Praise Fit for a King

For those of you, as Sean mentioned, I lead Sovereign Grace Music.

It's a ministry of Sovereign Grace Churches, our denomination.

! We seek to produce Christ-exalting songs and training for the church, capital C, from our local churches.

And I've been a part of Sovereign Grace for almost 45 years now.

And I'm doing what I do for about 25.

And I bring you greetings from our sister church in Louisville, Kentucky.

Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville.

Even though we live in another part of the country, a very different part of the country,

we share a common aim in life, and that is to make much of Jesus.

His eternal word, His atoning work, and just to worship Him, to see as many people as possible worshiping Him.

And we're sharing in that common aim.

And that worship is actually what I want to talk to you about this morning.

We're going to be reading from Psalm 145, looking at Psalm 145.

So I ask you to turn there in whatever device or book you have.

And I asked Sean if I could give a little introduction to the psalm before we read it.

Because I want to put it in context.

Anyone who's been to my house for dinner knows that my wife Julie is an amazing cook.

She didn't start out as an amazing cook.

But she is now an amazing cook.

And we always have had a number of people living with us.

After all our children moved out, we've had other people come and live with us.

And whenever we sit down at one of Julie's amazing meals, eventually someone will say something like,

This tastes so good.

That chicken, it's so moist.

I love the sauce you put in this.

What spices are in here?

Or what every cook wants to hear.

Is there enough for seconds?

That's the kind of cook she is.

And wouldn't it be odd if at the end of the meal, no one had said anything about her cooking.

If we talked about our day, talked about the weather, talked about our plans for the night.

But never said anything about how delicious the meal was.

That would be odd.

It's because we tend to praise the things we enjoy.

If we really like something, it's hard to stay quiet about it.

Think of someone who's discovered a new band or seen a new movie or read a new book, found a new author.

They just can't stop talking about it.

Why is that?

Why do we have to let other people know what we love so much?

Why do we praise what we enjoy?

British author C.S. Lewis gives an insightful answer to that question.

He says, I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses, but completes the enjoyment.

It is its appointed consummation.

It's not out of compliment that lovers keep on telling one another how beautiful they are.

The delight is incomplete until it is expressed.

I'll be married 50 years next August to the most wonderful woman I've ever known.

And I never tire of telling her why I love her so much.

Because the greater the delight, the more intense, the more expressive, the more enduring the praise.

So what if you found something that surpassed all of the delights?

What if you found something that exceeded all your expectations?

That overwhelmed you with its sheer beauty?

Humbled you with its grandeur?

And compelled your unrestrained, unending praise?

Then you might write Psalm 145.

It's an expression of praise so comprehensive and passionate it can take your breath away.

And I hope it does.

C.S. Lewis went on to say,

The Scotch Catechism says that man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

But we shall then know that these are the same thing.

Fully to enjoy is to glorify.

In commanding us to glorify him, God is inviting us to enjoy him.

So in Psalm 145, God is inviting us to enjoy him.

How?

How do we enjoy God?

By giving him praise.

We have 150 psalms in the Bible.

And in the first 144, the psalmist explored not only the topic of praising God,

but things like opposition, enemies, loss, discouragement, unfulfilled hopes,

enemies, devastation, and sin.

I mentioned enemies twice because there's a lot of that.

They're songs of confession, songs of doubt, songs of lament.

They give us words to say as we wait for God to deliver us.

We don't know what to do.

But Psalm 145 is an overflow of praise.

It is the only one of David's 73 psalms,

and the only one of 150 psalms,

that is entitled a psalm of praise.

I didn't believe that when I first saw it.

Some commentator said that.

I said, no, no, no.

So I looked through all the psalms.

It's the only one that's called a psalm of praise.

It's this rushing torrent of celebration and confidence and joy

that serves as a hinge between the first 144 psalms

and the last five psalms,

which are called the hallelujah psalms,

because they all begin with hallelujah.

It's as though God is saying,

if you trust me,

if you know me,

this is where your life is headed.

That's good news.

Psalm 145 is the song of one who sees God as he really is,

and that view is staggering.

