PSALM FORTY EIGHT

PERENNIAL PRAISES.
      
   Of this Psalm, Luther once said, "David is celebrating the truth of God."  
What a wonderful theme - the truth of God. That truth has its fulfilment from 
generation to generation. There are two reasons here for praising God. One is 
for the boundless excellence of His nature - Great is the Lord. The other is 
for the excellence of His acts. The city - the Mountain of His Holiness - is 
Jerusalem and a type of the Church.
   Notice the Panorama of the Church in this Psalm. Praises flow because of 
the prospect which meets every eye. Beautiful for situation - beautiful for 
extension. Jerusalem was a joy to the beholder - the joy of the land. So also 
is the Church. We must ever remember that a great part of human happiness 
has, in one way or another, resulted from the existence of the Church. 
Without the Church of Jesus Christ in history, the human scene would be very 
desolate indeed. O happy THEOCRACY - God is known. How marvellous it is to 
SEE God in your life.
   The psalmist tells of the praise of the godless when God is revealed in 
Zion. Kings were assembled. They passed together. They saw the refuge. They 
marvelled. They hasted away. Their panic is illustrated by two things.
   First, a sudden onput of fear. If Satan trembles when he sees the weakest 
saint upon his knees--what must happen when all the Church joins in prayer 
and perennial praise?
   Second, the East wind blew. The East wind of Syria and the Mediterranean 
area was well known for its parching everything on land and destroying at 
sea. Jonah found that the ships of Tarshish were no refuge from God.
   The reason for our praises in the panoply of Zion is that our full defence 
is in God. "AS we have heard - so have we seen," sings the psalmist. History 
and experience are the two great teachers. Look at the deliverance of God in 
the lives of others and see what He can do for you.
   The psalmist gives a list of causes for praise -
   Lovingkindness in the Temple:
   Righteousness at His right hand:
   Judgments that make glad:
   Towers that give safety.
Take to heart the strength of Zion. Lift up the glories of the Church of 
Jesus Christ. This God is our God for ever and ever. He will be our guide 
even unto death. BUT it is not 'till death us do part'. Through death we 
shall know Him better.
   Celebrate the Truth of God.



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file: /pub/resources/text/hpalmer/psalms: ps-048.txt
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