Daily in the Psalms : Psalm 45 OUR PRAISE TO THE KING 1 My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. 2 Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever. (Psalms 45:1-2). Those that are saved ought to have a love song for their Redeemer. His form is of more than human beauty, His lips overflow with grace; God has blessed Him forever and has anointed Him with the oil of gladness above His fellows. He is also addressed as Very God in that He is seated upon an everlasting throne. Our Lord is perfectly beautiful because He is above all, He can never be duplicated. He is the very reason for every blessing that comes from Heaven to the lives of mere men. His is not simply outward beauty as men recognize it, but it is the beauty of Heaven in that He is the expression and image of God. Even His enemies cannot overcome His perfect beauty. He asked, “Which of you convinceth me of sin?” They had no response. Pilate said, “I find no fault in Him.” He even prayed for those that crucified Him. He was able to associate with sinners without staining His perfect beauty. He has an unlimited love for sinners and an ever-burning hatred for sin. He has a never-dying devotion to the will of the Father and a ever-present willingness for personal sacrifice. There are so many other ways that we could describe His beauty, but it would take an eternity to cover them all. All we are able to do is join with the Psalmist and say, “Thou art fairer than the children of men.” The Psalmist says that grace is poured into His lips. Even as a child, talking with the doctors in the Temple, there was a reflection of the wisdom of a Holy God. They were astonished at His understanding and His answers. Then, everywhere He went, the people had the same reaction. The asked, “Whence hath this man this wisdom?” Those that were sent to capture Him by the wicked leaders of His day, returned with this to say, “Never a man spake like this man.” As He spoke in the synagogue, the Bible says, “All bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth.” As we read the New Testament, we ought to be awestruck at the words that came from the lips of our Saviour. On many occasions we are told that God has blessed Him forever, we are told of the special and unique relationship between Jesus and the Father. Isaiah 42:1 - Matthew 3:17 - 2 Peter 1:17 The greatest reason for praising the Lord Jesus Christ is because He is worthy! The Psalmist uses the word “inditing” which means that his heart was overflowing, boiling over, bubbling up with praise. He did not speak with words that were merely calculated and intelligent, they were words that came from an excited and full heart. It was more that poetic expressions or emotions, his words were words that had to come from a heart that was about to explode. That is the only praise that is acceptable to God. He said, “My tongue is the pen of a ready writer.” His heart was so filled that he had no need to think about it or seek out words, they just flowed out. A full heart will produce a fluent tongue. May our tongue speak of Him today, may our words be those that flow from a heart full of praise. David calls his praise “a good matter.” When we praise the Lord, it is good and even excellent. Excellent praise is due to the One that has excellent beauty and is worthy of reverence. My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. (Song of Solomon 5:10). His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. (Song of Solomon 5:16). By sincerely praising Him, we connect ourselves with Him. How could we ever hope to be like Him, if we never offer praise to Him? Praise will transform us into something that is more like His image. That is why it is to be Holy, different from the world and based on His Word. All praise will transform, but our praise must transform us into His image. Those that praise the Lord for His beauty will become more beautiful. Those that praise Him for his goodness will take on that goodness. Our praise will determine our spiritual growth. OUR SONG TO THE KING 3 Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty. 4 And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things. 5 Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies; whereby the people fall under thee. (Psalms 45:3-5). This wonderful Lord that is so beautiful and so full of grace is also a man of war. His beauty and grace does not exclude Him from the battlefield. He is out to rescue His Bride, to capture her, to conquer her and to marry her. His task is to go forth into battle and subdue the enemies of God in this world. The world, those that are not saved are at war with God. They look at Jesus and say, “We will not have this man rule over us.” The way God seeks to conquer His enemies is to convert them. That is why there is so much resistance to public witnessing and soul winning. The world does not want to be subdued by Jesus; they do not want Him to rule over them. The greatest testimony of the greatness and majesty of God is the fact that He can take rebels and make them loyal subjects. The greatest task of the Lord is the salvation of souls. The “Sword” referred to here is the Word of God, the Sword of the Spirit. For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12). It is because of that Word that many are convicted and come to Christ. It is also by that Word that those that refuse to come to Him will be judged. He is the Living Word. He is the Mediator between God and man and He is able to do all that is required of Him. He is able to satisfy the demands of Justice and honor of God and He is able to execute the judgment of God. He is the Saviour, the Prince of Peace and the King of Kings. The Psalmist calls our attention to His glory and majesty in hopes that we will be in awe and be led to submission and obedience. “Because of truth and meekness and righteousness.” Truth is opposed to all lying and fraud. Meekness is opposed to all pride and arrogance. Righteousness is opposed to all injustice. Our Saviour rides into war in the cause of the truthful, the meek and the righteous. He is waging war against falsehood, violence and injustice. His reign is that of truth, gentleness and equity. He is represented as “riding Prosperously.” We are told that His right hand will teach terrible things, His sharp arrows hit their mark and His enemies fall. His truth penetrates the hearts of men. Where there is conviction, conversion can follow. Those that refuse will ultimately fall before Him. Praise God; we are on the winning side! 6 Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre. 7 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. 