And what we're going to see is that those who know that God is a king like no other

won't rest until he receives praise like no other.

That's what the psalmist is telling us.

They know that their enjoyment of God must reach its consummation

in specific, engaged, joy-filled, universal praise.

So we're going to read it, and I'm going to ask you to stand,

because this is God's word to us.

It's not like I'd ask you to stand for my entire message,

because it's me speaking.

Hopefully it's the Lord speaking through me,

but this is God's word.

Psalm 145, a song of praise of David.

And by the way, if you're feeling a little lethargic this morning,

I hope by the end of this you are not,

because it's coming.

I will extol you, my God and King,

and bless your name forever and ever.

Every day I will bless you

and praise your name forever and ever.

Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised,

and his greatness is unsearchable.

One generation shall commend your works to another

and shall declare your mighty acts

on the glorious splendor of your majesty

and on your wondrous works.

I will meditate.

They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,

and I will declare your greatness.

They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness

and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.

The Lord is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

The Lord is good to all,

and his mercy is over all that he has made.

All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord,

and all your saints shall bless you.

They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom

and tell of your power

to make known to the children of man

your mighty deeds

and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

and your dominion endures throughout all generations.

The Lord is faithful in all his words

and kind in all his works.

The Lord upholds all who are falling

and raises up all who are bowed down.

The eyes of all look to you,

and you give them their food in due season.

You open your hand,

you satisfy the desire of every living thing.

The Lord is righteous in all his ways

and kind in all his works.

The Lord is near to all who call on him,

to all who call on him in truth.

He fulfills the desire of those who fear him.

He also hears their cry and saves them.

The Lord preserves all who love him,

but all the wicked he will destroy.

My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord

and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.

Father, would you open our ears and our hearts

and our eyes to see things about you

and about your son by the power of your spirit

that we have not seen before

to the degree that you want to show them to us now.

May our joy in you be consummated

in the praise of our king.

We ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Let's take our seats.

David begins,

I will extol you, my God and king.

My God, the king.

We're going to look at four ways

that David extols God as king in this psalm.

And I've titled this message,

Praise Fit for a King.

If you title your messages like I often do,

that's the title.

Praise Fit for a King.

So we're going to look at four ways

that God extols,

that David extols God as king.

And then we're going to take some time

at the end

to look at what kind of response

is fitting for that kind of king.

So two parts.

First, David extols God as the great king.

Verses three through six.

Psalm opens up with this note

of joyful celebration,

summed up in Psalm three.

Great is the Lord

and greatly to be praised

and his greatness is unsearchable.

It's unsearchable,

not in the sense that

we shouldn't try to understand it,

but in the sense that

we'll never, ever reach the end of it.

Some people would have us believe

that it's humble to say

that we really can't know God.

He's too big.

He's too mysterious.

He's just beyond our comprehension.

Well, yes,

but

God has revealed himself to us

in Scripture,

the written word of God,

and in Jesus Christ,

the living word of God,

so we can know

true things about him,

but what the psalmist is saying is

we'll never reach the end

of how much we know about God.

It's unsearchable.

That's how great he is.

Just look at the words

David piles up

to describe

God's great reign.

I will praise you

for your mighty acts

in verse 4.

Verse 5,

the glorious splendor

of your majesty,

your wondrous works,

your awesome deeds,

your greatness,

your abundant goodness,

your righteousness.

Why does he take time

to use so many words?

Why does he just say,

Lord is great,

greatness is unsearchable.

Woo!

Woo!

Well, because

we,

well,

as a commentator,

William Plumer says,

unless we have great thoughts

of God,

our thoughts of sin

will be low,

our sense of obligation

feeble,

and our praise is dull.

We won't think our sin

is that bad.

We won't have a right perspective

on why God put us

on this earth

to begin with.

And the worship of God

will just feel boring.

You know,

I've heard people say

sometimes,

like,

is heaven is like,

we're just gonna sing to him?

I don't think that's what

the new heavens

and the new earth is,

but that sure shouldn't be

your attitude

if you know who God is.

If you know that

when he calls us to praise him,

he's calling us

to the highest joy

we could ever conceive of.

