9 O Israel, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
10 O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
11 You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord;
He is their help and their shield.
12 The Lord has been mindful of us; He will bless us;
He will bless the house of Israel;
He will bless the house of Aaron.
13 He will bless those who fear the Lord,
The small together with the great.
14 May the Lord give you increase,
You and your children.
15 May you be blessed of the Lord,
Maker of heaven and earth.
16 The heavens are the heavens of the Lord,
But the earth He has given to the sons of men.
17 The dead do not praise the Lord,
Nor do any who go down into silence;
18 But as for us, we will bless the Lord
From this time forth and forever.
Praise the Lord!
Message: Blessing The Lord Now and Forever
Time: Based upon authorship and subject matter, Psalms cover a range of centuries. David is mentioned 73 times, Solomon 2, Moses 1, and 50 designate no specific person. It is believed they were compiled around 537 BC. The psalms deal with such subjects as God and His creation, war, worship, wisdom, sin and evil, judgment, justice, and the coming of the Messiah.
What the Lord is Saying:
As I continue to look at this Psalm, I saw in the first 8 verses a contrast between all praise to God and the folly of replacing God or instead worshiping idols. To God be the glory. He is the patient one despite many questioning that He is even there. But, God does as he wishes and He is to be glorified; He doesn't need me and He is sovereign over all. How narrow it is those that people can choose instead to worship a man-made idol and in so doing they get completely off track. It amazes me in life how easily we got off track and begin living for things that just don't matter. The Lord is to be praised above all. Daily I need reminders to remember God, seek Him, thank Him, praise Him.
People appraise God as being helpless and the Psalmist responds to show the stupidity of idolatry and finding rest in man-made things.
Appeal - The Covenant People
O Israel, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. The first 8 verses sound like a prayer of praise to God, but verse 8 makes a shift to words maybe from a leader to the people, such as a choir leader to the congregation appealing to them to trust in the Lord. He is Israel's help and Israel's shield. He helps us and he protects us. Those are words I must not forget. Sunday, a man walked into a church service in Sutherland Heights, Texas and opened fire on a small church gathering killing 26 and wounding more. This tiny church now has lost half of its membership. It's hard to fathom, but it should remind us that people need the help of God daily in their lives. Without that help, we do not think properly. In all of life's situations he is our help and our shield. This doesn't mean that nothing bad will happen to us; his protection lasts for eternity.
Appeal - The Consecrated Priest
O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. Verse 9 appealed to Israel and this verse appeals to the priest. The people are to trust in the Lord, but also the priests. The priests should set the example for the masses that it is God who is our help and shield.
Appeal - The Converted Pagan
You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. From Israel, to the Priest, to the person, or the pagan, all are to trust in the Lord. He is our help and shield no matter where we are at in life.
Application - Assurance of Blessing
The Lord has been mindful of us; He will bless us; He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron. He will bless those who fear the Lord, the small together with the great. Our Lord is the business of blessing. And I need to be in the business of recognized those blessings. This doesn't mean everything will work out the way I want it. Help me, Lord, to see where you are working and thank you for it. You are mindful of me. You have given me Life, eternal life. You have given me breath. All the good that I have in my life is a gift from You. Each day that I can live is a gift from You. And my faithfulness, my measure of my fear is not contingent on the degree of blessing that I will receive. God simply blesses His people.
Application - Assessment of the Blessing
May the Lord give you increase, You and your children. May you be blessed of the Lord, Maker of heaven and earth. The Lord is able to bless anyone at anytime. Nothing is too difficult for Him. I need to trust in this each day. Forgive me Lord for thinking you are done with me.
Applause - The Globe
The heavens are the heavens of the Lord, but the earth He has given to the sons of men. Heaven is the home of the Lord. It is his home right now. Any time Scripture attempts a description of Heaven it resorts to symbolic language. The earth has been given to human beings. God came to this earth to redeem it. It needs redeeming, continually.
Applause - The Grave
The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any who go down into silence; At this time, Jesus had not yet brought life to those in the grave. The Old Testament shares a gloomy picture of the grave. In contrast, the living are to praise the Lord.
Applause - The Godly
But as for us, we will bless the Lord from this time forth and forever. Praise the Lord! We are to bless the Lord forever. He is to be praised at any time, at all times.
Promise: The Lord is about blessing His people and we are about blessing the Lord, praising His name forever.
Prayer: Lord, thank you that we are able to put our trust in You. Thank you for being our help and our shield. Help me to believe this each day and trust in You no matter what comes. As we experience difficulties and trials that we think are too big for us to deal with, remind us that we can trust in You, remain in You and you will help us and shield us from the world and its messages. Thank you for the way you have blessed me. I don't understand it, but I continually thank you for it. Help me to continue to recognize this in my life.
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