A PSALM FOR GIVING THANKS Psalm 100

A  PSALM  FOR  GIVING  THANKS   Psalm  100     The  time  for  one  of  the  annual  feasts  of  Israel  is  near.  In  obedience  to  the  Law   of ...
Author: Ada Tucker
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A  PSALM  FOR  GIVING  THANKS  

Psalm  100     The  time  for  one  of  the  annual  feasts  of  Israel  is  near.  In  obedience  to  the  Law   of  Moses,  you  make  the  pilgrimage  to  the  holy  city  of  Jerusalem.  Your  destination  is   the  temple.  Your  purpose  is  worship.  Your  motivation  is  gratitude  for  what  the  Lord   has  done  for  you  and  your  people.  The  journey  is  long.  The  sun  is  relentless.  The  path   is  uninviting.  The  animal  you  have  brought  to  sacrifice  is  burdensome.  The  caravan  of   people  you  travel  with  is  noisy.  And  Jerusalem  is  many  miles  away.     You  left  home  focused.  But  now  you  are  frustrated.  You  keep  asking  yourself:   “Why  did  I  leave  home  for  this?”  You  do  not  answer  that  question.  You  cannot  answer   it.  Your  mind  is  too  far  from  worship.  The  only  reason  you  are  still  headed  to   Jerusalem  is  because  you  are  too  far  from  home  to  turn  around  now.  But  then  you   near  a  noise.  It  is  not  the  clamor  of  the  caravan.  The  noise  you  hear  is  melodic,   harmonious,  and  beautiful.  Nearing  Jerusalem,  greeters  meet  you  with  a  song  of   praise.  As  you  hear  the  choir  lift  this  song,  your  nagging  frustrations  melt  away.  And   you  join  in  singing  thanksgiving  to  God.  The  song  is  Psalm  100.     The  heading  of  Psalm  100  reads:  “A  PSALM  FOR  GIVING  THANKS.”  This  is  the  only   psalm  with  thanksgiving  in  the  heading.  Leviticus  commanded  Israel  to  present  meal   offerings  in  which  they  ate  a  meal  and  offered  sacrifice  in  grateful  remembrance  of   what  the  Lord  had  done  for  them.  The  heading  of  Psalm  100  may  indicate  this  psalm   was  to  be  sung  during  this  thank-­‐‑offering.  But  the  psalm  became  an  often-­‐‑used  call  to   worship  for  Israel.  It  has  also  been  so  used  throughout  church  history.  Psalm  100  is   one  of  the  most  popular  of  all  the  psalms.  Its  popularity  is  second  only  to  that  of   Psalm  23.  AUGUSTINE  wrote:  “The  verses  are  few,  but  big  with  great  subjects.”  This   beloved  psalm  teaches  an  important  lesson  about  true  worship:  It  is  your  duty  to  give   thanks  to  God  for  who  he  is  and  what  he  has  done.  Thanksgiving  is  not  a  right  or   option  or  privilege.  It  is  our  duty  to  give  thanks  to  God.       ALL  PEOPLE  THAT  ON  EARTH  DO  DWELL   SING  TO  THE  LORD  WITH  CHEERFUL  VOICE   HIM  SERVE  WITH  JOY,  HIS  PRAISE  FORTH  TELL   COME  YOU  BEFORE  HIM  AND  REJOICE  

  Psalm  100  issues  a  twofold  call  to  worship.  Verses  1-­‐‑3  call  for  joyful  praise  to   God.  Verses  4-­‐‑5  call  for  grateful  praise  to  God.                                                      

I.   OFFER  JOYFUL  PRAISE  TO  THE  LORD.    

  Psalm  100  begins  with  a  call  to  joy.  Joy  is  not  happiness.  Happiness  is  based   on  what  happens.  It  is  thing-­‐‑centered,  people-­‐‑centered,  or  event-­‐‑centered.  Joy  is  God-­‐‑ centered.  Psalm  100  calls  us  to  joy  by  leading  us  to  focus  on  God.  Verse  2  speaks  of   his  presence.  Verse  3  speaks  of  his  people  and  his  pasture.  Verse  4  speaks  of  his  gates   and  his  courts  and  his  name.  Verse  5  speaks  of  his  steadfast  love,  and  his  faithfulness.  

 

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With  this  God-­‐‑centered  focus,  Psalm  100  exhorts  us  to  joyfully  worship  and  joyfully   witness.     A.   WORSHIP  JOYFULLY.     In  Treasures  from  the  Psalms,  HENRY  GARIEPY  writes:  “Worship  is  one  of  the   most  sacred  exercises  of  life.  It  ushers  us  into  the  presence  of  God  who  created  the   heavens  and  the  earth.  In  worship,  the  creature  comes  to  his  Creator,  the  finite  comes   to  the  Infinite,  a  being  of  folly  and  sin  comes  to  the  One  who  is  all  wisdom  and   holiness.”  Worship  is  serious  business.  Yet  Psalm  100  does  not  call  for  a  solemn   assembly.  It  calls  for  joyful  praise.  Worship  should  not  be  like  waiting  in  a  doctor’s   office,  sitting  in  a  traffic  jam,  or  attending  a  funeral.  Worship  should  be  joyful.  Verses   1-­‐‑2  teach  three  ways  to  worship  God  joyfully.     SHOUT.  The  first  four  words  of  verse  1  –  “Make  a  joyful  noise”  –  are  but  one   word  in  Hebrew:  “Shout!”  It  signifies  a  shout  of  triumph,  like  a  shout  of  victory  in   battle.  This  is  how  we  should  worship  God.  When  someone  gets  loud  in  worship,  we   think  something  is  wrong  with  that  person.  But  something  is  wrong  with  the  person   who  is  not  moved  to  shout  the  victory  in  response  to  the  goodness  of  God.  Biblical   worship  is  not  subdued,  civilized,  or  sophisticated.  It  is  a  celebration.  Psalm  66:1-­‐‑2   says,  “Shout  for  joy  to  God,  all  the  earth;  sing  the  glory  of  his  name;  give  to  him   glorious  praise!”  With  no  regard  to  your  tastes,  culture,  background,  personality,  or   tradition,  Psalm  100  commands:  “Make  a  joyful  noise  to  the  Lord,  all  the  earth!”  This   call  to  worship  was  not  limited  to  Israel.  All  the  peoples  of  the  earth  are  commanded   to  forsake  their  idol  gods  to  worship  the  living  God.  This  universal  call  to  worship  is   the  mission  of  the  church.  JOHN  PIPER  wrote:  “Missions  is  not  the  ultimate  goal  of  the   church.  Worship  is.  Missions  exist  because  worship  doesn’t.”     SERVE.  Verse  2a  says,  “Serve  the  Lord  with  gladness!”  The  verb,  “serve,”  is  a   synonym  for  worship.  To  serve  the  Lord  is  to  worship  the  Lord.  We  worship  by   serving.  Just  because  you  sit  through  a  worship  service  does  not  mean  you  have   worshiped.  Worship  is  not  a  spectator  sport.  Every  member  of  the  church  is  a   minister  of  Jesus  Christ.  This  call  to  service  transcends  our  corporate,  public   assemblies.  It  is  to  submit  to  the  divine  authority.  True  worship  is  life  service,  not  lip   service.  Romans  12:1  says,  “I  appeal  to  you  therefore,  brothers,  by  the  mercies  of   God,  to  present  your  bodies  as  a  living  sacrifice,  holy  and  acceptable  to  God,  which  is   your  spiritual  worship.”  Christians  live  to  serve  the  Lord.  But  we  must  not  serve  God   reluctantly,  grudgingly,  or  mechanically.  Psalm  2:11  warns  the  kings  and  rulers  of  the   earth:  “Serve  the  Lord  with  fear,  and  rejoice  with  trembling.”  Psalm  100:2  exhorts   God’s  people  to  serve  the  Lord  with  gladness.  It  is  a  joyful  privilege  to  serve  the  Lord.     SING.  Verse  2b  says,  “Come  into  his  presence  with  singing.”  Ancient  Jews  read   this  as  a  call  to  enter  into  the  temple  to  worship  God.  In  that  sense,  this  verse  is  an   affirmation  of  public  and  corporate  worship.  This  call  to  come  together  for  worship   extends  to  the  New  Testament  church.  Hebrews  10:24-­‐‑25  says,  “And  let  us  consider   how  to  stir  up  one  another  to  love  and  good  works,  not  neglecting  to  meet  together,   as  is  the  habit  of  some,  but  encouraging  one  another,  and  all  the  more  as  you  see  the   Day  drawing  near.”  But  is  more  than  a  call  to  a  place.  It  is  a  call  to  a  Person.  Verse  2   says,  “Come  into  his  presence.”  This  is  the  privilege  of  worship.  Most  of  us  will  never    