So we want to be really clear

about how great God is.

Even apart from

what he does for us,

even though we'll see

that's crucial as well.

But praise fit for a king

begins with how great he is

apart from anything

he does for us.

God was great

before he created

the universe,

and he will be great

forever.

So he's the great king,

and we exalt him

as the great king.

Second,

David extols God

as the good king.

Verses 7 through 10.

I love this.

Verse 7.

They shall pour forth

the fame of your

abundant goodness

and shall sing aloud

of your righteousness.

The Lord is gracious

and merciful,

slow to anger

and abounding

in steadfast love.

If you know your Bible,

you'll know those words

in verse 8.

The Lord is gracious

and merciful,

slow to anger

and abounding

in steadfast love.

Those are the words

that God proclaimed

to Moses

after Israel

had prostituted themselves

and worshiped

a golden calf

in Exodus 32.

Those words come

from Exodus 34.

At that moment,

after God had delivered

Israel from Egypt,

right through the Red Sea,

Pharaoh's army lay dead

in the Red Sea,

never coming out of there,

they're delivered,

they sing a song

of deliverance.

He calls them

to Mount Sinai.

What do they do?

They worship

a golden calf.

So don't you think

it would be appropriate

at that moment

for God to just say,

I'm going to wipe you out.

In fact,

he told Moses,

he said,

you know what,

let me do that

and we'll just start over.

And Moses says,

oh no God,

these are your people.

What would it be

if the nation said

he brought them out

but couldn't deliver them?

And God was just

showing Moses his heart

which was to do just that.

But he doesn't wipe them out.

He says,

I am merciful.

I'm gracious.

I'm slow to anger.

I'm abounding

in steadfast love.

God doesn't want

to just be known

as the great king.

He doesn't want us

to know that he's

really great

and transcendent

and out there

and amazing

and high

and lifted up.

He wants us to know

he's the good

and merciful king.

And David goes on

to expand

what that means.

Verse 9,

the Lord is good

to all

and his mercy

is over all

that he has made.

You know,

in this psalm,

it's almost 20 times

that David uses

the word all

or every.

He wants us to get

this isn't just about

an individual

or a fleeting moment.

This is all.

The Lord is good

to all.

His mercy

is over all

that he has made.

Verse 8 speaks

of God's goodness

to his people

but this verse

speaks of God's goodness

to everyone.

He's saying

God is so good

because we can

see his goodness

everywhere.

All over the world

God's providing

sights and sounds

that astound

and delight

and propel us

to amazement

and wonder.

Think of the Grand Canyon.

You think of

Mount Everest.

You think of

the Hawaiian sunsets.

You think of

just what happens

this time

every year

in Boston

to the trees.

Do you realize

that God

didn't have to

make the trees

become beautiful

in autumn?

They could have

just like been green

and just turned brown.

But they don't.

Why?

Because God's so good.

See his goodness

everywhere.

Rivers and oceans

teem with creatures

that are

fascinatingly beautiful

and some people

think they're good

to eat.

I don't personally

think that

but some people

do.

Fruits and vegetables

and grains

grow in abundance.

We just took a trip

by God's grace

and mercy

to Italy

with five of our

children.

It was amazing.

The golden fields

of wheat,

the orchards,

the olive groves

and grapevines

and it's just

amazing.

God's given us

these amazing

tastes and smells

and colors

and textures

to enjoy.

He is so good.

But you know

what shows us

the most

that he's good?

Is that he doesn't

destroy us

every time we sin.

That's how we know

he's good.

One of the most

overlooked

signs,

testimonies

to God's goodness

is his patience.

Amazing patience

with sinful people.

He bears with us.

He blesses us.

He sustains us

and we don't

deserve any of it.

It's all

his goodness

and mercy.

In 2009,

an Air France

plane was flying

from Rio de Janeiro

to Paris

when a thunderstorm

caused it

to plummet

into the Atlantic Ocean.

All 228 passengers

and crew

were killed.

People were

incensed.

Social media

blew up.

Where was God?

Well,

no one

noticed

when 100,000

flights

a day

take off

with no problem

and make it

to their destination.

filled

with people

who ignore,

minimize,

and despise

the God

who keeps

that plane

in the air.

That's patience.

That's goodness.

And if we

continue to ignore,

mock,

and sin

against God,

why doesn't

that happen

to all of us?

Because God's

good to all

and his mercy

is over

all he has made.

So verse 10

is a response.

It says,

all God's work

give thanks to him

and his saints

bless him.

So when God's works

give thanks to him,

they don't use words.

They just do

what they were

intended to do.

Stars shine,

oceans roar,

birds sing.

That's what they do.

They're giving glory

to God.

They're giving thanks.

But the saints,

God's people,

we have better reasons

to praise God,

to bless God,

to thank him.

We've been redeemed

through the blood

of the Lamb,

through the death

and resurrection

of Jesus Christ.

We are no longer

under judgment.

We're objects

of his affection.

Our hearts

have been changed

so that we really

do love to be with him.

We really do love

to know him.

And at one time,

we only wanted

to praise ourselves.

Now we want to praise him.

That's a miracle.

He watches over

our every breath,

every breath,

the breath you just took.

He gave that to you.

There's no reason

why we shouldn't

just die.

But God's good.

And his saints

bless him.

There's no one like him.

And those who know

that God is a king

like no other

will not rest

until he receives

praise like no other.

Number three.

He's the great king,

he's the good king,

and he's the powerful king.

verses 11 through 13.

They shall speak

of the glory

of your kingdom

and tell of your power

to make known

to the children of man

your mighty deeds

and the glorious splendor

of your kingdom.

Your kingdom's

an everlasting kingdom,

and your dominion

endures throughout

all generations.

The Lord is faithful

in all his words

and kind in all his works.

God's kingdom

is marked by power.

His reign

has no term limits.

He's not nervous

about anyone

voting him out

or taking over

his throne.

Think of the great

rulers of history.

They all have

the great attached

to them.

Cyrus the great,

Alexander the great,

Julius Caesar,

well, they just

called him great,

Constantine the great,

Charlemagne the great,

Catherine the great.

Turns out they

weren't so great

after all.

They're all dead.

Whether through election,

appointment,

or death,

other people

are sitting

on their thrones,

but they don't even

exist anymore

at those thrones.

No one else

will ever sit

on God's throne.

God has always

ruled.

He always will rule.

He controls the stars.

He controls the atoms.

He rules presidents

and peasants.

He can move mountains.

He can move hearts.

There is nothing

our God cannot do.

He rules over tsunamis

and earthquakes

and floods and fires.

So those who know him

and love him

speak of the glory

of his kingdom

and tell of his power.

He's a powerful king.

And after praising God

for his rule

and his dominion

and his kingship

and his power,

one might expect

David to go on

and tell us more

about that.

How great is he?

How big?

How mighty?

How powerful?

But to show us

how great God

really is,

David shows us

that God

has also revealed

himself as,

number four,

the gracious king.

verses 14 through 20.

He's the great king,

the good king,

the powerful king,

and he's the gracious king.

Grace speaks of

undeserved,

unmerited favor.

We see it in verse 14.

The Lord upholds

all who are falling

and raises up

all who are bowed down.

That isn't a promise

that no one

will ever fall

or that no one

will ever be

bowed down.

It's saying that

if someone recovers

from a fall

or is kept

through trials

or is raised up

from humbling circumstances,

the Lord

is the one

who's done it.

We can't claim

credit for that.

God is intimately

involved

in sustaining

and restoring

everything he's made.

The next verse,

the eyes of all

look to you,

verse 15,

the eyes of all

look to you

and you give them

their food

in due season.

You open your hand.

You satisfy the desire

of every living thing.

Those verses

remind us

that everything

in creation

is absolutely

dependent on God

for their existence.

As Acts 17, 28 says,

in him

we live

and move

and have our being.

God is

lavish

in his generosity,

open-handed

in his blessings

and free

in his giving.

It's amazing

how we don't see him

that way so often.

Sean mentioned

Julie and I

raised six kids

by God's grace

and even with one kid,

I have a fresh

appreciation for this

as a grandparent.

