“Soul Talk: I Will Praise Him”
Ps. 145
An expressive woman wandered into a liturgical service. As the pastor preached, she became so caught up in his message that she exclaimed, “Praise the Lord!” A fellow worshipper leaned over and whispered, “Excuse me, but we don’t ‘praise the Lord’ in the Lutheran church.” A man down the pew corrected him: “Yes we do; it’s on page 19.”(1) Just how do you ‘praise the Lord?’ For that matter, why do you praise the Lord?
The Psalms are filled with songs of praise.David shares some of his reasons for making a vow to praise the Lord for ever and ever. First, David praises God for HIS MIGHTY ACTS. (3-7) In thinking of God’s multitude of mighty acts David decides to describe God rather than provide a litany of his acts. It reminds me of the old children’s prayer “God is great, God is good...” because he uses those two words in describing God’s mighyt acts. In verse 3 David says GOD IS GREAT. “Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.” God is so great WE CANNOT EVER GET TO THE BOTTOM OR FIND THE END OF HIS GREATNESS. This is a repeated theme of Scripture. (Is. 40:28 NLT) “Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding.” (Job 5:9 NLT) “He does great things too marvelous to understand. He performs countless miracles.” (Job 11:7-8 MSG) “Do you think you can explain the mystery of God? Do you think you can diagram God Almighty? God is far higher than you can imagine, far deeper than you can comprehend…” Even the Apostle Paul admitted God’s greatness is beyond words. (Rom. 11:33-36 MSG) “Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It’s way over our heads. We’ll never figure it out. Is there anyone around who can explain God? Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do? Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice? Everything comes from him; Everything happens through him; Everything ends up in him. Always glory! Always praise! Yes. Yes. Yes.”
God is also so great that WE CANNOT KEEP FROM SHARING HIM. Verse 4-6: “One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They tell of the power of your awesome works— and I will proclaim your great deeds.” God’s mighty acts provide us with more material than we can ever use in a lifetime.(2) God is so great that He is THE LEGACY EACH GENERATION LEAVES FOR THE SUCCEEDING GENERATION. God’s greatness is the lifeblood for all generations.
In 1717, King Louis XIV of France died. Preferring to be called "Louis the Great," he was the monarch who declared, "I am the State!" His court was the most magnificent in Europe, and his funeral was the most spectacular. In the church where the ceremony was performed, his body lay in a golden coffin. To dramatize his greatness, orders had been given that the cathedral would be very dimly lit with only one special candle that was to be set above the coffin. The thousands of people in attendance waited in silence. Then Bishop Massillon began to speak. Slowly reaching down, he snuffed out the candle and said, "Only God is great."(3) Only He is the lifeblood of the generations.
God is great – and GOD IS GOOD. (7) “They celebrate your abundant goodness…” As we have seen frequently in the Psalms, What God does for us and gives to us is ALWAYS IN ABUNDANCE. One author paints a fitting picture of God’s goodness and abundance. He wrote, “One time, my dad wanted to congratulate me on something I had accomplished in the sixth grade. He took me to K-Mart and made a wide sweeping gesture with his hand toward the whole store from the entrance. He said, "To congratulate you, I'll buy you anything in this whole store tonight." My eyes widened as I thought of the possibilities.
At the time, I didn't have a full grasp on how money worked or how much money Dad had. So I sort of limited things in my mind. I didn't even look at the huge stereo systems, expensive bikes, or anything that cost more than one hundred dollars. Instead, I chose a cassette tape case that was less than fifty dollars. I was content with just that case. It was more than I could afford myself, for sure, so I chose that one. It was nice. Only many years later did I find out from Dad that he had one thousand dollars cash in his pocket that night. What's more, he brought his checkbook just in case that wasn't enough. In my selection, I limited his blessing in my life.” He concluded, “Imagine how much God has in his pocket for you. You don't ask God for all the spiritual power you could because you forget that you are his child. Like me and my earthly father, you don't realize all he could do for you, in you, and through you.” (4) God is great and God is good.
David also praises God for HIS BENEVOLENCE. (8-13a) Verse 8: “The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.” God’s benevolence is seen in His GRACIOUS COMPASSION. The background of these words is Exodus 33 & 34. In Exodus 33, after Israel has committed the great sin of worshiping the golden calf, Moses asks God to show him his glory. The Lord says to Moses, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.” Lord hid Moses in a cleft in a rock and covered him with his hand. Then, according to Exodus 34:6–7, as the Lord passed in front of Moses, he proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.” (5) David reminds us why God doesn’t just let us go because of our unfaithfulness. Though God’s wrath is real, it is not quickly stirred. He is “slow to anger.” But more than that God is “rich in love.” This committed, rich love of God compels Him to keep His promises even when we do not keep ours. Amazingly, it is an attribute of God that is often emphasized in contexts where God’s people have been unfaithful.
This rich love was cherished and valued by saints throughout the ages. (Ps. 103:12) “As far as the east is from the west, so far he has removed our transgression from us.” (Is. 43:25-26) “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” (1Jn. 1:9) “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” God is slow to anger – He gives us time to turn around. He is rich in love – He wants us to experience forgiveness.
Notice, too, the extent of his gracious compassion – it is ALL INCLUSIVE. It is not limited or exclusive. (9) “The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.” Kindness is a law of God’s universe. The world was planned for blessing and fulfillment. I appreciate the way Margaret Fraser has expressed it in her poem ‘God’s Extras.’ (6)
God could have made the sun to rise Without such splendor in the skies; He could have made the sun to set Without a glory greater yet.
He could have made the corn to grow Without the sunny, golden glow; The fruits without those colors bright, So pleasant to the taste and sight.
And caused the apple trees to bloom Without the scent that doth perfume Those dainty blossoms, pink and white. That fill our hearts with sheer delight.