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receive  a  WHITE  HOUSE  invitation  to  the  OVAL  OFFICE  to  meet  the  PRESIDENT.  Yet  the   Lord  has  opened  the  door  to  his  throne  room  to  welcome  you  in.  He  only  gives  one   stipulation:  “Come  into  his  presence  with  singing.”  We  should  not  come  into  God’s   presence  with  questions,  complaints,  or  requests.  We  should  come  into  his  presence   with  songs  of  praise.  Not  every  worshiper  can  sing.  But  every  worshiper  should  have   a  song  in  his  heart  and  on  his  lips.         B.   WITNESS  JOYFULLY.       Verse  3  says,  “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.”  Our  worship  should  be  joyful.   For  worship  to  be  joyful,  it  must  be  God-­‐‑centered.  But  worship  cannot  be  God-­‐‑ centered  if  you  do  not  know  the  God  you  claim  to  worship.  True  worship   acknowledges  three  truths  about  the  Lord.     THE  LORD  IS  GOD  ALONE.  Verse  3  says,  “Know  that  the  Lord,  he  is  God!”  The   phrase,  “he  is  God,”  is  emphatic.  It  is  not  a  statement  of  the  obvious,  that  God  is  God.   It  is  a  declaration  of  the  fact  that  God  is  God  alone.  The  God  of  Israel,  Christ,  and  the   church  is  the  one,  true,  and  living  God.  Exodus  20:3  says,  “You  shall  have  no  other   gods  before  me.”  Deuteronomy  6:4  says,  “Hear,  O  Israel:  The  Lord  our  God,  the  Lord   is  one.”  Isaiah  45:5  says,  “I  am  the  Lord,  and  there  is  no  other,  besides  me  there  is  no   God.”  The  affirmation  of  monotheism  is  essential  to  the  proper  worship  of  the  living   God.  It  acknowledges  the  exclusive  nature  of  God.  It  also  denounces  anything  that   would  rival  God.  WALTER  BRUEGGEMANN  said  it  well:  “To  praise  is  to  reject  alternative   loyalties  and  false  definitions  of  reality.  Praise  is  relentlessly  polemical.”     THE  LORD  IS  OUR  CREATOR.  Verse  2  says,  “Know  that  the  Lord,  he  is  God!  It  is  he   who  made  us,  and  we  are  his.”  The  Hebrew  words  for  “not”  and  “his”  are  similar.  So   there  are  alternative  readings  of  this  verse.  THE  KING  JAMES  VERSION  reads:  “It  is  He   who  has  made  us,  and  not  we  are  ourselves.”  But  it  is  more  accurate  to  read  the   statement  as  a  declaration  and  conclusion:  “It  is  he  who  has  made  us,  and  we  are  his.”   Some  people  think  the  theory  of  evolution  is  the  only  logical  explanation  for  the   creation  of  the  world.  It  is  a  popular  theory  not  because  it  is  provable  science,  but   because  it  is  self-­‐‑centered  theology.  If  the  world  was  created  by  intelligent  design,  we   are  subject  to  a  higher  power.  Sinful  humanity  would  rather  believe  we  evolved  from   monkeys,  rather  than  accepting  that  we  must  answer  to  God.  But  the  Bible   unapologetically  claims  that  God  created  us  and  we  belong  to  him.     THE  LORD  IS  OUR  REDEEMER.  Verse  3  begins  with  the  transcendence  of  God:   “Know  that  the  Lord,  he  is  God!  It  is  he  who  made  us,  and  we  are  his.”  The  verse  ends   with  the  immanence  of  God:  “we  are  his  people  and  the  sheep  of  his  pasture.”  With  a   sense  of  amazement,  the  psalmist  declares,  “We  are  his  people…”  Then  he  describes   what  it  means  to  be  the  people  of  God:  “and  the  sheep  of  his  pasture.”  Ancient  kings   were  often  called  “shepherd.”  To  call  God  “shepherd”  is  to  acknowledge  his  sovereign   authority.  God  rules  the  world  as  sovereign  creator.  But  God  cares  for  believers  as   gracious  redeemer.  Humanity  has  rebelled  against  its  Creator.  The  wages  of  sin  it   death.  But  God  satisfied  his  wrath  and  showed  his  love  by  sending  his  only  Son  to  die  