Even with one kid,

life can be overwhelming.

The amount of time

and energy

and effort

and sweat

and wisdom

and money

and thought

it takes just to provide

for one child

is just overwhelming

sometimes.

And I remember

as we had

maybe three or four children,

just money

felt just really tight

all the time.

And when we'd eat out,

we had certain rules.

Just water here.

Okay,

we're splitting

the big fry.

Okay,

no,

don't get that.

One time

we were eating out

with Julie's dad

and his wife

and I leaned over

to the kids

and said,

just get whatever

you want.

And my 10-year-old son,

Jordan,

he looked right at me

and said,

you're not paying

for this,

are you?

Try not to take

that personally.

Governments

spend

countless hours,

organize

countless

committees,

make countless

laws to make sure

that people

are provided for.

It's happening

right now

in our government.

Often with

little success.

God doesn't

labor.

He doesn't

worry.

He doesn't

break into

sweat,

doesn't

strive.

It's what the

psalm says.

He opens

his hand.

He satisfies

the desire

of every

living thing.

That's grace.

He goes on

to say,

the Lord

is righteous

in all

his ways

and kind

in all

his works.

Duh.

Yeah,

we're seeing

that.

But God

shows a

unique grace

to his

people.

people.

Is God

kind to

all?

Is he

good to

all?

Yes.

That's what

the psalmist

says.

That's what

God's word

says.

But J.I.

Packer

goes on to

explain,

God is

good to

all in

some ways

and to

some

in all

ways.

He's

good to

all in

some ways

and to

some

in

all

ways.

And the

some

that he

refers to

are those

who know

his

steadfast

love.

Those who

know his

grace.

Those who

know his

grace and

have received

his grace.

And these

are the

promises God

makes to

his own.

And notice

how the

psalmist

starts to

put qualifiers

on these

actions.

Verse 18.

The Lord

is near

to all

who call

on him.

To all

who call

on him

in truth.

Not just

all who

call on him,

it's to all

who call

on him

in truth.

Those who

know him

as he

really is.

God

doesn't

promise to

be near

us when

we feel

like he

should be

giving us

what we

want

anywhere,

anytime.

No,

those who

call on

the Lord

in truth

are those

who really

know him

through his

word,

who humble

themselves to

believe him

and trust

him and

follow him.

And for

Christians,

to call on

the Lord

in truth

means to

call on

him by

him who

is the

truth,

Jesus

Christ.

We bring

all our

requests in

the arms

of Jesus

Christ and

he actually

carries us

there.

Verse 19.

He fulfills

the desire

of those

who fear

him.

He also

hears their

cry and

saves them.

Now back

in verse

16, we

just looked

at it,

we're told

the Lord

satisfies the

desire of

every living

thing, but

here God

fulfills the

desire of

those who

fear him.

Those who

fear him

are the

ones who

want God

to be

glorified.

Those who

fear him

are the

ones who

want to

walk in

God's

ways.

Those who

fear him

are the

ones who

want others

to know

God's

forgiveness.

They want

to see the

name of

Jesus lifted

up.

So God

hears their

cry and

he saves

them.

And he

often saves

them from

their situation

but ultimately

he saves them

from his

wrath and

from their

sins.

That's the

kind of

saving we

want.

Not just

to be saved

out of our

current

circumstance

but to

save from

his just

condemnation.

And verse

20 contains

one more

promise.

The Lord

preserves

all who

love him

but all

the wicked

he will

destroy.

Did you

notice that's

the first

mention of

evil in

the psalm?

The first

time anything

is out of

sync.

It's as

though the

psalmist

wanted to

keep us

focused on

God

himself

but finally

has to

say something

about the

fact that

not everyone

believes in

this God.

Not everyone

loves this

God.

Not everyone

wants to

follow this

God or

even

acknowledges

the existence

of this

God.

God

has

enemies.

But we

don't need

to be

afraid of

him.

We don't

need to be

afraid of

him.

There's a

verse in

Psalm 112

that has

ministered

grace to

my soul

repeatedly

when I

am in a

situation

where I'm

fearing what's

going to

happen.

Fearing what

my enemies

might do

to me.

Psalm

Psalms 112:7

112

verse 7

says he

is not

afraid.

Speaking of

the man who

fears the

Lord or

woman who

fears the

Lord,

he's not

afraid of

bad news.

What?

His heart

is firm

trusting in

the Lord.

His heart

is steady.

He will

not be

afraid until

he looks

in triumph

on his

adversaries.

You know

when we're

going to

look in

triumph on

our

adversaries?

It may

be in

this life

at different

times,

but you

know when

it's really

going to

be?

When all

the wicked

he will

destroy.

God

protects us

from our

enemies.

He ensures,

he will

ensure that

the kingdom

of heaven

is made

up exclusively

of those

who love

the king,

those who

treasure the

king,

those who

prize the

king,

those who

want to

obey the

king.

In Luke

21,

Jesus is

talking to

the disciples

about how

they will

encounter

situations

where some

of them will

be put to

death.

And then a

verse later

he says,

but no one

will be able

to harm a

hair of your

head.

And I'm

thinking,

Jesus,

if they

put me

to death

that sounds

like they're

harming every

hair of my

head.

But Jesus

knows there

is a life

that others

can't take

from us.

And that's

what he

promises.

But that

promise of

protection for

us is also

a warning.

Those who

refuse the

mercy and

grace of

God that

we've been

talking about

will receive

exactly what

they deserve.

And that is

the righteous

punishment for

their sin and

rebellion.

They will be

destroyed.

You can't

fight the

king and

win.

But there's

always hope.

We can turn

to Jesus

Christ and

find refuge in

this good,

great,

powerful,

and gracious

king.

Which brings

us to the

final question.

What is the

fitting response

to this

king?

God is

so great

and so

good and

so powerful

and so

gracious.

What kind

of praise

is fit for

a king?

This one

gives you

four ways,

four characteristics

of the way

we should

respond.

First,

it's

personal.

David is

the king,

but he

recognizes an

infinitely

greater king.

And he

starts out,

I will

extol you,

my God

and king.

He doesn't

want to watch

everybody else

around him

praise God

for him.

This is what he

says in the

beginning of the

psalm.

I will exalt,

I will bless,

I will praise,

I will meditate,

I will sing.

David is not

going to stand

in the midst

of a crowd

and watch

other people,

as his arms

are folded,

watch other

people praise

God and

love me.

He says,

I'm not

going to do

that.

I can't do

that.

It's personal.

This is what

God means to

me.

This is how

God has

revealed himself

to me.

He's not

going to be

swallowed up

in the crowd

no matter

how big

the crowd

is.

It's

personal.

Second,

and this

will be

obvious,

it's

passionate.

It's

passionate

praise.

Verse

two,

every day

I will

bless you.

Every day

I will

bless you.

Not just

occasionally

or when I

feel like

it.

Every day

I will

bless you.

Certainly

on the

good days.

But also

on the

bad days.

The hard

days.

The turbulent

days.

The confusing

days.

The painful

days.

The sad

days.

The disappointing

days.

The discouraging

days.

The I'm

not sure

I can

go on

anymore

days.

Every day.

I will

bless you.

God.

Because

his praise

aligns with

what is

true about

God.

God is

always

worthy.

So

David says,

I'm going

to always

praise you.

And I'm

going to

do it

with all

my heart.

Not

going to

be half

hearted.

Not

going to

be lazy.

Not

going to

be quiet.

It's

every day

and it's

exuberant.

It's

just in

the Bible

guys.

Verse

seven.

They

shall

pour

forth

the

fame

of

your

abundant

over

the

top.

This

is how

God

calls us

to

praise

him.

Now I

know what

some of

you are

thinking.

I grew

up

Presbyterian.

I'm an

introvert.

What would

my friends

think?

It's just

not my

style.

I'm kind

of new

here.

You just

don't know

me very

well.

It

wouldn't be

cool.

our

response

to God,

our

praise of

God,

praise fit

for

King,

is not

determined

by our

personality

or our

preferences

or our

background

or our

circumstances

but by

God's

greatness.

We just

don't see

how great

he is.

