We're looking here in Psalm 150. Little did we think when we began
in Psalm 1 that we would be to Psalm 150 this quickly. I'm not sure of the date when
we began, but I'm sure that the Lord has been
faithful to lead us thus far. And if the Lord has led us thus
far, he will lead us to the end. That's one of the glorious things
about the faithfulness of God is that he does not do things in a haphazard way,
nor does he play games with men and seek to lead them down a road only to play a joke on them. A man that's fled to Christ for
refuge, the scripture says, will never be ashamed. Because Christ
is the one who calls his men to call upon his name. And if
he calls his men to call upon his name, he will surely keep
them unto the end. What a glorious Savior he is. There is no happenstance in the
salvation of God's people. There's no chance to it. There's
no maybes, but it's a certainty. Because if Jesus Christ died
on Calvary's cross to remove the sin, of centers than those
centers for whom he died shall surely be saved. And that's a
glorious thing. You know, if a man knows himself
to be a sinner, that's a wonderful thing, is it not? I mean, what
if he did not die for sinners? And a man finds himself to be
a sinner. Now a man that doesn't know himself to be a sinner or
doesn't really care, nothing to him one way or the other.
but the man who knows himself to be a sinner when he hears
that Jesus Christ died on Calvary's cross for sinners that they might be saved that's
a glorious thing the gospel is for sinners the Lord Jesus Christ said he
came to seek and save that which was lost and what a glorious
thing it is and so We come here to Psalm 150. There's not a Psalm
151. This is the last of the Psalms
according to the purpose of God. And just like the Psalms have
an end, so too do all things that God has made. He's the beginning
and the end. And all things uh... fulfill his purpose uh... in that interlude in which he
has been pleased to put his creation what a glorious thing he's the
beginning in the beginning that which was from the beginning
what a glorious truth that is Psalm 150. Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in His sanctuary. Praise Him in the firmament of
His power. Praise Him for His mighty acts.
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness. Praise Him with the
sound of the trumpet. Praise Him with the psaltery
and harp. Praise Him with the timbrel and
dance. Praise Him with the stringed
instruments and organs. Praise Him upon the loud cymbals. Praise Him upon the high-sounding
cymbals. Let everything that hath breath
praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord. Now, that sums up the activity
that the saints of God are exhorted to perform. What ought the people
of God to do? Praise the Lord. That's what Paul said, said,
whether therefore you eat or drink or whatsoever you do, do
all to the glory of God. And that's what this Psalm's
about, giving glory to God. Now, an admonition and an exhortation
to praise the Lord must have a beginning or an object. And that object is seen for us
in the very first psalm. And I want to read the first
psalm. And these are the bookends of the psalms. The first psalm
and the last psalm. The last psalm exhorts us to
praise the Lord. And the first psalm tells us
who it is that is to be praised. Blessed is the man that walketh
not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners,
nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is
in the law of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day
and night. And he shall be like a tree planted
by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in his season. His leaf also shall not wither,
and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not
so, but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore
the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment nor sinners in the
congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knoweth the way
of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish. Now who is that first Psalm speaking
of? Now some have thought that this
psalm is a bit of advice and instruction unto men as to how
they ought to walk, and I certainly wouldn't fault that, because
surely, that is true, there is an application wherein this psalm
can be applied to men, but this psalm, as all the psalms, has
as its object and center point the Lord Jesus Christ. For who
else has done what is said in this psalm? I mean, who has fulfilled
this? Who is that one who's blessed
by what he has done? See, you've been blessed in spite
of what you've done. Now, a lot of people don't think
that. They think they can do stuff that's gonna cause them
to be blessed. But the blessing of God precedes
the obedience of the children of God. I mean, it's His blessing
that causes man to walk in obedience. And so the man who's blessed
walking not in the counsel of the ungodly is the Lord Jesus
Christ. He was tempted in all points
like as we are, yet without sin. He walked among the ungodly men
of this world, those that despised him, despised his way. And men
are no different today than they were then. Men despised the way
of God. We see it on every hand. as men
seek to do exactly what Brother Thomas read there in the last
verse. You know, we make God alive when
we say that we have no sin or when we look at the sinfulness
of our lives and the practices that we have in our lives and
we say, well, these things are okay. These things are not sinful. I mean, we look at our society
in general. And that's basically what our
society says, is it not? Well, you know, we've got to
be tolerant of all these different things that go on and understand
how people are. Well, yes, we do understand how
people are. People are sinners. Every man
born in this world is indeed a sinner, a rebel against God.
Now, the rebellion of men might manifest itself in many different
ways, but all of the ways of men or wicked. And so when a
man says, well, I'm all right, I want to go this way, even though
God says don't go that way, but if I want to go that way and
I feel like I'm compelled to go that way, it's okay. And you
ought to not say nothing to me about that. Well, there's nothing
we can do to change men at all in the way of men and the men's
hearts. There's not one thing in the
world that all the counseling or whatever that men set out
to do is going to change one man's thought. not going to do
it. But you see, the Word of God
stands forever true. And it doesn't make any difference
what men say is okay, it's not okay, if God doesn't say it's
okay. And so, blessed is the man that
walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in
the way of sinners. Now the Lord Jesus Christ, He
accompanied with sinners, but He didn't stand in the way of
sinners, did He? I mean, He didn't embrace their
sin, He knew they were sinners. He came to seek and save that
which was lost. And he had many people among
the harlots and the publicans. He said the harlots and the publicans
go into the kingdom of God before the Pharisees. Why? Because they
knew themselves to be sinners. And that's who he came to save.
And so it is that he didn't stand in the way of sinners, nor did
he sit in the seat of the scornful. He didn't go along with what
they said. Men say, well, you know, the
Word of God, that's too strict. Well, it doesn't fit our lifestyle.
See, our lifestyle is important. Our lifestyle is supposed to
be determined by us. Well, no, the Lord set forth
what the lifestyle of His people needs to be. He declared it. It's not up to men to decide
what that is, nor to say to God, well, you made me this way, so
that's how I am. Nay, but, O man, who art thou
that replyest against God? Shall the thing formed say to
him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? No, it doesn't
make any difference. See, what men are inclined to
do does not cause that to be a good thing. I mean, if a man
was going to say, because I'm inclined to something, that's
going to be good, then what would we not do? I mean, we're inclined
to all sorts of things, but God's way is the right way. His delight's
in the law of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day
and night. Lord, what can I do to serve
thee? Help me. And he, shall be like
a tree planted by the rivers of water, bringeth forth his
fruit in his season. What fruit have you ever borne?
All mine is either rotted and fell off the tree before it was
ripe or it never made any. But you see, the Lord's fruit,
he causes that fruit to come forth and to bear in abundance
because it's his fruit. His leaf also shall not wither. How often does our leaves wither
down the vine? Something we thought was so grand
only turned out to be nothing. His leaf shall not wither. Whatsoever
he doeth shall prosper. Now we would like to prosper
in everything that we do, but we don't, do we? Why? Because we're imperfect. It's
the nature that we have. But the ungodly are not so, but
like the chaff which the wind driveth away. And dear brethren,
we are indeed like that chaff which the wind driveth away,
except for the mercy of God. See, we would be blown away in
a moment, except for His mercy and kindness. Oh, that the Lord
might give us lips to praise Him. Praise ye the Lord. Praise
God in His sanctuary. It's impossible to praise God
without praising the Lord Jesus Christ. Because a man cannot
know God except through Jesus Christ. He is the revelation
of the Father unto men. God who at sundry times in divers
manners spake in time past by the prophets, hath in these last
days spoken unto us by his Son, by whom he hath created all things,
and into whose hand all power has been given. And so it is
unto him that we render praise. Now there's all sorts of religions
in the world claiming to praise God, but I'm telling you, apart
from praising the name of Jesus Christ, A man cannot praise God. He can praise his idea of God. And men have been doing that
from the beginning. That's why the Lord said, Make unto thee
no graven image. Thou shalt have no other gods
before my face. Don't bring them into my presence. And this is what sets forth the
folly of the thought of men that all
men can walk together in unity in this world. The Lord said
I didn't come to bring peace in the world, but I came to set
the mother and the father against the children. You know, I came
to bring variance. Why? Because the Lord would manifest
the glory of His Son, Jesus Christ, and no other. There's no other
name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.
There's no other name worthy of praise. How do we know that? Because it's a name which is
above every name. and that's the name that is to
be praised. Praise ye the Lord. Praise God
in His sanctuary that is in the holy place because that's where
He dwells. He dwells in the high and holy
place, the lofty one. He inhabited the eternity. He
dwells in the light to which no man can approach. He only
hath immortality dwelling there. Men cannot come into His presence. Now most men think they can approach
God anytime they get ready, and on their own terms. The scripture
says not so. Can a man by searching find out
God? I mean, he's holy. Remember when Isaiah, in the
year the king Uzziah died, he said, I saw the Lord. He didn't say I sat down with
him and we had a conversation. And I told him, you know, all
the things I needed, and what my problems were, and how he
could do things better, and you know, if he'd just do this, that,
and the other, everything would work out better. No, he said,
I saw the Lord high and lifted up. And his train filled the
temple. And the seraphim surrounded him,
and ceased not day and night to cry out, holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come. And what did Isaiah do? He said,
oh, woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips. And I dwell
amongst a people with unclean lips. You see, he knew the separation
that there was between him and God. When Daniel saw him by the
river Kibar, and he said, all my comeliness was it turned in
me into corruption. And I fell upon my face. John,
when he saw him in the book of the Revelation, he said, I fell
at his feet as a dead man. Why? Because of the glory that
belongs to him. He's high and lifted up. He's
set apart from men. Men cannot approach unto God.
Try as they might. They can't do it through their
intellect. The Lord said, He had chosen the foolish things
of the world, confound the wise. They can't come there. Praise ye the Lord, praise God
in His sanctuary, that place where He has set apart. See,
praise is a solemn thing. Now, it's a joyful thing, indeed. But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence
before Him. See, His praise, the praise that's
given unto God is not a frothy thing. Now, when we consider
that which Christ has done in our behalf, we are filled with
joy. And that joy should be expressed,
rejoicing the Lord always. Again, I say rejoice. But keep
in mind that this one whom we praise is the eternal God, whose
glory fills the heavens. He stretches out the heavens
like a curtain. He makes the wind His wings. He's a glorious God. Praise Him
in the firmament of His power. Remember we talked about that
a few weeks ago. how the Lord created the earth
in a firmament. A firmament is a space. Now where do we, He said praise
Him in the firmament of His power. Well where is that? It's wherever
He wants to be. I mean the firmament of God's
power is that place where He is. Now, and this, you know sometimes
men think that they form the sum total of God's concern. I mean, we're just a speck. The Lord is eternal. He has no bounds. And we live
in the creation that He has made and revealed to us. But I don't
know what the Lord... Some people say, well, they know
everything the Lord has done. No, I don't know what all the
Lord has done. I know what the Lord has revealed.
See, the secret things belong to God. The things that are revealed
belong to us. He's far greater than our imagination. You know, I mean, He's done more
than what we can see or what we can ever know. Some people
say, well, you know, when we get to heaven, we'll know all
things. No, you'll never know all things. You'll only ever
know what God's pleased to show you because you couldn't contain
what it is. of all knowledge, but all the
knowledge that the Lord has seen fit to reveal to us is found
in Jesus Christ. You don't need to know anything
else. See, a man doesn't need to know anything else except
that Jesus Christ is the Savior of sinners. That's the only thing
a man needs to know. And that's a glorious knowledge
when it's given to a man who knows himself to be a sinner.
