The Perpetuity of Praise, Part 2

Since October of last year, we have been on this pathway of

praise. It's a journey that takes us

from the time we are saved until the time we enter into glory

where our praise will fill all of heaven in the presence of the

living God. And during this time, we've

given you a key verse. I'm not going to give you a quiz

this morning for fear that you might fail early in the new

year. But there's a, there's a verse

that we've used as the theme verse.

It's in Isaiah 43 verse #21 You should have it memorized by now.

If not, it will be good to memorize it, which says the

people that I have formed for myself, they will declare my

praise. Now that is such a powerful

statement because the question comes, well, how will the people

that God has formed for himself declare his praise?

Or why would the people that God has formed for himself declare

his praise? Why is that possible?

How is that possible? Well, we've just come fresh off

the Christmas season, and the Christmas season is about what

the Angel said to the shepherds. Fear not, for I bring you good

news of great joy. The good news is that the

Messiah is here. The great joy is that the

Messiah's ministry will bring you joy that's incomparable to

anything else. And so that was always the theme

of Christmas, that there would be the gospel that now is given

that brings great joy. But if you have your Bible, turn

with me to the book of Isaiah, the 61st chapter, Isaiah 61.

You remember Isaiah is writing to those who are about to go

into captivity. He is warning them about the

judgement that's going to come. There will be turmoil, there

will be tears, there will be tragedy all-encompassing the

Babylonian captivity. He's warning them to repent and

turn, but they do not. They do not listen.

But He's prophesying all this going to happen.

In the meantime, all the prophecies send us around the

light that will come in their darkness, the dawning of a new

day, the coming of the Messiah, and all that that means.

The Man of Sorrows, Isaiah 53. And Isaiah presents to us this

great servant of the Lord, this Messiah who's going to come and

bring to them what they so desperately need in spite of

their captivity, in spite of all that's going to happen.

The Messiah is their hope. So when you come to Isaiah 61,

you have a very familiar passage.

It's familiar because Jesus would read this passage in the

synagogue in Nazareth and Luke chapter 4, and he would tell

Luke 4 · chapter mention

them that today this scripture has been fulfilled, telling them

that He was the fulfillment of what the Bible said concerning

the Messiah and the Spirit of the Lord being upon him.

So this is what it says in Isaiah 61.

The Spirit of the Lord of God is upon me because the Lord has

anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted.

He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim

liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners, to proclaim the

favorable year of our Lord. And he closed the book and said

this has been fulfilled. When the Angel said, we bring

you good news of great joy, he was telling them that Isaiah 61

is going to be fulfilled. This is the good news.

Prisoners will be set free. Those in bondage to sin will be

set free. The emancipator has come, and

when he frees you, he sets you free.

From that which enslaves you, great joy comes.

Notice what else he says about the ministry of the Messiah.

It says in the end of verse 2 to comfort all who mourn.

Isn't it interesting that Jesus begins his sermon in Matthew

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5 with these words? Blessed are those who are poor

in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of God.

Blessed are those who mourn over the sin, for they should be

comforted. Jesus is saying the exact same

thing that the prophet Isaiah said about how the Messiah will

bring comfort to those who mourn.

In fact, he goes on and says this.

He says to grant those who mourn in Zion those who mourn in Zion.

In other words, Israel is going to go back to Jerusalem, Israel

is going to go back to their hometown.

Israel is going to be there and they're going to mourn.

And he's going to bring comfort to those who who mourn over

their sin. Then he says this, giving them a

Garland instead of ashes for those who who are comforted

because of God's forgiveness. They are those who are crowned

with God's loving kindness. God's going to give you a

diadem, A tiara, a crown. Those who mourn, mourn with

ashes upon their heads to show their grief and their sorrow.

But the Lord's going to replace all that with a crown, a crown

that signifies his, his beautifulness, his loving

kindness, granted to those who mourn because those who mourn

are comforted, comforted by God's forgiveness.

Note the next phrase he says, the oil of gladness instead of

mourning. The oil of gladness instead of

mourning those who are comforted with God's forgiveness and those

who are crowned with His loving kindness are those who are

covered with His gladness. You see, the oil was the perfume

that was presented to the special guest of honor at the

table. That that's why David would say

in Psalm 23, verse #4 that that thou prepare us to table before

me in the presence of my enemies, and you anoint my head

with oil. I am the honored guest at the

table of God. And Isaiah is telling us about

those who are covered with the oil of gladness.

They are honored, They are the special ones because they've

been comforted by God's forgiveness.

They've been crowned with God's loving kindness, and therefore

they are now comforted, or they are now covered with God's great

gladness. But the next phrase is where

we're at. It says the the garment of

praise instead of fainting or feebleness, the garment of

praise. Why is it Isaiah would say in

chapter 43, the people that I have formed for myself, they

will declare my praise. Why would he say that?

And how can he say that? It's because the people that God

has formed for themselves, for himself, are those who have been

comforted by God's forgiveness. They have been crowned with

God's loving kindness, they have been covered with God's

gladness, and they are now clothed with thankfulness.

You receive a garment, you receive a cloak that covers your

body. Why is it, Isaiah would say the

people that I have formed for myself, they will declare my

praise. It's because you've been covered

with praise. You've been cloaked with

thankfulness. You can't help but give thanks

to God. It it's all-encompassing praises

and the people of God have been have been clothed with this

garment of praise. It covers us.

It is the distinguishing mark of the believer that there's

something unique about our lives that that offer praise to God

and then it says so they will be called oaks of righteousness.

The planting of the Lord that he may be glorified.

All this is done so that God will be glorified.

You will give praise to him so that he will be glorified.

You will be oaks of righteousness.

You're not going to be like feeble reeds that blow in the

wind. You're you're, you're like oaks

that are planted by God, that they're immovable, they're

sustainable. And it's by the righteousness of

God that you are planted by him to give glory to his name.

But but the key for us during our our pathway to praise is

that is that we are we are cloaked covered in this garment

of praise over in Isaiah 61 verse #10 is this I will rejoice

greatly in the Lord. My soul would exalt in my God,

for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation.

He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness as a bridegroom

decks himself with a Garland and as a bride adorns herself with

jewels. Isaiah is saying what what God

does is you receive the garments of God, and part of the garments

are the cloak of praise. You, you adorn yourself with the

with the robes of righteousness. The the garments of God consists

of the robe of righteousness and the garment of praise, so much

so that as the bridegroom would adorn himself, as the bride

would adorn herself, making them the best possible presence to

those who are there, so too is the child of God.

So important to understand this. It's no wonder the psalmist said

in Psalm 147 verse #1 It is good to sing praises to the Lord for

this pleasant and praise is beautifying.

It's becoming why? Why does praise change the

scene? Why?

Why does praise enhance your situation?

Because when you walk into the situation, you are covered.

You are clothed with a cloak of praise.

You've adorned yourself with the garments of God.

Do you understand that? What that means?

When you come to church, or you go out on a date, or you go to a

wedding, or you go someplace special, what do you do?

You adorn yourself in the best that you have because you want

to present to the Lord and those around you the beauty and best

that you have. Well, God has clothed you with

the best that He has, so that when you walk into a room, you,

you are clothed already with the garments of praise.

You're already wrapped in the robes of righteousness.

You've already been adorned by God himself.

So as we travel the pathway of praise, we can understand why

Isaiah would say that. The people I have formed for

myself, they will, without a doubt.

It's a guarantee. Declare my praise.

Why? Because it's all about the glory

of the living God. So on.

As we journey along the pathway of praise, we find ourselves

looking at the perpetuity of praise, the state or quality of

longevity. In other words, the perpetuity

of praise talks about how it is praise now, continues on and on

and on and on and is never ending and continues into glory.

It's the perpetuity of praise. It's what makes the pathway so

enjoyable. And so we say, OK, so if that's

the case, how is it I engage in never ending praise?

Well, we told you last week, we do it because he recognized that

God's power, God's power is always available.

He's empowered us with His spirit.

