THE LORD REIGNS

PSALMS 99-101
Psa 99:1 The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
Psa 99:2 The LORD is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples.
Psa 99:3 Let them praise your great and awesome name! Holy is he!
Psa 99:4 The King in his might loves justice. You have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
Psa 99:5 Exalt the LORD our God; worship at his footstool! Holy is he!
Psa 99:6 Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called upon his name. They called to the LORD, and he answered them.
Psa 99:7 In the pillar of the cloud he spoke to them; they kept his testimonies and the statute that he gave them.
Psa 99:8 O LORD our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them, but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
Psa 99:9 Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the LORD our God is holy!
Psa 100:1 A Psalm for giving thanks. Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
Psa 100:2 Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing!
Psa 100:3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Psa 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
Psa 100:5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
Psa 101:1 A Psalm of David. I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O LORD, I will make music.
Psa 101:2 I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house;
Psa 101:3 I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.
Psa 101:4 A perverse heart shall be far from me; I will know nothing of evil.
Psa 101:5 Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly I will destroy. Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart I will not endure.
Psa 101:6 I will look with favor on the faithful in the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in the way that is blameless shall minister to me.
Psa 101:7 No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes.
Psa 101:8 Morning by morning I will destroy all the wicked in the land, cutting off all the evildoers from the city of the LORD.

God speaks of His reverence. I should respect Him as the Mighty King. God is Holy and I should always praise Him in all His works. God made me realized that He wants to be worship and sing praises in His name. I will do this because He is faithful and His love to me is eternal. Because He is Holy, I will live a holy life away from evil, I will live a pure life that is pleasing in God’s sight

Do you know how God loves you?

Do you know how God loves us? Let me quote some words from the Scriptures. (John 3:16 GNB) For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life. God sacrificed His one and only Son, Jesus to die on the cross for us who believe will have eternal life. Eternal life is spending eternity with God in heaven.

God wants us also to have a abundant or meaningful life as the Scriptures says… I have come in order that you might have life---life in all its fullness. (John 10:10 GNB) But most people are not experiencing the fullness of life. Why?

It’s because MAN has a problem. Man has a SIN problem and that separates us from God.

According to Romans 3:23 everyone has sinned and is far away from God's saving presence. Everyone meaning that includes you and me.

Romans 6:23 talks about the payment of sin. For sin pays its wage---death;… Death is revealed in Revelation 21:8 “But cowards, traitors, perverts, murderers, the immoral, those who practice magic, those who worship idols, and all liars---the place for them is the lake burning with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

The Bible talks about two kinds of death. The first death is physical. The second death is spiritual or eternal separation from God.

We might think that we can pay for our sins and earn eternal life by doing good works or keeping the Ten Commandments. But what is God’s perspective on sin is based on James 2:10 GNB Whoever breaks one commandment is guilty of breaking them all. If we commit one sin, how guilty are we? God sees us as guilty of breaking all of His laws!

What about doing good works so that one can go to heaven? (Eph 2:8 GNB) For it is by God's grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about it. (Titus 3:5 GNB) he saved us. It was not because of any good deeds that we ourselves had done, but because of his own mercy that he saved us, through the Holy Spirit, who gives us new birth and new life by washing us. This only shows that we cannot be saved by doing good works.

If we cannot depend on obeying the Ten Commandments and doing good works to save us, what then is God’s way to heaven?

Let’s look at (John 14:6 GNB) Jesus answered him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one goes to the Father except by me. JESUS, He is God’s way to Heaven! No one comes to the Father except through Jesus. Why? What did Jesus do? According to (Romans 5:8 GNB) But God has shown us how much he loves us---it was while we were still sinners that Christ died for us! (1Peter 2:24 GNB) Christ himself carried our sins in his body to the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. It is by his wounds that you have been healed. Jesus died on the cross and completely paid the penalty of our sins.

The resurrection of JESUS CHRIST assures us that He can fulfill His promise of eternal life. According to (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, GNB) I passed on to you what I received, which is of the greatest importance: that Christ died for our sins, as written in the Scriptures; that he was buried and that he was raised to life three days later, as written in the Scriptures; Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and He was raised on the third day.

The resurrection of Christ proves that He is not just an ordinary man but also the Son of God. In (Romans 1:3-4 GNB) It is about his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ: as to his humanity, he was born a descendant of David; as to his divine holiness, he was shown with great power to be the Son of God by being raised from death.

Jesus Himself said in (John 11:25-26,) “… I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

But merely knowing about what Jesus Christ has done for us is not enough. Let’s go back to (Rom 6:23 GNB) For sin pays its wage---death; but God's free gift is eternal life in union with Christ Jesus our Lord.

What is God’s gift to us? It is the gift of ETERNAL LIFE!

How do we receive this gift? In (1John 5:11 GNB) the testimony is this: God has given us eternal life, and this life has its source in his Son. Whoever has the Son has this life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.-

We must have Jesus Christ in us since He is the Source of eternal life…

We must place our FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST to save us.

Let’s read (Eph 2:8 GNB) For it is by God's grace that you have been saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about it. How are we saved? By God’s grace through faith. What is grace? It is something we don’t deserve and can’t earn. How do you receive a gift? You receive it by faith.

Let’s make a demonstration of Faith. If somebody offered you a gift, will you reject that gift that is given to you freely? Let’s assume the kind of gift is something you really need for yourself? Will you reject it? Who paid for the gift? Will you pay a gift being given to you freely? Did you do anything to deserve the gift? Compare to Jesus, who paid the penalty for our sins and is giving us the gift of eternal life for free? Jesus paid for it! The gift becomes yours once you accept it by faith.

To be saved by faith means to trust in Jesus Christ alone to save you. If you think that you must have faith in Jesus Christ plus do good works in order to have eternal life, then you are not really trusting in Jesus Christ alone because you are also trusting in yourself.

Once you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ alone to save you, He will give you the power to live a life of good deeds.

What promise does Jesus make in Revelation 3:20? Listen! I stand at the door and knock; if any hear my voice and open the door, I will come into their house and eat with them, and they will eat with me.

Jesus will come into your heart if you invite Him in.

Perhaps you have trusted God for many things, but today He is asking you to trust Him to save you. Jesus is standing at the door of your heart and knocking. He wants to enter your heart, forgive your sins and give you His free gift of eternal life which He purchased with His precious blood. Are you willing to repent of all of your sins? To repent means to turn away from your sins. To stop doing what is wrong or sinful. Do you believe that He will save you, forgive your sins and give you His free gift of eternal life if you trust in Him to save you? That is His promise to you and He will always keep His promise.

You can pray this simple prayer to express your faith in Jesus Christ and receive him into your heart as your Lord and Savior. You only have to pray this prayer once, but with sincerity, because when He enters your life, He will never leave you.

PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, thank you so much for loving me. I am so sorry for my sins. Thank you for dying on the cross for all of my sins. With your help, I will turn away from all my sins. Today, I trust in you to be my Lord and Savior and I receive you into my heart. Thank you for forgiving my sins and for coming into my heart. I accept your free gift of eternal life. Thank you for that one day, I will go home to you in heaven. From this day on, I will follow and obey you. Amen.

If you have prayed this prayer sincerely from your heart you have made the MOST IMPORTANT DECISION in your life! You have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

You now have a very personal and permanent relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. To grow in your relationship with Him:

1. Pray to Him every day. This is how we talk to God.

2. Read the Bible. This is how God talks to you. Begin with the Gospel of John. Read a chapter a day and ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand it.