INTRODUCTION
The human heart is an amazing creation of God. Let’s see how much you know about this miracle of creation. What’s the average heartbeat for an adult?
(The average heartbeat is 72 times per minute. In the course of one day it beats over 100,000 times. In one year the heart beats almost 38 million times, and by the time you are 70 years old, on average, it's made it to 2.5 billion beats. (howstuffworks.com)
Can you describe how the heart works to provide the body with oxygen rich blood?
(Draw this on the board using a traditional picture of a heart. The right and left sides of the heart have separate functions. The right side of the heart collects oxygen-poor blood from the body and pumps it to the lungs where it picks up oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. The left side of the heart then collects oxygen-rich blood from the lungs and pumps it to the body so that the cells throughout your body receive the oxygen they need to function properly.)
An average heart pumps 2.4 ounces per heartbeat. And, as we already mentioned, an average heartbeat is 72 beats per minute. Therefore an average heart pumps 1.3 gallons (5 Liters) per minute. In other words it pumps 1,900 gallons per day, almost 700,000 gallons (2,628,000 Liters) per year, or 48 million gallons by the time someone is 70 years old. That's not bad for a 10-ounce pump.
Though we don’t fully understand the working of our own heart, we benefit from its amazing work. The heart is one of God’s great works of creation. The heart is also a powerful witness to the greatness of its Creator.
Psalm 135 is a witness to the greatness of God. The psalmist contrasts lifeless human-constructed idols with the reality of the living God. The result is twofold: the psalm magnifies the greatness of the true God and it points out the embarrassing inadequacy of all gods that people construct. In the end one thing is clear: only God is great. Though there is much we don’t understand about God, what we do know leaves us in awe of His greatness. God alone is great and worthy of our praise. The psalmist is in awe before God.
This is our last lesson from Psalms on the nature of God. We’ve learned that God reveals Himself (Ps. 19). He wants to be known by us. God is Just (Ps. 9). He will one day make all things right. This will happen and that’s a reason we can give Him thanks. God is Faithful (Ps. 105, 106). We have numerous examples of God’s faithfulness to us despite our many acts of unfaithfulness. Lastly, God is Great (Ps. 135). God alone is great and worthy of our praise. He inspires awe in worshipers.
Praise is the main theme of the final section of Psalms: Psalm 135-150. It’s fitting that the Psalms end with songs of praise to God. The psalmist has dealt with the range of life’s issues: sorrow and persecution, confusion and wise choices, sin and forgiveness, and much more. At the end of all life’s experiences he comes to know that God is worthy of our praise. In other words, as you move toward the end of Psalms there are fewer psalms on troubles and more on praise. The first of these praise hymns, Psalm 135, asserts God alone is to be praised because God is great.
There is another general matter of information about Psalm 135. Every verse in Psalm 135 quotes or alludes to some other part of Scripture. Maybe his mind is so full of scriptural history and texts that consciously or unconsciously he interweaves phrase after phrase into a composition of praise. This used to be the case of Christians when they prayed. They had such a thorough knowledge of the Bible that it was a natural part of the way they expressed their prayer. Not so today. Our lack of Bible knowledge has led to more “Now I lay me down to sleep” prayers in comparison. Because the psalmist’s mind is full of Scripture he praises God for His greatness.
The reason God alone is worthy to be praised is because God is good.
I. GOD IS GOOD (PS. 135:1-4)
Notice the requirement to praise God (vs. 1-2) and the reason for praising God (vs. 3-4).
A. Requirement (vs. 1-2)
Three times in v. 1 we are commanded to praise God. The command to praise God highlights the psalmist’s enthusiasm over the goodness of God. It also stresses the rightness to praise such a good and great God. C.S. Lewis in Reflections on Psalms said this about the reasonableness of praise:
"We all despise the man who demands continued assurance of his own virtue, intelligence or delightfulness; we despise still more the crowd of people round every dictator, every millionaire, every celebrity, who gratify that demand. Thus a picture, at once ludicrous and horrible, both of God and His worshippers, threatened to appear in my mind. The Psalms were especially troublesome in this way – ‘Praise the Lord,' 'O praise the Lord with me,' 'Praise Him.' . . . Worse still was the statement put into God's own mouth, 'whoso offereth me thanks and praise, he honoureth me' (50:23). It was hideously like saying, 'What I most want is to be told that I am good and great.' . . . It was extremely distressing. It made one think what one least wanted to think. Gratitude to God, reverence to Him, obedience to Him, I thought I could understand; not this perpetual eulogy. . . .
