversations, and responses – especially in ordinary or stressful moments.
b. Take one intentional step to make God known to someone – through a conversation, testimony, invitation to church or a small group, or a simple story of what God has done in your life.
