Magnify the Lord!

1 I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad.
3 Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together! Psalms 34:1-3

This psalm is one of the greatest invitations to praise the Lord that we see in the whole of the Bible. Let us consider these words and worship our Lord and Savior this morning.

1 I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.

To "bless the Lord" is to kneel before the Lord. To approach Him with all humility. To understand who you are in comparison to His greatness. To ascribe to Him the glory that is due His name. To kneel at His footstool and worship Him. To bow before the Lord our maker.

"At all times" -- this is to live out your worship. This is to walk daily in humility. This is to walk in such a way that brings honor and glory to God in all that you do. This is to never stop for a second and consider that someone or something else is greater than the Lord our God.

"His praise shall continually be in my mouth" -- There is never a lack of opportunity to praise God. There is never a time in your life when praise should stop. There is never a time in your life when you have praised God enough. Think of the provisions that you have been given... think of your family... think of your salvation... think of your job... think of the food you've eaten... ..... Now think of WHO God is... think of His holiness... think of His mercy... think of His love... think of His patience... your praise should never cease.

2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad.

"My soul" -- that is, your satisfaction in life. What are you satisfied in? Who makes you most satisfied? "As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs for you."

"Makes its boast in the Lord" -- There is nothing and no one else that we should find satisfaction in outside of our Savior! There is nothing and no one that we should long for and want more than God our Savior.

Do you find satisfaction in Christ? Do you want more or Christ each day?

"Let the humble hear and be glad" -- This is directly pointing to the humility it takes to "bless the Lord" "continually".... when you approach the Throne of Grace in all humility, then you will find JOY and Gladness! This is the return of blessing, when you have blessed the Lord!

3 Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together!

The call here is to make God look great! "Magnify" is to put God in the proper framework that He deserves... God is GREAT! And greatly to be praised!

We tend to put God in a box... or just think of Him as a normal person. But our God, the Lord, is the Supreme creator and ruler of the entire universe. He is the designer and sustainer of history and all of its purposes and contents. He is the Alpha and Omega. It should be a goal of your life that you make God look great!!! You should desire for your friends to see how you live your life and the first thing they notice is how GREAT you make God out to be! Magnify Him!!!

"Exalt His name" -- this is see Him as Isaiah saw God in Isaiah 6... "High and Lifted up!" This is to see God in His supremacy! In His Glory! In His Holiness!! We do not take this seriously enough.... if we did, our lives would look much differently. Instead, we bring God down to our level and this gives us ever opportunity to justify any sin in our life. But instead, we must EXALT HIS NAME! We must recognize Him for who He is! We must live our life in an exaltation manner, which points to the Glory and the Holiness of God!

"Together" -- this is the call for each of us as believers to worship together. The idea that we are not alone in this. God has given us each other. God has given to us one another. This is the beauty of the local body of believers! In God's divine and perfect plan, He has given us the ability to have intentional relationships with one another. DO NOT TAKE THIS FOR GRANTED. Be involved in the lives of your fellow church members. You are each a MEMBER of the body and you need to be helping and encouraging and caring for one another!