Psalm 105
Sunday, 28 January 2024
Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. -Psalm 105:1
Psalm 105 is a beautiful song of praises to the Lord for the great deliverance and fulfillment of His promise to Abraham. It is a reminder to us today of God’s faithfulness towards us and the wonderful ways in which He is leading us.
Verse 1 simply encourages us to praise the Lord, to proclaim his greatness and to witness to all the world of what He has done for us. It is common for us to greet our brothers and sisters with the phrase ‘Praise the Lord!’ How often we say it without meaning it!
What does it mean to ‘Praise God’? To praise God means to bless and glorify Him, exalting His Holy name and giving Him the recognition and honor due to Him.
Why should we praise the Lord? Psalm 105 gives an account of God’s work among his people from the time of Abraham until they entered the Promised Land. Similarly, today we have so much to praise God for. We praise Him for who He is. We praise Him for the gift of salvation. He demonstrated His exceeding love for us in that, while we were still sinners, He sent His only Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins (Romans 5:8), that we may not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). We praise Him because he is our Creator. Know that the LORD, He is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. (Psalm 100:3–4). In our lives, God has been working in the little things and big ways, leading us continually. He alone is worthy of all our praises.
How should we praise this great God? We should praise God with songs of joy (Psalm 100:2). We should testify of His greatness and the marvelous work of God in our lives to people around us (Psalm 96:3), whenever we get an opportunity. Besides, we should honor him by leading a godly life that is pleasing to God. Because of His great love for us, our hearts should be overwhelmed with thanksgiving and praise that will reflect Him in every area of our lives. Like the Apostle Paul reminds us in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Ps.105: 5 says: Remember the wonders he has done….It is human nature to easily forget the Lord’s deliverances and to be thankful to God for His goodness towards. We see this in the Old Testament that often during the wilderness journey; the Israelites forgot the great miracles and marvelous deliverances and grumbled against God. We see in Luke 17 that when Jesus healed the ten lepers, only one came back to thank Him. We should be like that one leper that came back to the master thankfully.
Today, let us turn to ourselves— how often do we spend time in prayer simply to bless the Lord and thank Him for His loving kindness? Is giving praises to the Lord a part of our daily conversation with the Lord? If not, let us recount the amazing ways in which he has led us and give glory to His name. Let us witness to people around us of the wonderful things he has done in our lives.
Can we pray thus: Almighty LORD, You are my God, and I praise and exalt You. I give thanks to You Lord, for You are good and Your mercy endures forever. [based on Psalm 118:28–29]
Listen: 'Praise'