“Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name,” Psalm 103:1.

As there is in every range of mountains one mountain that soars above the rest, so this psalm is considered by many to be a ‘mount Everest’ amongst the other glorious songs of praise penned by David. I think it true to say we love to sing it.

I. HERE IS THE FIRST DUTY OF MAN

Shorter Catechism, Question 1. What is the chief end of man?

Answer - Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.

1. This is the very first step in glorifying the Lord. The word ‘bless’ carries the meaning of ‘kneel or kneel down’. “O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker,” Psalm 95:6. A rehearsal for the future, Php 2:9-10.
2. How much we have to praise Him for. Five things, verses 3-5. Forgiveness, (all) Healing (multiple) (Rev 21:4), Preservation (the pit), Surrounds us with kindness, (Crowneth thee).  Satisfaction (Good things- Pro 10:22).
3. We must ‘bless’ Him with our soul. Our soul is the highest, the superior facet of our being. Genesis 2:7 — The body - dust. The soul - breath of God. Many deny its existence or live disregarding its eternal destination. The Evolutionist denies the existence of the human soul. This is to avoid ‘blessing’ the Lord.
4. We are our own best encouragers to bless the Lord. No other human being knows better how we have been blessed or how much we owe the Lord!  What secrets of God’s mercy we carry within us.
5. Yet even we do not know all He has done for us. Today, we remember the ‘Great Protestant Reformation’ - what mercy was visited upon Europe back then, mercy which lives on yet in places. Many who still enjoy something of the freedoms of that revival are ignorant of this fact! “Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done,” Psalm 40:5. Even the angels cannot understand what the Lord has done for us, 1 Peter1:8-12.

II. WORSHIP OF THE LORD IS A SPIRITUAL EXERCISE

1. That is what distinguishes true worship from empty, hypocritical worship. “Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men,” Isaiah 29:13, Matthew 15:7-9.
2. Such deception marks even some in the best of times. “And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD,” Jeremiah 3:10. This is a reference to the revival in Josiah’s day. “And though they say, The LORD liveth; surely they swear falsely,” Jeremiah 5:2. “Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken root: they grow, yea, they bring forth fruit: thou art near in their mouth, and far from their reins,” Jeremiah 12:2. Even amongst the apostles we had a Judas!
3. Sadly, attenders at the preaching of God’s Word can be inflicted with this sin. “And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness,” Eze 33:31.

III. THE MEASURE TO WHICH WE SHOULD BLESS THE LORD

“All that is within me, bless his holy name.”

1. If we are not engaging our whole being in the worship of God our worship is unacceptable. We are complex beings. We are ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’. Man is not a mere animal. He has not evolved from lower creatures but was made in the ‘image of God’. “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness,” Genesis 1:26.
2. Our being consists of many elements. Men do not fully understand the physical, the mental and spiritual elements of man. “I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,” 1 Thess 5:23.
3. Every element of our being should be engaged in this holy exercise. All of our faculties, emotions, and capacities, since God has given them all to us, they should all be employed in His praise and service. This requires WORK!

“Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name,” Psalm 86:11.

The word ‘unite’ means ‘join together’. We are required to “Seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth,” Colossians 3:1-2.

That is the mark on one “risen with Christ” and who is worshipping the Lord aright.