What a wonder savior he is. The firmament of his power. All
power, he said, is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Not partial, but all belongs
to him, the beginning and the end. Praise him for his mighty
acts. Praise him according to his excellent
greatness. His mighty acts. The Lord has seen fit to set
forth in the scripture many mighty acts that he's done. We're to praise him for those
things. But you know, I think many times the greatest acts
that the Lord has performed in the earth, we don't praise him
enough for. The fact that he has saved sinners
is one of the greatest, if not the greatest act that he's ever
performed. Sent his own son into the world
to die for that reason. The mighty acts of God. Oh, let
us praise him. Let's never be reticent. Let's never be slow. to praise
him for his mighty acts, that which he has done for us. Praise
him according to his excellent greatness. And then he goes through
a list of ways in which men might praise him. The sound of the
trumpet, the soldiering harp, the timbrel, dance, praise him,
stringed instruments, organs, loud cymbals, praise him upon
the high-sounding cymbals. I'm not going to attempt to set
forth what all of these might represent. But these are musical
instruments, and the Lord's given music unto men. Now music is
not necessarily that which always comes from an instrument of something
that men play with their hands, but it can be, and it is, and
the Lord ordained these things in the Old Testament most especially. Now it is true, we don't have
any mention of these things in the New Testament except in those
things that we're seeing. The harp that was in the heavens,
and I believe, and I think this is true, that it's not going
to be a harp that men are playing. You know, you see these pictures
where men sitting around on clouds strumming on a harp. I don't
believe that's what he means. But he gave every man a harp,
a golden harp. the sacred harp, the mouth to
praise Him. That's what His praise is unto.
And we shall indeed through the ages come play upon that harp.
We shall praise Him forever. But in all these things, whatever
we have and whatever talent the Lord has given us, what I believe
He's saying here is let's use it unto the glory of God. Whether
therefore you eat or drink or whatsoever you do, do all to
the glory of God. If all you can do is bang on
a cymbal, then bang on the cymbal. Do that. Now I think you could
probably do more than that, but nonetheless, I mean, whatever,
you see, there is nothing that the Lord has made that He has
not made for His glory. Yea, even the wicked. for the
day of evil. Well, you see, the Lord Jesus
Christ was taken by wicked heathens, crucified and slain. But that
was not by happenstance. It was according to the foreordained
purpose of Almighty God. The Lord raised up wicked men
to crucify the Lord Jesus Christ. And He used them unto His glory.
even as all things in this world shall redound unto the glory
of God. Let everything that hath breath,
he says, praise the Lord. See, because a man is wicked
does not mean that he does not have the obligation to praise
the Lord. Now, he will not do it. At least
in his knowledge, he will not do it, but he will praise the
Lord. Every beast of the field shall
praise the Lord. The scripture says the trees
of the field shall clap their hands. And I've shared with you
how years ago, walking down the road one day, and thinking about
some things, and the scripture, I looked up in the trees, and
the wind was blowing these oak trees, and these leaves in these
trees were just doing that, and that scripture came to my mind.
The trees of the field shall clap their hands. The Lord has
made a wondrous creation. And He has loved that creation. And He created all things for
His purpose. And the Lord Jesus Christ came
into the world to save sinners. You know, that's all that's in
the world, is sinners. But sadly, many will never acknowledge
that fact. And they will never be saved.
Oh, let's praise him. Because you see, even in the
destruction of the wicked, the Lord Jesus Christ will have glory. They are not a testament to his
failure, as some have said. They are a testament to his power.
They are a testament to His judgment. They are a testament to His glory.
He will destroy the wicked. That's what we read there in
Psalm 1, did we not? I mean, let's read it again.
Behr's reading, for the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous,
but the way of the ungodly shall perish. Jesus Christ is the way, the
truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but
by Him. Let everything that hath breath. Do you have breath? I mean, get
your mirror out and put it under your nose and if you see two
little circles, that means you've got breath. And if you have that, then it
is your obligation to praise the Lord. He's worthy of all
praise. Let everything praise Him. May
the people of God most assuredly praise Him with their whole heart,
gladly. Oh, what a wondrous thing it
is to praise the Lord. No, I can't think of a more pleasant
occupation than to praise the Lord. Oh what
a wondrous thing.