Praise Ye the Lord | Psalm 135

Before we read.

When it is hot, it is hard to remember it being cold.

We are so prone to forgetting and only seeing what is in front of us.

There are times we need reminded of the goodness of God. Psalm 103:2 “2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:”

This Psalm is unique in the amount of references to other passages. You may see this in your cross reference.

Psalm 135 (KJV)

1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the name of the LORD; praise him, O ye servants of the LORD.

2 Ye that stand in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God,

3 Praise the LORD; for the LORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant.

4 For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure.

5 For I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord is above all gods.

6 Whatsoever the LORD pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.

7 He causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh lightnings for the rain; he bringeth the wind out of his treasuries.

8 Who smote the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and beast.

9 Who sent tokens and wonders into the midst of thee, O Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his servants.

10 Who smote great nations, and slew mighty kings;

11 Sihon king of the Amorites, and Og king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan:

12 And gave their land for an heritage, an heritage unto Israel his people.

13 Thy name, O LORD, endureth for ever; and thy memorial, O LORD, throughout all generations.

14 For the LORD will judge his people, and he will repent himself concerning his servants.

15 The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.

16 They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not;

17 They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths.

18 They that make them are like unto them: so is every one that trusteth in them.

19 Bless the LORD, O house of Israel: bless the LORD, O house of Aaron:

20 Bless the LORD, O house of Levi: ye that fear the LORD, bless the LORD.

21 Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, which dwelleth at Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.

Sermon Introduction

Praise the Lord starts the Psalm and Bless the Lord ends the Psalm

In the middle is a list of reasons why.

We are at a good place for a good purpose.

I expect there are many ways in which we need to bring our lives in submission to God’s Word, I expect there are many doctrines that would be beneficial to you, tonight our assignment is simple and singular. We will look at a wonderful, list of reasons to praise the Lord.

This song of praise is a mosaic of the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms.

In it the psalmist called on the priests to praise the Lord, so it builds on Psalm 134.

It is a song of praising the Lord’s greatness and faithfulness to His people.

Praise the name of the Lord

Psalm 135:1-3 “1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the name of the LORD; praise him, O ye servants of the LORD. 2 Ye that stand in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God, 3 Praise the LORD; for the LORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant.”

Psalm 135:1–3 KJV

1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise ye the name of the LORD; praise him, O ye servants of the LORD. 2 Ye that stand in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God, 3 Praise the LORD; for the LORD is good: sing praises unto his name; for it is pleasant.

Who: Praise comes from His servants.

Where: Praise comes from the courts of the house of the Lord.

How: Sing praises to the Lord. / hallelujah - praise ye the Lord Sobering thought that there could be a day people gather here but the Lord is not praised.

Why: The Lord is good and praise is pleasant.

Name of the Lord

Throughout the larger story, the biblical authors use the idea of the “name of God” as a key idea. To distinguish the functions of reference, revelation and reputation, it may help to sort out the usages with three easy-to-remember categories: name-tag, window and fame name.

Name-tag

First, there are the names themselves used to designate God in the Bible. God is never anonymous in His story. Let’s name some of them?

Abba - Father

Jesus

Messiah - the anointed One

El Shaddai - Almighty

Immanuel - God with us

Elohim - The Creator

God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

Window name

These are the names in which we get a “window” into the nature of God. It helps us better understand who He is and how He cares for us.

The “Lord is my Shepherd” is a good example. What do we learn from this name?

Fame name

“God’s name” most often refers to the idea of His public renown. The function is God’s reputation.

God’s name is His global namesake.

3 John 7 “7 Because that for his name’s sake they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles.”

he Hebrew people were not only to treasure this story, but they were also to tell it. Isaiah calls Israel to make known His deeds among the peoples, so that the nations are steadily reminded that “His name is exalted” Isa 12:4 “4 And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.”

What is worship?

Give unto the Lord the glory due unto is name. Psalm 96:8

• Whole hearted response to God.

• Engagement with God on His terms where only He makes it possible.

• Worship is our innermost being responding with praise for all that God is, through our attitudes, actions, thoughts, and words, based on the truth of God as He has revealed Himself.

• Worship is all that we are, reacting rightly to all that He is.

God chose Jacob unto Himself

Psalm 135:4 “4 For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure.”

Really do not like to see the team punt because of a 4th down. I have no intention of punting here, though I have many times.

This verse is not a problem, it is a cause of rejoicing.

God’s choice of Israel and even specific individual Israelites, like Jacob (the OG- of Israel) was not to the neglect of the rest of humanity, but to their benefit!.

God’s original promise to Abraham was that through him “all the families of the earth would be blessed” Gen 12:3 “3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”

Remember it is through these people that Jesus will come. Jesus who will be for all people. Luke 2:10 “10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.”

Father Abraham had Many Sons Song -

Big emphasis in NT about being a son of Abraham.

However, the Bible is clear that Abraham was made righteous by faith not works. Romans 4:3 “3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.”

It says it again in Galatians and goes further on that point. Gal 3:6 “6 Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Faith was counted unto Abraham for righteousness 430 years before the 10 Commandments is given. Gal 3:17 “17 And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.”

So what are we saying when we say “I am one of them and so are you.” we aren’t saying we are Jewish. We are not saying we are now Israel. We are saying we have also come to God in faith as Abraham did. Gal 3:8-9 “8 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. 9 So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.”

We rejoice in seeing God’s wisdom.

Been enjoying studying about cross cultural ministry.

Excites me to know this is not a problem to solve but a promise in which we get to see lived out.

Ephesians Ephesians 3:9-10 “9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: 10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,”

The Lord is great and does wonderful things

Psalm 135:5 “5 For I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord is above all gods.”

Psalm 86:10 “10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.”

It is utterly relevant for everything in life.

If we saw the greatness of God, we would not be so greedy and covetous.

If we saw the greatness of God, our eyes wouldn't stray after lustful images and thoughts.

If we saw the greatness of God, we wouldn't get angry at our children so easily.

If we saw the greatness of God, we wouldn't pout and get hurt so easily in our marriages.

If we saw the greatness of God, we wouldn't worry about our looks so much.

If we saw the greatness of God, we wouldn't spend time watching mindless and sordid and defiling television programs.

If we saw the greatness of God, we wouldn't get so discouraged with the evil and godlessness of our culture.

If we saw the greatness of God, we wouldn't give in to our appetites and overeat in boredom and depression.

Seeing the greatness of God should change us from day to day. 2 Cor 3:18 “18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

The Denmark Community needs more than anything else from us is to see the glory of God. We should not think our smallness is an obstacle to that. A telescope is a very small instrument, but it helps people see stupendous realities in the sky.

God fights for His people

Psalm 135:6 “6 Whatsoever the LORD pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, in the seas, and all deep places.”

Deliverance of the Hebrews from Egypt in the Exodus Psalm 135:8-9 “8 Who smote the firstborn of Egypt, both of man and beast. 9 Who sent tokens and wonders into the midst of thee, O Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his servants.”

Conquest of the Promised Land Psalm 135:10-12 “10 Who smote great nations, and slew mighty kings; 11 Sihon king of the Amorites, and Og king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan: 12 And gave their land for an heritage, an heritage unto Israel his people.”

The LORD who will judge

Psalm 135:14 “14 For the LORD will judge his people, and he will repent himself concerning his servants.”

The Psalmist now wishes to draw a comparison and contrast between the one true God and the false idols this world.

Idolaters are spiritually dead, they are the mere images of men, there best being is gone…Their mouths do not really pray, their eyes see not the truth, their ears hear not the voice of the Lord, and the life of God is not in them” - Spurgeon

Bless the Lord Because He lives among His People

Psalm 135 concludes with a 5-fold call to praise (“bless”) the Lord

Respect and reverence are natural and appropriate responses in recognition of this good, great and gracious God who is like no other gods!

The God who can “dwell among us” chose as an act of grace to live among His people as their God.

He is here not there. He is near not far. No wonder God’s people shout with praise “Hallelujah!” “

Psalm 135:19-20 “19 Bless the LORD, O house of Israel: bless the LORD, O house of Aaron: 20 Bless the LORD, O house of Levi: ye that fear the LORD, bless the LORD.”

Whoever saw a couple get engaged simply because they wanted to enjoy the marriage ceremony? What they want to do is to live together. So it is with becoming a Christian.”

Closing

Jesus perfectly shows us the nature of our great God

Psalm 135:5 “5 For I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord is above all gods.”

Want to know the greatness of God. Look to Jesus!

Announcement of Jesus to Mary. Luke 1:32 “32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:”

Announcement to you tonight. He is great.