Making known God's wonders and deeds!

 Psalm 105  The psalmist says, "Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples.. speak of all His wonders..  remember what He has done.. "  

In our daily lives.. no matter what kinds of struggles we might be facing.. we can be encouraged.. strengthened and helped by doing just that.  "Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually..." He has not changed.. He is still the God who does wonders, who keeps His promises, and who brings His people "forth.. with joy". 

The Lord chose Israel to be His people. v6

He rules and judges all the earth. v7

He keeps His covenants. v8

He gave the land of Canaan as an inheritance for His people.v11

He sent Joseph into Egypt.v17

He tested him and set him in a place of power. v19

He brought Israel into Egypt.v23

He multiplied their numbers.. growing a nation.v24

He sent Moses and Aaron.. to perform "His wondrous acts". v26

He brought the people out of Egypt  v37

He gave them all they needed.. v40

All of this was for His purposes.. "So that they might keep His statutes and observe His laws." v45

All these things are the same as what  the Lord has done for us.. choosing us to be His own, giving us a great inheritance.. eternal life; providing places of service and fruitfulness.. using us to do His works; providing for our needs!  His purpose remains the same too.. that we might live according to His word, not by works of the Law.. but by faith in Jesus Christ who fulfilled all of the Law, and by the Spirit who sanctifies us through and through that we might be all that He wills for us to be. 

Father in heaven, we praise Your Name.  Thank You for making known Your deeds and wonders to us.  May we remember Your glory and Your greatness with gladness and joy.  May we find strength in Your Presence as we meditate on these truths. You are the Lord our God! We give You thanks and offer our praises to You in song! Amen. 

The wonder of God's creation!

 Psalm 104  The core of this psalm is found in verse 24 "O Lord, how many are Thy works! In wisdom Thou hast made them all; The earth is full of Thy possessions." 

The psalmist continues to praise the Lord.. "Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, Thou art very great; Thou art clothed with splendor and majesty, covering Thyself with light as with a cloak, stretching out heaven like a tent curtain."  I am reminded here, that.. as vast as the universe that we live in is.. that God dwells beyond its edges.. He is transcendent.. Tozer wrote.. "Forever God stands apart, in light unapproachable. He is as high above an archangel as above a caterpillar, for the gulf that separates the archangel from the caterpillar is finite, while the gulf between God and the archangel is infinite. The caterpillar and the archangel, though far removed from each other in the scale of created things, are nevertheless one in that they are alike created. They both belong in the category of that-which-is-not-God and are separated from God by infinitude itself." 

All of creation.. the vast creation that mankind can not even comprehend.. comes from the Hand of God.. actually the Word of God, when He said, "Let there be... " 

He created the heavens.. laying, as it were, beams above the atmosphere surrounding us. v3

He made the clouds and the winds and fire... for His use. v3-4

He "established the earth" - a firm foundation..and covered it with oceans, mountains, and valleys.. according to His directions.. v5-9

He provided springs of water.. for the "beast of the field" and for the "wild donkeys". v10-11

He made the birds and appointed them to "lift up their voices among the branches" v12

"The earth is satisfied with the fruit of His works." v13  Yet, this is just the beginning of God's many works... for He:

Made the grass to feed the cattle and vegetation to feed mankind. v14

He created the wine and the oil and the food "which sustains man's heart." v15

He created trees... mountains... the moon and the sun.. daylight and dark nights.. 

He created the seas.. the animals "both great and small".. 

And "all wait for Thee, to give them their food in due season. Thou dost give it to them, they gather it up.  Thou dost open Thy hand, they are satisfied with good." (vv27-28)

And yet there is more! 

God sometimes hides His face..He takes away the breath of life.. He returns living bodies to the dust. 

But, He also renews life.. always at work in His creation!

" Let the glory of the Lord endure forever; Let the Lord be glad in His works;"  The psalmist sings, " I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being."

