Sermon for July 22nd, 2018

Psalm 117:1-2

1Praise the Lord, all you nations!
    Extol him, all you peoples!
2 For great is his steadfast love toward us,
    and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.
Praise the Lord!

הַֽלְל֣וּ אֶת־יְ֭הוָה כָּל־גּוֹיִ֑ם שַׁ֝בְּח֗וּהוּ כָּל־הָאֻמִּֽים׃

כִּ֥י גָ֘בַ֤ר עָלֵ֨ינוּ׀ חַסְדּ֗וֹ וֶֽאֱמֶת־יְהוָ֥ה לְעוֹלָ֗ם הַֽלְלוּ־יָֽהּ׃

-Shortest Psalm -Shortest chapter in the Bible

-It's about praise. We praise what we love. We can't help it. We want everyone else to love what we love.

-John Piper: "The reason God seeks our praise is not because he won't be complete until he gets it. He is seeking our praise because we won't be happy until we give it."

-Again, Piper: "When God chose Abraham, the father of the nation of Israel, he said in Genesis 12:2-3, "I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." All the families of the earth - all the nations, all the peoples - will be blessed through Abraham."

-Great commission: God calls all of us to be either goers or senders.

-The most famous of the questions (known to a great many Presbyterian children) is the first: Q. What is the chief end of man? A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.