Bless the Lord
The God who Satisfies. God is an amazing and wonderful creator. He has made such an amazing and beautiful creation.
How often do we take the time to revel in His artwork?
Do we stop and look at what He has made with awe or do we just acknowledge it and move on?
We see in Ps. 104:1-4
1 Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendor and majesty, 2 covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent. 3 He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters; he makes the clouds his chariot; he rides on the wings of the wind; 4 he makes his messengers winds, his ministers a flaming fire.
Psalm 104:1–4 ESV
We see the greatness of God in these few brief verses. He is clothed in splendor and majesty. He is light and has made it all.
When we take time and bless God and praise His creation we see His awesomeness and know that He is something so much more than anything else we know.
This passage tells us that God reveals Himself in His creation. He makes Himself known in what He has made. When we take the time and revel in His creation we are blessing Him and praising Him.
Just like when we exclaim “man those are some awesome spurs!” We are making a statement about the spur maker. He made a thing of beauty and we are praising him for it. We will wear them and proudly boast about his work.
This is what we do for the Lord when we boast of His beautiful creation which far surpasses any spur or bit in this creation.
God through His creation reveals Himself to us and He allows us the opportunity to praise and glorify Him. But He also shows us more about Himself in the creation. He shows how He is the God who satisfies.
We see this in that He is the Sovereign Creator, how He has Situated everything Purposefully, and because of this all who look to Him will have Satisfaction guaranteed.
In verses 5-9 we see He is…
Sovereign Creator (5-9)
This Psalm shows us that God is the power behind creation. It describes his creation along with Genesis 1. This is a praise of His creation and His power.
5 He set the earth on its foundations, so that it should never be moved. 6 You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. 7 At your rebuke they fled; at the sound of your thunder they took to flight. 8 The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place that you appointed for them. 9 You set a boundary that they may not pass, so that they might not again cover the earth.
Psalm 104:5–9 ESV
This section tells us that God has set everything as it is and nothing will remove or alter it but Him alone.
You may ask how I know only Him alone can alter the creation. Only He can because only He created it and He sustains it all. The text says he set a boundary that the waters may not pass and and cover the earth again.
If He can do this, then He will maintain all the world until He makes His changes that He has already told us He will do.
He is the all-powerful creator. He set the earth, He covered it with water and made the mountains to rise above, the waters took flight at His rebuke, and nothing can pass the boundary He has set.
I mention all of this because so many people today are telling us to trust in science and people to change the world. To change what is happening with climate and many other aspects of the creation.
I am not saying we are not to be good stewards of His creation, but we know that He is in charge and nothing will alter what He has set.
It is like when you work for a ranch. You are to care for the part you are set over, but if you do not you don’t hinder the owners plans. He will accomplish what he has set to do regardless how well you tend it. He will fire you and get another person to take your place. All you hurt in this scenario is yourself.
The same is true with creation. When we participate with God in what He has made and in His plans we receive blessings and joy. When we do not we receive nothing but possible rebuke and removal.
It is best that we follow His plans and His design and participate with Him rather than listen to anything the world says and wants.
In His creation we also see that He has…
Situated Everything Purposefully (10-18)
Nothing is here without purpose. Nothing is set here without meaning. Everything is set for some reason. We just may not know it fully but what we know is that God did not just make this and leave it to run down like a wound clock.
In the verses we will read in a moment we see that the verbs are mostly in present tense meaning that God is still actively involved with the creation.
We read…
10 You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills; 11 they give drink to every beast of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. 12 Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; they sing among the branches. 13 From your lofty abode you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work. 14 You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth 15 and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine and bread to strengthen man’s heart. 16 The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. 17 In them the birds build their nests; the stork has her home in the fir trees. 18 The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.
Psalm 104:10–18 ESV
Springs water the animals, the grass and trees grow because of them, birds nest in the trees, the plants give us food and other pleasures, the trees are made to grow strong so we can build homes and buildings, birds rest in them as their homes, the mountains are provisions for the goats and other animals. God made everything for a purpose.
He keeps the purposes moving along to where they are to go. He is actively involved.
What this means is that you are not alone. You may be in a tough situation and struggling and wondering why. What this section tells us is that God has not abandoned you. He is still actively working in His creation and wherever you are, you are not too far away that He cannot reach you.
There is a purpose for you hearing this today. There is a purpose for being where you are.
You may be in a bad situation that is full of sin and despair. Know that there is still purpose for you. You can learn from the situation and grow.
Sin is present and it has caused much grief in God’s purposes. Just like the camp man who does nothing. He is causing grief by doing nothing and things may look bleak at that ranch for a spell.
But know that no sin or bad situation has removed you from the purpose God has for you in His creation.
He placed each of us in His creation for a reason. I can promise that this reason is not to live in sin and be in rebellion to Him. That is what the world has done and our sinful hearts.
But God has placed you here for a purpose.
If He made all of this and is still involved in it, then you can guarantee that He has a purpose for you.
I am currently reading a book about evangelism. It is written by a man named William Fay.
He was involved with the mob and in some serious illegal activities. He was living fully for himself and no one else. He was in sin about as far as one could be.
Yet, because he was a racquetball player he met a christian man. He made fun of him and sneered at Christianity. Until he got in serious trouble with the government and was facing some serious problems.
That man he made fun of and sneered at called to check on him and helped him in his despair.
He turned from that life and believed in Christ. He is now an extraordinaire evangelist for the Lord.
He was in a bad and wicked situation but he was not too far gone for the Lord. He had a purpose and God revealed it to him through despair but also a faithful believer.
I want you to know that God has placed you here for a purpose and has a plan. Also, He has not abandoned you to live it alone.
He is active and working here and you can rest in that.
When you do you can know…
Satisfaction is Guaranteed (27-30)
It just follows that since God is the Sovereign Creator and that He has a Purpose for all His creation and is still active in it that He can satisfy all who seek Him.
We see this in Psalm 104:27-30
27 These all look to you, to give them their food in due season. 28 When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are filled with good things. 29 When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. 30 When you send forth your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground.
Psalm 104:27–30 ESV
He can and will satisfy all who LOOK TO HIM.
We must look to Him for our satisfaction.
We must look to Him to discover our purpose.
We must look to Him to know what we really are and what our real value is.
The world, even though it is His creation, cannot satisfy us. The world tells you to seek more and more and to get get get as much as you can.
It tells us to look out for number one and not worry about another. When we do this we become bitter and hate filled. We become jealous and withdrawn. We become paranoid and like Ebeneezer Scrooge.
We will forsake everything in life for the god we have set up. We will seek satisfaction in transient and worthless, in the end, things.
When we do this we miss purpose. What purpose is there in earning and having everything if that is all left behind to people you did not even want to share with when you were alive?
There is no purpose in that it is all left behind and of no value at all when we are gone.
What we do for the Lord and what He does through us is what our purpose is and that is where satisfaction is found.
What is interesting is that this psalm tells us that everything in creation looks to God for their needs.
Even people who say there is no God get their needs met by Him.
How do I know this? You may ask.
One God is the provider as we have already seen in this psalm. He has a purpose and is involved in the creation carrying that purpose out.
But we also read in Matt. 5:45
45 For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Matthew 5:45 (ESV)
He is a God that so loves His creation that He seeks to have all worship Him and be His. He does much for everyone in His creation.
He gives everything needed for life, including His Spirit.
If this is taken away we die. All things are dependent upon Him giving us breath and the Spirit is what brings life.
We see this in Genesis 1 when the Spirit hovered over the deep and God said let there be and there was.
We also see this when God created man and breathed the breath of life in his nostrils and he was alive.
Then the ultimate showing of everlasting life is seen when we receive the Spirit through belief in Christ and we become a new creation in 2 Cor. 5:17.
What this shows us is that nothing exists and lives in all of creation that God does not sustain. He created and He is actively working in this creation and He is the only way to find ultimate satisfaction.
When we rest in His sovereign rule and know that He has a purpose for us in being here we will begin to be satisfied in a way that we did not know was even possible.
Nothing else in the world will give us satisfaction and Joy like knowing and looking to God for it. He is a Good and Loving God who will satisfy us and reveal our purpose.
I want to reiterate right here that we all have purpose in life. If you are struggling just know that God created you in His image and you are loved by Him. Know He made you and God does not make mistakes.
He made each of us and we are all in His image. You are beautiful and purposeful and you will know this when you look to God for your worth and value. He will satisfy you and He will strengthen you. So look to Him today and find that guaranteed satisfaction.
Conclusion
J. Oswald Sanders writes, “The round of pleasure or the amassing of wealth are but vain attempts to escape from the persistent ache…The millionaire is usually a lonely man and the comedian is often more unhappy than his audience.”
Sanders goes on to emphasize that being successful often fails to produce satisfaction. Then he refers to Henry Martyn, a distinguished scholar, as an example. Martyn, a Cambridge University student, was honored at only 20 years of age for his achievements in mathematics. In fact, he was given the highest recognition possible in that field. And yet he felt an emptiness inside. He said that instead of finding fulfillment in his achievements, he had “only grasped a shadow.” After evaluating his life’s goals, Martyn sailed to India as a missionary at the age of 24. When he arrived, he prayed, “Lord, let me burn out for You.” In the next 7 years that preceded his death, he translated the New Testament into three difficult Eastern languages. These notable achievements were certainly not passing “shadows.”
This man realized that only God could give him the proper satisfaction. He stopped seeking satisfaction in the world and realized that God was the only answer.
That is what we all need to do.
We saw in this psalm that God is the sovereign creator who purposefully has placed all things in creation and He is the only way to have satisfaction in life.
So, why would we seek this satisfaction in anything in creation? Why would we not go and tell all the people we can that the created order cannot satisfy but we know who/what can?
Let us go out of here today resting in the fully satisfying grace of God and take that to a lost and hurting world.
