The ‘Scripture for the Week’ passage for this week (October 08-14, 2023) is taken from Psalm 103. Psalm 103 is one of the most popular Psalms which is read during family prayers, church worship services, or any thanksgiving meeting or spiritual gathering. We have been continually reading and meditating upon Psalm 103 for the past four weeks (including this week). There is so much spiritual nourishment to dig out from this Psalm.  This nourishment will help strengthen our spiritual life. The more we read, the more we get spiritual insights to thank God for all the blessings He showers upon us in our everyday life. The passage we chose for this week is Psalm 103:19-22, and this particular passage specifically focuses on praising God.

Psalm 103:19 states that The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all. From this verse we can understand that heaven is His dwelling place and He set up His throne of Grace in heaven to reign over His people and His other works. The term ‘throne’ refers to a seat – a thing or place to sit down. God’s seat is not just called a chair but a throne because the seat where God is seated to reign or judge bears His royalty, majesty, honor, power, and authority. We are all familiar with various types of chairs, like Living Room chairs, Easy chairs, Dining chairs, Outdoor chairs, Office chairs, Presidents’ chair, Governor’s chair, Chief Minister’s chair, and Chief Executive Officer’s chair. No one calls any of these chairs a throne but just a chair that whose name bears it’s purpose or the title of a person’s office or responsibilities. But when a king is sitting on a chair to rule over his people and settle matters related to political, social, cultural, religious or anything as such, that chair is not like any other chair and no one calls it as a king’s chair but it is called the throne – the king’s throne. It is very special and it displays the king’s dignity, power, and authority. No one, other than the king, will be seated on it. God, being the King of kings and the Lord of lords, set His throne in heaven (1 Kings 22:19; Psalm 103:19; Isaiah 66:1a; Hebrews 1:8) and His Kingdom rules over all in His dominion, that includes everyone and everything in heaven and on earth, as it is mentioned in Psalm 24:1 that The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. Also, Nehemiah 9:6 states that You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you. Thus, the Lord’s reign is over all, as The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all. (103:19). There are several Scripture passages which highlight the reign of God over His creation (Psalm 9:7-8; 47:8; Daniel 4:34). Psalm 97 reaffirms the reign of God over His creation: The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice. Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne … (Psalm 97:1-12).

During the Old Testament times, God spoke to His people through His prophets at many times and in various ways but during the New Testament times, God spoke to His people through His Son, as stated in Hebrews 1:1-3a that In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. Similarly, during the Old Testament times, God alone reigned over all but during the New Testament times (even now and in eternity) His Son Jesus will reign alongside God the Father. Revelation 11:15 states that The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever. Now, the kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of the Lord God Almighty, for this kingdom is bought at the price of His Son Jesus Christ’s life and blood (Revelation 5:9-10; 1 Corinthians 6:20). Revelation 5:12 states, Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise. Now, all authority in heaven and earth is given to Jesus (Matthew 28:18) and He is seated at his right hand of the Most High (Mark 16:19; Acts 7:55-56; Romans 8:34; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 8:1; 10:12); and He will reign for ever and ever as the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Psalm 9:7-8; Luke 1:33; Revelation 1:4-8).

Psalm 103:20-22 is an invitation to Praise the Lord – the King of kings and the Lord of lords. In the opening verses (1-2) of Psalm 103, we can see the Psalmist (king David) invites himself (that is, his own soul) to praise the Lord for all the benefits he personally received from God. At the closing verses (20-22) of the Psalm 103, the Psalmist invites all created beings (His angels, all His heavenly hosts, His servants who do His will, all His works everywhere in His dominion) to Praise the Lord. The Psalmist concludes Psalm 103 by inviting his soul again to praise the Lord (Psalm 103:22b). Praising God is one of the most important things to do in our spiritual journey in response to all that God has been doing in our lives. When we read Psalm 148, it is one of the most profound Psalms for praising God because the Psalm specifically lists who and what must praise the Lord (when you have some quiet time to spare, please try to read Psalm 148:1-14). God, being the creator of everything in the universe – the living, non-living, and human beings (Genesis 1:1-31), and the sovereign ruler over all (1 Chronicles 29:11-12; Psalm 103:19; Colossians 1:16; Romans 11:33), is worthy of receiving all the glory, and honor, and power, and praise from His creation. Revelation 4:1-11 states that…

… Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come … You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.

In each of our lives, there are numerous reasons to praise the Lord God Almighty. We need to praise God for who He is and what He does in this universe. We need to praise Him because He created us in His likeness and image (Genesis 1:26-27), our life itself is the gift of God (Genesis 2:7; James 1:17), and our salvation is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8). We need to praise God for His presence with us, protection upon our life, and provision in our life. We need to praise God for everything He has done in our life so far; and we need to praise Him for what He is going to do in our lives in the days ahead. Ultimately, we need to praise God for anything and everything in our life. The following chorus is one of the best examples to praise the Lord at all times: