January 3, 2026 -- Psalm 145:2-3 -- The Name and the LORD

People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

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.
Psalm 145:2-3 ESV
 
The opening of verses of this Psalm is packed with information about and praise to the LORD our God. What does praise look like? Recently my wife and I were at the airport. There was a young man who had a tablet on his lap, and as I passed by, I could see he was looking at the roster of a world class soccer team. He was also on the phone, speaking animatedly to a friend, explaining why his soccer team would do well at its next match. He cited statistics and past victories and the strengths of individual players to make his (rather loud and enthused) point. That is what praise looks like. It is to be animated about, to be talking about and to spend time thinking about the object of one’s fascination and love. In this Psalm, David blesses and praises the Name forever.
 
In Hebrew culture one’s name and one’s reputation are bound up together. You can mention the name of a past great soccer player, like the Brazilian star Pele, and people who love the sport can name facts about him. That is an example of a name and reputation that are bound up together. The fact is, Pele is gone. New players with new feats of greatness will one day eclipse him and he will be forgotten. King David praises the Name of God forever and ever because our strong God lives forever and ever. New evidence of His power, His love, His mercy and His saving acts are revealed every day for those who have the eyes to see him, and for all those who have a soul that hungers to be associated with Him.
 
At the mention of the Name, leads David to declare “great is the LORD”. LORD, when it is spelled all in capitals that way, is a reference to God’s self-revealed name. At the burning bush (Exodus 3:14), the One and Only Strong God declared: “I AM, I WAS, I WILL BE”. Famous men and women rise and fall. They live and then they die. But the works of our glorious God stand forever because the LORD Who makes promises lives forever. He keeps all His promises. He continues to act in ways that are consistent with His majesty and His purposes.
 
His greatness is unsearchable—that means no one can ever say all there is to be said about the LORD. Though His perfections ever surround Him, human minds can’t comprehend all He Is, nor know all that He does. So, to the limited human mind, the LORD continues to add to His reputation every moment of every day. Reading the Bible shows the greatness of God. Seeing how He has acted in humanity history increases our ability to discern the greatness of God. Looking at the ways in which the LORD works in nations, and peoples, and tribes, and denominations shows the greatness of our God.
 
Even though our human comprehension is so limited, it is still true the more we know about God, the more we love Him. As we get older and have more life experience walking with Him and knowing Who He is and how patient He is, even more we realize His greatness is so expansive to us individually. So, even when we examine our own lives, we can’t even speak all His has done for us. Eternity will be wonderful because the Holy Spirit will permanently remove the blockages which cause our minds to be sin-restrained mind so after our death at our resurrection we will have the capacity for the knowledge that we were originally created to have. Even now, when a new Christians shares his love for God and shares his testimony declaring the blessedness of the salvation he has in Christ, that man increases to my mind and experience the greatness of our LORD.
 
What can we say to You, our God and King—except to join with King David and with the saints through-out the ages and generations who declare, Everyday I will bless you and praise Your Name forever and ever. Great are You, LORD, and greatly to be praised. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/uHz0w-HG4iU?si=sj7UvX5JR5Cq2P7p Great are You Lord
 

Copyright © 2026 Sh'ma Christian Ministries, All rights reserved.