Psalm 103:1-5
1 Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Reflect
David King, author
Over the last two days we have seen that it is God’s will that we be a thankful people. There are a lot of things that we do not know about each other, but suffice it to say, there is something I can promise that I know about you and what God’s will is for your life. I may not know all the details of his will for your life, but I know it starts with being thankful. Listen again to 1 Thessalonians 5:18: “…in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” That tells me that God’s will for your life and mine, which may consist of many different things, involves being thankful. I believe that after we are a thankful people, God will have us in a position to show us the other things of His will that He wants us to eventually know.
Over the past two days, we also saw where David showed us in Psalm 103 that we should speak the attributes of God. Today, the psalmist is going to show us that we must specify the benefits of God. The Psalmist says in the second verse that we are to forget none of his benefits, and then, he begins to list them.
One of the evidences of the havoc that sin has caused in our lives is that we are creatures who remember the things we ought to forget and we forget the things we ought to remember. We remember things that destroy us emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, and we forget the things that could heal us emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. We are prone to overlook the blessings which God lavishes upon us. We must be reminded to not forget all of his benefits. So, let’s itemize some that we see in this passage of the 103rd Psalm:
- There is the personal blessing of forgiveness of sin – We see this in the first part of verse 3 where we were told that God “forgives all your sins.” There is only one who can absolve sin, and that is God. God does it because of the sacrifice of his Son, Jesus. I don’t know about you, but I would not want to miss out on being forgiven for anything in the world. David said in another place, “Blessed is he whose sin is forgiven, whose sin is covered” (Psalm 32:1). We should be thankful for forgiveness of sin.
- There is the personal blessing of restoration – David goes on in verse 3 to say, “…and heals all your diseases.” While the thought of sickness is not entirely absent from this statement, the main idea is that of moral defilement. David promises that after confession and forgiveness, there comes restoration.
- There is the personal blessing of elevation – Notice the first part of verse 4. “…who redeems your life from the pit…” Do you think David had the same thought in mind when he said in Psalm 40:1-2 that he waited patiently for the Lord and the Lord brought him out of a horrible pit and set him on a rock? You and I can be thankful for that same rescue. We are made to sit together in heavenly places with Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6).
- There is the personal blessing of coronation – David goes on in verse 4, “…and crowns you with love and compassion…” We should understand this better than David did. We live on this side of Calvary. We’ve seen Jesus, and Jesus has come into our lives. This means that having elevated us, our God makes us kings and priests (Revelation 1:6).
- There is the personal blessing of satisfaction – Verse 5 says, “who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Isaiah picks up that same analogy when he says in Isaiah 40:31 but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
Those are the personal blessings that David lists. Then David graduates from there to talk about national blessings, and we will look at those tomorrow.
Respond
What are some ways that God has brought you forgiveness of sin, restoration, elevation, coronation, and satisfaction?
Can you itemize other blessings that we have not discussed?