For our next three devotionals we are going to journey through Psalm 145, David's final symphony of praise. As we dive into these verses, prepare for your heart to be lifted and your perspective to be shifted. Today, we're exploring what it truly means to encounter the greatness of God.
You can click on the following links if you would like to go back and read the devotionals on Psalm 1 or Psalm 139.
"A true love of God must begin with a delight in His holiness, and not with a delight in any other attribute; for no other attribute is truly lovely without this."
– Jonathan Edwards, The Religious Affections
Psalm 145:1-3
"I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable."
Imagine this scene: David, the mighty warrior king, the man who slayed Goliath, the ruler of a great nation, takes off his crown and kneels. Why? Because he's encountered something—Someone—far greater than himself.
"I will extol you, my God and King," David declares. The Hebrew word for "extol" here is "rum," which means to lift high, to elevate above all else. David, at the pinnacle of earthly power, recognizes a higher throne and a greater King.
This is where true worship begins—not in a building, not in a song, but in the humble recognition of God's supreme greatness. It's the paradoxical reality that our worship is never greater than when we are brought to our knees in worship before God.
But David doesn't stop at a moment of reverence. He makes a lifelong commitment: "Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever." This isn't a casual, when-I-feel-like-it kind of praise. It's a determined, come-what-may devotion.
Why such resolve? Because David has glimpsed something that has captivated his heart entirely: "Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable." The word "unsearchable" here is the Hebrew "ein cheqer," which paints a picture of something so vast it can't be measured or fully explored.
Imagine standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon. You can see its majesty, but you can't fully grasp its enormity. That's just a shadow of how David feels about God's greatness. The more he explores, the more he realizes there's always more to discover.
This unsearchable greatness of God isn't meant to intimidate us, but to invite us. It's an invitation to a lifetime of wonder, a daily adventure of discovering new facets of God's character and power.
Friends, in a world that often pressures us to make ourselves great, Psalm 145 offers a liberating alternative: kneel before the truly Great One and find yourself lifted into His story, His purposes, His eternal praise.
1. When was the last time you were truly awestruck by God's greatness? What triggered that moment of wonder?
2. How might your daily life look different if you consistently viewed yourself in light of God's greatness?
3. David committed to praise God "every day" and "forever and ever." What practical steps can you take to cultivate a more consistent habit of praise, even on difficult days?
In bowing before the greatness of God, I find my true standing. I am most joyful when God is most glorified.
Stay dialed in,
Jonny Ardavanis
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