Father in heaven, Creator of heaven and earth.. there is no other God but You.  All things belong to You. All of creation is made for Your purposes and for Your glory. Let the earth and all that is in it praise Your Name.  As we meditate on Your Word.. thinking of the greatness of Your works.. the wisdom of Your creation.. the faithfulness of Your provisions.. I pray that You will open our eyes, that we might grasp the length and height, the vast breadth and depth of Your love for the works of Your hand.. for every individual.. every creature.. every part of Your kingdom... for us... for me.   Bless the Lord, O my soul.. and all that is within me.. Bless His holy Name!  Amen. 

What a wonderful God we have!

 Psalm 103 There is no-one like our God! This psalm gives us every reason to believe in and live for Him.

"Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name."

David invites us to remember all the benefits.. all the grace gifts.. that God has provided for those who will confidently trust in Him:

He pardons our iniquities and heals our diseases!  v3

He redeems us from hell's prison.. and places a crown of love and compassion on our heads! v4

He satisfies us with "good things" all of our lives! v5

He only does what is right and just! v6

He clearly guides His servants.. like He did Moses and Israel.. v7

He is "compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness"! v8

He doesn't give up on us.. even if He is angry at our sinfulness.. and He does not deal with us "according to our sins" v9-10

There is no limit to the love that God has for us who fear Him. v11

"As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us." v12 

He is more compassionate than any earthly father.. He knows our weakness.. our smallness.. our dusty frames.. v14

He knows the brevity of our lives here on earth and assures us of His eternal love for us. v15-17

When we live in obedience to the Word of God.. we find that all of His benefits are meant for us! Hallelujah!

Our God "has established His throne in the heavens; and His sovereignty rules over all."  This will never change.. no matter what happens here on earth.. no matter what difficulties we face.. no matter how sinful mankind seems to be getting.. no matter what.. we have a God Who is always in control!

"Bless the Lord, you His angels, mighty in strength, who perform His word, obeying the voice of His word! Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, you who serve Him, doing His will. Bless the Lord, all you works of His, in all places of His dominion; Bless the Lord , O my soul!"  vs 20-22

Father in heaven, holy, holy, holy is Your Name! Thank You for this Word.. for this joyful song that we sing to You.. for You are worthy of all our praise.  Help us to not forget these benefits.. these gifts of grace.. for they fill our minds and hearts with the depth of Your love for us.. and bring us to truly love You more and more! Thank You for revealing Yourself.. Your Heart.. to us.. Amen. 

Psalm 102

 Psalm 102  "A prayer of the afflicted..."  At times we have experienced.. or will experience.. or are even now experiencing affliction.. and perhaps the words of this prayer ring really true to us; 

"Hear my prayer, O Lord! And let my cry of help come to Thee. Do not hide Thy face from me in the day of my distress; incline Thine ear to me; in the day when I call answer me quickly." 

The psalmist expresses the deep anguish of his suffering:

His days are "consumed".. finished.. 

His "bones have been scorched.. "

His "heart has been smitten.. " 

Mentally, physically, emotionally.. he has come to an end of himself.  He cannot eat. He cannot stop groaning. He is a shell of himself: "I resemble a pelican of the wilderness; I have become like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake, I have become like a lonely bird on a housetop."   What a word picture he presents to us.. that we might feel the depth of his loneliness and pain. 

Enemies reproach, deride, and curse him.  We know the pain of being scorned or humiliated.. perhaps even cursed..  Peter writes, "Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour."  Our great enemy is behind every such attack.. 

Yet, the psalmist has agony deeper than the betrayal of an enemy.. he feels the "indignation.. the wrath" of God Himself.  "For Thou hast lifted me up and cast me away. My days are like a lengthened shadow; and I wither away like grass." 

It is all poured out.. all the groaning.. all the complaints.. all the grief... until he finally lifts his head and looks up... "But Thou, O Lord, dost abide forever; And Thy name to all generations."

The psalmist does not stay defeated.. but remembers his God who is victorious!

God will "arise and have compassion.. " 

He will be gracious.

He will command the nations.

"He will appear in His glory"

He will regard the prayers of the needy.

