Sermon Central
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I Will Praise You! Series
Contributed by Bobby Oliver on Aug 9, 2018 (message contributor)
Summary: Praise God because He is great, Praise God because He is our Refuge, and Praise God because He is a Righteous Judge.
I Will Praise You!
- We’re continuing our study through the book of Psalms.
- This week, we’re in Psalm 9 and will look at the first 12 verses.
- The title of this Psalm says, “Prayer and Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Righteous Judgments.”
- It’s a triumphant song of thanksgiving.
- It says it’s set to the tune of “The Death of the Son”, but it’s unknown what that is referring to.
- Some believe David wrote this as a remembrance of his victory over Goliath, who was the Philistine champion who went out between the camps of Israel and the Philistines.
- It’s possible, but not known for sure.
- There also seems to be reference to the Coming of Christ, when He defeats His enemies and sets up His Millennial Reign on Earth.
- The fact is that no matter what the reason is why David wrote this Psalm, the ultimate truth it portrays is that God deserves to be praised.
- One of my family’s favorite movies is a Christian movie called “Facing the Giants.”
- In this movie, a High School Football coach has a losing streak, and the parents have a secret meeting about replacing him.
- While they’re meeting, he overhears, and feels defeated.
- On top of that, he and his wife want to have a baby, but for some reason, she can’t get pregnant.
- At one point, he cries out to God in desperation, and as he’s praying and reading Scripture, God encourages him, and he comes to a realization.
- His life is not supposed to be centered around football or having a baby…
- His life is supposed to be centered around Christ, no matter what the circumstances are.
- So, with this newfound encouragement, he goes back to his football team, and tells them, “Our lives are for God’s glory. From now on, when we win a football game, we’ll praise Him. When we lose a football game, we’ll praise Him.”
- He also makes that commitment in his marriage, and whether he has a baby or not, he will praise God.
- It’s a great movie, and it teaches us the importance of giving God the praise no matter what’s going on in our lives.
- Before we start digging in to the Psalm, I’d like to share one of the devotions from Our Daily Bread, written about Psalm 9, and it’s titled “Dial 9 for Worship”.
- You’re in the dentist’s office and it’s taking longer than expected. You’re late for another appointment, so you ask to use the phone. You dial the number twice and nothing happens. “How do I dial out?” you ask in frustration. “I’m sorry,” says the receptionist, “you need to dial 9 first.”
- You’ve come to church to worship God. You’re singing. You’re praying along with the pastor and following the Bible passages as they are read. But nothing’s happening inside. You want to worship the Lord, but you’re just going through the motions. What can you do?
- Here’s a suggestion: Dial 9. Open your Bible to Psalm 9 and follow David’s prompts as he expresses his heartfelt praise to the Lord.
- Open your heart (v.1). Let praise roll forth!
- Review all the things He has done for you (v.1).
- Rejoice! Be glad! Sing! (v.2)
- Acknowledge that He defends you (vv.3-5).
- Go to Him for refuge (v.9).
- Talk about what He’s done for you (v.11).
- Receive His mercy and rejoice in His salvation (vv.13-14).
- Try following David’s example. You’ll reconnect with God in your worship and praise.
- So let’s look at three reasons why God deserves to be praised.
I.) Praise God because He is Great- Vs 1-6
- I’d like to share another illustration with you from Our Daily Bread.
- A man was on his way to the Russian Far East to teach for 2 weeks at St. James Bible College in Magadan.
- After an overnight stay in Seattle, he boarded the plane with some apprehension.
- Would his visa be okay? Would he have trouble getting his equipment through customs? Would he be able to teach his course on Bible interpretation effectively? How would the students, translator, and administrators respond to him?
- Then breakfast was served on his Alaska Airlines flight.
- As he bowed his head to give thanks, he spotted a brightly colored piece of paper on the tray. It was a beautiful Alaska mountain scene overprinted with this verse: “I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High” (Ps. 9:2).
- What an encouragement! Not only did he thank the Lord for the food, but he also added expressions of praise and rejoicing as he renewed his trust in God for the task before him.
