Praising the Lord O my Soul
Psalms 145
Online Sermon: http://www.mckeesfamily.com/?page_id=3567
“Oh, to swim in a sea of gratitude, to feel waves of praise breaking over one’s joyful head, and then to dive into the ocean of adoration, and lose one’s self in the ever-blessed God!”
Charles Spurgeon
Psalms 145 is an acrostic poem of king David, a crown jewel of praise of God. Many Christians are so concentrated in the “immediacy of the present” that with pleasure of self, wrapped around their necks they are drowning in a sea of indifference! In celebrating and wrongly assigning accomplishments to humanity we are living in a generation that has promoted self-adoration, which is idolatry. Enslaved to our schedules it is natural for “sinners to pray in the storm, and curse God again in the calm.” Though the world sails on the shifting sands of culture God’s own need to be faithful and learn how to throw off the shackles of popular opinion to remember and embrace the truth concerning God. While God’s mighty acts of judgement may not “suit our or the unredeemed inner consciousnesses” that personifies personal accountability with evil injustice, no matter how atheistic this world becomes that in no way changes the truth that God has absolute dominion over this world and is the righteous judge of all things seen and unseen (Colossians 1:16). We as Christians have an obligation with “bated breath” to remember the Flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, The Ten Plagues of Egypt, and the End Times so that we might warn those who have chosen the broad path that yes, their indifference and often outright defiance against their Creator invites His terrible wrath upon their lives. But this is not all they and we need to hear for “the sword of justice is not snapped across the knee of mercy, but it is sheathed in the scabbard of the atonement!” Praise be to God it is precisely in “our moments of brokenness and waywardness, apathy and disillusionment, when we are not sure who we are, the compassionate God who is fiercely loyal steps toward us in love.” In response may in our “weakness and powerlessness, fear and dread,” take the time to bow our knees, raise our hands, surrender our souls to His will by magnifying His majestic name in our words, thoughts and deeds! The following sermon is going to show how Psalms 145 can be used as a model to address God rightly by praising Him for His greatness, praising Him for His goodness, praising Him for His kingdom, praising Him for His faithfulness, praising Him for His saving mercy and praising Him by proclaiming His name to future generations.
Praise God for His Greatness
The might of God’s terrible acts has made nations tremble, the earth shake, floods destroy, fire consume, plagues annihilate societies and even mountains melt like wax (Psalms 97:5, 99:1). “Such language is not meant to be hyperbolic or escapist but instead truly confessional. Those who have been given over to the reprobate minds (Romans 1:28) ought to repent of their blasphemous hearts and quiver in fear for His past acts of judgement are proof the arrows of His justice never miss the mark! God in His infinite sovereignty is to be revered for “nothing unjust or unduly severe has ever come from the divine hand” for in His infinite sovereignty and justice He gives each person what they truly deserve. Despite our “maunderings of our poor fallible judgements,” as to what is the “right way” to live our lives, God graciously gave His One and only Son so that humanity’s guilt and subsequent penalty might be imputed by all who believe in His atoning sacrifice (John 3:16). “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” So, while our “best adoration of the Unsearchable” can never truly honor His name, may we never stop inviting the Great Physician to cut out the cancer of sin in our lives. May the midst of our souls bubble up springs of living waters and constantly flood us with memories of His goodness. May our praise start with creation for surely we can see God’s mighty fingerprint upon the heavens, the surging seas, the glory of the mountains, and the birth of a new born baby! And yet despite these glorious works may we never forget how great our God is to remold the sinful dust of the earth back into His image! Even though He sometimes sleighs in the thunderstorm of His justice, may we “share in the extension of God’s kingdom by private meditation, discussion, and public testimony” that our God is merciful, loving and kind for He only does good to those who love Him (Romans 8:28). As the Lord enlarges our hearts and our minds with knowledge of His greatness may we share this divine truth with our children and the world the profound message that He who saved a wretch like me offers to save all who believe in the atoning sacrifice of His Son!
Praise God for His Goodness
We are to praise God for He is infinitely full of mercy, compassion, and slow to anger. “The unexpected thing is that God should be gracious to those who have spurned His rightful authority and even murdered his Son when He came to earth to save us from our sins.” Even though “sin has so sadly marred God’s handiwork, we must not forget that the “curse is met with an antidote” … forgiveness and adoption through belief in the atoning sacrifice of His Son. Despite their hatred or indifference towards Him, God not only allows His enemies to live but supplies them with food, comforts, and rain waters to make their fields plentiful. God is compassionate, slow to anger, and in His abounding love He “provides ample opportunities for repentance before He fully displays His mighty wrath!” God’s goodness and compassion is given to all people everywhere for there “is nothing suspicious, prejudiced, morose, tyrannical, or unapproachable in Jehovah.” Out of His steadfast or covenant love, God is fiercely loyal to His children giving His own every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus and to those who reject His love every opportunity to leave the broad path and find pardon at the foot of the cross for great is God’s mercy! Praise be to God that He has complete dominion all things seen and unseen for in our suffering, weakness, and foolishness He compassionately, constantly, deeply, and divinely provides and enables us to act on wisdom from above.
Praise God for His Kingdom
We are to praise God for His kingdom. All those who fear and love Him rejoice to see God enthroned in His kingdom, glorified, and magnified in power. The kingdom of God appears 53 times and the kingdom of heaven 32 times in the New Testament of which most of these references are given by Jesus. Contained within these references we learn that God’s kingdom is not defined as a particular area as if it had boundaries or limitations but refers to His right to rule over all of creation, those things both seen and unseen (Colossians 1:16). Though God’s kingdom is both a present and future reality (Luke 19:11-12, 17:20-21) it is timeless for God’s unlimited power to reign supreme has always been and will always be. Apart from “His power to create or destroy, to bless or punish, to strengthen or crush not only would the laws of nature be inoperative, but except for God nothing else would exist!” Jesus, the Son of man and Lamb who was slain (Revelation 5), is the rightful ruler of God’s kingdom and “His church is comprised of His people who will also share in its rule (Mark 14:62; Acts 7:55–56; 2 Tim 2:12; 2 Pet 1:11; Rev 11:15; 20:4). All who fear and love God will rejoice in His love, compassion, kindness and justice here on this earth and look forward to the day when Christ returns and every knee shall bow to acknowledge their Creator and submit to His reign (Matt 12:28; Phil 2:9–11; Rev 11:15–17). So to keep time from washing away our present memory of God’s greatness and compassionate deeds both written and experienced may we remember rightly and praise our God morning, day and night that He who controls and judges rightly both the living and the dead (1 Peter 4:5) will show mercy and grace to those who believe in the atoning sacrifice of His Son.
Praise God for Faithfulness
Let us praise God for His faithfulness for He keeps His promises by caring for His creation, by lifting us up when we fall, by restoring us when in distress, by providing food when we are hungry, and by filling our empty hands with His goodness and mercy! Those who are poor, marginalized, and oppressed will find justice at His table. Those who call upon His name in truth will find Him for is always near (Proverbs 8:17) while those who chose to reject His mercy will inevitably face judgment (John 12:48) and His wrath as promised in His word (John 3:16). These “chief of all sinners” however are not without hope for the blood of Christ washes away all iniquities of those who believe in Him (Hebrews 10:10-12)! For those who are starving for food pray with the assurance that God will not respond with a clenched but with an open hand (Psalms 104:27, 145:15). For those who are weary and burdened they need only come to the Lord and exchange their yoke for one that will give them rest (Matthew 11:28-29). He gives strength to the weak and discouraged and for those who hearts thirst for the divine they only need to draw nearer to God, and He who is indivisibly present will draw nearer to them (James 4:8)! Out of his undying, eternal hesed and with great rejoicing we can stand upon the promises of God for the Lord has and will always be faithful to His people and will keep His word. “If we will but wait upon the Lord for pardon, renewing, or whatever else we need, we shall not wait in vain. The hand of grace is never closed while the sinner lives.” He will never leave us nor forsake us and though we are, but one sheep lost and crying out His name upon an insurmountable mountain of torment and weakness, He will not only find us but also redeem and place our feet upon the firm foundation of our Lord! Blessed are those who thirst after righteousness for their cup will overflow with the unspeakable joy of partaking in every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3), now and much more when we go home to be with Jesus!
Praise God for His Saving Mercy
Let us praise God for He is always near and saves those who call upon Him. The Lord is near means that as Creator and Sustainer of the universe He is always willing to provide, protect and save those who call upon His Name in in truth, reverence, and love! He is more than just within an earshot He is indivisibly present. His praying children who confess His name need not fear to battle alone in this world that is not their home for God who is always at their side and His Spirit lives within hears their cries and saves them! “Throughout our entire lives God shows himself to be a good, caring, saving, and persevering God.” Praise be that God’s favor rests not on ethnicity, social standing, accumulation of wealth or anything else but sincerity, a true heart that is humble and gladly submits to the will of the One who purchased him/her at the price of their very life (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). “Even though the Lord shows grace to all creation, including the wicked (see v. 9 and note; vv. 15–16), those whose lives do not bear the fruit of repentance will ultimately bear his judgment (73:18–22; Dan 12:2; Matt 25:41–46).” “Fear and love of God belong inseparably together. For fear without love is an unfree, servile disposition, and love without fear, bold-faced familiarity; the one dishonors the all-gracious One, and the other the all-exalted One.” Since Jehovah cannot be unjust or impure those who refuse to “properly recognize His nature and character” through submission to His will risk receiving the same wrath God poured out on Nineveh, Babylon, Sodom and Gomorrah and so many others! But for those who love, fear, and submit to His right to rule their lives they can rejoice for God truly shows mercy and saves all who cry out His name in truth, love and reverence!
Passing Down Praise of God to Future Generations
Praising God’s holy name is meant to be passed down from one generation to the next! God does not drop a Bible on every generation and even if He did head knowledge of God’s mighty acts is not the same as allegiance and exultation of our Lord, Saviour and King! We as Christ’s ambassadors are obligated to not just teach with words but to be a living sacrifice that shows others the value of the pearl and treasure, we found by praising His holy name! “What we want from the next generation is not just heads full of right facts about the works of God, we want hearts burning with fire and passion to serve the Lord. “Radically committed, risk-taking, countercultural, wise, thinking, loving, mature, Christians is through parents who teach and model a God-centered, Bible-saturated worldview to their children.” “By radically committed we mean so deeply committed that no price is too high to pay to follow Jesus wherever He leads, no matter how distant or how dangerous.” Let me share a story of what of passing praise onto the next generation means.
“At age 22, Jim Elliot had a promising ministry in front of him in the United States. He probably could have been a very successful pastor or evangelist or teacher. His parents were not very excited about his call to go to the Quichuas in South America. They wrote and told him so. He answered bluntly. “I do not wonder that you were saddened at the word of my going to South America,” he replied on August 8. “This is nothing else than what the Lord Jesus warned us of when He told the disciples that they must become so infatuated with the kingdom and following Him that all other allegiances must become as though they were not. And He never excluded the family tie. In fact, those loves that we regard as closest, He told us must become as hate in comparison with our desires to uphold His cause. Grieve not, then, if your sons seem to desert you, but rejoice, rather, seeing the will of God done gladly. Remember how the Psalmist described children? He said that they were as an heritage from the Lord, and that every man should be happy who had his quiver full of them. And what is a quiver full of but arrows? And what are arrows for but to shoot? So, with the strong arms of prayer, draw the bowstring back and let the arrows fly—all of them, straight at the Enemy’s hosts. “Give of thy sons to bear the message glorious, Give of thy wealth to speed them on their way, Pour out thy soul for them in prayer victorious, And all thou spendest Jesus will repay.”
While each parent has the responsibility to teach and profess with word and deed the Good News so does the church. John Piper states “the church that educates only children with Biblical truth will get shallower and shallower and shallower, until the reservoir of Biblical doctrine is so small that no one can drink there and find the words of life. And where there was perhaps once a robust Bible-teaching, Christ-exalting, mission-minded church, there is now only a Bible-neglecting, God-belittling, social Christianity.” Since many children who come to church do not have believing parents the members of the church need to live what it means to praise God so that they might truly grasp how long, how wide, how high and deep is the love of Christ. So, let us praise God with all our heart, mind soul and strength by living and proclaiming His compassion, love, and mercy to all who will listen!
**** To watch this sermon live go to the following link: http://www.mckeesfamily.com/?page_id=3567
Sources Cited
C. H. Spurgeon, “How ‘The Unspeakable’ Is Spoken of,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 31 (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1885).
W. Dennis Tucker Jr., “Psalms 107–150,” in Psalms, ed. Terry Muck, vol. 2, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2018).
James Montgomery Boice, Psalms 107–150: An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2005).
Willem A. VanGemeren, “Psalms,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 5 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1991).
D. A. Carson, ed., NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2018).
Robert G. Bratcher and William David Reyburn, A Translator’s Handbook on the Book of Psalms, UBS Handbook Series (New York: United Bible Societies, 1991).
Robert L. Jr. Hubbard and Robert K. Johnston, “Foreword,” in Psalms, ed. W. Ward Gasque, Robert L. Hubbard Jr., and Robert K. Johnston, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2012).
Derek Kidner, Psalms 73–150: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 16, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1975).
John Piper, Sermons from John Piper (2000–2014) (Minneapolis, MN: Desiring God, 2014).
