Praising our God is good and beautiful.
[Psalm 147]
Today, in Psalm 147:1, the psalmist confesses: “Hallelujah! Praising our God is good, it is beautiful, and it is right.” Why does he say that praising God is good, beautiful, and right? What is the reason? The reason is that the Lord is building Jerusalem. Look at verse 2: “The Lord builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the outcasts of Israel.” Here, when the Lord says that He is building Jerusalem, He means that He is building His people, which is the Church. Why is the Lord building the Church? The reason is that the Lord loves and delights in the Church. Now, look at verses 10-11: “The Lord does not delight in the strength of the horse, nor does He take pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord delights in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy.” The true Church is the gathering of those who fear God and hope in His mercy. Since the Lord is building such a Church, we must praise God accordingly.
So, how is the Lord building the Church? We can find the answer in today’s passage, which gives us at least five ways in which the Lord is building His Church.
First, the Lord builds His Church by gathering the scattered and healing the brokenhearted.
Look at Psalm 147:2-3: “The Lord builds up Jerusalem; He gathers the outcasts of Israel; He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” The fact that the Lord gathers the scattered and heals the brokenhearted becomes clearer when we understand the historical background of this psalm. It was written during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, after the Israelites returned from exile in Babylon, when they rebuilt Jerusalem, the temple, and their nation. Therefore, the words that the Lord gathers the scattered and heals the brokenhearted refer to how God brought back the Israelites who were in exile and restored them to Jerusalem. This was not difficult for God. That is why the psalmist says that the Lord counts the stars and calls them all by name (v. 4), that He is great, powerful, and His wisdom is infinite (v. 5). For the Lord, gathering the scattered Israelites is not difficult at all because He is great and powerful. In building the Church, the Lord gathers the scattered and, moreover, heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds (v. 3). The Israelites were disciplined by God because of their sins, and they were taken captive to Babylon, but when they repented and turned back to God, He gathered them again in Jerusalem and healed their broken hearts.
The prophet Hosea also encouraged the Israelites at that time, saying: “Come, let us return to the Lord; for He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has stricken us, but He will bind us up” (Hosea 6:1).
So, what do you think? Do we see that the Lord has promised to build His Church, His body, and that He is fulfilling this promise by gathering the scattered and healing the brokenhearted? If your answer is "yes," then as those who experience God's goodness, you must praise Him. Praising God is truly good and beautiful.
Second, the Lord builds the Church by supporting the humble.
Look at Psalm 147:6: “The Lord lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked to the ground.” The Israelites were humbled due to God's discipline. Through Babylon, God punished them, and they humbled themselves before God. Even in their humility, God held them up. I recall the verses from Isaiah 41:10 and 13 that we meditated on during a morning prayer: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” God promised to hold our right hand with His righteous right hand, and just as He promised, our Lord is holding our weak hands. Through His righteous hand, God is holding our church and building it. However, if the church is prideful before God, the Lord, in His process of building the Church, will first break our pride and humble us. The reason for this is that God gives grace to the humble. Therefore, our church must humble itself before God. In doing so, we must experience by faith that the Lord is holding our weak hands. When we do, we will inevitably praise God with “Hallelujah” because praising God is good and beautiful.
Third, the Lord builds the Church by providing what we need.
Look at Psalm 147:8-9: “He covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, makes grass grow on the mountains, and gives food to the beasts and to the young ravens that cry.” The Creator God, who gives what is needed to His creation, how much more will He give to us, who are made in His image? He provides for all His creatures; He sends rain for the earth and gives food to wild animals and the young ravens. The psalmist says, “He fills you with the finest of the wheat” (v. 14). God richly supplies our church. However, one reason for our poverty is, of course, our sin, but another reason could be our inability to wisely manage the abundance God has given us as stewards. In today’s passage, the psalmist teaches us that “a person need not worry about food” (Park Yun-Sun). In Matthew 6:30-33, from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us: “O you of little faith, do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat? What shall we drink? What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Worrying about what to eat, drink, or wear doesn’t solve anything, yet we, as humans, are weak in faith and tend to worry about daily necessities just like the unbelievers. This concern and anxiety can occur not just in our personal lives or families but also within the church as a community. The message from the psalmist today is not to worry. The Lord, in building His body, the Church, will supply and fill all the needs of the Church. As we experience this truth by faith, praising God becomes good and beautiful.
Fourth, the Lord protects His church.
Look at Psalm 147:13: “He strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your children within you.” This means that God promises to protect the land of those who trust in Him (Park Yun-Sun). Applied to the church, the Lord, who is the head of the church, safely protects the saints who trust in Him. As we have already meditated in Psalm 146:9, we learn that God is the God who "protects the stranger". Also, in Psalm 145:20, we see that God "protects all who love Him." Just as God protects strangers and all who love Him, He also loves and protects the church, which was purchased with the blood of His only Son, Jesus. As a result, the church, under God's protection, enjoys "peace" (147:14). And the church that enjoys peace should certainly praise God. This is what is good and beautiful in the eyes of God.
Finally, fifth, the Lord builds the church by sending His word to the church.
Look at Psalm 147:18-19: “He sends His word and melts them; He makes His wind blow, and the waters flow. He reveals His word to Jacob, His statutes and His judgments to Israel.” God not only sends His word to us but also reveals it to us. In other words, the Lord speaks to us, the church, and reveals His word to us. Therefore, in Matthew 16, Peter, by divine revelation (v.17), could confess when Jesus asked, "Who do you say I am?" (v.15), "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (v.16). Because of this revelation of God's word, when the church makes a true confession of faith, it is built firmly on the rock. The Lord is doing this work of building His church, which is His body. Therefore, we must praise God. This is what is good in God's sight.
Praising God is good, beautiful, and right (Psalm 147:1). The reason for this is that God loves us and takes delight in us, and that is why He is building His church (v.2). How is the Lord building the church? First, the Lord gathers the scattered and heals the brokenhearted, thus building the church (vv.2-3). Second, the Lord holds the humble, thus building the church (v.6). Third, the Lord supplies what we need, thus building the church (vv.8-9). Fourth, the Lord protects His church (v.13). Finally, the Lord sends His word to the church, thus building the church (vv.18-19). Therefore, we must praise God. Praising God is good and beautiful.
Holding onto the Lord's promise to build His church,
Pastor James Kim
[“The Glorious Morning of Zion Shines” (Hymn 248)]