In Psalm 148, the Psalmist exhorts the heavens, angels, animals, hills, and even the weather to praise the name of YHVH. He spoke, and they were created in all their complex glory, therefore they ought to praise him, and they do!
We humans, on the other hand, have rejected him, despised his instructions, hated one another, and killed his Son. If the sun and moon and all of these things which have no real will, which have never rebelled against God, ought to praise his name, how much more we, who have been forgiven so much, who have been created not once, but twice, ought to praise his name!
Sing and speak of God’s glory, justice, and mercy. Praise his power to destroy, as well as his willingness to forgive. Most of all, praise his name by emulating him to each other. Keep his Law, which instructs in how to love. Live a righteous life. Be patient and understanding. Champion justice–God’s justice, not man’s perversion of it–protect those who are in your power, and be quick to forgive those who wrong you. Teach your children what it means to love God first and their neighbor second.
The most effective way to express our gratitude to God for his grace, is to reflect his character into the world through our words and actions.
Everything that Yeshua (aka Jesus) & the Apostles taught
Come with me as I draw out the connections that are so often missed |