Merlin Carothers has written a number of books on the importance of praising God. He relates how he used to have a difficult time starting his day. He would get up in the morning and complain to himself about his aches and pains and all the responsibilities he would have to encounter during the day. One morning he was especially moaning and groaning to himself when he sensed God asking him, "Merlon, what are you complaining about?" As he began relating to God all the bad things he had to face that day, he heard God tell him, "Merlon, tomorrow morning if you wake up, try thanking me for the day I have given you." Needless to say, the next morning Merlin Carothers had a new attitude about praising God.

In this psalm we are instructed to exalt God. The psalmist understood the importance of praising God and we can learn from these verses why it’s important for us every day to be exalting God.

God reigns as the king of the universe. His power is so beyond our capacity for understanding that the nations tremble and the earth shakes before his awesome power. For those who are disobedient to God, his power may seem frightening, but for those who have made Christ Lord of their lives, God’s power is an assurance and a comfort. The knowledge that God is the all-powerful Creator of the universe should cause us to want to worship and exalt him. Everything is under his control, even our everyday problems and challenges. There is nothing that comes against us that God’s might and strength cannot overcome. There is no power greater than that of the one who loves us so much. This should be a cause for praise.

Spurgeon writes, "...the whole earth should feel a movement of adoring awe when it is known that on the mercy seat God sits as universal monarch. The pomp of heaven surrounds him, and is symbolised by the outstretched wings of waiting cherubs; let not the earth be less moved to adoration, rather let all her tribes bow before his infinite majesty, yea, let the solid earth itself with reverent tremor acknowledge his presence."

Not only is God the ruler of the universe, but he also dwells with us. He is the Lord in Zion. He lives in the hearts of believers. God is not only higher than the nations, but he is also exalted by people from all the nations. There can be no greater comfort than to know that God dwells with us. This should be a cause for us to join all those from throughout the world in exalting God.

The Hebrew word here for exalted is ruwm which means God is exalted because he is lifted up. The same word is also used in verses 5 and 9. Because of this three-fold use of the word, Spurgeon suggests that in our worship we should exalt God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God is exalted as we lift up our hearts, as we lift up his name, and as we lift up our praise. Let us not be silent before the one who has forgiven us and set us free.

Once again we are exhorted to praise God. The reasons given in this verse is that God is great and awesome, and that he is holy. When my two sons were growing up, my oldest seemed to keep an eye out for his younger brother in school. Most of the time he would just notice what was happening, but every now and then he would step in and help. You have fond memories if you had an older brother or sister who looked out for you. In a way, we can think of God as the ultimate older brother. He’s always keeping an eye on us, and when we need help, he comes to our rescue. For all those times that God has been there for us, we should be willing to praise him.

The Hebrew word used for praise is yowduw which is usually used for a praise of thanksgiving. When we exalt God, let us also remember to thank him. We know of the times when God has come to our aid, but there are probably so many more times when God worked on our behalf that we don’t even know about. We should have a grateful and thankful heart.

True worship is not lip service but life service.

We know that God always practices fairness. This verse tells us that God loves justice, he has established equity, and he does what is just and right. Throughout the Bible we see egalitarian concepts and commands that were unknown in the other cultures of their day. God has always shown that he cares about all peoples, nations, and ethnic groups. His only criterion has been obedience, not nationality. Throughout the Bible we find believers from many different nationalities, and in fact when we try to find references to race in the Bible, it is almost impossible to discover any references to actual racial groups.

Even in the Old Testament, which was written about God’s dealing with the specific nation of Israel, we find such scriptures as Exodus 23:9, "You must not mistreat a foreigner. You know how it feels to be a foreigner, because you were foreigners in Egypt," and Psalm 117:1, "Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples." In the New Testament we find this remarkable statement in Acts 10:34-35, "Then Peter began to speak: ‘I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right’."

We should praise God for his fairness. As Immanuel Kant points out in his argument for the existence of God, it is only because God is fair and equitable, who punishes wrong and rewards right, that we can have any meaning in our lives or ever seek the Greater Good. We know that in this life there may be oppression and injustice, but we know that some day God will make everything right according to divine justice.

This is the second time in this psalm that we are told to lift up the Lord and exalt him. In the psalmist’s day, upon entering the royal throne room the people would bow before the king. The psalmist wants us to not only bow down before God, but also to worship at his footstool. Our worship should be more than perfunctory. It should be genuine and from the heart. Let us spend time each day exalting God and worshipping him.

The reason given for worship is that God is holy. All of our ideas of goodness, nobleness, and loveliness are but a mere shadow of God’s holiness. We are sinful but God is holy. Whenever we enter God’s throne room of prayer, let us worship him for his holiness.

Spurgeon comments, "The Lord has not one glorious attribute alone, or in excess, but all glories are in him as a whole; this is the crown of his honour and the honour of his crown. His power is not his choicest jewel, nor his sovereignty, but his holiness. In this all comprehensive moral excellence he would have his creatures take delight, and when they do so their delight is evidence that their hearts have been renewed, and they themselves have been partakers of his holiness."

Since we have the benefit of thousands of years of written history, we have a marvelous witness to God’s faithfulness. We can read about those believers before us who called on the Lord and who received God’s answers. We can read about how the ancient leaders of Israel served God and received God’s blessings. We can read about how the early church fathers faced persecution and danger and yet found that God was with them. We can read about Christians down through the centuries who listened to God’s voice and wrote down marvelous things that only God’s Spirit could reveal to them. And we can review in our own life how God has always been there for us and always answered us when we cried out to him.

As we read about the blessings that God gave to past believers and as we remember all those times of personal growth from God that we have experienced ourselves, our faith should swell into a time of exalting God and thanking him for his faithfulness to us.

What Shall I Render to My God?

by John Mason

What shall I render to my God
For all his gifts to me?
Sing, heaven and earth, rejoice and praise
In glorious majesty

O let me praise you while I live,
And praise you when I die,
And praise you when I rise again
To meet you in the sky.

Mysterious depths of endless love
Our admiration raise;
My God your name exalted is
Above our highest praise.

From the earliest times God spoke to his people and gave them statutes and decrees to live by so they would know exactly what he wanted. Even in the Garden of Eden God gave some simple commands. Many people think that these early commandments were transmitted orally from generation to generation, but we now know that writing was practiced in the Middle East even before the time of Abraham. In fact one scholar has examined the eleven divisions in Genesis beginning with "the generations of ...." and compared this to other ancient formulas and has suggested that the Hebrew term used here indicates a written genealogy, not an oral one. He suggests that these eleven divisions were originally eleven different written documents.

However God’s commandments were preserved down through the centuries. we know that believers have always had God’s statutes and decrees to guide their daily lives. Today we have God’s written word available in every format imaginable - book form, audio form, electronic form, and even some dramatic productions on video of actual books of the New Testament. We can easily purchase our Bibles, and God’s word never needs to be far from us. The fact that God has preserved his word down through the centuries and made it available to us should be a cause of praise.

Another reason to exalt God is that we are forgiven. It is only because of God’s mercy and compassion that we even have a place in God’s family. Most Christians in the world today come from ancestors who were heathens - who rejected the message of God. But God in his mercy sent his Son to die for our sins so that we could be part of the family too. In spite of all our sins and awful deeds, God has forgiven us. David understood this divine mercy three thousand years ago when he wrote in Psalm 103:10-12, "He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

Have you experienced God’s compassion and forgiveness? Have you felt God’s hand of mercy on your life? If you have, then spend time thanking and worshipping him for all that he has done for you.

For the third time, the psalmist tells us to exalt God. In the psalmist’s day, God was worshipped at the holy mountain where the temple was built. Today God is worshipped in our heart.

Spurgeon remarks, "Where he appoints his temple let us resort. No spot of ground is now fenced about as peculiarly holy, or to be regarded as more sacred than another; yet his visible church is his chosen hill, and there would we be found, numbered with his people, and unite with them in worship."

Let us be willing to take some time out and exalt our God. May our whole being be involved in this worship. May our mind, our body, our spirit all be focused on worship. May our thoughts and our emotions center on God. Consider all the good things that God has done for you. Recount all the blessings that you have received. That should cause you to want to spend some time praising God. Exalt God when we gather together in church, exalt God throughout your work day, and exalt God during your quiet times at home. Let us not be an ungrateful people, but let us tell God how much we appreciate his compassion and care for us. Let us spend time exalting our Redeemer.