Well, let's take our Bible and turn to Psalm 105. Psalm 105. Maybe you're already there and I'm the only one turning there at this point, which is okay. We have a wonderful psalm tonight and really for the next couple of weeks as we look at the historical psalms that God has given to us in the hymn book of the Psalter, Psalm 105. I want to preach tonight on the works of God in the history of Israel. Now, I'm not going to read all of it up front. We're going to read portions of it as we go. But I do want to ask if you'll begin by following with me. I want to read verses one through five, verses one to five. This is Psalm 105, verses one to five. Oh, give thanks to the Lord. Call upon his name. Make known his deeds among the peoples. Sing to him, sing praises to him. Speak of all his wonders. Glory in his holy name. Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Seek the Lord and his strength. Seek his face continually. Remember his wonders which he has done. his marvels, and the judgments uttered by his mouth. Father, now as we come to the time of your word, where we focus upon our great sovereign, covenant-making and covenant-keeping God of wonders, we pray that we would marvel, marvel at your works in history, and that we would be encouraged by your faithfulness. In Jesus' name, amen. The Bible says in the book of Deuteronomy chapter 8 and verse 2 that we are to remember all the way that the Lord your God has led you. Now, no doubt that was written for ancient Israel to remember how God led them through the wilderness, but brethren, we must remember all the way that God has been so faithful in leading us as well. And I mention that because I want you to know, as by way of introduction, that our Bible is a profoundly God-centered book. It is a God-centered book. You can't deny that it is a God-centered book. God initiates. He decrees. He preserves. He works. He protects. He redeems. God works for his own glory, and he does so in history among men and women like us. In fact, God has always been the eternally existing God. God created and elected. God scatters and He leads and He guides and He tests and He grows and He preserves and He protects His people, all for His own ultimate glory. And of course, we all, I think, have heard, what is history? But the story of God, it is His story. One writer put it, the story of God's actions in history is not simply a story of God carrying out his agenda, although it is that, but it's more. It is a story of mercy and love as God creates and redeems a people for himself. Interestingly, in the old Greek translation, one of the oldest translations we have, The psalm begins with an additional word before our verse one, and it's the word hallelujah. Because the early Jewish commentators believed that as we look at the works of the Lord and we set our mind upon all that God is doing, we ought to praise God and praise his holy, holy name. Now we come to a historical psalm, or grammatically correct, an historical psalm. Psalm 105, 106, and 107 are historical psalms. And somebody might think, why do we have to study history again? Why do we have to look at all the history of what God has done? And in your notes, you see a number of the bullet points there. We must study history. We must remember what God has done so that we learn about God. And we learn about man. We learn about sin. Indeed, we learn about providence. And praise the Lord, we learn about redemption. And maybe one more, we learn about history so that we can teach the next generation to come to put their confidence in God and not to be stubborn and hard-hearted like some of our fathers of old. But what I want you to see from Psalm 105 tonight is a very simple phrase, and you see it there in your box right there on page one. I want us to recall history to enhance our confidence and our obedience to God. We need to remember, we need to reflect, we need to rehearse history, which is God's history, so that we can have greater confidence in God, leading to greater obedience in our God. I would like for you to look with me at verses one to seven, and I want to begin where the psalm begins with this topic of worship, the theme of worship. Everything is for the glory of God. Let's just hear that and amen that and affirm that together. Everything is for the glory of God. Everything in life and my life and existence, everything that God does is for his glory. In these opening seven verses, there are no less than 11, 11 commands for you and for me to praise God. In fact, if you and I are reading the opening seven verses correctly, it's like volcanoes of praise just erupting. It's like our heart is just gushing forth with praise. Let me just skim through these with you. Look at verse 1. Give thanks to the Lord. Verse 1, call upon His name. End of verse 1, make known His deeds. Verse 2, sing to Him. Sing praises to Him. Speak of all His wonders. Verse 3, glory in His holy name. Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Verse 4, seek the Lord in His strength. Seek His face continually. Verse 5, remember His wonders. that He has done. I mean, we are reading over and over these rapid-fire gunshots of praise. It's like a volcano erupting of worship. It's like a spring continuously bubbling forth water. The works of God. We should praise Him. We should tell of God. We should proclaim our God. But why? Look in your notes. I think one reason, at least three reasons, maybe you could think of many more, but at least three, we ought to praise God, number one, because of exaltation, because praise magnifies God. Did you know that when we praise God, we don't add anything to God? Right? God is not lacking something in need of our praises. So we don't add anything, but rather what we do is when we worship God, we are magnifying, we are ascribing, we are affirming, we are recognizing the honor that is due to him. So it is for exaltation. Number two, it's also for appreciation. When we praise the Lord, like these opening verses call us to do, it's like it intensifies our appreciation of what God did in history. Our God has actually not only been Lord over history, but he's been the Lord even working within history. for his own good pleasure. And we can appreciate that as we study it. Third, we ought to praise the Lord for evangelization. It provides a witness for those outside the covenantal community as we praise and worship God. People see this. Thank the Lord. Sing to God. Glory in his name. Seek his strength. Seek his face. Remember what God has done. Verse 7 affirms he is the Lord our God and his judgments are in all the earth. What a God that we worship. I love this great little illustration. Richard Baxter, one of the great Puritan ministers in Kidderminster, England, In the late 1600s, when he pastored, he had a large wooden pulpit, and right above his head, inscribed in the wood right above him, was Psalm 105, verse 1. And oh, that every preacher would have this inscribed, not only on the pulpit, but coming from his lips. Let's give thanks to God together and call upon his name. And as I preach, I want to make known God's deeds. What a great statement that would be upholding the minister of the gospel. Call upon his name and make known his deeds. So what a word for me and you tonight. Let's begin this historical psalm with this simple application question. Do you worship and praise the Lord? I don't mean to be overly simplistic, but today, have you made and prioritized the time to pursue God and seek God and glory in his holy name and reflect on who God is and give God honor for what he's done? We must worship God. We'll do that as well when we pray here in a little bit. But number two, look in your notes. We want this to then lead to wonder. Not only should we worship God, we must wonder. Now, verses 8 to 44 is a long summary, kind of like an Old Testament survey, calling you and I to gaze upon God, I love this, as the master of impossibilities. God is the master of impossibilities. God can give bread from heaven. God can bring water out of a rock. God can bring people through a sea on dry ground. Yes. Stand and wonder. Stand and wonder at our God. Maybe somebody is here tonight, though, and you think, okay, we're gonna look at all this history here. Jeff, I'm not Jewish. Like, I am not Jewish. I am not of the nation of Israel. But if you're a believer, in Jesus Christ. According to Galatians 3 verse 28, you are spiritually brought into this faith of Abraham, and you are therefore an inheritor of these great covenantal promises. What a great hope that we have in our God. So today, you and I can rejoice because the faithful God of Israel is, guess what? He's your God as well. The faithful, covenant-keeping God who elected Israel is the same God who chooses people like me and like you. The key word, jot this down, or maybe it's in your notes, I forget what I put there, but the key word in the whole psalm at this point is the little pronoun, he. It is the most emphatic word, it is the most common word by far in the psalm. Why? To underscore this one thing. Wonder, marvel, be astonished at what He has done. Be astonished at what your God can do. So let's look at this Old Testament history together and let's see if we can wrap our arms around Old Testament survey. In your notes, number one there, beginning with the covenant that God made with Abraham. We call it the Abrahamic covenant. It goes all the way back to Genesis 12, Genesis 15, Genesis 17, and on and on it goes through the book of Genesis. All this to show God is faithful. Look at verse 8. He has remembered his covenant forever. Aren't you thankful for that? God didn't forget. He remembers his covenant, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations. Verse 9, the covenant which he made with Abraham, and then he repeated it, the oath to Isaac, and he confirmed it to Jacob for a statute to Israel for an everlasting covenant saying, To you, I will give the land of Canaan as the portion of your inheritance when they were only a few men in number, very few and strangers in it. They wandered from nation to nation, one kingdom to another people. He permitted no man to oppress them. He reproved kings for their sakes. Hallelujah, our God. that has made a covenant with his people Israel is the God who remains faithful to these covenantal promises. And what did that covenant entail? A land, a seed, ultimately bringing the seed, Galatians 3, the Messiah, and the blessings that would come to all the nations through Abraham and the Jewish people. A land, a seed, and a blessing. So that's really the summary of the early part of the book of Genesis. Remember what God has done. And remember the key word, he. He has made the covenant. He has remembered his oath. This is what our God has done. And then the author chooses to skip a little bit to the times you see in your notes of Joseph. Joseph. And in verse 16, look at it in your Bible, then God called for a famine upon the land and he broke the whole staff of bread and he sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. Now you remember the Joseph story, Genesis 37 to 50, that's the section there. that God would sovereignly reign over all of the circumstances where the sons of Jacob would sell their brother Joseph to the Ishmaelites as they were passing by, and they would in turn send him down to Egypt, and he would eventually rise to be one of the highest of the kings of Egypt under the Pharaoh himself. But not all was easy. Look at our psalm, verse 18, a little bit of detail that we don't even have in Genesis. Look at verse 18, they afflicted his feet with fetters and he was laid in irons. We don't have all that detail in Genesis when Joseph was in jail. He endured great affliction. What's the point here? God remains faithful to his people even when their feet are in fetters, even when he is laid in irons. Verse 19, until the time when God's word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him. You know the Joseph story. He was falsely accused by Potiphar's wife. He was put in jail for many years. He interpreted dreams. He was still remaining in prison. Amazing. But God tested him. God had a plan. What's the point? God is sovereignly at work. That's the goal. That's the point for you and I to remember in the times of Joseph. Even verse 21, the Pharaoh made him Lord over his house and ruler over all of his possessions. But you know the story. The people of Israel multiplied in Egypt and that became a problem because then there arose a Pharaoh who did not know the people of Israel. and Joseph, and all of the great things that God had done. And they began to afflict them with great hardship. They're in bondage. And verses 23 all the way to 38 is a really poetic account, quite simply, of the plagues. Remember the 10 plagues in Egypt? But here's what the author does. This is so neat how he does it. He changes the order of the plagues. He begins with the darkness and he ends with the killing of the firstborn. Why? Only to underscore the judgment, the wrath of God that came upon the Egyptians in a supernatural divine way. All to show God is in control. God is in control. And you see it here. You see it there right in verse 28, God sent darkness. And then verse 29, he turned water into blood. And then verse 30, the land swarmed with frogs. Verse 31, God spoke and there came a swarm of flies and gnats. And then verse 32, God gave them hail for rain and flaming fire. And then verse 33, he struck the vines. 34, he spoke and locusts came. And then 36, all the firstborn of the land died. God is the protector of his people. That's what is being underscored here. Church family, hear that. God is the protector. You and I, if we were in these iron fetters, if you and I were in Egypt, if you and I were undergoing this great bondage and this affliction, and we think, God, Where are you? And what's going on with your covenant? And you're taking so long to answer our prayers and fulfill your promises. But God is faithful. He's the protector and he's the preserver. And then he brings them out of Egypt, as you and I well know. Verse 37, he brought them out with silver and gold. And then Verses 39 to 43, guess what happens now? They wander. They wander in the wilderness. But verses 39 to 41, if you look in your Bible, they underscore three great miracles. Look at verse 39. God spreads a cloud for covering and a fire to illumine by night. So God leads and guides the people. The second miracle in verse 40 is God gives them bread from heaven. And then verse 41, he gives them rock, water out of a rock. He gives them water out of the rock. Why this section? To underscore God provides. He provides. Does anyone here, ever need to be reminded that God protects, that God provides, that God is with, that God has a plan, that God is sovereign, that God is in control, even in our afflictions. All the things that we need to be reminded of, the Psalm is saying, don't you remember how God has been faithful before? God has been faithful. And then verse 43, One of the most remarkable verses here at the end, God brought forth his people with joy. Now, it could be that God brought Israel forth as Israel rejoiced. It could be. I think it's better rendered, God brought Israel forth with divine joy. God is the one rejoicing. God is the one who is filled with joy. Verse 43 even says, he brings out his chosen ones with a joyful shout. He gives them the lands of the nations that they might take possession of it all. Now, brethren, that's Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua. all the books of the Torah, five books of Moses and Joshua, right here in the opening 44 verses. Why? Because the author wants you to know that this God who has done great works is a promising God. He is a protecting God. He is a providing God. And he is an ever-present God. I need to hear that. And I bet you need to hear that too. Let's get really practical. So we don't need to fear. We don't need to be anxious. We don't need to wonder if God is going to meet our needs. We don't need to wonder what God is doing in the trial. We know that God is faithful. We know that God has a plan. We know that God will magnify his name. God has shown it in times of old. We need to trust in him. We need to trust in Him. And hallelujah, the same God that brought people out of that Red Sea by His power, out of bondage in Egypt, He is the same God who can bring you and I out of bondage of sin through the Red Sea of His blood. That's our God. That's our Savior. That's what He does. He is the wondrous Redeemer who works. If we can go back to our big theme, God is the Worker. He's the Accomplisher. That's what our Christ does. Our Savior is the Worker. Our Savior is the Accomplisher. He is the one who came to seek and save the lost. He is the one who has manifested His glory and we marvel. we wonder we worship him. By the way, just very quickly, if we had time, it'd be so neat to read a little bit of Romans chapter 15, which says, all the things that were written in former times were written for our instruction so that through the perseverance and the encouragement from the word, we might have hope. So, what does God want? He wants you and I to go to our Bible, to look at the things written in former times, and have hope in God. So, if a friend is struggling, if a child is going through hardship, if a friend, a fellow church member, is going through trials and difficulty, we can say to them with a word of comfort at an appropriate time, as we speak the truth in love, we can say, Our God has been faithful, and he will remain faithful to you right here in this trial. He was with Israel. He's with you right here in the trial. The psalm ends, verse 45, and it's almost like everything that we have read so far is true, and it is great history. We ought to worship God. We ought to wonder at God. But very quickly before we close, you've got to get point three, and it's the so that. What's the result of all of this? It's almost like, okay, history, it's like a boy or a girl saying, dad, mom, do we have to do history again? Do we have to learn more history? Yes, and here's why. Verse 45, so that, here's the reason, so that we might keep God's statutes and obey his laws. Praise the Lord. So what does God want with all this history? We ought to worship God. We ought to wonder at God. And God wants us to walk in his ways. Walk in his ways. And let me see if I can give a New Testament parallel. By the mercies of God, I implore you. What does he say? Present your body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. It's your spiritual service of worship. So, how do we do that? Well, it's because of all the mercies of God. It's because of all that God has done. That is the motivation to then present ourselves to obedience to God. We praise Him. We keep His laws. We obey Him. Don't switch it. We don't want to obey God to try to earn God's favor. We worship God and we marvel at his great works. That's what then leads us to obedience. It's really an amazing psalm. And there's more detail there, a lot more detail there. But in these 45 verses, what is the author? I think it's David, but what is the author doing? The author is showing us Look at him. Look at him. Look at God. Look at what God has done. Look at how he has worked. And this God who worked in times of old is faithful to you and me here today. In fact, in your notes, if you look at these final five points, what do we learn from our history lesson? Number one, we learn the faithfulness of the Lord. Number two, we learn that God is the source and the designer of everything that happens. That is, that is so mind-boggling to me. Third, we learn that God uses many ways, even unpleasant, even hard ones at times, to accomplish his will. Fourth, we learn that God's remembering His covenant and His character must result. It ought to lead us to praise and adoration. And then, fifthly, we learn that this praise and adoration expresses itself in heartfelt obedience to our King. I want to close by asking you to turn to the left just a little bit to Job chapter 9. Job chapter 9. And with this, we'll be done. And then we'll pray. But we recall history to enhance our confidence and our obedience. in God. Look at Job chapter 9 and verse 10. Now, Job is talking about the amazing power of God in the context, the power of God, the magnificence of God, the unrivaled character of God. Job 9 verse 10, speaking of God, God who does great things, unfathomable and wondrous works without number. Hallelujah. This God who worked in history is also the God who has worked in history to bring his own son to die for sinners like us. This is our hope in a covenant keeping God. So let's pray. Let's pray in faith. Let's come before him. Let's call upon his name. and believe that God is the same God who worked for his people of old, is with us in this place tonight to answer prayer. Father, we thank you for your word. Thank you that we can pray, O Lord, we ask that you