2. A Threefold Call to Bless the LORD A Special Message on the First Sunday at Our New Facility Psalm 103

3. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “BLESS THE LORD”? “Bless the Lord, O my soul” It does NOT mean:  That we make God better off or strengthen God by bestowing our goodness and wish on him.  Just as in magnifying or exalting the Lord, God is already perfect and good in all ways. It means:  That we praise and acknowledge God’s goodness and holy attributes.  That we speak well of God with what is most appropriate for him—absolute adoration and praise!

4. I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. Psalm 34:1 O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise. Psalm 51:15 I will sing of the steadfast love of the LORD, forever; with my mouth I will make known your faithfulness to all generations. Psalm 89:1 My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD, and let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever. Psalm 145:21

5. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR AND RAMIFICATION OF BLESSING THE LORD? 1) We are to bless the Lord because our souls so easily forget God’s benefits. 1 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. (vs.1-5)

6. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR AND RAMIFICATION OF BLESSING THE LORD? 1) We are to bless the Lord because our souls so easily forget God’s benefits. 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. (vs. 2-5)  If left alone, our soul becomes forgetful, complacent, and ungrateful.  The six benefits that David lists from his own experiences are: forgiveness, healing, redemption, steadfast love [hesed], satisfaction, and renewal of strength.  In this sense, a spiritually healthy soul blesses God intentionally and habitually.

7. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR AND RAMIFICATION OF BLESSING THE LORD? 2)We are to bless the LORD because of who God is beyond his benefits for us. 6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. 7 He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. 8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. 10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. (vs.6-10)

8. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR AND RAMIFICATION OF BLESSING THE LORD? 2)We are to bless the Lord because of who God is beyond his benefits for us. 6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all… 8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.... 10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities…  The benefits are from the Benefactor—the LORD!  Blessing the Lord for his benefits leads us to rediscover and acknowledge God’s holy attributes—who God is.  So, in blessing the Lord, we are to take our attention and focus on who God is as well as what God has done for us.

9. Great Is Thy Faithfulness by Thomas O. Chisholm (1923) Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father; There is no shadow of turning with Thee; Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be. Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see; All I have needed Thy hand hath provided— Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

10. Great Is Your Faithfulness adapted for CrossWay Church Family Great is Your faithfulness, O God Our Father; There is no shadow of turning with You; You never change, Your compassions, they fail not As You have been You forever will be. Great is Your faithfulness! Great is Your faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies we see; All CrossWay has needed Your hand has provided— Great is Your faithfulness, Lord, unto us!

11. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR AND RAMIFICATION OF BLESSING THE LORD? 3)We are to bless the LORD because blessing leads us to our confidence in God. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 13 As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. 14 For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. (vs.11-14)  Experiencing God’s benefits and attributes leads us to confidence in what God can do and who God is.  We learn and gain confidence in God by fearing the Lord.  Thus, it is our spiritual maturity that enables and validates our confidence in God through thick and thin.

12. WHAT ARE THE REASONS FOR AND RAMIFICATION OF BLESSING THE LORD? 4)We are to bless the Lord because even in our own frailty and disillusionments God sustains us by his love and sovereignty. 15 As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. 17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children's children, 18 to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. 19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. (vs.15-19)  The ramification of our praise and blessing reaches even the harsh reality—the frailty and brevity of life.  Why? It leads us to two eternal truths: (1) God’s steadfast love and (2) the sovereignty of God.  Thus, we are indeed more blessed by blessing the Lord!

13. Let All That Is within You Bless the Lord! Praise God, my Brethren, as you are. Larks must not refrain from singing because they are not nightingales, nor must the sparrow refuse to chirp because he cannot emulate the linnet. Let every tree of the Lord’s planting praise the Lord! Clap your hands, you trees of the forests, while fruitful trees and all cedars join in His praise. Both young men and maidens, old men and children, praise the name of the Lord, each one in his peculiar note—for you are all necessary to the perfect harmony. The Lord would not have you borrow your brother’s tones, but use “all that is within you,” all that is peculiar to your own idiosyncrasy, for His glory! Spend all your strength, yes, every atom of it! Keep back nothing, but render all that is within you unto Him. If all that is within you is the Lord’s, all that is outside of you, which is yours, will also be His. All your bodily faculties will praise Him and the outer life will be all for God. - Charles H. Surgeon (1872)

14. THREE PRACTICAL QUESTIONS FOR OUR EVERYDAY LIFE 1.In what ways am I convinced of my own need for a threefold call to bless the LORD? 1.What keeps me from blessing the LORD with my mouth today? What will I do about it? 1.For what benefits of God can I bless the LORD today? For what attributes of God will I bless the LORD this week?