"It is in the process of being worshipped that God communicates His presence to men. It is not of course the only way. But for many people at many times the 'fair beauty of the Lord' is revealed chiefly or only while they worship Him together. Even in Judaism the essence of the sacrifice was not really that men gave bulls and goats to God, but that by their so doing God gave Himself to men; in the central act of our own worship of course this is far clearer – there it is manifestly, even physically, God who gives and we who receive. The miserable idea that God should in any sense need, or crave for, our worship like a vain woman wanting compliments, or a vain author presenting his new books to people who never met or heard him, is implicitly answered by the words, 'If I be hungry I will not tell thee' (50:12). Even if such an absurd Deity could be conceived, He would hardly come to us, the lowest of rational creatures, to gratify His appetite. I don't want my dog to bark approval of my books.
"The most obvious fact about praise—whether of God or anything—strangely escaped me. I thought of it in terms of compliment, approval, or the giving of honour. I had never noticed that all enjoyment spontaneously overflows into praise unless …shyness or the fear of boring others is deliberately brought in to check it. The world rings with praise—lovers praising their mistresses, readers their favourite poet, walkers praising the countryside, players praising their favourite game – praise of weather, wines, dishes, actors, motors, horses, colleges, countries, historical personages, children, flowers, mountains, rare stamps, rare beetles, even sometimes politicians or scholars. I had not noticed how the humblest, and at the same time most balanced and capacious, minds, praised most, while the cranks, misfits, and malcontents praised least...Except where intolerably adverse circumstances interfere, praise almost seems to be inner health made audible.…I had not noticed either that just as men spontaneously praise whatever they value, so they spontaneously urge us to join them in praising it: “Isn’t she lovely? Wasn’t it glorious? Don’t you think that magnificent?” The Psalmists in telling everyone to praise God are doing what all men do when they speak of what they care about. My whole, more general, difficulty about the praise of God depended on my absurdly denying to us, as regards the supremely Valuable, what we delight to do, what we indeed can’t help doing, about everything else we value.
“I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment; it is its appointed consummation. It is not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are; the delight is incomplete till it is expressed… If it were possible for a created soul fully… to “appreciate”, that is to love and delight in, the worthiest object of all, and simultaneously at every moment to give this delight perfect expression, then that soul would be in supreme beautitude… The Scotch catechism says that man’s chief end is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever”. But we shall then know that these are the same thing. Fully to enjoy is to glorify. In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy Him."
Hallelujah is two words. The word “praise” and the word “Yah,” the first part of Yahweh. The word praise literally means, “to make something shine.” It is to boast or brag on someone or something. To praise is to make them show forth or be exalted. We do this when we compliment another person. We tell them why they are great. For example, who is someone that had a big influence on you as a child? What were the characteristics about them that made such a good impression on you?
When you compliment someone you may refer to their kindness or trustworthiness. You are showing forth their character. You came to these conclusions not from study in a lab but from personal experience with them. Their words and actions are what you heard and saw to form your opinion. Praising God is telling Him why He is good and great.
The psalmist requires us to praise “the name of the LORD.” Do you recall from our previous studies what we said “name” represented?
(The name of God refers to his character and attributes.)
He lists some of God’s attributes in this psalm. For example, what’s listed in v. 3? (good) v. 4? (electing love) v.5? (great)
When reading your Bible, before you close it, ask this question, “What did this text teach me about the goodness or the greatness of God?” Goodness would refer to forgiveness, mercy, love, generosity, etc. God’s greatness would refer to His sovereignty, eternal, power, etc. That’s a practical and powerful habit that will help you grow in your knowledge of God.
The psalmist is not interested in the act of praise but the object of praise. This is not just any god we are to praise. We praise the LORD. As in previous lessons, we said this word stands for Yahweh. This is the name God used to identify himself to Israel. The name represents that God made a covenant with Israel’s forefathers (Abr., Isaac, Jacob) and kept His promises to them.
Israel had to keep very clear who her God was because there was a pantheon of gods or idols to worship at this time. For example, imagine a child is lost at a ballgame. There are many moms and dads at the game but not just any of them will do. The only mom and dad that are acceptable are the child’s parents. There are always temptations for us to get confused about our God. We need to be clear and specific in describing who our God is.
The psalmist calls for the worship leaders, the priests, to set the example of proper worship of God. Next the people in the various courts are required to give praise to God. True worship is not just for the preachers, deacons and the very devoted. A time of praise and worship of God is required of all believers.
