Sermon: Bless the Lord, the Lord Bless You, Psalm 134

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Bless the Lord, The Lord Bless You

Bless the God who blesses those who bless Him

Psalm 134

Don Ruhl • Savage Street, Grants Pass, Oregon • September 23, In the year of our Lord, 2018

Prelude:

1. Five times in eight lines, including the preface,
   1. the psalmist made reference to the Lord, or
   2. more specifically Yahweh.
2. There are 46 words in the New King James Version of this Psalm.
   1. 5 times we have “the Lord.”
   2. “Bless” 3 times.

Persuasion:

1. Psalm 134.0 | The End of the Journey
   
   0 A Song of Ascents.
   
   1. With Psalm 134 the pilgrims have finally arrived at Jerusalem and
      1. they stand before the temple of the Lord.
      2. Why did they leave their homes and journey to Jerusalem?
         1. It was all about going to the place of the Lord.
         2. They rehearsed in song, prayer, or recitation Psalms 120–133
            1. as they journeyed and then
            2. they were at the destination, right in front of the temple.
   2. That was a thrilling time for them.
      1. Now let us hear what they had to say.
      2. What was their concluding Psalm on this journey?
2. Psalm 134.1 | Bless the Lord
   
   1 Behold, bless the LORD,
   All you servants of the LORD,
   Who by night stand in the house of the LORD!
   
   1. “Behold,” the people said
      1. as they at long last arrived at the temple.
      2. They tell one another in excitement, Look!
   2. Now notice what they were to do: Bless the Lord.
      1. Speak well of Him.
         1. Speak well of Him to Him.
         2. Speak well of Him to your friends.
      2. If you are not sure what to say, here are some suggestions:
         1. Do an overview of your life.
         2. Observe how nature works harmoniously with itself.
         3. Recall biblical stories and all that God has done to bring you salvation.
   3. Who was to bless the Lord: All servants of the Lord.
      1. They were the ones who by night stood in the house of the Lord.
      2. Do you know how much the Bible says about serving God at night?
         1. First Chronicles
            
            33 These are the singers, heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites, who lodged in the chambers, and were free from other duties; for they were employed in that work day and night (1 Chronicles 9.33).

            to stand every morning to thank and praise the LORD, and likewise at evening (1 Chronicles 23.30).
            

         2. Isaiah 30.29
            
            29 You shall have a song
            As in the night when a holy festival is kept,
            And gladness of heart as when one goes with a flute,
            To come into the mountain of the LORD,
            To the Mighty One of Israel.
            (Isaiah 30.29)
            
            1. We think of sacrificing and the various offerings
            2. that were made at the temple, but
               1. the Bible speaks of music or singing
               2. at the temple at all times.
         3. Since the Lord never sleeps (Psa 121.3–4), but
            1. gives us sleep (Psa 127.1–2),
            2. we should bless Him at night.
               1. Think of what He does in the night.
               2. While you are vulnerable in your bed,
                  1. He prepares the world for you when you awaken.
         4. Psalm 92.1–4
            
            1 It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
            And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
            2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning,
            And Your faithfulness every night,
            3 On an instrument of ten strings,
            On the lute,
            And on the harp,
            With harmonious sound.
            4 For You, LORD, have made me glad through Your work;
            I will triumph in the works of Your hands.
            (Psalm 92.1–4)
            
         5. Psalm 42.8
            
            8 The LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime,
            And in the night His song shall be with me—
            A prayer to the God of my life.
            (Psalm 42.8)
            
         6. Psalm 77.6
            
            6 I call to remembrance my song in the night;
            I meditate within my heart,
            And my spirit makes diligent search.
            (Psalm 77.6)
            
         7. Job 35.10
            
            10 But no one says, “Where is God my Maker,
            Who gives songs in the night…?”
            (Job 35.10)
            
         8. Luke 2.36–37
            
            36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; 37 and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day (Luke 2.36–37).
            
         9. Acts 16.25
            
            25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them (Acts 16.25).
            
3. Psalm 134.2 | Lift Your Hands
   
   2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary,
   And bless the LORD.
   
   1. How to bless the Lord:
      1. Speak it and
      2. lift up your hands.
      3. Psalm 63.3–4
         
         3 Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
         My lips shall praise You.
         4 Thus I will bless You while I live;
         I will lift up my hands in Your name.
         (Psalm 63.3–4)
         
      4. First Timothy 2.8
         
         8 I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting… (1 Timothy 2.8).
         
   2. Where to bless the Lord: In the sanctuary.
      1. The sanctuary or the temple and the grounds surrounding it,
      2. were all about blessing the Lord.
         1. Therefore, when they lifted their hands during the blessing,
         2. the most appropriate place to do it was the sanctuary.
4. Psalm 134.3 | He Made the Universe
   
   3 The LORD who made heaven and earth
   Bless you from Zion!
   
   1. Why bless the Lord:
      1. The Lord made heaven and earth.
      2. He blesses you from Zion.
   2. The Lord made heaven and earth.
      1. Apparently the world does not ever question how everything got here.
         1. If there is not God,
         2. how come anything exists?
      2. You know that the Lord made heaven and earth, because
         1. heaven and earth work perfectly together to give us life.
         2. How is it that our bodies have certain nutritional needs and
            1. we just happen to live on a planet
            2. where there are thousands,
               1. one source said, 10,000,
               2. edible foods for us?
         3. How is it that whatever we want to make
            1. we just happen to live on the earth
            2. where we can find or mix together
               1. all kinds of materials
               2. to make it?
   3. Bless the Lord and He shall bless you.
      1. He blessed the children of Israel from Zion.
      2. He blesses the world from Zion.
         1. Prophecies and promises of salvation centered mostly around Zion.
         2. Jesus died there for our salvation.
      3. He sees the church as Zion now (Heb 12).
         1. Where do we start to speak of how He blesses us from the church.
         2. I think of my kidney transplant
            1. when my Dad said that I should approach the Nile Street Church
            2. to see if they would set up a fund
               1. to replace the lost income of my donor
               2. who would miss six weeks of work.
                  1. The church agreed and they said
                  2. that whatever went beyond the donor’s lost income
                     1. the church would apply to my medical bills
                     2. that Medicare did not cover.
            3. By the time all the giving was over,
            4. members of the church had contributed more than $31,000.
               1. My Mother did not make that much money in six weeks.
               2. So thousands of dollars went to my medical bills.
         3. But that is minor.
            1. I can never repay the people in the church who have
               1. taught me,
               2. prayed for me,
               3. loved me,
               4. supported me, and
               5. been there for me,
            2. except that now I try to do those things for others.

Exhortation:

1. Verses 1 and 2 have man blessing God.
2. Verse 3 has God blessing man.
3. This Psalm shows why the children of Israel traveled to Jerusalem.
   1. They went there to bless the Lord.
   2. However, everyone who blesses the Lord
      1. finds out that they also experience
      2. how the Psalm ended:
         1. The Lord blesses those who bless Him.
         2. There is something about the people who bless the Lord
            1. that shows me how blessing the Lord
            2. fulfills our purpose for being!
   3. As one commentator said:
      
      “When you lift up your hand to bless the Lord, He will reach down His hand to bless you” (Jon Courson, p. 160).
      
4. Rededicate your life to blessing the Lord.