Actually, at Tri-State Fellowship we do not have an officially voted-upon theme verse for the church. But if we did, I would choose verse 4 from our Psalm today, “One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts.” I used it just this past Sunday at the infant dedication of my grandson Everett – speaking of the generations in our family that date back to the foundation of the Swiss Reformation that have commended God’s goodness and faithfulness down through the centuries.
Discipling generations is the theme and vision of TSF. We desire to be a church of old and young, serving one another and growing together in commending God’s faithfulness both within the walls and beyond to the community.
Along with being in the category of a Praise Psalm (and being the only one of entire 150 that even states this in the superscription), this Ps. 145 is also an acrostic – meaning that each verse begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet… sorta like the 1949 Perry Como song “‘A’ you’re adorable, ‘B’ you’re so beautiful, ‘C’ you’re a cutie full of charm” … well, not exactly, but you get the idea.
There are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet, but only 21 verses here … verse 13 makes up for it with a doubling of letters and phrases.
In a sense, what this entire Psalm boils down to is one big, simple idea: God has a long track record of goodness and faithfulness. EVERYTHING else comes and goes and is transitory.
We tend to settle from time to time upon other things for our satisfaction in life: another person, material gains, success, acclaim. But all of that passes away, as do we. What remains is God and his faithfulness.
Life is not that complicated when you consider the truths spoken of in this Psalm. God is good, he is faithful, he always has been and always will be, and trusting in Him is the one lesson we need to learn and apply.
As we plug into God, what we get in return is “satisfaction” (verse 16) and “fulfillment” (verse 19). Isn’t that what you want? Are you finding it somewhere else or in something else? If so, friend, it does not last.
Psalm 145
A psalm of praise… of David.
1 I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever.
2 Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.
4 One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts.
5 They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
6 They tell of the power of your awesome works—and I will proclaim your great deeds.
7 They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.
8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.
9 The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.
10 All your works praise you, Lord; your faithful people extol you.
11 They tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might,
12 so that all people may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.
14 The Lord upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.
16 You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways and faithful in all he does.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.
Seriously 