Bob Josey - A Thanksgiving Lesson

SLIDES

A Thanksgiving Lesson

Psalm 105:1-6

11/27/2022

Introduction

In 1896 Russell K. Carter published a hymn entitled Standing on the Promises. The first stanza goes like this.

Standing on the promises of Christ my King,

Through eternal ages let His praises ring,

Glory in the highest, I will shout and sing,

Standing on the promises of God.

Refrain:

Standing, standing,

Standing on the promises of God my Savior;

Standing, standing,

I’m standing on the promises of God.

The promises of God are important because those who have ever had a relationship with Him from Adam and Eve onward have risen and fell on God’s promises. Where do our promises come from? They come from the following covenants made with Israel.

The Abrahamic Covenant -God promised land forever, defendants forever, and spiritual blessing forever

The Davidic Covenant – An eternal dynasty and a Davidic King to sit on Israel’s throne forever

The Land Covenant – Land forever to include land with the boundaries of the Mediterranean Sea, the Wadi el Iris, Mount Hor, and the Euphrates River

The New Covenant – All Spiritual blessings (every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, Ephesians 1:3)

Since Thursday was Thanksgiving Day, we are going to look at a Thanksgiving Psalm today – Psalm 105. Psalm 105 traces some aspects of the history of Israel (from Abraham to the wilderness wanderings)—as the Lord moved His people miraculously in fulfillment of His covenant promises—the psalmist praised the greatness of the Lord’s love for His own. In verses 1-6 the Psalmist called upon Israel to give thanks.

Psalm 105

1 Oh give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name;

Make known His deeds among the peoples (the Gentile nations).

2 Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;

Speak of all His wonders.

3 Glory in His holy name;

Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad.

4 Seek the Lord and His strength;

Seek His face continually.

5 Remember His wonders which He has done,

His marvels and the judgments uttered by His mouth,

6 O seed of Abraham, His servant,

O sons of Jacob, His chosen ones!

In these verses there are eleven imperatives or commands. They are not suggestions.

1. Give Thanks

2. Call upon His name

3. Make known

4. Sing

5. Sing praises

6. Speak

7. Glory

8. Be glad

9. Seek the Lord

10 . Seek His face

11. Remember

Then in verses 7- 45 the Psalmist reviews from the history of Israel why they should give thanks. All these events stem from the promises found in the Abrahamic Covenant.

a. God’s covenant with Abraham (105:7–11)

b. The patriarchs in Canaan (105:12–15)

c. Joseph in Egypt (105:16–22)

d. The Israelites in Egypt (105:23–25)

e. The plagues on Egypt (105:26–36)

f. The exodus from Egypt (105:37–38)

g. The wilderness wanderings (105:39–41)

h. The Abrahamic Covenant and the land promises (105:42–45)

For the last 2000 years the promises that affect the church come from the New Covenant that God made with Israel and Judah at the death of Jesus the Messiah. The church receives the promises of the New Covenant because we have the special relationship with Jesus of being “in Christ.”

Today because of all that God had done for us because of the promises of the New Covenant, God calls upon us to do the same thing we read in verses 1-6 in Psalm 105.

So, for the remainder of the hour, I would like for us to do something a little different. I want volunteers to stand and tell us what reasons you have to praise the Lord give thanks to the Lord, and tell us some of the wonder and works He has done in your life in 2022.