Open-ended, Life-centred,
Gospel-Focussed Explorations of Australian Prayer Book Psalms.
Psalm 100....PENTECOST PLUS 5 (A)
.... (For the
Gospel, please scroll)
INTRODUCTION: 1] Psalms
are poetry for singing;
personal, depending not on rhyme, but on developing an idea,
contrasting it, etc. They date from pre-1000 BC (David)
to mid 400s
BC. Being of their day, we may
find attitudes in some PSs abhorrent. 2]
For the APB text see the reverse of the PB's title page. 3]
After Pentecost, the PSS in BK are the alternatives. 4] 100 has always been a favourite
PS, embracing as it does all the creation in praise. 5] 'gates' & 'courts' in v.3
refer to the Temple in Jerusalem & only by extension to Heaven.
WARMING
UP: How do we (& others) see ourself - joyful, serious,
black, unemotional......?
TREASURES OLD & NEW:
Identify God at work in anything this week?
ENTERING INTO THE STORY:
1-2 Do we often 'shout to
God....'? Shout at God,
maybe? Whose & what is the triumph we're shouting
- or not shouting - about? How can the creation - apart from human
beings - shout to God? Do we observe 'nature' shouting to God in any
way, or are we not tuned in enough to hear? Is 'nature' more likely to
be shouting in protest to God rather than praise for God because of
what we're doing to it these days?
Even if we're not sure what
the 'triumph' is, how glad & joyful are we? How do we 'picture'
God's 'face'? If Jesus is God's face, why would the Gospel tellers /
writers have been so careful to make sure there is not one word of
description of Jesus' physical appearance in their stories?
Do
we ever doubt that God (Yahweh / YHWH) is: a) our God? b) our Creator?
c) that we are God's / God's people / God's sheep? How do we know these things? Just in our
heads, or in our hearts, too? Have we got the head & heart balance
right yet?
3-4 What
does the imagery of God having 'gates' & 'courts' suggest to us?
How do we cope with such pictorial imagery about God (here, &, e.g.
in REV), or do we just pick it up & run with it, rather than
getting bogged down in it? Sticking to that imagery of 'gates' &
'courts', how well does our congregation & church building mirror
the thanksgiving, praise, & blessing the PSt encourages us to have?
Could our 'gates' be more off-putting than welcoming? Could our
'courts' be more welcoming, physically, or in the way we use them?
What does it mean that God's name is 'holy'? Has 'holy / holiness'
become a bit off-putting in today's world? What happens to us if we
lose our sense of God's holiness, & our own holiness stemming from
God's? Have we ourselves experienced God's goodness / God's love /
God's mercy / God's faithfulness? Could anyone who hasn't truly
understand what the PSt is talking about & encouraging here, let
alone doing what he wants us to do about it? Are we a good
advertisement for the God who is our God? How hard do people have to
look before they see God's image in us? Are we taking
inter-generational issues as seriously as others before us have, &
we need to do too in church & community?
PLUS: Does PS 100 make any
connection with / throw any light on today's Gospel (MT 9:35-10:8)?
