Chad Werkhoven

4 hours ago

Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD!

Learning theology is the most practical thing you can do!

Learning theology increases your ability to praise the LORD!

Psalm 103 (NIV)

Of David.

1 Praise the LORD, my soul;

all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

2 Praise the LORD, my soul,

and forget not all his benefits—

3 who forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you with love and compassion,

5 who satisfies your desires with good things

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

6 The LORD works righteousness

and justice for all the oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses,

his deeds to the people of Israel:

8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

9 He will not always accuse,

nor will he harbor his anger forever;

10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve

or repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his love for those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

13 As a father has compassion on his children,

so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

14 for he knows how we are formed,

he remembers that we are dust.

15 The life of men is like grass,

they flourish like a flower of the field;

16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,

and its place remembers it no more.

17 But from everlasting to everlasting

the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,

and his righteousness with their children’s children—

18 with those who keep his covenant

and remember to obey his precepts.

19 The LORD has established his throne in heaven,

and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Praise the LORD, you his angels,

you mighty ones who do his bidding,

who obey his word.

21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,

you his servants who do his will.

22 Praise the LORD, all his works

everywhere in his dominion.

Praise the LORD, my soul.

Canons of Dordt

Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election

1 - God's right to condemn all people

2 - God shows His sovereign love in the sending of Jesus Christ.

But this is how God showed his love:
he sent his only begotten Son
1. into the world,
2. so that whoever believes in him
  1. should not perish
  2. but have eternal life

Summary

Psalm 103 has an antiphonal construction, meaning that it has two aspects that bounce off of one another. It begins each of it's stanzas identifying who and what God is, and then the section that follows echoes the statement and explains why the LORD ought to be praised. It works well to read an antiphonal Psalm like this one responsively, where the leader reads the imperatives to praise the LORD, and the congregation respond by reciting the verses indicating who they're praising and why:

LEADER: The LORD is...

CONGREGATION: He is...

Psalm 103 is deeply theological, telling how God conducts Himself - He forgives, heals, redeems, crowns, satisfies, works righteousness, is compassionate, gracious, patient, and His kingdom rules over all. Not only does His sovereign rule extend over this world, but the heavens are His dominion as well, and so the angels and mighty ones who do His bidding must praise the LORD as well.

But the divine attribute that brings us to Psalm 103 today is God's love. He crowns us with love and compassion, He abounds in love for those who fear Him (mentioned twice). This is the same love the Canons speak of that moved the LORD to send His only begotten Son so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Dig Deeper

Theology is often scoffed in our uber-practical society. We like ideas that produce immediate results, not deep thoughts that are so heavenly minded that don't seem to have any earthly good.

But David here in Psalm 103 shows how necessary solid theology is for you at the most practical level. You were created to praise the LORD with all of your inmost being (literally with all your guts!). But you cannot praise that which you do not know. Try it - try to praise something around you right now without mentioning anything about it. It's impossible!

All of this means that in order for you to fulfill the purpose you were created for - praising the LORD - you have to have a comprehensive knowledge of the One you're praising. This comprehensive knowledge is called theology. Certainly it's possible to have a vast theology that's disconnected from praise, but that doesn't happen often (so when it does, it sticks out like a sore thumb). And the stronger your theology is, the stronger your praise will be.

As we spend this year diving into some of the deepest theology there is - the Canons of Dordt - be reminded that we're not just doing it do accumulate useless bits of trivia, but to continually build up our theological understanding so that we can more and more fulfill the purpose we've been created for: to praise the LORD!

AAA Prayer (About)

ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that as we study theology this year, your ability to praise the LORD will ever increase;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: