May 25, 2017

THROW A PARTY FOR GOD

Psalm 98

Melissa Smith
Thursday's Devo

May 25, 2017

Thursday's Devo

May 25, 2017

Central Truth

God has proven Himself to be good over and over again in our lives. He does not forget us or His promises to us, and He deserves so much more praise than we can imagine giving Him.

Key Verse | Psalm 98:1

Oh sing to the Lord a new song,
for he has done marvelous things!
(Psalm 98:1a)

Psalm 98

Make a Joyful Noise to the LORD

A Psalm.

Oh sing to the LORD a new song,
    for he has done marvelous things!
His right hand and his holy arm
    have worked salvation for him.
The LORD has made known his salvation;
    he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness
    to the house of Israel.
All the ends of the earth have seen
    the salvation of our God.

Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
    break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
    with the lyre and the sound of melody!
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
    make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!

Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
    the world and those who dwell in it!
Let the rivers clap their hands;
    let the hills sing for joy together
before the LORD, for he comes
    to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
    and the peoples with equity.

Dive Deeper | Psalm 98

The psalmist starts off by commanding us to sing a new song to the Lord. When someone tells us to do something, we often ask ourselves why we should do it and if it is a worthwhile task. Take some time to ask yourself these questions today. Why should you praise the Lord? Do you truly believe that He is deserving of praise?

Let’s break down the rest of the chapter to see what it has to say about these questions. The next part of verse 1 tells us that He has done marvelous things. What marvelous things can you think of that the Lord has done for you? Has He healed you from past sin or hurt? Has He provided when you thought something was impossible? Has He answered prayers in ways that were beyond your wildest imagination? Remember these things when life is challenging. God has proven Himself to be good and for us, but we so easily forget this in the midst of trials.

Verse 3 tells us, “He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel.” In Genesis 15:13-14, God said that the Israelites would be slaves in a foreign country, but He would punish the nation who enslaved them and make sure the Israelites came out with great possessions. It took 400 years for God to fulfill His promise, but Exodus 2:24 says, “God remembered His covenant.” He then started the process of rescuing the Israelites from Egypt. Even if God takes longer to show His power than we would like, we can be assured that He will not forget His children or His promises.  

When the psalmist remembers all that God has done, he describes the whole earth praising the Lord in verses 4 through 8. This seems like an amazing party! The psalmist has definitely decided that the Lord has given us plenty of reasons to praise Him and that He is worthy of an unimaginable amount of praise. Do you agree?

Discussion Questions

1. Ask yourself the questions in the first paragraph. Why should you praise the Lord? Do you truly believe that He is deserving of praise?

2. Make a list of all of the things the Lord has done in your life and the ways He has remembered you.

3. How do you praise the Lord for all that He has done? Is it the unimaginable praise of which only the Lord is worthy?

4. Is there anything that holds you back from giving Him the praise that He deserves? If so, how can you work through that to give Him all of the praise He deserves?