MAGNIFY THE LORD WITH ME
Psalm 34:3
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: SOMETIMES HONESTY ISN’T THE BEST POLICY
1. A patient showed up at a medical office and asked the receptionist, “You’re Mary, aren’t you?” She smiled, “No, I’m sorry, I’m not.”
2. “Are you sure? You look just like someone I know named Mary.” “Well, I hope she’s young and skinny.” “No, she looks like you.” OUCH! [RD]
B. TEXT
“I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2 My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear of it and be glad. 3 Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together. 4 I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears” Ps. 34:1-4, NKJV.
C. THE SITUATION & DAVID’S SOLUTION
1. The foreword of Psalm 34 tells us why this Psalm was written. David was on-the-run from King Saul, and had gone to Nob to the priests to get food and weapons. When David saw a spy of Saul there, he foolishly thought he could flee to the Philistine King Achish for protection.
2. Achish’s men recognized David as the arch-enemy of the Philistines and he only escaped with his life by acting insane (1 Sam. 21:10-15). It has to be pretty bad for you to have to act crazy to save your life!
3. David was burdened with fears on every side. Maybe some of you are too. How did David deal with his fears? He magnified the Lord! This ended up being a remedy to David’s troubles.
4. So tonight we’re going to look at the word “magnify.” The Hebrew Lexicon by Brown-Driver-Briggs on the Hebrew word ‘gadal’ gives us four insights into it. It means...
I. “TO MAKE [GOD] GREAT”
A. HOW DID DAVID DEAL WITH HIS FEARS?
1. He didn’t keep focusing on his troubles, but shifted his focus to the Lord! When we magnify the Lord, we focus on HIM to the exclusion of all else.
2. David began to say, “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear of it and be glad!” (Vss.1-2).
3. When you focus a camera lens, only what you’re focusing on will be clear, but the background will be out of focus. A LENS CAN ONLY FOCUS ON ONE THING AT A TIME. So do we; we either focus on our troubles, or we focus on the Lord!
4. David began to think about all the times God had helped him – to defeat the lion and the bear, to defeat Goliath, all the battles and victories God gave him over the Philistines.
5. David thought about what a loving and faithful God Jehovah is, and about God’s anointing He’d put on him, and God’s promises of favor. And all of a sudden joy bells began to ring down in his soul! His hands shot up and he began a praise and shout!
6. At that point, David’s troubles shrunk and God’s power grew to the size of mountains.
B. MAGNIFY IS DEFINED AS...
1. To increase the size of something by means of a lens, instrument, or device. The need for magnification isn’t because God is too small, it’s because our spiritual vision is so bad. Praising God brings us closer to Him.
2. Praise is a magnifier; it makes God bigger and your problems smaller. DON’T MAGNIFY YOUR TROUBLES, MAGNIFY THE LORD!
3. ILLUS.: REASON FOR GRANT’S RECESS
a. At one point, the U.S. Civil War was not going well for the North. General Grant and his officers saw only dangers and difficulties. After hours poring over maps and various strategies, Gen. Grant called for a recess, and they all left the command tent and stood under the bright stars.
b. Grant stood for almost an hour drinking in the vastness of the Milky Way galaxy. At last he said, “It’s time to resume our deliberations; God is now sufficiently larger and our problems sufficiently smaller!” [Source Unknown]
II. “TO HIGHLY VALUE [JESUS]”
A. GOD IS WORTHY OF OUR WORSHIP
1. WORSHIPPING GOD IS THE CORRECT RESPONSE TO HIS WONDER & MAJESTY. Ps. 33:1 says, “Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him!”
2. One time I got to see the British crown jewels, including one diamond the size of a lemon with a million sparkling facets – it takes your breath away! So does the wonder of God when you catch a glimpse of Him and He’s equally worthy of honor.
3. We have no trouble praising humans who do great feats, or spectacular mountains, or gigantic waterfalls – why would we think the Creator of all these things doesn’t deserve honor and praise for all He’s done for us (for He made all things for OUR enjoyment; 1 Tim. 1:17)?
4. It’s only right to worship Him. That’s why, when the Pharisees asked Jesus to stop the people from praising Him, He replied, “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” Luke 19:40.
