Heart of a Psalmist - Worshipping Christ Through The Psalms

Psalm 103 begins with a soliloquy, (a discussion with oneself) and moves to a national speech to Israel recounting the mercy of God. He then emphasizes the benefits of being in God’s family and ends with a call to praise from all of the angels of heaven and his creation. It is one of three psalms that call upon the angels to worship; psalms 29, 103 and 149. It is contrasted with Psalm 102 where the ‘lonely owl’ becomes the ‘soaring eagle’ of this song. It is connected to Psalm 104, the celebration of creation, by the same phrase; “Praise the Lord, I tell myself.” It has 22 verses, the same number as the Hebrew alphabet and the redemptive name for God, Yahweh, is mentioned 11 times. Psalm 104 reveals the Creation of God while this Psalm reveals the Character of God. Christ is foreshadowed as the one re- vealing the merciful nature of the Father God. It is outlined as: I HE FORGIVES ALL MY SINS - 1-5 Personal Benefits of Mercy II HE REVEALED HIS CHARACTER - 6-12 National Benefits to His People III HE UNDERSTANDS HOW WEAK WE ARE -13-18 Family Benefits IV HE RULES OVER EVERYTHING - 19-22 Universal Call to Praise

INTRODUCTION:

“A Psalm of David”

This is one of the psalms that has ‘an Aramaic coloring like 116, 124, 129 1 .’ Although generally ac- cepted as a psalm of David, it uses words from the more modern Aramaic language that are only found to describe the life of the prophet Elisha. Like Christ, who spoke Aramaic, David incorporates the words of this sister language in his compositions.

I HE FORGIVES ALL MY SINS 1-5

“Praise the Lord, I tell myself; with my whole heart, I will praise the his holy name. Praise the Lord, I tell myself, and never forget the good things he does for me.” (1, 2)

The more familiar rendering of these verses is; “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” (1,2 NKJV) ‘To bless is more than to praise, it is to praise with affection and gratitude 2 .’ It is the highest state of adoration. To ‘bless twice’ is to emphasize its value to the spiritual life of the worshiper. The soul is the part that con- nects the spirit and the body and ‘represents the whole person of man 3 .’ David does not wait for any external reasons to bless the Lord but speaks to his innermost being to remember all of the good things God has done for him. Just as a small ‘starter mechanism’ turns on the larger engine, blessing the Lord begins the engine of praise in a person’s life. God wants us to become ‘self-starters’ in the discipline of worship. To forget God’s benefits many times results in the forfeiting of them. This song recounts the in- credible richness of the blessings available to those who love him. • “He forgives all my sins” (3) Forgiveness of sin is the first and greatest of the benefits of grace opening the way for the other blessings. There is an emphasis upon the word ‘all’ in this psalm; “all that is within me…all my sins…all my diseases.” • “…and heals all my diseases.” (3) ‘As a Judge, he forgives; as a Physician, he heals 4 .’ Once the cause is removed (sin), the effect can be cancelled (disease). Not all sickness is a result of personal sin but all sickness is a result of original sin when Adam and Eve fell. Jesus taught us the connection between the two when he healed the paralyzed man; “Is it easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or ‘Get up and walk (be healed)’?” (Mt. 9:5) He first forgave sin, then he commanded the healing. Many times it is easier for us to believe in God’s forgiveness than his ability to heal. Whether he uses medicine or miracles we should seek him for his help when we are afflicted with physical suffering. • “He ransoms me from death and surrounds (crowns) me with love and tender mercies.” (4) God not only delivers us from dangerous situations here upon earth and the eternal death resulting from sin; he bestows upon us undeserved love and crowns us with mercy that is gentle and tender. The crown of thorns of our savior provides a crown of love for the believer. • “He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!” (5) God’s generosity overflows with unexpected goodness to the one who praises earnestly. Just as the eagle renews its plumage each year, the one who ‘blesses the Lord with all of his soul’ continually grows ‘young’ in the

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