In Praise of God (Ps 145)

This is a lovely psalm to meditate on as it declares the praises of God, who is the object of our worship. The psalmist, David, began by extolling God himself (v1-2) and then brought in the generation(v4), followed by the whole of creation (v10). God is praiseworthy and we can't do enough praising by ourselves. So we see the progression from the single to the many.

Next, we note the frequency of praising God. David talked about praising God everyday (v2). Do we do so, or is it just on Sundays or days when we meet together as a church? This is one major pre-occupation of the angelic hosts in heaven and would be ours too when we get there (Rev 5:11-14). So we had better learn how to praise God aright here, because as David declared, "I will praise Thy name forever and forever." Within his heart, David knew that he would continue living beyond this world's existence because God's kingdom is everlasting (v13).

We moved on to the name or character of God. The Hebrew concept of a person's name carries with it the identity of the person. Just as the name Daniel means "God is my Judge", Daniel lived his life to a ripe old age walking righteously, knowing that the pagan kings whom he served were not really his judges, but God alone. When we bless or exalt the name of God, we are declaring His worth as a person of character and substance. Let's take a look at some of the characteristics of God that David praised Him for:

1) Great God & King (v1,3) as seen in His glorious splendor (v5) and through His mighty acts (v4) and awesome works (v6).
2) Abundant goodness and righteousness (v7,17)
3) Gracious and merciful (v8)
4) Slow to anger and rich in love (v8)
5) Faithful to all His promises (v13)
6) Kind (v17)

We can follow David's example in praising God by declaring His worth. God is our Protector (v14) and our Provider (v15-16). This psalm closes with wonderful promises to those who

a) call upon Him in truth (v18) - His presence is assurd
b) fear or reverence Him (v19) - His provision is abundant
c) love Him (v20) - His protection is encompassing

Let's speak of the praise of the LORD and bless His holy name forever and ever (v21).

Hallelujah!