He could have made the ocean roll Without such music for the soul—
The mighty anthem, loud and strong—And birds without their clear, sweet song.
The charm of kittens’ dainty grace, The dimples in a baby’s face—
All these are “extras” from His hand, Whose love we cannot understand.
The God who fashioned flow’rs and trees, Delights to give us things that please, And all his handiwork so fair His glory and His love declare.
Yes, He Who made the earth and skies Gave “extras” for our ears and eyes, And while my heart with rapture sings, I thank Him for the “extra things.”
The third reason David praises God is because of GOD’S FAITHFULNESS. (14-20) Verse 13b: “The LORD is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.” God KEEPS HIS PROMISES. Why else would He have kept loving Israel after their rebellions in the wilderness? Because He keeps His promises. That’s why His love in unfailing. To Joshua God promised “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (1:5) Jeremiah proclaimed (3:22-23 NLT) “The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.” Paul wrote (1Cor. 1:9 NLT) “God will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” (1 Thess. 5:24) “The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.”
In his book The Pleasures of God, John Piper writes that “Sometimes we joke and say about marriage, "The honeymoon is over." But that's because we are finite. We can't sustain a honeymoon level of intensity and affection. We can't foresee the irritations that come with long-term familiarity. We can't stay as fit and handsome as we were then. We can't come up with enough new things to keep the relationship that fresh. But God says his joy over his people is like a bridegroom over a bride. He is talking about honeymoon intensity and honeymoon pleasures and honeymoon energy and excitement and enthusiasm and enjoyment. He is trying to get into our hearts what he means when he says he rejoices over us with all his heart. And add to this, that with God the honeymoon never ends. He is infinite in power and wisdom and creativity and love. And so he has no trouble sustaining a honeymoon level of intensity; he can foresee all the future quirks of our personality and has decided he will keep what's good for us and change what isn't; he will always be as handsome as he ever was, and will see to it that we get more and more beautiful forever; and he infinitely creative to think of new things to do together so that there will be no boredom for the next trillion ages of millenniums.”(7) God is faithful – He keeps His promises.
And God is faithful as HE PROVIDES FOR US. (14-16) “The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time. You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing”. He opens His hand and satisfies us. The Bible assures us that when we draw near to Him He will draw near to us. When we come with confidence to the throne of grace, we will receive mercy and find grace to help in every time of need. When we ask, we will receive and our joy will be full. God will show those who call on Him great and mighty things. He will fill our cup to overflowing. He will give us His own Spirit and all manner of good gifts when we call on Him. (8)
The fourth reason David praises God is because of GOD’S RIGHTEOUSNESS. (17-20) “The LORD is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does. The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.” God STAYS NEAR so He can hear our cries and save us. He does what is right for us. He does what is good for us.
In St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, is a life-size, marble statue of Christ writhing in anguish on the cross. The statue is subscribed: “This is how God loved the world!” God does what is right for us. So He had to come near us. Prophets couldn’t do it; priests couldn’t do it; earthly kings couldn’t do it; angels couldn’t do it. Only God in the flesh could do it; so God became flesh in Jesus Christ and dwelt among us - full of truth, full of grace, full of compassion, full of love, full of justice that demanded the price for sin be paid. So Jesus paid the price and died for us. As Paul put it (2 Cor. 5:21) “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” As the Living Bible paraphrases it, “God took the sinless Christ and poured into him our sins. Then, in exchange, he poured God’s goodness into us!”
Because of the cross God FULFILLS OUR DESIRES. Count Leo Tolstoy, the eminent Russian writer, tells how he turned from evil to good: “Five years ago faith came to me: I believed in the doctrine of Jesus, and all my life was suddenly changed. I cease to desire that which previously I had desired, and on the other hand, I took to desiring what I had never desired before. That which formerly used to appear good in my eyes appeared evil, and that which used to appear evil appeared good.” (9)
So David, in awe of God, promises to praise God above everything and everyone else, and to make God known; to so live in praise of God that others will see his God, be in awe, and turn to Him. Even science says that awe has this power - that it leads to useful behavior. A recent study shows that as children are exposed to wonders beyond their comprehension, they become less self-absorbed and more civic-minded. The correlation most likely works for adults as well. (10) Imagine, then, what awe for God can do. Just maybe that’s one reason God regularly commands us to praise His glory—and why loving God and neighbor work hand in hand.
So what are you waiting for? A little five-year-old girl had been attending the church kindergarten. Each day before the children were dismissed, the teacher had them sing the Doxology, which the little five-year-old loved to sing, but in her own words. “Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures, here we go!” (11) Let’s go and live lives that praise our God and lift up Jesus Christ. Praise God – here we go!
(1) Morgan, R. J. (2000). Nelson’s complete book of stories, illustrations, and quotes (electronic ed., p. 817). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers
(2) Bible Exposition Commentary (BE Series) - Old Testament - The Bible Exposition Commentary – Wisdom and Poetry.
(3) Jeff Arthurs, "Laying the Foundation for Peace ‘, PreachingToday.com
(4) Steve DeNeff and David Drury, Soul Shift (Wesleyan Publishing House, 2011), p. 55
(5) The ABC’s of Praise | John Koessler | PreachingToday.com
(6) Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (pp. 495–496). Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.
(7) John Piper, The Pleasures of God (Multnomah, 2000), p. 188
(8) Dr.William Brownson, Words of Hope, ‘I Don’t Feel Like It’, 10/24/82
(9) Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 1230). Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.
(10) Reported in ‘Greater Good – The Science of a Meaningful Life’, “An Awesome Way to Make Kids Less Self-Absorbed”, by Vicki Zakrzewski | November 28, 2012
(11) From Christian Parent, reprinted in Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 244). Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.