 

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on  the  cross  for  our  sins.  To  trust  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  to  be  graciously  saved,   eternally  secure,  and  fully  satisfied.  If  you  can  sincerely  sing,  “The  Lord  is  my   shepherd,”  you  can  joyfully  sing,  “I  shall  not  want.”        

II.   OFFER  GRATEFUL  PRAISE  TO  THE  LORD.    

  Psalm  100  begins  with  a  call  to  joy.  It  concludes  with  a  call  to  thanksgiving.  Joy   and  thanksgiving  are  inextricably  connected.  But  there  is  a  subtle  distinction.  Joy  is   rooted  in  who  God  is.  Thanksgiving  is  rooted  in  what  God  has  done.  Verses  1-­‐‑3  call  us   to  worship  in  acknowledgement  of  who  God  is.  Verses  4-­‐‑5  call  us  to  worship  in   remembrance  of  what  God  has  done.  ALTON  MCEACHERN  said  it  well:  “May  God  who   has  given  us  so  much  give  us  one  more  thing  –  a  grateful  heart.”  We  should  approach   God  and  adore  God  with  thanksgiving.       A.   APPROACH  GOD  WITH  THANKSGIVING.       Verse  4  says,  “Enter  his  gates  with  thanksgiving,  and  his  courts  with  praise!   Give  thanks  to  him;  bless  his  name!”  The  holy  God  who  warns  guilty  sinners  to  stay   way  is  the  gracious  God  who  invites  forgiven  sinners  to  enter  in.  “Gates”  and  “courts”   are  the  precincts  of  the  temple.  The  redeemed  people  of  God  are  commanded  to   assemble  in  God’s  house  to  worship  him.  The  emphasis  of  verse  4  is  on  how  we  enter:   “Enter  his  gates  with  thanksgiving,  and  his  courts  with  praise!”  To  approach  God  with   thanksgiving  requires  emotional  engagement.  But  emotions  should  be  a  passenger  in   the  vehicle  of  worship,  not  the  driver.  True  worship  is  a  determination  of  the  will,  not   a  response  of  the  emotions.  Psalm  34:1  declares,  “I  will  bless  the  Lord  at  all  times;  his   praise  shall  continually  be  in  my  mouth.”  Bless,  praise,  and  thank  God  no  matter   what!       The  Puritan  commentator,  Matthew  Henry,  was  robbed  while  walking  down  the  street.   The   thieves   took   everything   of   value.   Later   that   night,   Henry   made   the   following   entry   in   his   diary:   “Let   me   be   thankful   –   First,   because   I   was   never   robbed   before.   Second,   because   although   they   took   my   wallet,   they   did   not   take   my   life.   Third,   because   although  they  took  my  all,  it  was  not  much.  Fourth,  because  it  was  I  who  was  robbed,   not  I  who  robbed.    

  There  is  always  a  reason  to  give  thanks.  Every  day  is  a  day  of  thanksgiving.   You  always  have  so  much  to  thank  God  for.  Verse  4  commands:  “Enter  his  gates  with   thanksgiving,  and  his  courts  with  praise!  Give  thanks  to  him;  bless  his  name.”  We   often  come  to  corporate  worship  down,  defeated,  and  discouraged.  We  wait  for   something  to  happen  in  the  service  to  get  us  in  the  mind  or  mood  to  worship.  But  we   should  approach  God  with  thanksgiving  and  praise.     1  Thessalonians  5:18  says:  “give  thanks  in  all  circumstances,  for  this  is  the  will   of  God  in  Christ  Jesus  for  you.”  Ephesians  5:20  says  be  “giving  thanks  always  and  for   everything  to  God  the  Father  in  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.”  STEVEN  J.  LAWSON   said  it  well:  “Worshipers  should  live  under  the  constant  theme  of  gratitude  to  God.”    

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But  what  if  you  cannot  find  anything  to  thank  God  for?  Verse  4  says:  “bless  his  name!”   Psalm  103:1-­‐‑5  says:  “Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul,  and  all  that  is  within  me,  bless  his   holy  name!  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul,  and  forget  not  all  his  benefits,  who  forgives  all   your  iniquity,  who  heals  all  your  diseases,  who  redeems  your  life  from  the  pit,  who   crowns  you  with  steadfast  love  and  mercy,  who  satisfies  you  with  good  so  that  your   youth  is  renewed  like  the  eagle’s.”         B.   ADORE  GOD  WITH  THANKSGIVING.       Verses  1-­‐‑4  record  seven  imperative  calls  to  worship:  shout,  serve,  come,   know,  enter,  give  thanks,  and  bless.  Verse  5  explains  why  God  is  worthy  of  our   worship.  Verse  5  says:  “For  the  Lord  is  good;  his  steadfast  love  endures  forever,  and   his  faithfulness  to  all  generations.”  This  psalm  is  not  about  the  physical,  material,  or   relational  blessings  we  have  received.  God  is  the  source  of  these  benefits.  And  we   should  give  thanks  to  God  for  them.  But  that  is  not  the  focus  of  this  call  to  worship.   The  psalmist  exhorts  us  to  give  thanks  and  praise  to  God  for  God’s  sake,  not  ours.   True  worship  is  God-­‐‑centered.  It  is  rooted  in  the  person,  nature,  and  character  of   God.  Verse  5  gives  three  reasons  why  we  should  adore  God  with  grateful  praise.     GOD  IS  GOOD.  James  1:17  says:  “Every  good  gift  and  every  perfect  gift  is  from   above,  coming  down  from  the  Father  of  lights  with  whom  there  is  no  variation  or   shadow  due  to  change.”  Everything  God  gives  is  good.  His  plans  are  Good.  His   providence  is  good.  His  provisions  are  good.  His  protection  is  good.  His  patience  is   good.  His  pardon  is  good.  But  Psalm  100:5  is  not  a  statement  about  what  God  gives.  It   is  about  who  God  is.  God  is  good.  Nahum  1:7  says,  “The  Lord  is  good,  a  stronghold  in   the  day  of  trouble;  he  knows  those  who  take  refuge  in  him.”  When  bad  things  happen,   God’s  goodness  is  demonstrated  in  the  fact  that  he  is  a  stronghold  in  the  day  of   trouble.  The  goodness  of  God  is  not  always  obvious  by  sight.  But  it  is  always  evident   by  faith.  Psalm  34:8  says,  “Oh,  taste  and  see  that  the  Lord  is  good!  Blessed  is  the  man   who  takes  refuge  in  him.”   GOD  IS  LOVE.  Verse  5  says:  “His  steadfast  love  endures  forever.”  “Steadfast  love”   is  loyal  love.  God’s  love  is  not  based  on  our  performance.  It  is  based  on  his  promise.   God  does  not  love  us  because  we  are  worthy  of  his  love.  God  loves  us  because  God   promised  to  love  us  and  God  always  keeps  his  word.  Malachi  3:6  says,  “For  I  the  Lord   do  not  change;  therefore  you,  O  children  of  Jacob,  are  not  consumed.”  If  God  changed   his  mind  about  us,  we  would  be  consumed  forever.  But  his  steadfast  love  endures   forever.  People  love  you  until  you  give  them  a  reason  not  to  love  you.  Romans  5:7-­‐‑8   says:  “For  one  will  scarcely  die  for  a  righteous  person  –  though  perhaps  for  a  good   person  one  would  dare  even  to  die  –  but  god  shows  his  love  for  us  in  that  while  we   were  still  sinners,  Christ  died  for  us.”  God  has  every  reason  not  to  love  you.  Yet  God   still  loves  you.  And  his  steadfast  love  will  never  give  up  on  you!     GOD  IS  FAITHFUL.  Verse  5  ends:  “and  his  faithfulness  to  all  generations.”  God  is  a   God  of  truth.  Every  thing  God  speaks  is  true.  God  only  and  always  acts  according  to   the  truth.  This  is  the  faithfulness  of  God.  Lamentations  3:22-­‐‑23  says,  “The  steadfast   love  of  the  Lord  never  ceases;  his  mercies  never  come  to  an  end;  they  are  new  every  

