HONOR God All Year Long

Psalm 147:1-20

As we begin a new year, we should think as Christians how to HONOR God all year long.

Here is a simple definition of honor: Respect given to a person for who they are. You respect the police officer because of the role they play to protect and serve the community. You respect a judge because they have the power to put you in jail or give you freedom. You respect the employer because they give you work for which they pay you. Respect is something that you give someone because of the value you have for them in your life.

FIVE REASONS TO HONOR GOD ALL YEAR LONG

H – Holiness (Psalm 147:1-6)

The first reason to give honor to God is because of His holiness. You respect the policeman, the judge, and anyone else because of the uniqueness of their position. You should do the same with God. Here, we see five different ways that God has revealed His holiness. What you will note here, is that the way that God expresses His holiness is for my good.

FIVE POSITIVE WAYS THAT GOD EXPRESSES HIS HOLINESS

God is a rebuilder of life

“The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem; he gathers Israel’s exiled people.” (Psalm 147:2, CSB)

God desires to help you rebuild your life. Have you had a rough year? God wants to come beside you and help you. Have been sent away from where you want to be in life? God wants to draw you in and help you.

God is a healer of brokenness

“He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3, CSB)

Have you felt broken because of the isolation of 2020? Have you been wounded by experiences that have overwhelmed you? God wants to heal you of your brokenness.

God is a creator of masterpieces

“He counts the number of the stars; he gives names to all of them.” (Psalm 147:4, CSB)

God doesn’t want to just heal you. He doesn’t just want to rebuild you. But to borrow a phrases from two presidents:

God wants to Build You Back Better because God wants to Make You Great Again.

Have you ever seen a mosaic? The artist takes broken pieces and puts them back together again to make them a price of art. Just as God counts the number of stars and has names fo them, God also can rebuild your life because He has counted your days in the new year and has named what will happen. God knows what will happen to you.

God is a storekeeper of infinite wisdom

“Our Lord is great, vast in power; his understanding is infinite.” (Psalm 147:5, CSB)

The reason God can help you and make this year great for you is because He knows everything about you. It is almost like God is a super-library of every piece of wisdom and understanding. He is a celestial storekeeper of wisdom. He wants to impart that wisdom to you because He wants to help you.

Many people refuse to listen to the wisdom of others because they know everything. Then they experience something in life that teaches them: “I don’t know much.” Instead of getting angry at others and rebelling, one should take the opportunity to ask God for help. God freely gives wisdom to those who ask Him.

“Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God—who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly—and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5, CSB)

God is willing to help you in the new year, all year long, if you would come and ask Him. He also executes justice for you.

God is an executor of justice

“The Lord helps the oppressed but brings the wicked to the ground.” (Psalm 147:6, CSB)

God helps those who are hurting, being oppressed, and needing justice. Are you being picked on by a bully? Are you being attacked online or in person by someone? Ask God for help and He will help you. How does God do that? He fights back against the oppressor on your behalf. Instead of you having to knock the oppressor to the ground, God pulls out His strong left hook and punches them for you.

O – Order (Psalm 147:7-11)

“Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; play the lyre to our God, who covers the sky with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, and causes grass to grow on the hills. He provides the animals with their food, and the young ravens what they cry for.” (Psalm 147:7–9, CSB)

The second reason to honor God is because of the way He provides order in your life. Look at how the psalmist describes God in these verses. We are prompted to worship God because of God’s ability to provide order to our world.

God has power that provides for His creation. He provides for the natural order of His world. The grass grow, the animals are provided for.

Then, God shifts from how He provides order to the natural world, to what God wants from me to allow order in my life. God does not value the power of a warrior to exact on the world. No tyrant or dictator can demand order. The only way to see order established in my life is when I place my hope in the hands of a faithful and loving God.

“He is not impressed by the strength of a horse; he does not value the power of a warrior. The Lord values those who fear him, those who put their hope in his faithful love.” (Psalm 147:10–11, CSB)

In the midst of chaos in this world. God looks forward to provide order to my life. God doesn’t just provide order in my life. He will also provide in other ways as well.

N – Navigation (Psalm 147:12-14)

“Exalt the Lord, Jerusalem; praise your God, Zion! For he strengthens the bars of your city gates and blesses your children within you. He endows your territory with prosperity; he satisfies you with the finest wheat.” (Psalm 147:12–14, CSB)

The third reason I honor God is for the He helps me navigate life. I honor Him in this way by praising Him for the way He provides for me. God doesn’t just provide my needs. He also blesses me. God gives out of His abundance. God always navigates my life in the direction of abundance. As I walk through life, God takes care of me. He helps me navigate this life.

If you have followed a GPS, it will try to bring you the best way to your destination. It may not be the path you would have chosen. However, the GPS is programmed to give you the best route to the destination. It brings you the safest way. It brings you the best route to where you want to go. Many people want to take shortcuts in life. These forms of false navigation only cause problems. It is best to follow the path God has for you. He has the best in mind for you.

We see that with the ways in these verses that describe that abundance.

FORMS OF GOD’S ABUNDANCE IN MY LIFE

My security

He strengthens the security in my life. I can be more secure because God provides me safety.

My family

God also blesses my children. God takes what He has given me and multiplies it to my children.

“Then all your children will be taught by the Lord, their prosperity will be great,” (Isaiah 54:13, CSB)

The prosperity of my children happens if they continue in following God and His ways. If I teach my children God’s word and show them how to follow it, then that prosperity extends to them.

My prosperity

“But he would feed Israel with the best wheat. “I would satisfy you with honey from the rock.”” (Psalm 81:16, CSB)

Prosperity is not about how much I have. It also about the value of what I have. Prosperity is quantity plus quality. God gives to everyone. He gives His best to His children.

O – Omnipotence (Psalm 147:15-18)

“He sends his command throughout the earth; his word runs swiftly. He spreads snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes; he throws his hailstones like crumbs. Who can withstand his cold? He sends his word and melts them; he unleashes his winds, and the water flows.” (Psalm 147:15–18, CSB)

The fourth reason to honor God is because of His omnipotence. Omni is a word that means all directional. A person’s potency is a measure of their potential and their power.

The picture of power here is vivid. God speaks and nature obeys. With the words of His mouth, the cold winter melts. All of these natural events occur from the commands of his voice. His hands spread hailstones like you and I roll dice. He sprinkles frost like you and I sprinkle ashes on the ground.

R – Revelation (Psalm 147:19-20)

“He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and judgments to Israel. He has not done this for every nation; they do not know his judgments. Hallelujah!” (Psalm 147:19–20, CSB)

The fifth reason to honor God is because of the way He reveals Himself to me.

What word has God declared to you for this year? Let me share with you the word that God shared with me in January 2020.

“for I satisfy the thirsty person and feed all those who are weak.”” (Jeremiah 31:25, CSB)

I chose that verse to memorize for the year. I posted it in my office and at work. I did not know how much I would need to rely on this verse as 2020 progressed. I struggled with emotional turmoil as I dealt with the pain that people experienced because of COVID. They were isolated. They were sick and in pain. That took an emotional toll on me. I also had to deal with the curveball of a furlough. God fed me when I was weak. He satisfied my thirsts. The verse became a personal word of God. I could point to various events in my life in 2020 and see how God had satisfied me and fed me spiritually when I was weak. God revealed Himself in a powerful way through His word accompanied by personal experience. So I turn to this new year looking for another personal word from God. God wants to reveal Himself to you this year. Honor God by being open to Him sharing what He wants to do in your life.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash