Praise The LORD! We’re The People of God
Psalms 148
January 22, 2023
As you know we are in the final segment of the book of Psalms.
Psalms 146-150 are called “The Hallelujah Psalms”
Each Psalm begins and ends the same way, with the phrase “Praise the LORD!”
Or in Hebrew “Hallelujah!”
These Psalms do a wonderful job of reminding us
Of the expectation of praise.
Psalms 29:9 “The voice of the LORD makes the deer to calve And strips the forests bare; And in His temple everything says, “Glory!”
Psalms 84:4 “How blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They are ever praising You. Selah.”
And certainly any glimpse we are given of heaven in the book of the Revelation we see that to be the case.
• Whether it’s the 4 living creatures of chapter 4 who do not cease to praise the holiness of God…
• Whether it’s the 24 elders who fall on their faces in worship every time they are mentioned…
• Whether it’s the great multitude of angels who praise continually…
• Whether it’s the multitude of the redeemed who voice the praise…
There is no doubt that praise is the language of Heaven.
Everything in His temple says “Glory!”
Those in heaven are ever praising God.
And we say that if praise is the constant language of heaven
We certainly do not wish to neglect it on earth.
These final Psalms help us to remember the PRIORITY of praise.
And tonight we come to the 148th.
The Psalm easily breaks into 2 categories and that is how we will study it tonight.
#1 THE OBLIGATION OF THE HEAVENS
Psalms 148:1-6
We notice that telling phrase at the beginning of the Psalm which says, “Praise the LORD from the heavens;”
And then we see listed
Everything that from an earthly perspective is HIGH and EXALTED.
If you are standing on earth, everything listed here dwells above you.
“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!”
It is literally everything that is high & exalted & which dwells above us.
• Whether that is the clouds or the sun or the stars or the angelic beings which dwell in the heavenlies.
And we know that people on earth throughout the ages of worshiped these things because of their status.
• Certainly men have worshiped angels (demons).
• Certainly men have worshiped the sun and moon (Egypt)
• We see men today worship the stars (horoscopes)
Men have been tempted throughout the ages
To worship these things because of their position.
BUT HERE WE FIND that all of these things
Are called and COMMANDED TO WORSHIP GOD.
They are all called to “Praise Him”
I suppose it does pose a bit of a question:
HOW DOES SOMETHING LIKE THE SUN PRAISE GOD?
• We understand how an angel might praise God, but how would the sun do it?
• It has no mouth, it has no voice.
• How does the sun praise God?
I would answer that the sun PRAISES God
The exact same way the sun PREACHES about God.
How does the sun preach about God?
Psalms 19:1-6 “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their utterances to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; It rejoices as a strong man to run his course. Its rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat.”
We’ve talked about general revelation of which the sun is an integral part.
• But the sun “pours forth speech” and “reveals knowledge” about God.
• There is no audible voice,
• But the sun preaches about the faithfulness of God.
HOW?
Because the sun does exactly what it was created to do.
And in this way the sun proclaims the wisdom and faithfulness of God.
And the sun would praise God in THE EXACT SAME WAY,
By fulfilling the purpose for which it was created.
The sun does exactly what it was created to do
And thus it praises God
Through it’s submission and obedience to His divine design.
NOW HUMANS, who are made in the image of God,
COULD LEARN A THING OR TWO FROM THAT.
Our praise is NOT JUST the vocal song of our lips,
But also when we live our lives according to the design of our maker.
Ephesians 5:1 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;”
That is the plan of God.
That is also a form of praise to God.
In many ways this is HIGHER PRAISE than you sing with your lips.
We remember Jesus quoting Isaiah and saying:
Matthew 15:8-9 “THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. ‘BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.’”
Praise can be an empty thing
If it is not accompanied with the right life of obedience.
We are reminded of the admonition of Amos:
Amos 5:21-24 “I hate, I reject your festivals, Nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies. “Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them; And I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings. “Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will not even listen to the sound of your harps. “But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”
Praise for God moves beyond just a well hit note in the middle of a song.
