PRAISE FOR GOD’S GOODNESS

“Praise the Lord! Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever” (Psalm 106:1 NKJV).

This Psalm begins with the Psalmist urging all God’s people to give thanks to the Lord, who is unceasingly good, a goodness that flows out of His unfailing mercy (steadfast love). Thus, we want to note the call to praise, and the cause for praise.

The Call to Praise - This Psalm begins by calling people to praise God.

The multitude for praise – “Praise the Lord.” Here the Psalmist is addressing Gods people and is appealing to them to praise the Lord. We do not expect the world to praise the Lord, but God’s people should.

The mode of praise – “Give thanks to the Lord.” The mode or method of praising God is to be that of thanksgiving. We honor God when we thank Him. Failure to give proper thanks to God is a failure to honor God.

The Cause for Praise - The psalmist gives two general reasons for praising God.

The character of God – “For He is good.” God is good; but not only is God good, but everything God does is also good. When He finished off the creation, it was “good” (cf. Gen. 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31). This goodness of God is a good reason for praising God.

The compassion of God – “For His mercy endures forever.” There are actually two reasons for praise here. First, the conduct of mercy. “His mercy.” God is holy, but that does not hinder His mercy. God’s mercy is so great that it gives us enough to praise God for all eternity even if there was nothing else for which to praise God. Second, the character of mercy. “Endures forever.” This mercy lasts forever. It survives time and troubles. The character of this mercy supersedes the mercy of anyone or anything else

(Adapted from Butler’s Analytical Bible Expositor)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“God doesn’t want us to just feel gratitude, but for us to show it by giving thanks to God with our lives!”

Richard Charles (R.C.) Sproul (1938 – 2017)

American Reformed Pastor, Theologian and Author

Word Study

Fight

In 1 Tim. 1:18 we read, “This command I entrust to you, Timothy, my son, in accordance with the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you fight the good fight” (NASB).

“Fight” is the Greek word strateúomai (στρατεύομαι = strat-yoo'-om-ahee). It is from the word “strategos” which means army. Thus, the word literally means to perform military service, serve as a soldier in the army, go to fight, carry on a military campaign, and lead soldiers to war or to battle. In classical Greek, the word means serve as a soldier, serve in the army, or do military service. In the Septuagint, strateúomai carries the idea of holy wars or campaigns. In the New Testament, strateúomai refers to Roman soldiers. Here the apostle Paul is using strateúomai to describe the Christian’s life as a soldier who is engaged in divine warfare with supreme allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ. Further, strateuomai is in the present tense indicating that the spiritual battle that we are engaged in is a continual struggle, and we can expect to be engage in it until the return of our Commander in Chief, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Did You Know…

According to the Book of Romans, God’s invisible qualities been seen since the creation of the world (Rom. 1:20-21).

Bible Quiz

How did Abraham receive the promise that he would be the heir of the world?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz

What three body parts did the Lord Jesus suggest we remove and “cast it from you,” if they “causes you to sin?” The hand, foot, and eye (Matt. 18:8-9).

Prophecies Fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ

Declared the Beloved Son (Psalm 2:7) – Prefigured the Lord Jesus as the Son of God (cf. Matt. 3:17, Rom. 1:4)

"I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son” (Psalm 2:7 NJKV).

The Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem, but He always existed as God. The word “declared” here does not mean that the Lord Jesus Christ somehow achieved or gained His Sonship. The Lord Jesus was the Son of God from eternity past. “Declared” simply means that His nature as God’s Son was made clear by His resurrection from the dead. Quoting Psalm 2:7, the writer of Hebrews explains that God the Father was declaring to Christ, the Messiah, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You.” In the subsequent quotation from 2 Sam. 7:14, the Father goes on to say of Christ, “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son” (Heb. 1:5). Psalm 2:7 is also quoted by the apostle Paul in Acts 13:33. This passage points to the resurrection as the declaration of that Sonship. There was also the declaration of the Father at the Lord’s baptism (cf. Matt. 3:17)

Did You Know – Christian History

Irene Ferrel was an ordinary American prairie girl at the turn of the last century. An excellent shot, she often brought back game for the family to eat. She was also cranky and got many whippings. That changed when she gave her heart to Christ. Later, as a missionary to the Congo (Zaire) she gave her life for Christ too, one terror-filled night.

In 1964 a rebel group called Jeunesse (“Youth”) terrorized the Congo countryside. They shut down schools and massacred Christians whose teachings competed with their Marxist ideology. In Mangungu, where Irene Ferrel and Ruth Hege worked as missionaries, African leaders decided to shut down their Christian school because the rebels were nearby. While they were explaining their decision to Ferrel and Hege, a Missionary Aviation Fellowship airplane flew over. The pilot flung a packet out his window. Attached was a note that read - “Are you in trouble? All missionaries have been evacuated from Mukedi. Kandala Station burned and missionaries evacuated. … If you want to be evacuated, sit on the ground. We will send a helicopter for you.”

As the airplane circled back to get their reply, Ferrel and Hege prayed “Lord, lead us.” They did not want to abandon the African Christians but as the only two white women in the area, they were obvious targets. With the affirmation of the African leaders, they decided to evacuate. Hand in hand, Ferrel and Hege sat in the clearing. The pilot dipped a wing of his Cessna to show he understood and climbed away. It was 3:00 p.m. Hastily packing a few things, the women promised the Congolese they would be back. They hid their car, paid their workers, and returned to the clearing. When no helicopter came, the Christians gathered for a farewell service. At midnight, Pastor Luka said, “We will be right here. We are not going to our houses to sleep tonight.” The grateful women laid down, but before they could fall asleep, Pastor Luka shouted a warning.

Shrieks and the crash of broken glass told the women that the Jeunesse had arrived. The rebels poured into the house, looting everything. Drug-crazed they dragged the two women across the lawn. An arrow plunged into Ferrel’s throat. “I am finished,” she gasped, taking one step and falling. She died moments later on January 25, 1964, Baptist Mid-Missions’ only martyr of the twentieth century. Hege passed out beside Ferrel. When she awoke, she was shivering. The Jeunesse approached. Somehow, she was able to lie perfectly still. A rebel, seeing blood, reached down and felt her. “Dead,” he said. Others did the same. After they left, she crawled into hiding. The next day, African Christians helped her bury Ferrel. Afterward, the Jeunesse captured Hege and she was able to explain Christ’s love to them. On the third day, United Nations troops rescued her. The Jeunesse also captured and tortured Pastors Luka and Zechariah, but they were able to escape into the forest. There was never a satisfactory explanation why the helicopter had not come as promised.

A Little Humor

A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at the grocery store, but couldn’t find one big enough for her family. She asked the stock boy, “Do these turkeys get any bigger?” The stock boy answered, “No ma’am, they’re dead.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“K-Mart isn't the only saving place!”