Psalm 104 is a great worship
psalm that helps us celebrate the greatness and glory of our Creator. And as we experience the wonders of it every day,
it should be a source of motivation and inspiration to “meditate with
delight on Him and determine that we will be glad in the LORD.” (v. 14).
In verses 1-9, the psalmist
declares the greatness of God as he describes the acts of God during the six
days of creation (Genesis 1). In verses 10-13, he reminds us that God created
everything with a plan and for a purpose and that everything has a specific
place it His creation! Now in these final verses 24-35, we see the wisdom of
God revealed in not only His creative acts but in His sustaining hand behind
everything in it.
Whether we study invisible
microscopic life, visible plant and animal life, human life, or the myriad of
things that have no life, the diversity in creation is amazing. God could have
made a drab colorless world, one season everywhere, only one variety of each
plant and animal, cookie-cutter humans, no musical sounds, and a few minimal
kinds of food—but He did not, and how grateful we are! Only a wise God could
have planned so many different things, and only a powerful God could have
brought them into being.
"The earth is full of thy
possessions or property," (v. 24). The reminds us that God made it all,
God owns it all, and God has the right to tell us how to use it all. God wants
us to enjoy His creation (1 Tim. 6:17) and employ it wisely. When we exploit
our wonderful world, we sin and forget that we are stewards, not owners, and
that one day we must give an account of how we have used these precious and
irreplaceable gifts. The “Leviathan”, which might be the whales (Gen.
1:21), frolic and play in the ocean and God enjoys them! Creation is glad for
what the Lord has done (v. 26), mankind ought to be glad (v. 15). God's people
especially should be glad (v. 34). Even the Lord Himself rejoices over His
works! (v. 31).
Knowing all this about God and
His creation, we have some serious responsibilities to fulfill, and the first
is glorifying the Lord (vv. 31-32). Beginning with our own bodies and minds,
our abilities and possessions, we must gratefully accept all He has graciously
given us and use it to glorify Him, not to please ourselves (Rom. 12:1-2; 1
Cor. 4:7). Second, we must praise the Lord, the Creator. What a marvelous gift
is His creation! We need to get back to singing the great hymns and paraphrases
of the psalms that exalt God the Creator (v. 33). The more we thank God, the
less we will exploit His gifts.
Third, we should “meditate”
and think about His creation and rejoice in it (v. 34). The study of natural
science is but "thinking God's thoughts after Him." If earth and sky
are declaring the glory of God (Psalm 19:1), we who have been saved by His
grace ought to be glorifying Him even more! Finally, we must pray for Christ's
return (v. 35), for only then will the curse of sin be lifted from creation
(Rom. 8:18-25). We must share the gospel with sinners so that they might be
able to sing this beautiful hymn with us, "This is my Father's
world."
This is my Father's world, And
to my listening ears All nature sings, and roundly rings The music of the
spheres. This is my Father's world, The birds their carols raise The morning
light the lily-white Declare their maker's praise. This is my Father's world, I
rest me in the thought Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas
His hand the wonders wrought. This
is my Father's world, Oh, let me ne'er forget That though the wrong seems oft
so strong, God is the ruler yet. This is my Father's world, Why should my heart
be sad? The Lord is King, let the heavens ring God reigns, let the earth be
glad. This is my Father's world, He shines in all that's fair, In the rustling
grass I hear Him pass, He speaks to me everywhere. In the rustling grass I hear
Him pass, He speaks to me everywhere!
God bless!
