Psalm 111: Eternal Life for Eternal Praise

Series Introduction

Praise the Lord series

Read

Psalm 111:1–10 (ESV)

—>1 Praise the Lord!

I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,

in the company of the upright, in the congregation.

2 Great are the works of the Lord,

studied by all who delight in them.

3 Full of splendor and majesty is his work,

and his righteousness endures forever.

4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;

the Lord is gracious and merciful.

5 He provides food for those who fear him;

he remembers his covenant forever.

6 He has shown his people the power of his works,

in giving them the inheritance of the nations.

7 The works of his hands are faithful and just;

all his precepts are trustworthy;

8 they are established forever and ever,

to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.

9 He sent redemption to his people;

he has commanded his covenant forever.

Holy and awesome is his name!

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;

all those who practice it have a good understanding.

—> His praise endures forever!

Opening Prayer

Praise the Lord

The psalm begins with a command.

A command to Praise the Lord!

The phrase in hebrew is pronounced Hallelujah.

Praise Yahweh —OR— Praise the Lord

Shout is within the meaning and context.

Sing loudly or Speak loudly, the Praises of the Lord.

Over the next weeks, I want us to look at some psalms that lead us to Praise the Lord.

Psalms that command us to Hallelujah!

I think the neglect of or the deficiency of Praise in the church is a significant problem.

And, I think the psalms help us.

I pray they help us, GBFC, to rethink our praise of God...

To repent of our lack of praise of God.

To be filled with wisdom & awe of God to sustain praise to the Lord.

We’re commanded to Praise the Lord!

And, quite honestly, when wisdom is invoked it may be the easiest command to obey.

True praise calls...

Our Whole Soul to Praise Him

Psalm 111:1 (ESV)

1 Praise the Lord!

I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,

in the company of the upright, in the congregation.

After the command to praise the Lord...

The psalmist tells us where he will obey this command...

Or at least where the command is primarily obeyed and enjoyed...

I don’t think he’s limiting praise to this specific location.

I think the psalmist is telling us where the primary, ordinary, repetitive place is for this command to be obeyed.

This is the place that the psalmist looks forward to praising the Lord...

In the midst of the people of God...

Smack dab in the middle of the upright in heart.

And, there is a certain quality to this praise...

The psalmist says I will give thanks with my whole heart.

thanks = to acknowledge to goodness of God

So, it is to loudly boast & acknowledge the goodness of God in the midst of God’s people.

Is it enough to just show up and go through the motions of praise?

Is it enough to have perfect attendance?

Is it enough to bring your offering?

The psalmist gets right to the core of it...

What really matters to the Lord...

What really is the foundation of true praise...

He says, I will give thanks with my whole heart.

The heart to the Hebrew was the very core of their being.

They saw it as the driving force behind all that we were and did.

It is the soul to the body.

Just like a body has faculties:

sight

hearing

touch

So, the soul/heart has faculties:

mind

will

affections

The mind is our intellect/preferred knowledge.

The will is the choosing based on preferred knowledge.

The affections is our motion towards good/evil based on our will/choosing, which is based on our preferred knowledge.

The psalmist is saying...

My affections/emotions will be satisfied by praising the Lord...

My desires will be fulfilled by praising Him...

My mind will find rest by Praising the Lord...

For He is worthy of my thanks and my praise.

The whole of my being will worship the Lord.

May that be our prayer for our self...

And, may God teach us how to better do so...

To repent of, what I see as...

A Tragic Flaw in Man Causes Our Lack of Praise

Psalm 111:2–3 (ESV)

2 Great are the works of the Lord,

studied by all who delight in them.

3 Full of splendor and majesty is his work,

and his righteousness endures forever.

The work of the Lord, what He does, is great...

The psalmist, using this word, is emphasizing the importance, the size, and the significance of what God does.

He adds the Lord’s work is full of splendor and majesty…

The Lord’s works are overflowing with majestic power...

And, His righteousness which is the foundational characteristic of all He does lasts forever.

All of His works are righteous.

His righteousness does not change.

Therefore, what is righteous does not change.

It endures forever.

Now listen to this wonderful statement that the psalmist makes...

And, I hope it grips you like it gripped me.

When we witness the work of God it should cause us to stand in awe and study it.

Psalm 111:2 (ESV)

2 Great are the works of the Lord,

studied by all who delight in them.

Let me just ask you...

Are we in awe of God’s works in our life?

Are we curious enough to study the works of God in our life?

Is it just the out of the ordinary works that amaze you?

Or does the rain amaze you?

Does the sun rising daily amaze you?

Are you in awe of the bird that can fly, and the bee?

Does a hummingbird invoke praise for God?

Does your ability to breathe, swallow, see, hear, taste, touch…do those things amaze you?

Or do we take for granted what we regularly experience?

Have we forgotten how to be amazed?

When you show up on Sunday...

Are you looking forward to praising the Lord in the midst of the people of God...

For the regular things in your life, but that are no less amazing...

Things that happen regularly because of the mercy and grace of God?

You see the regularity of something does not negate the greatness of God’s bestowal of these things upon us.

It actually magnifies it.

When is the last time you praised God for how good something tastes?

When is the last time your taste buds burst into joy...

And the thought that God is glorious and gave us the ingredients knowing they would be used for such enjoyment...

How wise and good is God’s provision for His people?!

Or when was the last time you watched a sunset...

And as you gazed at the beauty of the sunset...

And, the splendor of color schemes taking place...

And, thought God knew we would watch and stand in awe...

And, He gave us such beauty to know how good He is...

ANd, that the sun repeats this cycle daily...

And, it will rise again for our good...

That God would take a fallen world and make a covenant with Noah that the Lord would give stability to a world gone mad with sin.

Oh, the faithfulness, patience, and steadfast love of the Lord.

How great are His works, full of splendor and majesty.

I think that we are not careful enough.

I know that I have found that I am not.

And we lose our proper delight in the daily providence of God...

And our proper delight in God’s works are quenched by an Entitlement attitude.

We take tomorrow for granted because we believe God owes it to us.

Jesus said, only those who are sick feel the need of a physician.

And, likewise, only those who feel they deserve nothing will recount the goodness of God over and over...

And, marvel in His kindness for such a great, mighty, holy God to stoop low to interact with mercy and grace to worms such as us.

Oh, that we may marvel once again and the daily providence of God.

Oh, that we would not despise the day of small things.

We need to remember the privilege we have...

And, the insight and proper perspective we’ve been given...

As, the called out people of God.

A Purpose in/for the People of God

Psalm 111:4–6 (ESV)

4 He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;

the Lord is gracious and merciful.

5 He provides food for those who fear him;

he remembers his covenant forever.

6 He has shown his people the power of his works,

in giving them the inheritance of the nations.

We see here that God gives His people a purpose.

God has created a people for Himself to delight in His works...

To gather to proclaim His works...

To share & marvel in His wondrous deeds in our lives...

And, to pass these truths to the next generation...

And, train them to do the same.

He has caused His works to be remembered...

And, remembered through praise and adoration.

In Ephesians 1 we are told in v.6, 12, 14...

That a purpose in our salvation was for the praise of His glorious grace.

When is the last time you were bursting with joy to share how God has saved you from:

preferred self-deception

your sins that condemn you eternally

your wanderings from God by His shepherding

your breaking covenant by Him keeping it fully for you

righteous bankruptcy by imputing His righteousness to your account

Oh, the greatness of God’s works.

v.4 God causes His wondrous works to be remembered

Why would God do this?

Is God insecure?

Is He narcissistic?

Is He selfish?

The psalmist states in v.4 that God’s preservation of remembrance is gracious and merciful.

How can that be?

Because God’s interactions with man and all God’s mighty works...

Are Him giving of Himself to mankind...

And, in that giving of Himself…it creates and increases the opportunity for joy in God’s creatures.

There is no true joy outside of God.

We, His people, have been saved to remember, proclaim, and teach the wonders of God’s works...

And, pray that others will be drawn to Him.

And, either way, our hearts would rejoice in the Lord...

Not falsely manufactured rejoicing...

But, praise overflowing from proper observations and marveling at the goodness of God in all His works towards us.

Listen to the psalmist...

Psalm 111:7–8 (ESV)

7 The works of his hands are faithful and just;

all his precepts are trustworthy;

8 they are established forever and ever,

to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.

Not Only His Works, But His Commands Deserve Praise

Oh, how the world flips this around.

And, we did too before Christ made us new.

And, even in our newness of spiritual birth...

The temptation to believe that God’s commands are not best still rears its ugly head daily.

But, the psalmist is teaching us that every command from God can be trusted...

And, if trusted then it is founded upon righteousness...

And, meant for the personal blessing of the one who is commanded.

God commands nothing but what is meant for the everlasting benefit of the one whom God commands.

God is not obligated to interact with His creation, but in His grace and mercy...

In His wonderful majesty and splendor...

In the greatness of His works...

God Covenanted to Redeem a People Unto Himself

A covenant that included people from all the nations.

Here we are reminded of that covenant.

Psalm 111:5–6 (ESV)

5 He provides food for those who fear him;

he remembers his covenant forever.

6 He has shown his people the power of his works,

in giving them the inheritance of the nations.

Psalm 111:9 (ESV)

9 He sent redemption to his people;

he has commanded his covenant forever.

Holy and awesome is his name!

The work of redemption...

We are told angels stretch their neck to observe it and marvel.

The prophets of old studied long and hard to understand it.

The apostles had it revealed to them in splendor.

And, all the people of God through all the ages have experienced it.

It comes from the eternal Son-King of Psalm 2, the true Son of God...

The only begotten Son of God.

Who comes through and from the people of Israel...

To offer a Kingdom for the Nations.

A Kingdom obtained and secured by Jesus Christ.

We marvel at the grace of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

We marvel at the work of God through the God-Man, JC.

Our God is worthy of praise.

Wisdom Produces Praise

Psalm 111:10 (ESV)

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;

all those who practice it have a good understanding.

His praise endures forever!

This word fear has a positive meaning.

It means a worshipful adoration for God, His works, and His intentions towards His people.

Those who have this a s a practice in their life show they have true & proper understanding.

It drives the to Praise the Lord!

And, His praise will endure forever...

Because God has redeemed a forever people...

And we will delight in Him forevermore.

Eternal Life for Eternal Praise!

Closing Prayer (Lord’s Supper)