He will be praised by future generations.

He looks down from heaven... and He gazes upon His creation.

He hears our groaning.

He sets us free from death.. from doom..  "That men may tell of the name of the Lord in Zion." 

The One who founded the earth and the heavens.. will endure beyond their destruction.   We are given a glimpse of a future beyond the life of the writer .. beyond us.. "Even when they perish.. and all of them will wear out like a garment; like clothing Thou wilt change them, and they will be changed. But Thou art the same, and Thy years will not come to an end." 

There is a Kingdom to come.. where we will all gather to serve the Lord forever.. where we will praise His name.. and tell of how He delivered us.. how He strengthened us.. how He established us.  Won't that be amazing!

Father in heaven, we know that even when we are suffering that You are at work.. When we are rejoicing.. You are at work.  No matter what we face today.. may we turn our eyes to You.. giving thanks and praising Your name. May we look for the clouds to part.. for the trumpet to sound.. for the day when everything is changed and we will be with You forever.  Prepare our hearts.  Save those who are lost.. in despair and without the Truth that brings hope and deliverance. Open our eyes to those who need to hear.. and give us words to speak that will bring others to You. Thank You for hearing us when we pray. May Your name be glorified in all the earth!  Amen. 

Psalm 101

 Psalm 101  This psalm of David is a declaration of his intentions.. as a man of God... as the king of Israel.  He has set a course for his life's work.. he has made a vow with every intention of heart to live this way.

The first thing.. the first priority for David, is to worship the Lord: "I will sing of lovingkindness and justice, to Thee, O Lord, I will sing praises."   May this be our first priority and promise.. that all else in our lives will fall into there rightful place. 

"I will give heed to the blameless way."  David declares... I will prudently, wisely, skillfully, intelligently, behave myself in a way of integrity and truth.. without spot, undefiled... "When wilt Thou come to me?" he asks,  perhaps admitting that he cannot do what he just said without the Lord's help.  

"I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart."  In the privacy of his own home.. where no other can see.. save God Himself.. David desires to walk uprightly.. simply.. completely as God calls him to do. 

"I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; "  Worthless.. without profit.. destructive.. wicked..evil.. ungodly.  ( And David had no idea about the invention of the television or the computer!)  It is a challenge to find anything decent these days on either of these devices.  Can we determine to follow David's example here?

"I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not fasten its grip on me."  David determines right up front that he will not allow apostasy into his own life.. no rebellion, forsaking, abandoning, or falling away from God's ways.  He saw what that did in Saul's life.. he wanted no part of that in his own.  

"A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will know no evil."  David desires truth.. in himself and in others. He determines to keep away from what is false and distorted and crooked. 

As a king.. a leader of the people of God.. David sets forth his agenda for those he governs.. 

He will punish a slanderer.. one who despises his neighbor. 

He will not endure those who are "haughty.. and arrogant". 

He will look to the faithful and the blameless. 

He will dismiss the deceitful.. the liars. 

He will destroy the wicked and "cut off from the city of the Lord all those who do iniquity." 

It is a far cry from the leadership of our days.. this decree of David the king.   We find few who determine to live with integrity, truth, and uprightness. We see the faithlessness.. the apostasy.. the rebellious attitudes.. the arrogance and wickedness all around us.  Like David, it is vital that we the people of God determine in ourselves to live "in the integrity" of our own hearts... through the power of His Spirit in us. 

Father in heaven,  we sing of Your love, Your mercy and grace, and Your faithfulness.  We come before You with thanksgiving, for You have given to us salvation through Jesus Christ.. our King who came to reveal grace and truth! We desire to live wholly for You, to walk in the power of Your Spirit, that we might please You in all our ways.. at home or outside the home. Fill us again, sweet Spirit of God, that we might proclaim the praise and glory of our Lord Jesus to a world of lost sinners for whom He was slain.  Open blind eyes.. break through hardened hearts.. and bring the good news of Jesus to this desperate world, we pray, in Jesus' name. Amen. 

Psalm 100

 Psalm 100  "Shout joyfully... !"  This psalm of thanksgiving begins with an exhortation to shout.  It is interesting that the same Hebrew word that is translated here as "shout joyfully" can also mean to sound an alarm to "split the ears with sound".   This is no quiet murmur of thanks.. this is meant to be heard far and wide! 

The psalmist gives us another command.. "Serve the Lord with gladness."  Work at it.. like a bondservant.. labour in all you do "with gladness".. with glee.. with pleasure.. with full joy!  

"Come before Him with joyful singing." 

When we come before Him.. either in our "prayer closet".. or in a church pew.. may we come with glee.. with shouts of thanksgiving.. with "gladness"!

Why?  Because " ...the Lord Himself is God; It is He who made us and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture."   We belong to Him. The pasture belongs to Him.. everything and everyone belongs to Him.. and He is good! " His lovingkindness is everlasting, and His faithfulness to all generations." 

"Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him; bless His name."  Here are clear instructions as to how we come "before Him... "   

We know that Moses was given instructions to build a tabernacle.. a place where God would meet with His people. Surrounding the tent itself was a courtyard, and around the courtyard there were curtains that set it apart from common ground. The gates were the only entrance into this holy place. In the courtyard there was a great altar and a laver.  A place for offerings and a place for washing.    David wrote in Psalm 24 "Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? And who can stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart." ( v3-4)  There seems to be a correlation there.. 

Entering into the Presence of God is not to be taken lightly.. God requires something of us.. clean hands and pure hearts.. a sacrifice is necessary.. and was provided "once for all".. "but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down and the right hand of God.. " ( Hebrews 10:12)  

This is why we come to Him with thanksgiving and praise!  Jesus Christ provided a "new and living way.. inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh.. "  Therefore "we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus." (Hebrews 10:19-20)   The Hebrew writer reminds us that this is not an earthly tent or temple that we enter.. but  a "greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation and not through the blood of goats and calves but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.. " (Heb. 9:11-12).  We have received an unshakable kingdom.. hallelujah!  

One more word from Hebrews that echos Psalm 100  - " Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name." (13:15)

Father in heaven,  You are a holy God who has made a way for us to come into Your Presence with joy and gladness... through Jesus Christ our Savior..  Thank You for this great and wonderful gift!  We come with reverence and awe before You, our Creator who has redeemed us from all sin.  We praise Your Name.  Equip us for "every good thing to do Your will.. working in us that which is pleasing" in Your sight, "through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.  ( Hebrews 13:21)

Psalm 99

 Psalm 99 "The Lord reigns, let the people tremble.. "   This is the appropriate response to the reign of God.. trembling! 

His throne is higher than anything and everything!

His Presence is "great" and He is exalted!

His Name is "awesome".

He is Holy!

He loves justice.

He gives strength to His servants.

He "established equity.. and executes justice and righteousness." 

This is the God we worship!

It is the testimony of Moses and Aaron, that they called on the Lord and He answered.. that He forgave their sins.. that He avenged evil deeds.  And, most of all, that He is holy!

The psalmist invites us to come worship God.  May we do so with great joy!

Father in heaven, we exalt Your Holy Name. We give thanks to You and praise Your Name to all the earth!  The Lord is God alone! There is no other.  He alone created the heavens and the earth.  He is our Maker and we are His people.  He has revealed to us His salvation through Jesus Christ.. Emmanuel.. God with us.. who came to earth, setting aside His rightful place.. to become a sacrifice.. a Lamb, who takes away the sins of the world.  O how we praise You, Lord!  You are good. You are gracious and merciful.  You are abundant in lovingkindness.  You give help to us in our needs.  You comfort us in our grief.  You strengthen us in our weakness.  You hold us in Your mighty Hands.  You never leave us or forsake us. Thank You! May Your Name be exalted in all the earth, Lord Most High.  Our world is in desperate need of You.  Come and fill Your people with power from on high, that we might go out as witnesses to the Truth. Let Jesus Christ be glorified in the lives of His church today we pray. Amen.