5. God doesn’t need our praises, but God deserves all praise, for not only has He created us, but He’s also bought us back through Jesus Christ. WE GOTTA LOTTA OF REASONS TO PRAISE THE LORD!
B. ILLUS.: THROWING AWAY SOMETHING VALUABLE
1. While her mother was out of town, Annat, decided to surprise her with a new mattress. She took it to her mother's home, lugged it up the stairs, and disposed of the old, lumpy mattress. What a sweet daughter!
2. But when her mother got home and found out, she fainted. It turned out that the reason the old mattress was so lumpy was that her mother used it as a bank. She kept all her cash in it; specifically, about a million dollars' worth of cash, which was now somewhere in the city dump.
3. Yes, the ladies, along with volunteers at the dump, searched diligently for that mattress, but never found it. And people do the same thing with Jesus, discarding the Savior of the world without realizing the incredible value of what they’re throwing away.
4. ARE YOU TREATING JESUS AS VALUABLE AS YOU OUGHT TO?
III. “TO SPEAK UP ABOUT [JESUS]”
A. THE NAME OF JESUS IN PUBLIC DISCOURSE
1. Magnify also means “make a loud sound.” To get loud for God is to speak up about Jesus! It’s a challenge these days to pray in public and say, “In Jesus’ Name” at High School graduations or football games. It’s harder at colleges, State legislatures, or for the chaplain at the U.S. Senate. Other religions & atheists are offended.
2. Back in the 1970s, George Carlin had a famous comedy routine titled "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television.” Of course, you can say them all today – even the name of Jesus – as long as it’s a swear word. But if you give honor to Jesus on TV today, it’s usually cut out.
3. That’s why it’s so important that you and I deliberately speak the Name of Jesus every time we get a chance.
B. VISIBILITY OF GOD TO OUR SOCIETY
1. The opposite of magnifying the Lord is to “reduce, shrink, diminish, decrease, lessen, minimize.” Many people in our society are trying to minimize God & faith; they want to diminish knowledge of God or attention to God.
2. They don’t want you talking about God. David didn’t care what the naysayers said; He’d made up his mind he was going speak up about God’s power & reality.
3. WE ARE GOD’S MOUTHPIECE. Our mission is to inform other people about God. You need to draw attention to God. You need to spread the Word, you need to make God visible to everyone around you!
4. Other versions of Ps. 34:3 say, “Proclaim the Lord” or “Tell of the Lord’s greatness!” (NLT, CSB, ASV, GNT). The Message has David saying, “Join me in spreading the news!”
5. The Apostles in the N.T. were ordered to quit talking about Jesus! They refused! They said, “Shall we obey God or men?”
6. THE NAME OF JESUS IS THE KEY TO POWER
a. EVERY time a MIRACLE took place in the N.T., it was through the Person or name of Jesus.
b. We’re SAVED through that Name, “For there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12.
c. We become SONS of God by believing on His Name, Jn. 1:12….FORGIVEN through the Name of Jesus, Acts 2:38.
d. Jesus is PRESENT among us when we gather in His Name, Mt. 18:20.
e. DEMONS FLEE at the name of Jesus, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons…” Mk. 16:17.
f. Jesus’ Name brings HEALING, “In My Name…they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover” Mk. 16:18.
g. It’s also the KEY OF GRACE to all of God’s riches in Christ; “You may ask Me for anything in My Name and I will do it” John 14:13. LET’S SPEAK THE NAME OF JESUS PUBLICLY!
IV. “TO MAKE OF SUPREME IMPORTANCE”
A. MAGNIFYING CHRIST SHOULD BE THE PURPOSE OF OUR LIFE
1. The Jewish O.T. in Greek (Septuagint), translated 250 years before Christ, translates “magnify” with the Greek word “µe?a???ate.” This same word is used in the New Testament.
2. Paul said in Phip. 1:20, “according to my earnest expectation and my hope that in nothing shall I be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always so now also, Christ shall be MAGNIFIED in my body, whether it be by life or by death.”
