Bless The Lord, O My Soul
Psalms 103
April 11, 2021
Tonight we come to the Psalm that has likely inspired more hymns and Christian songs than any other (with the exception or perhaps Psalms 23)
As John MacArthur put it, this Psalm is “Pure Praise”
You note first of all the bookends of the Psalm.
It begins and ends the exact same way.
“Bless the LORD, O my soul,”
And with that we take note of the INWARD FOCUS of the Psalmist.
He doesn’t say, “Bless the LORD, O my mouth”
He is speaking of an internal reality.
“Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name.”
Not “all that is from me”, but “all that is within me”
There is a notable inward focus.
And of course you know that true praise; pure praise must begin here.
A person may sing in hypocrisy when their soul does not agree,
But when the soul seeks to bless the Lord,
The lips will automatically follow.
Worship of God begins in the heart, and then it moves to the lips.
• For Jesus taught us that “out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks”
David will not be like the heathen of Romans 1 who does “not honor [God] as God or give thanks”.
• He will not tolerate a stagnant soul or a distant mind.
David would not be like 9 of the 10 lepers who upon finding cleansing from the Lord saw no need to come back and offer Him thanks.
• He would not fail to give God the blessing He deserves.
We are mindful of Mary, breaking her vile and anointing Jesus’ feet all while carnal men scold her for the waste.
• Mary performed on that day the better gift.
We think of Mary and Martha. Martha serving, but Mary seated at Jesus’ feet blessing Him, having taken the better part.
We think of the woman at the Pharisees house, ignoring the scorn and wetting Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiping them with her hair while the Pharisee had neglected it all.
We can hear Jesus speak to the woman at the well and tell her that the Father seeks those who “worship Him in spirit and in truth”.
We remember the rebuke Jesus offered to the Pharisees because they “honor [God] with their lips but their hearts are far from Him”.
And there are many other examples that we might call our attention to tonight, but what you are reminded of is that
God seeks people who worship Him from the heart.
If the soul cares not to bless God
Then the words of the song are an empty performance.
Psalms 103 grasps that.
Psalms 103 is pure praise.
• There are no requests, no laments, no complaints
• There is no context or circumstances
• There is no danger, no victory, no pain, no confusion
• Just praise.
It is the heart of a believer who is called (above all else) to bless God.
And the Psalmist literally commands his own soul to “Hop to it”.
Notice his Personal Command.
“Bless the LORD, O my soul,”
He makes his soul do it.
He grabs the reigns and spurs his soul to do what it must.
Lack of emotion is no excuse for failing to bless God.
• “not feeling like it” is the epitome of immaturity.
Anyone who has matured into becoming an adult
Knows that life is full of obligations that you must perform
Whether you feel like it or not.
And I can assure you that none of your worldly obligations that you force yourself to accomplish are as important as this one.
Emotion is a great benefit to worship,
But emotion should never be allowed to drive the car.
Job comes to mind who had lost everything:
Job 1:21 “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”
The Psalmist simply tells his soul, “Do it!”
But even if the command seems difficult, there is A BLUEPRINT for prodding the soul into worship.
And that is found in verse 2
“Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits.”
I should remind you tonight that forgetting God’s benefits is a sin.
All throughout the Old Testament we see “hands-on” reminders
So that the people did not forget.
The most notable for me is Joshua’s rock pile.
• After the children of Israel crossed the Jordan on dry land,
• Joshua told them to gather 12 stones from the dry riverbed
• And pile them up on the shore.
Joshua 4:21-24 “He said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ then you shall inform your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.’ “For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the LORD your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed; that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”
Forgetting is a sin.
Those who have received the benefits of God must not forget them.
Deuteronomy 5:15 “You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to observe the sabbath day.”
Deuteronomy 8:2 “You shall remember all the way which the LORD your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.”
Deuteronomy 15:15 “You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today.”
And yet perhaps the wildest period in the history of Israel
Was all brought on by forgetfulness.
Judges 2:10-12 “All that generation also were gathered to their fathers; and there arose another generation after them who did not know the LORD, nor yet the work which He had done for Israel. Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD and served the Baals, and they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods from among the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed themselves down to them; thus they provoked the LORD to anger.”
Forgetting is a sin.
The Psalmist said, “forget none of His benefits”
Peggy would sing, “Count your blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done.”
Get a pen and paper if you have to.