B. Reason (vs. 3-4).
See the word “for” in vs. 3-4? The word “for” gives the reasons for praising God as good. What are the reasons given to praise the goodness of God?
(God is good, it is delightful, and chose Jacob)
The first reason to praise God is He is good. The word “good” refers to a positive quality possessed to a high degree. The Hebrew word can refer to moral excellence, skillful craftsmanship, physical beauty, a state of well-being, or a degree of desirability. The most obvious use in the Bible is to describe God as the epitome of moral excellence. Genesis 1 reveals He is the supreme skilled craftsman. After every act of creation God declared that it was good. He is also the most desirable bridegroom of the Song of Solomon. In fact, the goodness of God is such a predominant characteristic that our English word for God is a contraction of “good.” Of all the things that could be said of God, Anglo-Saxons said He was “good.”
The farewell, “Have a good day,” reveals the worldview of the Old English. To them “Have a good day,” meant the same as “Have a God day.” Another way of saying this is “Go with God.” Goodness is intimately connected to God.
If you wished your neighbor in the morning “Have a God day,” what would you want God to share with them that day?
The things you listed are connected to God. Look at all we have to give praise to God.
By the way, if you don’t want to say, “Have a God day” then just say “Adios.”
The second reason is because praise is “pleasant.” Is it the act of singing praise or is it the Lord’s name that is delightful? Grammatically, either is possible. This could be a restatement and reinforcement of the first reason. The English word describes a high degree of gratification or extreme satisfaction. It is something that gives great pleasure. The psalmist’s relationship was not primarily duty or drudgery but delight.
What was the last thing that gave you this kind of gratification or satisfaction or pleasure? That’s the potential when we rightly praise God.
The third reason for praising God is He chose Jacob. What kind of man was Jacob before God did a work of transformation in his life?
Jacob was a bad man. You wouldn’t want to buy a used camel from him. He was also the second born. According to the tradition of that day his brother Esau, being born first, should have been the one to receive the greatest share of his father’s estate and the family blessing. But God picked Jacob to receive the covenant over Esau before either was born.
This point is stressing the grace of God. He chose to love us and save us before we ever had done anything to earn His favor. Despite our continual rebellion, He still loves and cares for us. Our failures do not stop Him from continuing to love us. This is reason enough to praise God for His goodness.
The reasons seem to be theological, experiential, and God’s action toward me.
The reason God alone is worthy to be praised is because God is good…great.
II. GOD IS GREAT (PS. 135:5-12)
Great sinners like Jacob and me need a great God. The LORD is a great God.
The psalmist names two great acts of the LORD. One is in vs. 5-7 and the other is in vs. 8-12. Read the passage and tell me what are the two great acts of God. (Creator, Sovereignty)
Verse five is setting up the contrast with idols. This will be dealt with more fully in vs. 13-18. First, he wants to fix our mind on the greatness of God. Then he will contrast that with the foolishness of idols.
In v. 5 he says the LORD is great. What’s the reason given in v. 6?
(God does whatever He pleases.)
There is no man that can say this. Why? (limitations of time, power, intelligence, etc. None of those things apply to God. That’s how much greater He is than man.)
The average thunderstorm releases energy equivalent to approximately eight thousand tons of TNT—a little more than half the energy released by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima at the end of WWII! The water vapor contained in a typical thunderstorm weighs about 550 thousand tons. A bolt of lightning may be five times hotter than the sun’s surface. We’ve seen straight-line winds in Norman clocked at 80-100 miles per hour. A thunderstorm is truly an awesome work of God in nature.
God displayed his greatness in the realm of human events (vs. 8-12). He brought down Egypt. Pharaoh could do nothing to stop God from judging the nation when He killed all the firstborn of man and beast. He used slaves to defeat warlike nations as they journeyed in the wilderness. When Joshua took the people into Canaan they defeated 31 kings! King Og was the last of the giants. His bed was kept on display like a museum piece. He saw that the crops, vineyards, homes, and cities of the original inhabitants were just handed over to Israel.
Notice the order in which the psalmist presents praise to God. First, he establishes that God is good. Then he provides proof that God is great in power and sovereignty. The goodness of God provides the boundaries for the greatness of God. Why does a God that has such unlimited power not frighten us?
(Because His power is bound by His goodness. That’s part of what is so alarming about the recent IRS scandal. What they were doing was evil and unjust. That’s frightening when they have so much power. This is never our concern with God.)
You can apply that to many of the qualities of God’s greatness. For example, God is omniscient. Why are we not frightened to know that God knows all about us? Because we know God is full of mercy. Mercy is one of God’s qualities of goodness. Despite our sinfulness, God’s thoughts toward us are merciful and compassionate.
Another quality of God is immutability. In other words, He never changes. But when you remember He is a good God we understand that it means His goodwill toward us is fixed. God’s holiness is bound by His grace. And His sovereignty is wrapped in His goodness. This is a cause to praise the LORD.
The reason God alone is worthy to be praised is because God is good…great…greatest.
III. GOD IS THE GREATEST (PS. 135:13-18)
As I mentioned, the psalmist is setting us up for this comparison between the true God and the idols people pursue.
Assign half to listen for the qualities of God. Assign other half to listen for qualities of idols. List on board the contrast.
Draw out the contrasts.
Additional thoughts:
What a contrast! The Creator is contrasted to a god that has to be made. Idols have no life in them. They can’t see but God can see in the dark as well as in the light. They don’t hear the idolater’s prayer. Idols have no breath but God controls the winds. The whole thing is an illusion. They think the god substitute offers life but it only offers death.
Those who give themselves to idolatry are as dead, blind, and deaf as the idol. The Egyptians worshiped a multitude of idols. Where did their idols leave them? Dead at the bottom of the Red Sea. They were so blind they could not see the signs of God in the Ten Plagues.
For example, take a man whose idol is his career. How does it make him blind and deaf to his family? Health? Spiritual life? How would it apply to a mother whose idol is her children?
He is convinced that his excessive hours and pursuit of achievement and wealth are for his family. Most likely it is not. He sacrifices the more valuable for the less valuable. Only God at the center of his life can correct his idolatry of selfishness and make him see his family, health, and spiritual life.
How would it apply to a mother whose idol is her children?
She puts her husband second and grows apart from him. It may lead to financial stress, spoilt children with the wrong values, and the neglect of her relationship with Christ.
All of God’s people are called to praise God according to vs. 19-21.
CONCLUSION
Read the story behind the words “I’m Coming Back to the Heart of Worship.” Then read the lyrics (crosswalk.com).
The song dates back to the late 1990s, born from a period of apathy within Matt’s home church, Soul Survivor, in Watford, England. Despite the country’s overall contribution to the current worship revival, Redman’s congregation was struggling to find meaning in its musical outpouring at the time.
“There was a dynamic missing, so the pastor did a pretty brave thing,” he recalls. “He decided to get rid of the sound system and band for a season, and we gathered together with just our voices. His point was that we’d lost our way in worship, and the way to get back to the heart would be to strip everything away.”
Reminding his church family to be producers in worship, not just consumers, the pastor, Mike Pilavachi, asked, “When you come through the doors on a Sunday, what are you bringing as your offering to God?”
Matt says the question initially led to some embarrassing silence, but eventually people broke into a cappella songs and heartfelt prayers, encountering God in a fresh way.
“Before long, we reintroduced the musicians and sound system, as we’d gained a new perspective that worship is all about Jesus, and He commands a response in the depths of our souls no matter what the circumstance and setting. ‘The Heart of Worship’ simply describes what occurred.”
When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come / Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart… / I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus
Redman remembers writing the song quickly in his bedroom soon after the church’s journey together, with no grand intentions, by any means, for it to become an international anthem. He viewed the words simply as his personal, subjective response to what he was learning about worship.
But when Matt shared “The Heart of Worship” with Pilavachi, the pastor suggested making a few small adjustments to the lyrics so any member of the church could relate to it as well.
When the music fades
And all is stripped away
And I simply come
Longing just to bring
Something that's of worth
That will bless your heart
I'll bring You more than a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the ways things appear
You're looking into my heart
I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You
All about You, Jesus
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You
It's all about You Jesus
King of endless worth
No one could express
How much You deserve
Though I'm weak and poor
All I have is Yours
Every single breath
I'll bring You more than just a song
For a song in itself
Is not what You have required
You search much deeper within
Through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart
I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about You
All about You, Jesus
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it
When it's all about You
It's all about You Jesus
Its all about you Jesus
Here’s your assignment this week. As you read your Bible this week on one side list what it teaches you about God’s good qualities. On the other side list what it teaches you about God’s great qualities. Let’s share our lists next Sunday. Let’s get back to the heart of worship: God.
