Psalm 9:1-2 I will Praise You, O Lord

Please read Psalm 9.

If you enjoyed covering all of Psalm 8 in one lesson, then you will be disappointed with our study of Psalm 9, as it will take at least a week to survey its depths. Today, we will simply begin with verses 1 and 2, so you may want to reread them now.

As Christians, our primary purpose for living on this earth is to glorify God. One of the most effective ways that we do this is by praising Him. It is our duty to praise the Lord, but it is also our privilege to praise Him.

We were made to worship, yet only God is truly worthy of our worship. Many of us waste away years of our lives worshipping false idols like success, health, money, celebrities, sports teams, relationships, or other temptations. But none of these things can compare with the glory of the Almighty. He alone is worthy of our worship, and He gives us the opportunity to be truly fulfilled by offering Him what He rightly deserves: all of our worship and praise.

And we must offer all of our praise. David says “I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart.” It has been said that half a heart is no heart at all. We cannot worship God and worship another idol. God would rather have none of us than part of us. Jesus threatened to spew the Laodiceans out of His mouth because they offered Him half of their worship. Such half heartedness was nauseating to Him!

Jesus wants all of our worship. He desires for us to worship Him with our whole heart. And we have the privilege of giving Jesus what He wants!

Now, there are many ways that we can praise or worship God. The most commonly considered is that of singing worship songs. This is a great way to worship God, whether done in a corporate church setting, or while you are walking alone, or working at manual labor, or whatever. There is rarely a bad time to sing God’s praises.

But singing is not the only way to praise God. Have you ever been to a prayer meeting where people were asked for praise requests? Normally, the requests made at prayer meetings are for healings, salvations, protection, or other requests. But sometimes the leader will ask for praises: things that God has done for which we want to corporately praise Him. Usually, after the leader asks for praises, there is a silence for a few moments. No one wants to be the first to speak. But, eventually someone will share something that God has done for them. This leads to someone else praising God for what He has done for them. Then another praise. Then another. Once the ball gets rolling, the church begins praising God for all His marvelous works.

This can happen in your personal prayer time as well. Charles Spurgeon writes that “Gratitude for just one mercy refreshes the memory to thousands of others.” If we would just take a moment to be thankful for what God has done, to be glad and rejoice in Him for a single blessing that He has given us, then we would be reminded of other blessings. We would then give Him praise for those blessings, which will remind us of more blessings. Before you know it, you can have spent an hour in prayer simply praising God. And why not? He is certainly worthy of such praise!

Aside from singing and praying, let me encourage you to praise God in one other way: by telling others of His marvelous works. I’m not just talking about in a prayer meeting, but in your daily life. Share with your co-workers how God miraculously provided that parking spot for you. Share with your classmates how God brought to mind what you studied while you were taking that test. Share with your family how God has provided for you to pay your bills this month. And share with them all the wonderful reality that God has saved you from your sins through Jesus Christ, and He wants to save them too!

Tell of His marvelous works, rejoice in Him, sing praises to His name, and you will fulfill the purpose for which you were made: to glorify God in all that you say and do.