He's clothed us with all that we need, and His power is always

available. In other words, He is able to do

exceeding abundantly, above all that we ever ask or think, by

the power that works within us. There's already a power that's

active. The power of God is not dormant

in the life of the believer. The power of God is always

active in your life. It's always available.

And therefore, when you tap into that power of the Spirit of God,

you praise Him and give glory to His name.

God's power is always available. It's actively available #2 His,

His presence is, is, or His promises are are absolutely

undeniable. The promises of God are

absolutely undeniable. For all the promises of God are

yes, in Christ Jesus. Now remember, Revelation 3 tells

us that Christ is called the Amen.

He is faithful and true. He is called the Amen.

It's the confirmation. It's the affirmation of all that

God has promised is fulfilled in Christ.

Isaiah 65 tells us that the Messiah is the God of truth.

OK, He's the God of the Amin, or the God of the Amen.

He's the God of affirmation. He's the God that's undeniably

going to prove all that He has said.

That's the promises of God. So in the Book of Numbers, the

23rd chapter, it says God is not a man that he should lie, nor

son of man that he should repent.

Has he said and will he not do it or has he spoken and will he

not make good? Yes, He is, because His promises

are absolutely undeniable, His power is actively available, and

#3 His presence is actually unavoidable.

In other words, there's no way you can get out of the presence

of God. Listen to the words of Moses in

the book of Exodus, the 33rd chapter very carefully.

Listen to what he says. God says, My presence shall go

with you, and I will give you rest.

The Lord is speaking to Moses. Then Moses said to him, if your

presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here.

In other words, we need you. For how then can it be known

that I have found favor in your sight?

I and your people, is it not? But you're going with us, said

we. I and your people may be

distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of

the earth. Moses makes a statement that is

so unique that so many times we miss it.

What distinguishes you from the unbelieving world is the

presence of God in your life. Moses made it very clear.

The only way we are distinguished from the people in

in the land of Canaan is because of your presence with us.

How would he know that? How would Moses know that?

Remember the life of Joseph. The life of Joseph is a unique

and and special life in the book of Genesis, the 39th chapter.

I want you to remember what it says about Joseph.

Remember, Moses is the author of Genesis, so he would have

already written this in his life, probably by now.

Listen to what it says. Genesis 39.

Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an

Egyptian officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the bodyguard, bought

him from the Ishmaelites and he'd taken him down there.

The Lord was with Joseph, so he became a successful man.

But read on, and he was in the House of his master, the

Egyptian. Now his master saw, listen

carefully. The master saw that the Lord was

with him, and how the Lord caused all that he did to

prosper in his hand. In other words, Potiphar was

able to see the presence of God in the life of Joseph because

that is the distinguishing mark of the believer.

God's presence among us separates us from those who do

not know Him. Joseph is the classic example,

and you read on in Genesis chapter 39, and it says these

Genesis 39 · chapter mention

words in verse #21 But the Lord was with Joseph and extended

kindness to him and gave him favor in the sight of the chief

jailer. So it was the presence of God in

the life of Joseph that distinguished him, so much so

that Potiphar saw the success in his life, and that the chief

jailer would see something different about Joseph as well

because of the presence of God in his life.

Verse 23, The chief jailer did not supervise anything under

Joseph's charge because the Lord was with him in whatever he did.

The Lord made to prosper. You see that what made Joseph so

unique in his journey from being sold to the Israelites to go

into Potiphar's house, to being lied about, thrown into prison,

and then becoming the greatest leader in Israel, greater than

even Potiphar or Pharaoh himself?

It was because the Lord was with him.

The presence of God was seen clearly in his life.

So the question comes, is the presence of God clearly seen in

your life by your boss, by your teacher, by your coach, by your

wife, by your husband, by your children?

Is the presence of God clearly seen because you are so

dependent upon Him for everything?

That's why we praise Him. The presence of God is actually

unavoidable. You can't get away from him.

He's always there, which is a good thing.

It's never a bad thing. And so the reason we can live a

life of perpetual praise is because the power of God is

actively available. The promise of God is absolutely

undeniable in the presence of God is actually unavoidable, and

we praise him for that. Here's the next one.

The Providence of God is admitted, admittedly

unsearchable. The Providence of God is

admittedly unsearchable. 2025 is past. 2026 is present.

As you look back on 2025, there are things that have taken place

in your life that you have no understanding of.

You don't know why things happened the way they did.

You don't know why God did what he did.

You have no understanding of that.

As you embark on a brand new year, you're going to face all

kinds of things that you'll shake your head at, you'll

scratch your head at, you'll wonder what it is God is doing.

But the Providence of God is unsearchable.

In other words, you're never going to understand it.

You must come to grips with that.

And that's what causes us to praise Him because He's in

charge and you're not. Remember, God's sovereignty is

the entire show. God's Providence are the details

that define the show. That's how you tell the

difference. God's sovereignty is how God has

this complete and total show that's happening, but the

province of God are the details on how the show was ran, and

those details are unsearchable. You're going to ask the question

why? That's always the wrong

question. The question is always who.

That's why when Job asked the question why he never received

an answer, he never received an answer as to why, even after the

Lord gave him twice as much as what he had before.

He never understood why. Because the Providence of God is

unsearchable. And God wanted Joe to understand

like he wants you to understand. That's not a question of why.

It's a question of who. It's who I am.

It's a revelation of who I am. God does all these things in

your life, whatever they may be, to demonstrate His person who He

is, because He wants you to worship Him for who He is.

He's the God who is sovereign over all.

He rules over all. Let me let me just read to you a

couple of verses to set this in your mind.

Some of them will be familiar to you, others will not.

Romans 11, 33 O the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and

knowledge of God, How unsearchable are His judgements,

and unfathomable His ways. For who has known the mind of

the Lord, or who became His counsellor, or who has first

given to him, that it might be paid back to Him again?

For from Him and through him and to Him are all things, to Him be

the glory forever. Amen.

All things are from Him, all things go through Him, and all

things come back to Him again. Paul would say to him, be the

glory. Praise Him for this.

His ways are unfathomable, His wheel is unsearchable, His

wonder is unimaginable. You cannot conjure up in your

mind, in a finite mind, all the things that God is doing, but to

him be the glory, to Him be the praise forever and ever.

Because we know this. It's all from Him.

It goes through Him and back to him again, because it's all

about God. See what what is happening to

you in 2025 and what will happen to you in 2026 is never really

about you. It's about the Lord and all that

He's doing in and through you, that he might be glorified.

That's why his Providence is admittedly unsearchable.

But to him be the glory and praise, forever and ever.

Amen. How about this Deuteronomy 32,

the song of Moses? He's closing out his life.

He's about to die. He's going to give it a

historical perspective on Israel and then a prophetical

perspective for Israel. It's a great song.

He says this verse one, give ear, O heavens, and let me

speak, and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.

Let my teaching drop as the rain, my speech distill as the

dew, as the droplets on the fresh grass, as the showers on

the herb. For I proclaim the name of the

Lord, ascribe greatness to our God, the rock.

His work is perfect. All his ways are just a God of

faithfulness and without injustice, righteousness and

upright is He. Our God is the rock, and even

though you might not understand anything about him, He is

immovable. He is unchangeable.

There is stability in God and all his ways are perfect.

None of his ways are imperfect. They're all perfect.

Why? Because they're couched in His

righteousness, in His judgments that are pure and right.

He goes on to say this in verse #8 when the Most High gave the

nation's their inheritance, when He separated the sons of man, He

set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number

of the sons of Israel. God did this.

God gave you your inheritance. God set your boundaries.

In other words, God gives you what you have, and God shows you

where you live. He sets the boundaries of and

the parameters of your home. God does all that.

We think we buy our house. That's so funny.

We think we buy our house. We think we get our jobs.

We think we do all. We are so narcissistic.

We think we do all that stuff. God grants you the inheritance

and God grants you the boundaries by which you live.

God does all that. He goes on to say this in verse

#10 he encircled him, he cared for him.

That's Israel. He guarded him as the pupil of

his eye, like an eagle that stirs up it's nest that hovers

over it's young. He spread his wings and cut

them. He carried them on the in his

opinions. The Lord alone guided them.

In other words, he's, he's reviewing Israel's history and

saying, look, you are where you are because God protected you.

God guarded you. God took you from where you were

and placed you right here. God did all this.

He's saying don't take credit for anything.

Give God all the credit for everything because God did it.

It says in verse #39 see now that I, I am he, and there is no

God beside me. It is I who put to death and

give life. God does this.

Nobody dies unless God puts them to death.

Nobody lives unless God gives them life.

He says I have wounded and it is I who heal and there is no one

who can deliver from my hand. Moses is accentuating the

Providence of God in the life of Israel that they might learn to

sing praises to his name and glorify him.

Because God is in charge of everything and directing every

aspect of your life. What a marvelous statement.

So Nebuchadnezzar had a vision. He needed someone to interpret

the vision. So he chose the chief of the

magicians, Daniel. And Daniel would tell him of his

vision of the great tree and told him what was going to

happen in his life. But Nebuchadnezzar never

repented. 12 months later, everything happened just as the

vision was prophesied. After seven years,

Nebuchadnezzar says this. At the end of that period, I,

Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my reason

returned to me, and I blessed. I praised the Most High and

praised and honored him who lives forever.

For his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his

Kingdom endures from generation to generation.

All the inhabitants of the earth are counted as nothing, but He

does according to his will in the host of heaven and among the

inhabitants of earth, and no one can warrant off his hand or say

to him, what have you done? This is Nebuchadnezzar.

He's realized that God is providentially in charge, that

God is the king and Nebuchadnezzar is not the king.

God's the true king, he says in verse 37.

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt, and honor the King of

heaven, for all his works are true and his ways just, and he

is able to humble those who walk in pride again.

He is acknowledging the Providence of God working in his

life because God is king over all.

He is the one who's to be praised and exalted because he

is the one in charge of everyone and everything.

And that's why his Providence is admittedly unsearchable.

He says, Nebuchadnezzar, who can ever say, what have you done?

But we say that, Lord, what are you doing?

Lord, why do you do this? And Nebuchadnezzar, the Pagan

says, look, you can't say what have you done.

Let's let God do what he does and rest in his Providence

because he's in charge. And then you have, of course,

Psalm one, O 4 verse 24, which says, O Lord, how many are your

works in wisdom? You have made them all the work

of God is done by his wisdom. It's the wisdom that causes God

to work the way he does. And every child that's born in

every event that happens, in every circumstance that goes by,

it's all under the work of God, formed by the wisdom of God.

The earth is full of your possessions, he concludes.

How about this Ecclesiastes 3 verse #1 There is an appointed

time for everything, and there is a time for every event under

heaven. This is Solomon speaking.

There is an appointed time for everything.

In other words, everything that happens is done by divine

appointment. Everything, nothing is by

accident. Everything is by divine

appointment. And then he goes on to say, and

he has made everything beautiful in it's time.

That's in verse #11 not everything, not, not only is

everything appointed, but everything that's appointed is

beautiful in its time because God is the author of beauty.

And God through his wisdom performed the works that he did

in order to bring about his glory that he says this verse

12. I know that there is nothing

better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one's

lifetime. Moreover, and every man who eats

and drinks sees good and all his labor.

It is the gift of God. I know that everything God does

will remain forever. There is nothing to add to it.

There is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that

men should fear Him. I know that you can't change

anything God does. And in fact, you can't add to

what God has done, and you can't take away to what God is going

to do because what He has done, He has done, so that man will

learn to fear him. Other words, God's plan is

concrete and God's plan is complete because you can't do

anything to change it, add to it, to make it any better or

worse than it is. And then He says these words,

that which has been already, and that which will be has already

been, for God seeks what has passed by.

In other words, God requires an account for how did you respond

to all that has taken place. Then he says in Chapter 7 of

Ecclesiastes these words, verse 13.

Consider mathematical term which means to look at all the facts,

add them all together. Consider the work of God, for

who is able to straighten what he has bent.

In the day of prosperity be happy, but in the day of

adversity consider that God has made the one as well as the

other, so that man will not discover anything that will

happen after him. God's Providence is

unsearchable. No way will you be able to ever

understand why God does what He does.

You have a finite mind, He has an infinite mind, so you rest in

what he says and does. Earlier in the book of Proverbs,

Solomon who said these words. Verse Chapter 16.

Verse #1 The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of

the tongue is from the Lord. You have plans for 2026.

The answer, the final word is from the Lord.

Verse 4. The Lord has made everything for

its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil.

God makes everything for His own purpose.

He even makes the wicked boss the wicked coach for the day of

evil. Verse #9 of chapter 16.

The mind of the man plans his ways with the Lord, directs the

steps. Again, man has a plan.

We set goals and objectives, but it's God who directs the steps.

Then you go over to verse 33, same chapter.

The lot is cast into the lap, but every decision, so the Lord

God has the final word on everything.

Chapter 19, same author, verse #21 He says these words.

Many plans are in a man's heart, but the counsel of the Lord will

stand. We have plans, but the counsel

of the Lord stands. Chapter 20, verse #24 says this

man's steps are ordained by the Lord.

How then can man understand his way?

Answer. He can't.

You have plans. You have plans to get married.

You have plans to move. You have plans for a new job.

You ever ask yourself why I can't find a husband?

Why I can't find a wife? Where are they?

So you make a plan. You make a plan to find a wife.

You make a plan to find a husband.

I think God laughs at those plans.

Because God in his Providence has ordained that person

already. God's going to bring them to you

in his time. He's in charge.

Man has a plan, but God directs his steps.

God is in complete in charge of everything.

And yet we can't understand why? Because Solomon made it very

clear. He says your steps are ordained

by the Lord. How can you ever understand his

ways? You can't.

So what do you do? You just praise him.

To him be the glory and honor forever and ever.

Lord your, your your ways are unsearchable.

Your wonder is unfathomable. Your will is unimaginable.

There's no way I can grasp what you're doing.

Why? Why did you take my wife?

Why did you take my husband? You'll never get an answer to

that. God is not obligated to answer

the why question, but He always gives you the answer as to who

He gives life. He puts to death.

He's in charge, He has a plan, and in the Providence of God,

this was what He ordained to happen.

And although we don't have an answer, we sit back and say,

Lord, I rest in the Providence of the living God.

And even though I can never understand why you did what you

did, I praise you because you did what you did.

You are the God in charge. And I thank you, Lord, that I'm

not. And that's a good thing.

You don't want to be in charge of your life because you're

going to make it a mess. God's in charge.

Let him do what He does and rest in His Providence.

Psalm 33 First, sorry, Psalm 31, verse 14.

Psalms 31:14

But As for me, I trust in you, O Lord, I say, you are my God.

This should be your verse for 2026.

But As for me, I trust in you. O Lord, I say you are my God.

And then verse 15, my times are in your hands.

Isn't that great? That is so good.

That should be your theme verse Psalm 3114 and 15 for 2026.

Lord, I trust you. You're my God in all my times,

all my days, all my events, all my circumstances, because you

have made everything beautiful in it's time and you've

appointed all things to happen at a particular time.

My times are in your hands. My dating life is in your hands.

My marriage life is in your hands.

My work life is in your hands. My school life is in your hands,

my emotions in your hands, everything about me, Lord, is in

your hands. I trust you.

Why? Because you are my God and I

praise you. Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for today. There is so much to to read in

Your word that will help us get a better grasp on all that

happens, but yet we realize, Lord, that You are in control of

everything. Our prayer today, Lord, is that

we would be the kind of people who trust You and believe in You

and never waver in our commitment to You.

And that, Lord, we would trust You because our times are in

Your hands. May that be a theme for our

lives as we lift, as we leave this planet one day into Your

presence. To that time, may we be found

faithful in praising our God as we travel the pathway of praise

in Jesus name, Amen.