Contemplate them.
This is the secret to driving an apathetic soul to worship.
Look at what God has done and let that
Lead your soul into gratitude and blessing.
One other thing we would notice before we start working our way through this Psalm and that is the SELECT AUDIENCE.
Notice who the recipients of God’s many benefits are.
• (11) “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.”
• (13) “Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.”
• (17) “But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him,”
• (18) “To those who keep His covenant and remember His precepts to do them.”
This song is NOT FOR the unredeemed
Who abide in death, darkness, and ignorance.
This song is for those who have believed Him.
• Who have received His grace
• Who are seated at His table
• Who rest in His peace
• Who eat His manna
• Who drink water from His rock
• Who are redeemed
These are the most obligated to bless Him.
And if you find yourself stagnant in that command,
This Psalm will help you overcome your apathy.
It drives focus into your soul, reminding it to bless God.
(And why your lips should follow suit)
Let’s break this Psalm down into 4 points.
#1 DESCRIPTION OF GOD’S BENEFITS
Psalms 103:1-5
David was clear in his command to tell his soul
That it was time to bless God.
David commanded his soul
And David told his soul to “forget none of His benefits.”
And then comes the checklist where David begins.
• As David seeks to motivate his soul to blessing he starts here in his contemplation of God.
(3-5) “Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases; Who redeems your life from the pit, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion; Who satisfies your years with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.”
That is quite a tremendous list.
It is a reminder of the great benefits of God.
“who pardons all your iniquities”
• What if He didn’t?
• What if only pardoned most of your iniquities?
• What if pardoned none of your iniquities?
But God forgives them all.
• Every sin committed…
• Every hiccup of the heart…
• Every slipup of the will…
• Every blasphemous thought…
• Every immoral deed…
• No matter how big…
• No matter how gross…
• No matter how long you lived in it…
He forgives them all.
Think for a moment about that sin you committed that almost no one else knows about.
• Think about how embarrassing it would tonight is you were exposed here
before everyone.
• Think about then how terrible it would be for God to give you the punishment
you deserve for such a sin.
And then when you think about how He has forgiven you,
See if your soul is not a little more motivated to bless God.
“who heals all your diseases;”
The reference cannot be to physical healing here.
Why?
• Because clearly God does not.
• We live in bodies that are literally dying.
• Sooner or later this body gives it up, and instead of healing we get death.
But David clearly says “all your diseases”
It must be the spiritual sicknesses of sin that Isaiah speaks of.
It reminds us of Jesus statement, “It is not the healthy who need a physician, but the sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Jesus was clearly speaking there of sin as a sickness
(not sickness as a sin)
There is not a spiritual infirmity that God does not heal.
That means it’s not just that God forgives your sin,
But He also cures your evil flesh of the propensity to do it.
• Has not God changed your mind about sin?
• Has not God began His sanctifying work on you?
• Are you not recovering from your sinful ways?
We certainly praise Him for forgiving us of our sins,
But perhaps even more for saving us from them.
“Who redeems your life from the pit”
• Is it not a blessing that God has pulled you out of your filth?
• Is it not a blessing to note that He has redeemed your life?
We sing that song “O Lord My Rock And My Redeemer”
I love that 3rd verse:
“O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer, Gracious Savior of my ruined life
My guilt and cross laid on Your shoulders, In my place You suffered bled and died
You rose, the grave and death are conquered, You broke my bonds of sin and shame
O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer, May all my days bring glory to Your Name”
https://sovereigngracemusic.org/music/songs/o-lord-rock-redeemer/
• My life was ruined.
• I had ruined it.
• I had wasted the purpose for which I was created.
Have you ever broken the blade on your pocketknife?
• Every time I see one I ask, “Screwdriver or crowbar?”
• That’s typically how they are broken.
I was like that.
Created for one purpose,
But ruined by giving myself to the wrong purpose.
And yet, the Lord redeemed me.
Is your soul not moved to gratitude and blessing for such a deliverance?
“Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion”
It is the garland on your head.
• God calls you “His people”
• God made a covenant with you and put a ring on your finger.
And this while you were the vilest of prostitutes.
He chose you and redeemed you and married you and He is washing you.
Is there no gratitude for this?
“Who satisfies your years with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.”
Life is hard, and there is no denying that.
But how much harder would it be if God were not for you?
• What if “every good and perfect gift” did not come down from the Father of
lights?
• What if God did not “supply all your needs according to His glorious
riches in Christ Jesus”?
Can you not see the benefits that you live in every single day?
TURN TO: Ephesians 1
Do we need another lesson on the benefits of being “in Him”?
And notice how Paul begins there in verse 3
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Will your soul not bless God?
• Then remember His benefits.
• Read this list
• (Read Ephesians 1:3-14) (and you know it doesn’t actually stop there)
Can your soul not bless?
Can your soul not rejoice?
Just stop and ponder the overwhelming benefits
You have received, are receiving, and will receive from God.
It will cure a stagnant soul.
Description of God’s benefits
#2 DEGREE OF GOD’S MERCY
Psalms 103:6-14
The Psalmist begins with a sort of “flashback” scene.
He goes back to a day so awful it should make Israel sick.
It is the day of the golden calf.
(6-8) “The LORD performs righteous deeds And judgments for all who are oppressed. He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the sons of Israel. The LORD is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness.”
• Remember when God delivered them from Egypt with a mighty hand?
• Remember when God led them to Sinai?
• Remember when they returned the favor by building a golden calf?
• Remember when God thought to destroy them?
• Remember when He did not?
In fact it was God who introduced Himself this way to Moses:
Exodus 34:6-7 “Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”
(similar to what we read here in verse 8)
It was an unthinkable act of Mercy to forgive those people.
It is mercy like we cannot fathom,
And yet that is who God is and who God has been toward us.
(9-10) “He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.”
Even before the great flood, God looked at a totally wicked world and still said:
Genesis 6:3 “Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.”
And after the flood God promised again:
Genesis 8:20-21 “Then Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. The LORD smelled the soothing aroma; and the LORD said to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground on account of man, for the intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.”
Genesis 9:8-17 “Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, “Now behold, I Myself do establish My covenant with you, and with your descendants after you; and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you; of all that comes out of the ark, even every beast of the earth. “I establish My covenant with you; and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth.” God said, “This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations; I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth. “It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh. “When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
That is always fascinating to me.
If God had not made that promise, every time it rained all of humanity would be filled with fear.
• And yet God gave up His ace in the hole.
• He promised that He will never do that again.
• He does not treat man like man deserves.
He causes “His sun to rise” on the just and the unjust.
He “sends rain” on the righteous and wicked alike.
(10) “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.”
And this has been His track record.
• He told Adam and Eve that the when they touched that tree or ate that fruit they would die.
• And Adam did die but not for 100’s of years.
I’ve often told people that
The reason our doctrine on God is often so wrong
Is because our doctrine of man is equally wrong.
We think too highly of man and therefore we think way too lowly of God.
But if we were to see our sin for what it is
Then God’s mercy would shine ever brighter.
And if you want to seek to grasp the DEGREE of His mercy,
Listen to these next few verses.
(11-13) “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him.”
• How high exactly are the heavens above the earth?
• How far exactly is the east from the west?
• How much compassion does a father have on his children?
In the same way God’s mercy cannot be calculated.
I also love the song “Lord Have Mercy”
“O God, we come before Your throne And in our weakness we confess
We go astray and sin each day We cast ourselves upon Your grace
O Lord, have mercy on us Sinners in need of grace
Forgive us our transgressions
And lead us in Your righteous ways
God, lead us in Your righteous ways
The blood You shed has paid our debts Jesus, You’ve washed our sins away
We trust Your grace, believe by faith In You we have all righteousness
O Lord, You’ve shown us mercy Sinners are washed as saints
You’ve shown Your loving-kindness
Sons of disgrace are righteous made
Sons of disgrace are righteous made
https://sovereigngracemusic.org/music/songs/lord-have-mercy/
Can you ponder that?
That on the cross Jesus atoned for all the sin of all the elect for all time?
What mercy is that?
How much mercy does that take?
Do you understand that of all the things God does
He doesn’t do anything more than He forgives?
It is His most used declaration.
(14) “For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.”
• He knows us
• He knows everything about us
• He knows our desires
• He knows our lusts
• He knows our weaknesses
• He knows our propensities
We are so predictable and so faithfully sinful
And yet He continues to be merciful to us.
Can your soul not bless Him for that?
We remember that woman who was washing Jesus’ feet.
Luke 7:44-47 “Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. “You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. “You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.”
The fact is that you have been forgiven much,
But a failure to grasp that produces a soul that doesn’t bless God.
So contemplate the degree of God’s mercy toward you.
Description of God’s Benefits Degree of God’s mercy
#3 DURATION OF GOD’S LOYALTY
Psalms 103:15-18
Here the Psalmist begins again talking about man.
(15-16) “As for man, his days are like grass; As a flower of the field, so he flourishes. When the wind has passed over it, it is no more, And its place acknowledges it no longer.”
• We think of the transient nature of man.
• We are temporary.
• James said we are “like a vapor”.
How insignificant must we appear to an eternal God?
Think about it.
• We came from dirt…
• We are a dime a dozen…
• We sin against Him continually…
And even when we are redeemed and confess Him as Lord,
It only lasts about a snap of the fingers.
What sort of benefit does God ever really receive from us?
Even after we’re saved, we’re like that friend who volunteers to help,
But who can only stay a few minutes.
THE POINT IS, our loyalty to God isn’t worth much.
• Even if we spent every moment of our entire existence in faithful service to
God, it just isn’t that long in the scope of eternity.
David said “When the wind has passed over it, it is no more, And its place acknowledges it no longer.”
Our loyalty just isn’t worth much.
But God on the other hand…
(17-18) “But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children, To those who keep His covenant And remember His precepts to do them.”
What is David’s point?
God’s loyalty to you is going to last way longer
Than your loyalty to Him.
We often put it in our minds
That we have this long strenuous life of service to God.
I remember Jacob:
Genesis 47:8-9 “Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How many years have you lived?” So Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my sojourning are one hundred and thirty; few and unpleasant have been the years of my life, nor have they attained the years that my fathers lived during the days of their sojourning.”
I think we can agree that most of Jacob’s hardship
Was brought on by his own decisions.
None the less, Jacob had a hard life on this earth.
• Threatened by his brother…
• Estranged from his parents…
• Deceived by his father-in-law…
• Betrayed by his sons…
• Forced to die in a foreign land…
It must have seemed like serving the Lord was a painful and difficult task.
And yet, anyone reading Jacob’s story
Knows without a doubt that it would have been way harder
For God to be loyal to Jacob than for Jacob to be loyal to God.
And that is true in your life too…
• How hard is your life of service to God?
• How costly is your loyalty?
Well I promise you there isn’t a second of any day during your existence
Where it is harder for you to be loyal to God
Than it is for God to be loyal to you.
And yet He never fails.
“the lovingkindess of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him,”
• He passes it on to their children.
• He keeps His promises to them…forever.
• Do you suppose that you deserve such loyalty?
• Do you suppose that you have never acted like Gomer and deserved to be sent away?
• Do you suppose yourself to have only been a faithful bride to Christ?
And yet, He has not sent you away.
He has kept His covenant.
He has maintained His loyalty.
Can your soul not bless your husband for that?
Description of God’s benefits Degree of God’s mercy Duration of God’s loyalty
#4 DOMINION OF GOD’S REIGN
Psalms 103:19-22
And just in case looking inwardly at all that God has done for you
Has not yet motivated you to bless Him.
Then lift up your eyes outwardly and see those who are blessing God.
(19-21) “The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all. Bless the LORD, you His angels, Mighty in strength, who perform His word, Obeying the voice of His word! Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, You who serve Him, doing His will.”
Do you know who is blessing God?
• The angels
• The heavenly host
• They are blessing Him continually.
Have we not read about those 4 living creatures before the throne of God who “day and night do not cease to say, “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, IS THE LORD GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND IS AND IS TO COME.”?
Can we really recognize that
The celestial beings see fit to bless God continually
And then think that we have no need of it?
Can we really think the angels are obliged to bless God
But we don’t need to?
It is no wonder David closes the way he began,
And this time includes all of creation.
(22) “Bless the LORD, all you works of His, In all places of His dominion; Bless the LORD, O my soul!”
We are all the beneficiaries of a wonderful God.
Bless Him!
So here’s your application
1. Grab your soul and recite to it the benefits of God until your soul cries back in gratitude and blessing for God.
2. Count your blessings until your heart is overflowing with a good theme.
3. Remember His benefits and respond to Him accordingly.
God most certainly deserves it.
And then when your soul is overwhelmed with joy,
Open your mouth and sing to the Lord.
That is the worship God is looking for and the worship He deserves.
