Praising Him for Life Psalm 148 Wed night
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Intro
Intro
Glad to see you all here this evening, it has been a difficult and hard week, it seems many around us have been pulled and stretched by various problems of life. And those problems can indeed be hard, difficult and heart breaking.
Glad to see you all here this evening, it has been a difficult and hard week, it seems many around us have been pulled and stretched by various problems of life. And those problems can indeed be hard, difficult and heart breaking.
But we can praise him in the midst of the storm.
This evening lets look at read it the other morning and it spoke to me a great deal.
But we can praise him in the midst of the storm
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
praise him in the heights!
2 Praise him, all his angels;
praise him, all his hosts!
3 Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, all you shining stars!
4 Praise him, you highest heavens,
and you waters above the heavens!
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord!
For he commanded and they were created.
6 And he established them forever and ever;
he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
you great sea creatures and all deeps,
8 fire and hail, snow and mist,
stormy wind fulfilling his word!
9 Mountains and all hills,
fruit trees and all cedars!
10 Beasts and all livestock,
creeping things and flying birds!
11 Kings of the earth and all peoples,
princes and all rulers of the earth!
12 Young men and maidens together,
old men and children!
13 Let them praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty is above earth and heaven.
14 He has raised up a horn for his people,
praise for all his saints,
for the people of Israel who are near to him.
Praise the Lord!
So lets consider this .... He created all things
There are times we need to push away the things of today and just stop, and be reminded that God is faithful and able to meet our every need, take care of every situation of life and he knows us and holds us along this journey.
In fact, He has planted our lives just like the trees of Lebanon. He brought us here just as he has created all things and we can give him praise.
Look at verse 5 again
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord!
For he commanded and they were created.
All that David has spoke about in those first few verses remind us that all of creation is called to sing forth the praises of God, why? He spoke, He commanded them to be formed, made and called forth, and it happened.
I love the story of creation, in Genesis chapter 1 we have the over view of all creation, let me share just a bit of that with you...
9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.
11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
Can you just imagine that… waters, waters listen you will be over here, dry ground, rise forth and come here and there, and way up there.
Then, I’m gonna plant trees here and there, way up there I will put those cedars of Lebanon that are mentioned in verse 9...
Oaks over there in East Stone Gap, Virginia… pine trees down in the Carolina's and Georgia… those are the trees that Bill Monroe, bluegrass artiest wrote about, IN the Pines...
And But God planted them all and he takes care of them all.
Now i mentioned the cedars especially, because they often are a symbol, picture of the Christian life. Why? they owe their life to the Lord, especially that he has placed them and us in unique and wonderful places to reveal His glory.
1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.
6 And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” 7 And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. 8 And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.
9 And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. 10 God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.
11 And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. 12 The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.
14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.
24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.” And it was so. 25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
And consider this my friends, you did not end up here, you did not plant your life, or your parents didn’t make sure you were birthed here. all of that is the hand of God.
God planted us… wow… Why? for His glory, to Praise Him....
God planted us
Q. What do you think about that????
And Know He Sustains All things....
We do not depend on ourselves for all we have or need, we truly depend on God just like the beasts of the field or man in his houses, God sustains us
Go back and consider the plants, those cedars of lebanon in verse 9
Those trees or any tree for that matter doesn water themselves, no our heavenly father waters them...
So it is with the Christian who has learned to live by faith.
We look to the Lord by faith to supply all our needs, from the bread of our plate to the sunshine and rain, these are all gifts of our heavenly Father, we do not do it, he alone takes care of us.
And you know, God is also the one who protects them and holds then in place. Im always amazed as I drive and see trees growing on the cliffs, how do they make it there in a place that seems to be all rock and nothing more?
He has planted them, sustained them and protected them that the storms do not remove them from that place…
And again God does the same for us Listen to these three verses of Scripture..
29 He made the storm be still,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
6 Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
1 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.
The whole of creation is not protected by man, no it is protected by God and so are we...
All of creation belongs to God and He has kept it and preserved it, No one else can make that claim, He does it
And He protects us just the same
Alistar Blagg wrote
It is precisely the same with the Christian. He is not a hothouse plant, sheltered from temptation; he stands in the most exposed position; he has no shelter, no protection, except this, that the broad wings of the eternal God always cover the cedars that He Himself has planted.
Last thought here is this one....He saves all things....
Look at verse 14
14 He has raised up a horn for his people,
praise for all his saints,
for the people of Israel who are near to him.
Praise the Lord!
Psal
In the midst of the storm, He has saved us.
The horn of salvation is a look back to the Altar of incense in the Temple, if a person was accused of something he could run into the temple and take hold of the altar and no one could touch him except God
There he could be tried by the High Priest and if found not guilty, his life was spared.
He called out to God in our despair and the the righteous Judge saw nothing by Jesus, the horn of our Salvation and he saved us..
The Savior of God, Jesus is for all people, and for that very reason we praise the Lord for his Salvation.
And even when our days come to a close, He is with us and has promised to receive us and take us home, that were He has prepared a place for us. How wonderful indeed.
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,
2 covering yourself with light as with a garment,
stretching out the heavens like a tent.
3 He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;
he makes the clouds his chariot;
he rides on the wings of the wind;
4 he makes his messengers winds,
his ministers a flaming fire.
5 He set the earth on its foundations,
so that it should never be moved.
6 You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
the waters stood above the mountains.
7 At your rebuke they fled;
at the sound of your thunder they took to flight.
8 The mountains rose, the valleys sank down
to the place that you appointed for them.
9 You set a boundary that they may not pass,
so that they might not again cover the earth.
10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
they flow between the hills;
11 they give drink to every beast of the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell;
they sing among the branches.
13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.
14 You cause the grass to grow for the livestock
and plants for man to cultivate,
that he may bring forth food from the earth
15 and wine to gladden the heart of man,
oil to make his face shine
and bread to strengthen man’s heart.
16 The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
17 In them the birds build their nests;
the stork has her home in the fir trees.
18 The high mountains are for the wild goats;
the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.
19 He made the moon to mark the seasons;
the sun knows its time for setting.
20 You make darkness, and it is night,
when all the beasts of the forest creep about.
21 The young lions roar for their prey,
seeking their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they steal away
and lie down in their dens.
23 Man goes out to his work
and to his labor until the evening.
24 O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom have you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
25 Here is the sea, great and wide,
which teems with creatures innumerable,
living things both small and great.
26 There go the ships,
and Leviathan, which you formed to play in it.
27 These all look to you,
to give them their food in due season.
28 When you give it to them, they gather it up;
when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
when you take away their breath, they die
and return to their dust.
30 When you send forth your Spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the ground.
31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works,
32 who looks on the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke!
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
34 May my meditation be pleasing to him,
for I rejoice in the Lord.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
and let the wicked be no more!
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Praise the Lord!