3. Kittel (TDNT) says, “The whole life of Paul is a magnifying of Christ and his death as well. HEREIN HE SEES THE MEANING OF LIFE. This praise is accomplished through his life – as an instrument – which he has placed in the service of Christ” [Vol. IV., p. 543]. Will you join David & Paul in magnifying Christ?
B. HOW IMPORTANT IS JESUS? HE’S PRECIOUS!
1. Peter said, “Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” 1 Peter 2:4-7.
2. There was only one Cornerstone. Jesus is rare. In all of Heaven there’s only one Jesus Christ, willing & able to take away the sins of the world!
3. HIS BLOOD IS PRECIOUS. “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” 1 Peter 1:18-19.
4. We were redeemed with His blood. It’s safe to say that one drop of Jesus’ sinless blood is worth far more than all the wealth of the universe, and yet it took every drop of His precious blood to make to save and make us fit for Heaven.
5. How about you? Do you count Jesus to be the greatest prize of all, even greater than the rarest of earthly treasures? May God help us to see He is precious!
6. Paul said, “What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ” Phip. 3:8-9. I HOPE YOU LOVE JESUS LIKE THAT!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: THE GOD WHO PAINTS
1. Netzahualcoyotl (1402-1472) may have had a difficult name to pronounce, but his name is full of significance. It means “Hungry Coyote” and this man’s writings show a spiritual hunger.
2. As a poet and ruler in Mexico before the arrival of the Europeans, he wrote, “Truly the gods, which I worship, are idols of stone that will not speak or feel….Some very powerful, hidden and unknown god is the creator of the entire universe. He is the only one that can console me in my affliction and help me in such anguish as my heart feels; I want Him to be my helper and protection.”
3. We cannot know if Nezahualcoyott found the Giver of Life. But during his reign he built a pyramid to the “God who paints things with beauty,” and he banned human sacrifices in his city.
4. Today there are many “hungry Coyotes” who search among the idols of fame, money, and relationships and can’t find peace for their souls. (Our Daily Bread, 4/19/16)
5. Will you be a person who helps them find the God who “satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness?” (Ps. 107:9)
B. THE CALL
1. To “magnify the Lord” means to MAKE GOD GREAT, to recognize Him as worth the HIGHEST VALUE, SPEAK UP about Him, and to make Him the most IMPORTANT thing in your life.
2. How many want to “magnify the Lord with me?” Let’s all stand and pray.
ENDNOTES
Magnify is Strongs #1431, Hebrew word “gadal” “to twist,” to cause to make large:-- advance, boast, bring up, come to...estate, exceed, excellent, grow (up), increase, lift up, magnify, much set by, nourish, pass, promote, proudly spoken, tower.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon on Heb. word 'gadal':
??????115 verb grow up, become great (Aramaic ?????? (Ithpe`el), twist, twine, Arabic twist a cord, make firm, strong, become strong.
1 GROW UP, a. child Genesis 21:8,20; Gen. 25:27; 38:11,14; Ex. 2:10,11 Jud. 11:2; 13:24; Ruth 1:12; 1 Sam. 2:21; 3:19; 1 Kgs. 12:8,10; 2 Kgs. 4:18. b. lamb 2 Sam. 12:3.
2 BECOME GREAT, a. in EXTENT, wealthy Gen. 26:13 (2X); 41:40; Jer. 5:27; b. in VALUE. 1 Samuel 26:24 (2X); c. in intensity, grief Job 2:13, mourning Zech. 12:11, punishment Lam. 4:6, trespass Ezek. 9:6; d. in SOUND, loud cry Gen. 19:13; e. in IMPORTANCE, of a king Eccles. 2:9; 1 Kgs. 10:23 (2 Chron. 9:22) Dan. 8:9,10 (under figure of horn), chief Gen. 24:35; 48:19, Messiah Micah 5:3, Jerusalem Ezekiel 16:7;
f. of God 2 Sam. 7:22; Ps. 104:1, his works Psalm 92:6, his power Numbers 14:17 (J).
3 TO BE MAGNIFIED, a. house of David Zechariah 12:7; b. Yahweh Ps. 35:27; 40:17; 70:5; Mal. 1:5, his name 2 Samuel 7:26 (1 Chron. 17:24).