Praise involves the fulfillment of the purpose for which you were created.
And for inspiration just look at the sun and moon and stars
Who praise Him continually by fulfilling their role.
The things in the heavens are called to praise.
BUT THE PSALMIST DOESN’T STOP THERE.
He gives his reason WHY.
(5-6) “Let them praise the name of the LORD, For He commanded and they were created. He has also established them forever and ever; He has made a decree which will not pass away.”
Here there is one main reason why the heavens are commanded to praise.
FOR THEIR EXISTANCE
Their INITIAL EXISTANCE – “For He commanded and they were created”
And their CONTINUED EXISTANCE – “He has also established them forever and ever; He has made a decree which will not pass away.”
We often times speak of Him as both CREATOR and SUSTAINER.
Those are the reasons listed here.
FIRST that God, by His own power and sovereign prerogative created the heavens.
Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
• Isaiah says, God “created the heavens and stretched them out.” (42:5)
• He also says God “marked off the heavens by the span” (40:12)
• Isaiah says He “stretches out the heavens like a curtain” (40:22)
• We have the account of Him making the sun and the moon and the stars.
If it were not for God they would not exist.
He conceived of them.
He created them.
• There was no Big Bang…
• There has not been some evolutionary process in the cosmos…
• God made these things by His spoken word.
And certainly He is praised for that.
Even in the heavens He is praised for that.
Revelation 4:11 “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”
So certainly the creation of the heavens
Demands the praise of the heavens.
They wouldn’t even exist without Him.
BUT their continued existence is also a reason for their praise.
For they continue to exist because of Him.
“He has also established them forever and ever; He has made a decree which will not pass away.”
That is to say that
• God has determined that the sun should remain, so it remains.
• God has determined that the stars should remain, so they remain.
There is such a great deception on the earth today
That incites fear that somehow the planet
Is under a threat of being ruined by the creature.
It is true that you can make your habitat less desirable to live in if you trash it. No one is denying that it is a wise move to take care of your surroundings.
Things like conservation make perfect sense.
But the notion that somehow we can threaten the existence
Of what God is sustaining is absurd.
God determined for it to last and it will last as long as God wants it to last.
Jeremiah 31:35-37 “Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for light by day And the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night, Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar; The LORD of hosts is His name: “If this fixed order departs From before Me,” declares the LORD, “Then the offspring of Israel also will cease From being a nation before Me forever.” Thus says the LORD, “If the heavens above can be measured And the foundations of the earth searched out below, Then I will also cast off all the offspring of Israel For all that they have done,” declares the LORD.”
Jeremiah 33:20-22 “Thus says the LORD, ‘If you can break My covenant for the day and My covenant for the night, so that day and night will not be at their appointed time, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant so that he will not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levitical priests, My ministers. ‘As the host of heaven cannot be counted and the sand of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who minister to Me.’”
God’s created order IS SO FIXED that
God actually uses it as PROOF that He will keep other promises.
He not only created the heavens, but He sustains the heavens.
And for this, the heavens are commanded to praise Him.
THE MAIN POINT of these first 6 verses is an obvious one.
That the highest and most exalted things you can see
• Are still beneath God
• They owe their existence to God
• They are called to praise God
THAT IS TRUE.
And if that is true for the highest heavens,
Then certainly that is true on earth,
Which leads to the next point.
The Obligation of the Heavens
#2 THE OBLIGATION OF THE EARTH
Psalms 148:7-14
There the point is seen.
If the highest heavens are commanded to praise
Then certainly the earth is commanded to praise.
Though it is not included in this Psalm certainly we could go A STEP FURTHER
And say if the things on earth are commanded to praise
Then certainly the things under the earth are commanded to praise.
Philippians 2:10-11 “so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
So you understand the progression of the Psalm.
So here we see the call to the earth.
(7) “Praise the LORD from the earth”
Just as we were given a list things in the heavenlies that should praise,
NOW WE LOOK AROUND THE EARTH
And see another list of things that should praise.
• Everything from the created earth
• To the animals on the earth,
• Even to the weather that occurs on the earth.
It is all called to praise God.
And we could easily point out that they should praise God
For the SAME REASONS the heavenlies praise Him.
Surely they can also praise for their existence.
That God CREATED them and SUSTAINS them.
2 Peter 3:5-7 “For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”
We will all stay as long as God desires.
AND YOU EVEN SEE AGAIN
How such inanimate things declare the praise of God.
(8) “Fire and hail, snow and clouds; Stormy wind, fulfilling His word;”
• When fire burns it does so at the command of God.
• When hail falls, when snow covers,
• When clouds send forth rain,
• When winds blow,
• They do so at the command of God.
They fulfill their purpose to the praise and glory of God.
That is all a form of praise and God deserves it.
IN FACT GOD DEMANDS IT.
But the real focus and obvious climax of the Psalm
Occurs when get beyond the physical creation
And to the pinnacle of God’s creation which is humanity.
(11-12) “Kings of the earth and all peoples; Princes and all judges of the earth; Both young men and virgins; Old men and children.”
And again the point is not hard to discern.
God calls for all peoples to praise Him.
I don’t care who you are.
• No one is so important that he is not obligated to bow his knee to God.
• No one is so small that he will go unnoticed in his praise to God.
All men of all positions are commanded to praise.
It is the intention of God.
And it would be a foolish thing to resist that purpose.
• Like fire that refuses to burn…
• Like a sun that refuses to shine…
• Like wind that won’t blow…
All of those things would be a contradiction to their purpose
And so is a man who won’t praise his Maker.
THIS IS REALLY FOUNDATIONAL.
He made us and we are made to the praise of His glory.
• He made us in His image and we are expected to reflect Him.
• He made us with a soul that we might know and worship Him.
A failure to do this brings the sure and certain wrath of God.
Romans 1:21 “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”
Angels were removed from heaven for failing to praise God
Someday men will be destroyed from the earth for the same sin.
We are called to praise.
But our obligation actually moves beyond just gratitude for our existence.
For while we are certainly called to praise Him for our existence
We are also called to praise Him
For the grace which He has bestowed upon us.
(13-14) “Let them praise the name of the LORD, For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above earth and heaven. And He has lifted up a horn for His people, Praise for all His godly ones; Even for the sons of Israel, a people near to Him. Praise the LORD!”
Here we find Two More Reasons that we
(more so than the rest of creation) are called to praise.
“For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above earth and heaven.”
The first reason given is very simply that we praise God
Because He is the very pinnacle of the pyramid of praise.
• If you should choose to worship the clouds you are stopping far short of the highest form of glory.
• If you should choose to worship the sun or the moon you are stopping far short of the highest form of glory.
• If you should choose to get your guidance from the stars you are setting for advice far short of the highest form of glory.
1 Corinthians 15:39-41 “All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish. There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.”
Not ever star shines as bright as the other.
And none of them shine as God shines.
He is the highest form of glory
And therefore deserves the highest praise of all.
In fact, the Psalmist says “For His name alone is exalted”
By comparison, nothing else has any glory at all.
Isaiah pointed it out:
TURN TO: Isaiah 40:18-26
He said it again:
Isaiah 46:5-9 “To whom would you liken Me And make Me equal and compare Me, That we would be alike? “Those who lavish gold from the purse And weigh silver on the scale Hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; They bow down, indeed they worship it. “They lift it upon the shoulder and carry it; They set it in its place and it stands there. It does not move from its place. Though one may cry to it, it cannot answer; It cannot deliver him from his distress. “Remember this, and be assured; Recall it to mind, you transgressors. “Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me,”
Jeremiah pointed it out as well:
TURN TO: Jeremiah 10:6-16
You see it in all those passages.
Nothing and no one compares.
And humans are the part of creation
That is given the mental capacity to recognize that.
We see at creation that “man became a living soul.”
