Verses 1-2
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“Serve the Lord with gladness” is a wonderful command to remember. Our first task is to serve God, and our second is to do so with joy. God is worthy of our joy.
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Practically, serving with gladness means that we attend to our every task, each day, with a determination to do all for God's glory and to do so with a joyful attitude.
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Every day, think about how you can make your actions of the greatest service to God's kingdom, and then act with joy! This will make for a powerful life. Remember that joy in Christ is a form of worship. Gladness pleases God.
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Verses 3-4
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Verse 3. The Lord Jesus is our God, along with the Father and the Spirit, because He has both created us and by His grace He has made us into all that we are today.
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It's important to remember that we have not made ourselves. We are not self-made people. All of our skills and abilities, even to our good works and accomplishments for God's kingdom...everything about us is a product of God's grace in our lives (1 Corinthians 15:10).
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Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and we are His sheep (John 10:11-16, Acts 20:28).
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Verse 4. Knowing this, you have every reason to be thankful. We must be thankful because everything good about us, and everything good we have, comes from God.
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So “enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise.” Simply put, at every moment you approach God, whether that be in thinking of God or praying to Him (Psalm 30:4), or in your actions to enter a place to gather with other believers (1 Corinthians 3:16), be intentionally thankful.
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Verse 5
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And lastly, if anything, thank God because He is truly good. He is good to you and to all.
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This means that He does what is needed and what is best for all His creation to be able to turn from sin and come to Him. And every day, we see His goodness in how He provides what we need for life on earth (Matthew 5:45, 6:30-33).
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