Is David TOO over-the-top in Ps 103? S30e27

David goes hard on the road of blessing God in Psalm 103. One might even accuse him of being too enthusiastic. What causes the exuberance? We have two choices: 

1. David is too fired up, and we should change the psalm. Or
2. David is right. We should be just as fired up as he is. We have to change our hearts and agree with him

Join me for slightly less than 7 minutes as I make an exuberant argument for one of these positions. Then subscribe on YouTube or Apple Podcasts or Spotify, etc.

https://youtu.be/Ibo_aD_xHTk

Transcript

The Psalms of My Friends

Is David TOO over-the-top in Ps 103? S30e26

Does He bless too much? Does He recall too many wonderful things about God?

Does He overstate the case historically for God?

If so something needs to change:  We need to change Psalm 103.

However, if He is right, if he has accurately described God then something needs to change, not in Ps 103, but in OUR heart in relation to Ps 103. 

Read with me and see if David overplays his hand.

1    Bless the Lord, O my soul, 

and all that is within me, 

bless his holy name! 

2    Bless the Lord, O my soul, 

and forget not all his benefits, “sustained celebration of God’s goodness and benevolence.” ESV notes . Engaging soul. Calling on his memory

3  who forgives all your iniquity,

who heals all your diseases, 

            4           who redeems your life from the pit, . What will you do about your sin? This great spiritual conundrum is Unanswerable absent this part of the character of God. When you realize you stand condemned, it is the Big Gulp of revelation. We need help. We stand with empty pockets of resource to fix our sin problem. 

who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 

5    who satisfies you with good

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.  .Wait, David mentions and will develop the essential quality of our fellowship with God: His mercy. His reaching out to us. His consistency in relationship to a mostly uncooperative peopl

6    The Lord works righteousness

and justice for all who are oppressed. 

7    He made known his ways to Moses, 

his acts to the people of Israel.

8    The Lord is merciful and gracious, 

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. David walks us down the HALL of History

Recalls one of the great moments of all spiritual history. David asks 

                  Show me your Ways; Show me your glory

This then is how the Lord responds to this sincere, desperate inquiry9    He will not always chide, 

nor will he keep his anger forever.

10    He does not deal with us according to our sins, 

nor repay us according to our iniquities. .Agree with me that He has every right to have the character of being just. Agree with me that He has every right to deal with us according to our sins and to repay us according to our iniquities

Misdeeds, perversity, depraved action, crooked activity and the guilt caused by the transgression.

It is the FUNK that sticks to us after the sin.

Like getting sprayed by a skunk of sin—stench that clings to us.

Lord can let us sit there in the stench of current and past sin consequence …

OR: He does NOT deal with us accordingly

He doe NOT repay us correspondingly to the trespass

He FORGIVES the iniquity v. 3

Let’s pause for a second and admire the fundamental characteristics of God. There are many of them. Omnipresent, All knowing: concerns me because now ALL my sins are exposed before Him, at all times, every place

There is no hiding. Cannot run from them.  In such a case, what essential character do I need from God?

I need the character described in Ps103.  What is it? Mercy, forbearance, patience with me until I figure it out and repent, 

We have a God who, at least for now, and He has perfect justification to be wrathful whenever He wants, Currently does NOT deal with usaccordingly

He doe NOT repay us correspondingly to the trespass

He FORGIVES the iniquity v. 3

11    For as high as the heavens are above the earth, 

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 

12    as far as the east is from the west, 

so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 

13    As a father shows compassion to his children,

so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. 

14    For he knows our frame; 

he remembers that we are dust. ,

,He knows us. He knows our frame. He knows we are dust. Remember, He was there when we were made out of dust. There he made out of dust and then blessed, endowed with the God-sourced breath of life.

In a glorious, super spiritual, beyond the heaven’s caliber activity: Lord shows a type of Love that is perfectly needed: faithfulness to us when we were not faithful to Him. 

He chooses to make us right before Him.

He chooses to exert His power upon our greatest weakness

He has compassion on what are relationally children

To do what : AS far as the east is from the west. As far as “humanly possible”, as far as God-Himself-possible, does he remove our blot from us.

He removes it. He rescues us from what is unrescuable without Him.

David states it beautifully.              12          as far as the east is from the west, 

so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 

Does David OVERSTATE this, or do we UNDERestimate this? 

If He overstates this, we have to change the psalm.

If He accurately states this, we have to change our heart’s attitude toward the ps

If David is right about our sin then we have to agree with Him of v. 1         1           Bless the Lord, O my soul, 

and all that is within me, 

bless his holy name!