So we more than any other aspect of creation
Are called to praise God as the highest and most glorious.
He is the top, the pinnacle, the highest One.
• Not only did He create all things…
• Not only does He sustain all things…
• BUT HE IS ABOVE AND BEFORE ALL THINGS!
PRAISE HIM.
And yet there is STILL ANOTHER REASON
Why humanity, specifically His people, are called to praise.
Jeremiah actually alluded to it that passage we read:
Jeremiah 10:16 “The portion of Jacob is not like these; For the Maker of all is He, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; The LORD of hosts is His name.”
Not only is God above all in every possible way,
But at the same time He is called “The portion of Jacob”
And Israel is called “the tribe of His inheritance”
The point being made there is that not only is He God,
But He is OUR GOD AND WE ARE HIS PEOPLE.
(14) “And He has lifted up a horn for His people…”
A “horn” is a symbol of power.
You may remember when we studied Zechariah how God spoke of breaking the nations that had afflicted Israel.
Zechariah 1:18-21 “Then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, there were four horns. So I said to the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these?” And he answered me, “These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel and Jerusalem.” Then the LORD showed me four craftsmen. I said, “What are these coming to do?” And he said, “These are the horns which have scattered Judah so that no man lifts up his head; but these craftsmen have come to terrify them, to throw down the horns of the nations who have lifted up their horns against the land of Judah in order to scatter it.”
God spoke of the power of those nations and how He would break them.
But for His people “He has lifted up a horn”
The implication here is that God has made Israel a people.
God has empowered them to be a nation.
• It is a remarkable reality when you read the Genesis account. You have all the nations together as one and all people speak the same language.
• And then they try to earn their salvation by building a tower to heaven but God scatters them by confusing their language and instantly God makes many distinct peoples.
• And then out of one of those peoples God chooses Abram. Abram is not a nation, there’s not even a chance he could be a nation. But God determines to make a people out of him.
• And God lifts up the horn of Abram and eventually he has a grandson named Jacob whom God will change his name to Israel.
HOW DID THEY BECOME A PEOPLE?
GOD DID IT.
HOW DID THE CHURCH COME ABOUT?
How did all these people from every tribe and tongue all of a sudden become one people?
GOD DID IT.
1 Peter 2:9-10 “But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God’s OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY.”
And certainly we are called to praise Him for that.
Peter said we should “proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”
He has made us a people!
He has raised us up!
PRAISE HIM!
AND NOT JUST FOR THAT.
(14) “And He has lifted up a horn for His people, Praise for His godly ones;”
Here the Psalmist speaks of some HONOR that His people have received.
We might see that at times in Israel in the Old Testament.
• There were times under David and Solomon where Israel could be called a people of honor.
• But those times were few and far between.
But we DON’T SEE the church as a people honored
Or praised in the world.
So what is the Psalmist talking about here?
What is our honor?
He goes on to say, “Even for the sons of Israel, a people near to Him.”
This is our honor. This is our praise.
It is our ability to walk in nearness to God.
OF ALL OF CREATION
Only man was made a living soul.
AND OF ALL MEN
Only the redeemed are allowed to draw near to God.
And those who do should see this not as an accomplishment,
But as a blessing of sovereign grace.
And if you are allowed to draw near to God the praise Him!
And that is how this Psalm ends:
“Praise the LORD!”
And that is why we say that Psalm 148 teaches:
“Praise the LORD! We Are The People of God”
And nothing and no one in all the created order
Is more obligated to bring God praise than us.
• If the heavenlies are expected to praise then certainly the earth.
• And if the earth is expected to praise then certainly humanity.
• And if humanity is expected to praise the certainly the redeemed.
AND THAT IS US.
SO WE PRAISE HIM!
1. We praise Him for our existence.
• Both our initial existence and our continued existence.
2. We praise Him because He is higher and more worthy of praise than any other thing.
3. And we praise Him because He has made us a people and brought us near to Him.
We “Praise the LORD!”
