“PRAISE THE LORD! For it is good to sing 1praises to our God; For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful…The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear Him, In those who hope in His mercy.” (Psa. 147:1, 11) 1zâmar: To celebrate in song and music. We do this AMY, because “it is pleasant…it is beautiful” and most of all because,
“The LORD takes pleasure…” WHAT DOES HE TAKE PLEASURE IN?
- THOSE WHO FEAR HIM: Fear, yârê’: to stand in awe of, be awed, to become FRIGHTENED. We are probably very familiar with the “AWE” part of this AMY, because we know that our God is a WONDERFULLY AWESOME GOD! “In the council of the holy ones God is greatly feared; He is MORE AWESOME than all who surround Him” (Psa. 89:7) What about the being frightened part? “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: FEAR GOD and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of all mankind.” (Eccl. 12:13) This means that we need to be afraid of breaking God’s commandments AMY, because of the consequences. Because, “…since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is A CONSUMING FIRE.” (Heb. 12:28-29)
- THOSE WHO HOPE IN HIS MERCY: “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace WITH CONFIDENCE, so that we may receive MERCY and find GRACE to help us in our time of need.” (Heb. 4:16)
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham