TEXT: ‘Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness’ (Psalm 145:3 NLT) THOUGHT: Psalm 145 contains seven statements about who the Lord is. In Part 1 we studied the first three: The Lord is great; The Lord is Gracious; The Lord is Good! We need to remind ourselves of these truths daily, for they will surely lift our spirits in testing times. Part 2 unpacks the final four statements. 4. The Lord Upholds – ‘The Lord upholds all who fall and raises up all who are bowed down’ (v14) It would be wonderful if Christians lived perfect lives, but we do not. When we are tempted to be critical of others’ shortcomings and failures, we need to remember we have this treasure in an earthen vessel.1 We can easily fall short too. Just as Peter cried out when he began to sink beneath the waves and Jesus took him by the hand2, so too the Bible promises God’s intervention to help us when we fall. ‘The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand’ (Psalm 37:23-24 NLT). Some wrongly think that God’s hand is there to slap us...
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TEXT: ‘Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness’ (Psalm 145:3 NLT) THOUGHT: Psalm 145 contains seven statements about the Lord, reminders about who God is. The author of the psalm, King David, made praise a daily practise because he wrote, ‘Every day I will bless You, and I will praise Your name forever and ever’ (v2). He did not just praise God for a victory he had experienced, he used praise to get the victory when personal or national issues were getting him down. Regardless of your experience, belief or what others have said about the Lord, this is what the Lord is. What was David so thankful for? 1. The Lord is Great – ‘Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised’ (v3) Many verses in the Bible refer to God’s greatness. These are not listed as if God is boasting about Himself. They are there for our benefit, to remind us of what God can do. Let the following verses encourage you about God’s greatness working on your behalf. ‘Lord, there is no one like you! For you are great, and your name is full of power’ (Jeremiah 10:6) ‘Blessed God … the one and only wonder-working God!’ (Psalm 72:18 MSG). ‘You...
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TEXT: ‘By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren’ (1 John 3:16) THOUGHT: Gold and silver are hallmarked to denote their purity and value. Without that hallmark there is no guarantee those metals are genuine. It has to be added by the Official Assayer offices. “By this” is the verification code for the Christian. This phrase helps us to know whether our faith and lifestyle is genuine Christianity, and also to protect us from being deceived by anyone pretending to be a true Christian when they are not. It’s not what we say about ourselves that is important, but whether our lives line up with the Word of God. Part 1 studied, “Our relationship with the Father”, through love and obedience, knowing the truth and experiencing His abiding presence. Part 2 studied, “Our relationship with the Holy Spirit”. The Spirit of Truth in a world full of error. His indwelling presence brings the assurance of salvation and the promise to comfort, teach, empower and lead the believer. Finally we consider, ”Our Relationship with Fellow Christians”. Our Relationship With Fellow Christians ‘By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love...
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