The Lord's People Are to Call Upon him (psalm 145:18)
Introduction:
1. The title of this Psalm identifies it as "David's Psalm of Praise." a. David expressed his intention to bless and praise God forever (vs.1-2). b. He also indicated why God deserves such praise (vs.3, 8-9, 13, 17). 2. In vs.18 David mentioned a special blessing available to the Lord's people. 3. This is the theme of our lesson -- "the Lord's people are to call upon Him." 4. Let us make 2 observations about "calling upon the Lord" from this verse. a. First, we are given motivation for calling upon the Lord -- "He is near to all who call upon Him" (1 Peter 3:12). b. Second, the necessity of calling upon the Lord "in truth" is emphasized. 1) This implies that it possible to call upon the Lord in a way not in truth. 2) Since this is the case we need to study this subject carefully so we can comply with the Scriptures when we call upon the Lord. 5. Let us begin our study by determining . . .
Discussion:
I. WHEN MEN BEGAN TO CALL UPON THE LORD
A. From Genesis 4:26b we learn when this practice began. B. Prior to this,: 1. (vs.1-8) Cain and Abel presented offerings to God, and Cain killed Abel 2. (vs.25) Adam and Eve had another son named Seth 3. (vs.26a) Seth had a son named Enos. C. At this point men began to call upon the name of the Lord. D. For our second point we need to show how . . .
II. THE LORD IS TO BE CALLED UPON AT DIFFERENT TIMES AND FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS
A. The Lord's people are to call upon Him during times of trouble, asking Him for assistance (Psalm 116:1-4). B. The Lord's people are to call upon Him while worshiping and offering thanks to Him (Psalm 116:17). C. The Lord's people are to call upon Him for salvation from sin (Psalm 116:13). D. The Bible associates calling upon the Lord with "asking the Lord for assistance during times of trouble," "worship," and "being saved from sin." E. While all of these are important, let us concentrate on . . .
III. WHAT IS INVOLVED IN CALLING UPON THE LORD TO BE SAVED
A. Jesus taught that calling on Him includes obedience to His will. 1. Jesus made this very clear in Matthew 7:21; Luke 6:46. 2. To call upon the Lord to be saved we must comply with His instructions. B. In Acts 2:16-21, Peter connected salvation with calling on the name of the Lord. 1. Peter was quoting a prophecy made many years earlier in Joel 2:28-32. 2. Joel's prophecy was finally being fulfilled on Pentecost. 3. In Acts 2:37-38, Peter told the people on Pentecost what to do. 4. The good news is that salvation from sin is still available to those who call upon the Lord in this way. C. In Romans 10:12-13, Paul showed that everyone must call upon the Lord's name to be saved. 1. Joel, Peter, and Paul used the word "whosoever." 2. This includes everyone, regardless of ethnic or racial background. 3. We learn further from vs.14 that we must be taught about the Lord before we can call upon Him for salvation. D. In Acts 22:10-16, Ananias taught Saul how to call on the Lord's name so he could be saved [this is exactly what he did -- Acts 9:18b].
Conclusion:
1. Calling upon the Lord for salvation includes believing that Jesus is God's Son, repenting, confessing faith in Christ, and being baptized in water. 2. Those who are saved can call upon the Lord when: a. worshiping Him b. assistance is needed during times of trouble.