8 All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad. 9 Kings' daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir. (Psalms 45:6-9). These verses make it clear that this is a Messianic Psalm. These are words attributed to Jesus: The Psalmist makes two announcements concerning the reign of Jesus: 1 - The Righteousness Of His Reign “The sceptre of Thy Kingdom is a right Sceptre.” All the commands and demands of our Lord are for our wellbeing. Although some may be difficult to understand and fulfill, there is great reward in keeping them. There are no more just and right laws than those God has given to us concerning our dealings with each other. And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. (Luke 6:31). His command for our submission to God is right and just. He requires that we obey, reverence and love Him. It is only reasonable that our Creator, the most lovely, the most Holy, the most gracious, the most majestic and the most loving God be reverenced. There is nothing more safe, pleasurable, right and good than to be in the will of the One that loves righteousness and hates iniquity. 2 - The Perpetuity Of His Reign - Forever Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. (Isaiah 9:7). And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. (Luke 1:33). Every earthly king and ruler has had to give up their crown at the bidding of death or some other circumstance. But the King of Kings rules forever! While earthly kingdoms pass away, His is ever-increasing and shall forever endure. The Bible says that even the winds and the seas obey Him. When we place our trust and all that we have in Him, there is great joy. The Church, which is seen as at the right hand of the Father, is a great source of Joy. First of all, because of her honorable position., “upon Thy right hand.” The right hand is a place of honor; it is the place that the wife should be placed beside her husband. The Church is the Bride of Christ, He gave Himself for it and He places it is a position of honor. The gold of Ophir refers to the finest gold that was known. The Church, the Bride of Christ, will be arrayed in the finest that God has. That is because we have been made pure by the washing of His Blood. We are also precious to Him. To the Lord, the Bride is more precious than gold. “Whereby they have made thee glad.” The King is made glad by those that devote themselves to His service. Science lays all her discoveries at His feet. Architecture puts forth her noblest efforts, only to be used to honor Him. Poetry, music, painting and sculpture all give way to His will. But none of those things can make glad the heart of God like the Christian that dedicates his life to the service of the Lord. One day we will be called to Heaven, to meet Him in the air and to dwell with Him forever. On that day His joy will be complete. Although we may be weak and feeble, we will be part of that joy. May we strive to be the best we can be and do the best we can do until that day comes. HE IS THE LORD OF THE CHURCH 10 Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house; 11 So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him. 12 And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour. 13 The king's daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold. 14 She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee. 15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king's palace. 16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. 17 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever. (Psalms 45:10-17). “Forget thine own people and thy father’s house.” This truth is given in many places in the New Testament concerning the follower of Christ. We must be willing to forsake all for Him and identify ourselves with Him. The strongest earthly ties must be broken by those of the Saviour. Christ requires our supreme affection. “For He is thy Lord and worship thou Him.” Again, the wife is instructed in the Bible to reverence her husband. There are many reasons for those instructions, but most important of all, it represents the way we, the Bride, must reverence the Lord. The Church is subject to Christ and must pay honor to her Lord, she must submit to His authority and worship Him as her God. “So shall the King greatly desire thy beauty.” The more we submit and obey the Lord, the more acceptable we will be in His sight. It is much more than acceptable; it is pleasurable. The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy. (Psalms 147:11). For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation. (Psalms 149:4). What an encouragement, by our devotion and love to Him, we can bring joy to the heart of the Lord. When the Church is faithful to the Lord and the blessings of God are evident upon them, even those most influential of the world will honor her. I know that there are real enemies of the Church today, but society today has risen up against the Church, not because of her righteousness, but because of her failure to be what she needs to be. When the Church truly occupies her rightful position with God, prayers can be made for her reception into our communities and our society. The Church attracts the lost as a result of having what they do not have. We have gotten far off course and we are paying a dear price. The Bible teaches that as we surrender to the Lord, the world will surrender to Him. Why would those without not want to connect with those that have all that the Lord has? The Church that is right with God would hasten the conversion of the world.