 

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morning;  great  is  your  faithfulness.”  God’s  faithfulness  is  great  because  it  endures  to   all  generations.  God  was  faithful  to  past  generations.  God  will  be  faithful  to  future   generations.  Psalm  100  begins  by  broadening  our  perspective  to  all  the  earth.  It   concludes  by  lengthening  our  perspective  to  all  generations.  We  acknowledge  the   faithfulness  of  God  by  thanking  him  for  what  he  has  already  done.  We  also   acknowledge  the  faithfulness  of  God  by  trusting  him  for  what  he  it  yet  to  do.         Psalm  100:5  is  a  summary  of  the  character  of  God.  God  is  good.  God  is  love.   God  is  faithful.  But  there  is  a  better  way  to  see  the  character  of  God  than  these   statements  of  his  attributes.  God’s  goodness  lived  in  a  human  body.  God’s  love’s  died   on  an  old  rugged  cross.  God’s  faithfulness  conquered  the  power  of  sin,  death,  and   hell.  The  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  the  walking,  talking,  breathing  incarnation  of  divine   goodness,  steadfast  love,  and  faithfulness.  2  Corinthians  9:15  says:  “Thanks  be  to  God   for  his  inexpressible  gift!”  This  is  the  reason  why  we  offer  grateful  praise  to  the  Lord   when  there  is  no  other  reason  to  give  praise.     •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •   •  

 

Thank  God  for  the  eternal  Sonship  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  virgin  birth  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  righteous  life  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  divine  revelation  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  mighty  miracles  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  atoning  death  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  victorious  resurrection  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  glorious  ascension  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  intercessory  ministry  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  imminent  return  of  Jesus.     Thank  God  for  the  matchless  name  of  Jesus.    

HOW  CAN  I  SAY  THANKS  FOR  THE  THINGS  YOU  HAVE  DONE  FOR  ME?   THINGS  SO  UNDESERVED  YET  YOU  GAVE  TO  PROVE  YOUR  LOVE  FOR  ME.   THE  VOICES  OF  A  MILLION  ANGELS  COULD  NOT  EXPRESS  MY  GRATITUDE.   ALL  THAT  I  AM,  AND  EVER  HOPE  TO  BE,  I  OWE  IT  ALL  TO  THEE.     TO  GOD  BE  THE  GLORY,  TO  GOD  BE  THE  GLORY   TO  GOD  BE  THE  GLORY  FOR  THE  THINGS  HE  HAS  DONE   WITH  HIS  BLOOD  HE  HAS  SAVED  ME,  WITH  HIS  POWER  HE  HAS  RAISED  ME   TO  GOD  BE  THE  GLORY  FOR  THE  THINGS  HE  HAS  DONE     JUST  LET  ME  LIVE  MY  LIFE  AND  LET  IT  BE  PLEASING  LORD  TO  THEE   AND  IF  I  GAIN  ANY  PRAISE,  LET  IT  GO  TO  CALVARY   WITH  HIS  BLOOD  HE  HAS  SAVED  ME,  WITH  HIS  POWER  HE  HAS  RAISED  ME   TO  GOD  BE  THE  GLORY  FOR  THE  THINGS  HE  HAS  DONE  

   

 

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