Psalm 148 “Praise the LORD”

“Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all stars of light! Praise Him, highest heavens, And the waters that are above the heavens!” (vv.1-4)

Here in psalm 148 the universe is summoned to praise God. All created things are called on to give glory to His name. Why, because “He commanded and they were created” (v. 5). Their origins display His power and sovereignty.

The hymn "All Creatures of Our God and King” by Francis of Assisi was penned in the same spirit as Psalm 148 and would be a great song to learn. Here’s the first verse:

All creatures of our God and King
Lift up your voice and with us sing
Oh, praise Him! Oh, praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thou burning sun with golden beam
Thou silver moon with softer gleam
Oh, praise Him! Oh, praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Truly Francis was on point when he penned these words.

The Truth: “And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” (Revelation 5:13)

Psalm 147 “He Is Our Healer”

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” (v.3)

Psalm 147 was probably written to commemorate the rebuilding of the Jerusalem walls after Israel’s return from exile (vv. 2, 13-14). It had broken the nation’s heart to leave the Promised Land and to see the Temple burned.

But God had not forgotten His people! With compassion, He had promised that He would one day bring Israel back and restore her (Isa. 51:3). And like the Good Samaritan in that well-known parable in Luke, God cares. He is the good shepherd, caring for the needs of His flock (Ezek. 34:18), the God of all comfort, who not only comforts us, but enables us to minister comfort and healing to others (2 Cor. 1:3-4).

And as our great “Great Physician” He has offered the gift of eternal life through His Son, for the terminal illness of sin. He stands ready with the cure if you’ll just accept His remedy today (see prayer to the left of this post). He will heal your broken heart, bind up your wounds, forgive your sin, and prepare a place for you in heaven to spend eternity with Him.

Therefore, call upon Him right now, for it is written, "Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD, shall be saved" (Romans 10:13).

The Truth: “If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin, and to cleans us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

Psalm 146 “Trust In God”

“Do not put your trust in princes, nor a son of man, in whom there is no help. His spirit departs, he returns to his earth; in that very day his plans perish.  Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God.” (vv.3-5)

Kings, Presidents, Princes, they are all mortal, they all die and return to the earth as dust, and heir plans and schemes die with them. But we serve the King of kings, who lives forever and ever, whose plans are perfect and will come to His designed conclusion. Hallelujah!

Therefore, place your hope in God and not man who's breath perishes.

The Truth: “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.” (Psalm 118:8)

Psalm 145 “Great Is The LORD”

“Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable. One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts.” (vv.3-4)

In this Psalm David challenges us to search out God’s greatness, assuring us that God is so immense, we will never be able to discover His full magnitude. He also encourages us to pass on this information to the next generation, “One generation shall praise Your works to another” (v.4).

It is so important for the church to fellowship with all ages. Separation of men, women, young and old has its place, but in fellowship the elders can mentor the younger, and the younger can energize the older. Everyone can testify to God’s work in their lives, and pass on the greatness of  His mercy by declaring His mighty acts from one generation to the next.

Therefore, fellowship with one another and praise the LORD.

The Truth: ”Declare His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among the peoples. For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised.” (Psalm 96:3-4)

Psalm 144 “Trust in The LORD”

“Blessed be the LORD my strength which teaches my hands to war, and my fingers to fight: My goodness, and my fortress; my high tower, and my deliverer; my shield, and He in whom I trust; who subdues my people under me.” (vv.1-2)

David was king, yet he knew that his strength did not come from his own hands. As a mighty warrior he understood the necessity of a strong fortress and a high tower with which to sight the approach of the enemy from afar. Yet these things were nothing apart from the Lord.

David knew his true fortress and his true high tower was God Himself! Even his shield was worth nothing apart from God! So much so that all of David's successes he attributed to the Lord and not himself.

What a great example for us to comprehend - that our true strength and power lies in God, and not ourselves. And, all we have to do to find, victory, joy, peace, and hope, is to trust in Him.

The Truth: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.”(Proverbs 3:5)

Psalm 143 “Our Deliverer”

“I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done.” (v. 5)

Psalm 143 seems to be a continuation of Psalm 142. In this Psalm David follows a pattern of wrestling with a problem and then crying out to God for help. So many times David finds himself in trouble and despair, but always finds his help in God.

What an encouragement this is to all of us. If David, a man after God's own heart, faced such troubles, then we should not be surprised when we continually face such trouble as well. The question is, “How should we react when we do?”

The answer is found in verse five where David writes, “I remember the days of old; I meditate on all You have done.” Meaning, we simply look to what God has done for us in the past, and realize He will continue to deliver us in the future. For we are His children, the work of His hands, redeemed by the blood of Christ, who will not allow our foot be moved.

The Truth: “The Lord will keep you from all harm, He will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:7-8)

Psalm 142 “God Watches Over Us”

“When my spirit grows faint within me, it is You who watches over my way.” (v. 3)

It is a very lonely place to sense that no human being really cares about your life, whether you survive or not. And in this psalm David seems to be in that place emotionally. However, a closer look into his message tells us that although he has these human feelings, in his spirit he still looks toward the One who always watches over him, God Almighty – the one who will never leave us nor forsake us.

It is comforting to have friends and family there for us when we are going through rough water, but in reality, only God can heal our broken lives, only His touch can reach our very souls. And when we put our faith and trust in Him, like David, we can live our lives in confidence knowing that God is right there beside us, "watching over us" - even in the depths of our despair.

The Truth: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4)

Psalm 141 “Guard My Mouth”

“Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips.” (v.3)

As a young boy I stayed with my grand parents a lot, as both of my parents worked. One of the things I can remember my grandfather saying to me was, “Boy, there’s a reason why God gave you two ears and one mouth. And that’s because He wants you to listen twice as much as you speak.” I’m sure that was just his way to get me to stop bugging him, but you get the picture. There's a way to get your point across without using a sharp tongue.

It is a rare person who could go even a week without saying something they regretted. David was aware of this and that is why he was saying in this psalm, “Lord, I need your help not to go off and say things I will regret later.” Things we say, and even how we say them matter. Therefore, asking God as David did to guard our mouths, is a wise request for every believer to make during their prayer time.

LORD forgive me for the times I did not guard my mouth, nor keep watch over the door of my lips. But, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Amen.