FOR THE WIFE
FOR THE HUSBAND
FOR THE TEENAGER
FOR THE TAXES I PAY
FOR THE MESS TO CLEAN AFTER A PARTY
FOR THE CLOTHES THAT FIT A LITTLE TOO SNUG
FOR MY SHADOW THAT WATCHES ME WORK
FOR A LAWN THAT NEEDS MOWING,
FOR ALL THE COMPLAINING
FOR THE PARKING SPOT
FOR MY HUGE HEATING BILL
FOR THE LADY BEHIND ME IN CHURCH
FOR THE PILE OF LAUNDRY AND IRONING
FOR WEARINESS AND ACHING MUSCLES
FOR THE ALARM THAT GOES OFF
AND FINALLY, FOR TOO MUCH E-MAIL THE GLORY OF THE CHURCH The king’s daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold. She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee. With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king’s palace. Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth. I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever. Psalms 45:13-17 The Church of Jesus Christ is glorious when she is fully consecrated to Him. The glory of holiness adorns her as a garment of fine gold. How can that be so, if we are all sinners? Because Christ gives the Church His own glory! And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: (John 17:22). The glory of the Church is also in her faith, hope, love, patience, righteousness, holiness and zeal. As she uses those things to honor the Lord, she will be honored by men. What a reception there will be on the day that the Church of the Living God is ushered into Heaven to dwell forever more. 7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. (Revelation 19:7-8). Listen to the words that describe this celebration: Raiment of Needlework, gladness, rejoicing, arrayed in fine linen, clean and white. Christ, the glory of Heaven is preparing that day: 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:26-27). The Bible speaks of gladness and rejoicing on that day. Great will be the joy when we, the redeemed, will be received into the full glories of Heaven. There will be joy for the Bride, for the Bridegroom, for the angels and for the Heavenly Father. The Bible promises that they shall come from the east, west, north and south and sit down in the Kingdom. It says that it shall be a number that no man can count and all nations will be represented. “Whom Thou mayest make princes in all the earth.” Those that carry the name Christian are to be distinguished from all others. That is the way it will be in eternity, it ought to be that way here. The praise that will be in Heaven will be forever and will be ever-increasing in intensity, depth and fullness. The truth that is given to us here is that when we trust the Lord, love Him, devote ourselves to Him and loyally serve Him, our joy will be great and endless. LET US WORSHIP THE LORD So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him. (Psalms 45:11). There is much talk about worship today. Many claim to worship God and even call what they do at Church worship. God help us to get back to real reverence in our worship; that which comes from a heart of love instead of a desire to fulfill the flesh. I’m not referring to terror, but a sacred awe of our God. We are sinful creatures and it ought to deeply humble us that we can offer our praise to a Holy God. Another internal principle of worship is our trust in His atonement. So much of the praise we see today is about what man does to gain the favor of God, but those that participate in that worship have nothing to worship about. Only those that are totally submitted to the fact that they were sinners before God and deserving of Hell can worship the Lord for their salvation. After we are saved, the things we ask are granted and the blessings of God are poured out. Everything about the Christian must be rooted and grounded in submission. For the rebel to worship God is only a mockery. Another internal principle for worship is gratitude. We have supreme affection for Him and we delight in His Divine goodness. We could add to this list, but the point of truth has been made, there must be internal principles that guide our worship. There are too many trying to have the external manifestations without ever fully knowing the internal principles. We worship God because of who He is. The Lord of the Church is Lord of all. So our worship must proclaim that fact. We have said that worship is reverence and sacred awe; surely it rightly belongs to the Lord. We ourselves, our families, our nation and the whole world is under His hand. Our life is given, supported and terminated by Him. The reason for our worship is His boundless dominion and His absolute Lordship. Worship is not to elevate us, but to lift up the God of Heaven. True worship is the proclaiming of God and His works before the world. The world needs to see the True and Living God; that is made possible by our worship. As we study worship in the Bible we see things like the altar of sacrifice and the savor of that worship being lifted to Heaven. What the world knows about God, they learn from our worship. Careless worship is what we see in many modern movements today. They do anything they please and claim that God must accept it. Even if it violates the Scripture, it’s OK because they call it worship. That is evil because it does not show an accurate picture of God. On the other end of the spectrum is formal worship. That which is dead and pictures a dead and powerless God. The Bible says that both are evil. 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23-24). For those that neglect the Word of God in their living, worship is a reminder of that which he has neglected. We have heard it said, “You are the only Bible that some will ever read.” God help them to be reading that which is really the Word of God manifested in our lives. For those that have no interest in reading the Word of God, worship, if in accordance with the Word of God, can convict and convert them to Christ. Many have seen the Lord in His mighty acts. Others seek the Lord in doing good things, but multitudes have found Him in the Church, filled with those that come to worship the Lord. That is another reason that our worship must be real and based on Scripture. We live in a terrible world and we need to know that there is a place where we can be assured of the presence of the Lord. The Church is such a place, if we meet in the right way. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20). Those that are lost and need the Saviour and finally come to the Church seeking the solution to their problems, the Church must be a place where they will find the presence of God. If our worship is tainted, He will not be there. Worship Prepares Us For Heaven! That is what we will do in Heaven; worship God! As we meet together for worship, if it is real worship, then we have a small piece of Heaven on earth and it prepares us for that which is to come. Let’s sing our love song to the Lord!
psalms 45So Glad To Be So Saved
Danny "Preacher" Bezet
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