David

doesn't

want to

keep his

personal

and passionate

praise to

himself.

It's not

only personal

and passionate,

it's passed

on.

It's a

third

characteristic

of a

fitting

response.

One

generation

shall commend

your works

to another

and shall

declare

your mighty

acts.

David's

describing the

godly desire

to pass on

what is

true and

praiseworthy

about God

to future

generations.

Our

children,

as we were

just hearing

about.

Our

grandchildren,

our

great

grandchildren.

And notice

we're not

just passing

on our

practices

or our

preferences

or our

traditions

as time

proven as

they may

be.

We're

pressing on

praise for

God's

works so

that every

generation

might have an

understanding

that God is

always great,

always good,

always powerful,

always gracious,

not just to you

all,

but to us.

That's who he

is.

And those

who know

God is a

king like

no other

will not

rest until

he receives

praise like

no other

from every

generation.

Every

generation.

Finally,

our response

is eternal.

David begins

and ends the

psalm with

eternity in

view.

It starts

off,

I will

extol you,

my God

and king,

and bless

your name

forever and

ever.

That's what I'm

going to do.

Look how he

ends.

My mouth

will speak

the praise

of the Lord

and let all

flesh bless

his holy

name

forever and

ever.

God's praise

can't be

contained to

a meeting

or a

calendar year

or a

century

or time

itself.

We will

never,

ever reach

the end

of it.

No one

in the new

heavens and

the new

earth is

going to

look at

their watch

and say,

aren't we

about done

yet?

Isn't

that,

like haven't

we covered

everything?

They won't

be able to

do that

because we'll

see him

as he

really is.

So at the

end,

David prays,

let all

flesh bless

his holy

name forever

and ever.

And we

know that

prayer will

be answered

because God

has pulled

back the

curtain of

heaven and

showed us

what's

happening and

what will

always be

happening.

Jesus

Christ has

opened the

scroll as

we sang about

earlier.

He's ensured

that through

his redeeming

work,

God will

have a

people who

will bless

his name

forever and

ever.

Revelation 5,

13 and 14,

I heard every

creature in

heaven and

on earth and

under the

earth and

in the sea

and all

that is in

them saying

to him who

sits on the

throne and

to the

lamb,

be blessing

and honor

and glory

and might

forever and

ever.

And for

those of us

here who

have experienced

God's life

transforming grace

through Christ,

we sit here

confident that

we will be

among that

multitude.

But it's

here we

realize this

is a psalm

that none of

us in

integrity could

really pray

by ourselves.

do I

bless God's

name every

day?

Do you?

Do we

consistently

meditate on

his wondrous

works?

Do our

mouths

consistently

speak the

praise of

the Lord

at every

moment?

Do we

always come

to God

with praise

that is

personal and

passionate?

I mean,

I don't know

you, but I'm

pretty sure the

answer is no.

But there's

one who did.

praise.

I don't know

because praise

fit for a

king must be

given by the

king himself.

We may never

praise the

king as we

ought, but we

have a king who

has done that

for us.

And we can be

assured that he

is working those

desires in us.

God gave us

this psalm to

raise us above

our circumstances,

above the

temptations we're

fighting, the

trials we're

facing, the

suffering we

may be

enduring, to

see our great

God as ruling

over all

things and

graciously working

all things for

our good in

Christ.

And so we

respond in

ways that

defy our

circumstances and

astound and

confound the

people around us

who don't know

God.

that's what

he's called us

to, brothers

and sisters.

Praise fit for

a king because

God is a king

like no other.

And with all the

joys he gives us

in this life, we

know that our

greatest joy lies

in the future when

we join our

voices with those

around the throne.

But we don't

want to wait until

that day because

God is great and

good and God is

powerful and

gracious and we

will bless his

name every day

all to the

praise of his

glorious grace.

Father, we thank

you that your

grace has come to

us in Jesus

Christ.

We thank you that

you have given

us a reason to

praise you.

You've given us

countless reasons

to praise you.

for our good and

and it's for our

good and our joy

and our health and

our benefit.

It's all for your

glory.

We thank you that

Jesus has done this

for us.