“Undergoing Construction: Building A Heart of Praise pt. 2”
Pastor Jim Lowe III
Sunday Morning, 9:30am Stream 11/17/24 (3rd Sunday Message)
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{All scriptures are NIV84 unless stated}
Psalm 96:4
4. For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods.
Our God is most worthy of praise.
We should be checking to make sure we have a heart of praise. Giving thanks.
We use November to think about the things we’re grateful for.
We need to make sure we’re thankful for the things the Lord is doing for us!
1 Thessalonians 5:18
16 Be joyful always; 17 pray continually; 18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
In all circumstances… In good times and bad.
Because our God is good… and worthy of praise.
Psalm is a book that talks about MANY reasons to give praise. Let’s talk about more reasons to give God thanks..
from psalms.
5 Reasons To Give God Thanks:
5 Reasons To Give God Thanks:
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He Is A Protector!
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He Leads Us!
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His Wonderful Works!
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He Is A Healer!
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He Gives True Freedom!
We said last week there are more reasons to give God thanks!
Psalm 92:1
1 It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High..
There is a good thing to do…and that’s to give God praise! So let’s talk about more reasons to give thanks!
Even More Reasons To Give God Thanks!
We’ll be using Psalms as the foundation again.
Listening to a psalmist like David…
giving thanks and praise to our God.
More Reasons To Give God Thanks:
Psalm 107:28-30
28 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. 29 He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. 30 They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.
What is a storm?
anything that rises up against you.
many times in life we have to just wait for it to pass. but we serve a God who has power over it.
Remember Jonah?
He was supposed to go to Nineveh. He chose to go somewhere else.
He got on the boat.
The Lord sends a storm…
which is going to break up the boat.
They throw Jonah overboard. the storm stops.
Also:
Remember when Jesus was on the boat asleep. a storm comes.
the disciples think they’re gonna drown. they wake Jesus up.
he speaks to the storm and it calms.
Psalm 89:9
The Lord has power over our storms.
The things that cause us to run for cover…
The Lord has power over it.
Be Thankful For A God Who Has Power Over The Storms In Our Life!
More Reasons To Give God Thanks:
Psalm 107:8-9 (AMP)
8 Oh, that men would praise [and confess to] the Lord for His goodness and
loving-kindness and His wonderful works to the children of men! 9 For He satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with good.
He satisfies the soul.
When Was The Last Time You Found Something That Truly Satisfied You?
You can go get your favorite meal…you’ll be hungry again. You can get your favorite drink…you’ll be thirsty again.
But our God can fully meet our needs.
John 4:7 talks about an encounter a woman had with Jesus at a well.
John 4:7-10
7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink? 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”
Jesus asked her for a drink.
When she responds…
he says if you really knew about God… you’d be asking me.
Because Jesus possess “living water.” She doesn’t understand what living water is.
So Jesus explains.
John 4:13
13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
Jesus is saying that we can do all we want to meet our needs. But we will never be able to fully satisfy.
But we know a God who can fully meet our needs!
Psalm 34:10
Those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
Isaiah 55:1-3
“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. 2 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. 3 Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live. I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David.
What need do you have the Lord can’t meet? Anything you NEED…the Lord can do!
This is saying that you have something in your God called a provider!!
Philippians 4:19
19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
What is it you need? Our God can meet it!
Be Thankful For A God That Can Meet Needs You Didn’t Even Know You Had!
This goes into #8.
More Reasons To Give God Thanks:
Psalm 107:13-14
13 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains.
We used this last week to talk about how God protects us. But this says that he saves us from distress.
NCV - misery
Our God Meets Us In Our Deepest Despair and Brings Us Out!
In our darkest times and places…
Psalm 34:18
18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
He is close to those to are going through.
When You Are In Your Hardest Times, That’s Where The Lord Is With You!
Psalm 34:19
19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all;
Let’s look at Philippians 4:19 again.
Philippians 4:19
19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
As I said before this isn’t just a physical need.
not just about money, daily meals and a home. this is about meeting EVERY need yo have!
Do you have a need for peace? Our God can meet that!
Do you need to overcome self-doubt?
Our God can meet that!
Do you need a better way to break out of bondage?
Our God can meet that!
Do you need to get over your fear of failure?
Our God can meet that!
The Lord wants our troubles!
What Is That Thing Troubling You? Give Thanks Because God Can Bring You Out!
More Reasons To Give God Thanks:
There might be a lot that goes on in our lives. We might be fearful of a lot of things.
This sickness we found out about. who our boss is.
who our co-workers are who our senators are.
even who our president is.
But there’s not need for fear…
when our God still sits on the throne!
Psalm 45:6
6 Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
The psalmist says that our Lord sits on the throne… and he isn’t going anywhere.
He believes in fairness
and justice.
what else?
Psalm 103:19
19 The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
The Lord established his throne in heaven.
this means he isn’t bound to the things of earth. he doesn’t have term limits.
His kingdom rules where?
This means he has NO one he has to answer to. and what HE establishes will last.
No Matter How Things Look, The One Who Fights For Us Still Sits On The Throne!
And because HE sits on the throne… EVERYthing answers to him!
Revelation 5:11-13
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Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. 12 In a loud voice they sang: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” 13 Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”
John says he looked and saw angels. Thousands upon thousands.
ten thousand times ten thousand. innumerable!
What were they saying?
They were giving praise to our God!
Verse 12
This is JUST the angels… but it doesn’t stop there. Verse 13
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Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”
EVERY creature in heaven and on earth and UNDER the earth… EVERYWHERE.
singing:
“to him who sits on the throne and to the lamb…be praise and honor and glory and power for ever and ever!”
This is showing the power of our God!
Philippians 2:10-11
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Because everyone…everything. every demon…
every person…
ANYTHING that tried to come against him is NOW going to have to say: Be praise and glory and power forever and ever!
And what does the Lord tell you?
Isaiah 41:10
10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
This is saying that the Lord will help you. When something comes against you… it’s not just against YOU…
it’s against your God!
And whatever that thing is… it’s got to answer to him.
The one who is on the throne!
The one who’s kingdom is in the heavens… The one who will win in the end!
Give Thanks Because Our God Will Have The Last Say So!
{Recap}
9 Reasons To Give God Thanks:
-
He Is A Protector!
-
He Leads Us!
-
His Wonderful Works!
-
He Is A Healer!
-
He Gives True Freedom!
-
He Has Power Over Our Storms!
-
He Has The Power To Meet Our Needs
-
He Can Save Us From Our Own Distress
-
He Still Sits On The Throne!
There are more we’ve been studying…
Let’s see what the Lord says to us next week!
