Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! – Psalm 100:4
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be granted an audience with a king? In the United Kingdom, King Charles III grants one-on-one audiences to a variety of people—diplomats, politicians, leaders of the military, religious hierarchy, and notable laureates such as Olympic winners. An audience with the king is generally 20 minutes in length or shorter, and a full transcript is made of the meeting. An “uncredentialed” individual might be able to gain such an audience, but the Public Information Office suggests you had best have a good reason.
How different it is to meet with the King of the Universe, the Holy God Himself! In the Old Testament time of the tabernacle, then the temple, access to the place where God was present, the Holy of Holies, was restricted to a singularity of time and person. At the death of Jesus Christ, when the veil of the temple was torn from top to bottom, God opened that opportunity to all who believe. Hebrews 10:19 and following confirms that you “have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus,” urging you to “draw near” to Him. No appointment is necessary. No diplomatic portfolio or chest full of medals is required. What gives you an audience with Him is the shed blood of Jesus.
An old acronym for the basics of prayer is ACTS: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication. Today’s verse includes thanksgiving and praise, essential parts of worship. Many psalms and other songs throughout Scripture tell of the majesty of the triune God. “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty,” King David sang in his prayer of 1 Chronicles 29:10-13. As hymn writer Robert Grant wrote, “O worship the King, all glorious above.” Bring your praise, worship, and thanksgiving as you meet Him in prayer today.
Today’s Verse: Psalm 100:4
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Recommended for further reading: Isaiah 40:10-18, 25-26, 28-31
Behold, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young.
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand
and marked off the heavens with a span,
enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure
and weighed the mountains in scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord,
or what man shows him his counsel?
14 Whom did he consult,
and who made him understand?
Who taught him the path of justice,
and taught him knowledge,
and showed him the way of understanding?
15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
and are accounted as the dust on the scales;
behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust.
16 Lebanon would not suffice for fuel,
nor are its beasts enough for a burnt offering.
17 All the nations are as nothing before him,
they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness.
18 To whom then will you liken God,
or what likeness compare with him?
25 To whom then will you compare me,
that I should be like him? says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes on high and see:
who created these?
He who brings out their host by number,
calling them all by name;
by the greatness of his might
and because he is strong in power,
not one is missing.
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
