God does good

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Hedgehogs in search of food. While snacking in a plastic cup, a hedgehog got caught in Mannheim. The animal had crawled into the cup with its snout first, but could not go back. A police patrol noticed the emergency and freed the hedgehog.

1. God does good, according to Psalm 103:3-17

• He forgives and heals
• His love and goodness surround me at all times
• He gives me good things in abundance
• He makes my mouth happy
• He gives new strength, like an eagle that soars
• He gives justice to the oppressed
• Then David praises the greatness of God: "The Lord is merciful and gracious, great is his patience and boundless his love!"
• David lets us know that we have a good God, but that includes the fear of God. Three times we read about the fear of God: Verses 11, 13, 17
• We find in the short passage almost the whole Gospel

2. We may praise God for His benefits

We can praise God for the "forgiveness of sins"

Who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy Psalm 103:3-4 (ESV)

Perhaps David remembers his dissolute life and how God forgave him completely when he returned to him.

Forgiveness of all sins is the first and greatest act of God's mercy.

There is no real life in the distance from God. Life happened on the cross of Golgotha. There the first words of Jesus were: "Father, forgive them"

If God forgives him, he can also say to his roommate or to other people, forgive me. There is so much need and misery in the world. Because people cannot forgive each other.

3. God's protective love

We may praise God for the benefits of His grace and goodness.

The Psalm writes four times about grace verses 4, 8, 11, 17 / and four times about mercy verses 4, 8, 13

Grace is expressed in Hebrew with two words in particular:

• first, (chasäd) denotes grace "as a helpful act of mercy."
• A second variant (rachamim) is a show of love – not just an attitude, but an act that gives someone pleasure - care - benevolence.

"His love and goodness surround me always."

In other words, in verse 4, "Grace is the protected love of God!"

A farmer has a large part of his farm go up in flames. Later, he comes across an allegedly burnt haystack. This collapses. The farmer looks on in amazement when he sees how unharmed chicks crawl out. It is the hen who surrounds her chicks in the flames, in protective love, sacrificing her life in the process.

4. Have a deep inner joy of life, say uplifting words

With Joachim Neander, we may praise the Lord's goodness:
Praise the Lord who prepares you artificially and refinedly. Who gave you health, who guided you kindly. In what distress has not the merciful God spread wings over you!

We can praise God because he makes our mouths happy and gives us new strength, like an eagle that soars.

We can worship in song with beautiful songs. In worship we can glorify God and honor Him.

Be kind to those around you. Greet her warmly. Say uplifting words, such as, "It's nice to see you today."

5. Closing Words

Finally, David calls his soul to praise, verse 1, then he praises God's glory in verses 19-22, until he concludes with "Praise the Lord my soul."

The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Numeri 6:24-26 (ESV)


Author: Egon Waechter
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