Give Thanks to the Lord!

When I attended Duke Divinity School, I took every preaching class I could. I was already serving two small churches and wanted to be the best preacher I could be. Once when I had to present a sermon, the professor told me that I reminded him of Billy Graham. He said, “You used your hands and facial expressions to make your points.”

I thought he was complimenting me when he said, “The only problem is that God is not the subject of a single one of your sentences.” I was upset because I thought I was accurately representing the Scripture. We can profess that God is generally “in charge,” but the fact remains that we sound like all the outcomes depend on us. The professor was telling me that I was using my hands and facial expressions, but I wasn’t giving God credit for who He is.

Psalm 118:25-26 is saying, “Lord, save us! Lord grant us success! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” The Hebrew word hosanna is used and it means “Lord save us.” When we look at Psalm 118: 22-23, we see these words, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” Psalm 118 anticipates the coming of the One who would fulfill the ultimate meaning of the feasts this text describes.

The Scriptures tell us that God is the true subject of our lives. It is not us alone! Everything we do in life is done in “The name of the Lord.” Psalm 118:10-11 tells us that God enacts our salvation, rescues us and tends to our needs. We don’t have to think that it all depends on us. God is in charge and we need to only trust and follow His lead. Verse 23 says, “The Lord has done this.”

Prayer – Lord, I’ve been paying lip service to You being in charge of my world. It’s exhausting, and I want to stop being this way. Help me trust You! Amen.

Psalm 118: 1 – Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.

Author: Tommy Herndon
Photo: Eberhard Grossgasteiger, courtesy of Unsplash