Prayer is oxygen to the lungs of discipleship

Luke 11:1a "It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray....."

What would you had asked Jesus to teach you?
As you read through the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, you are exposed to over 140 episodes in the life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ.  The Master and His disciples traveled all over the regions of Israel for 3 1/2 years.  If you had been one of those disciples, what would you had asked the Master to teach you?  Perhaps how to teach?  Christ was certainly the Master at teaching - He preached sermons, taught over 60 parables and lived out or referenced nearly 600 Bible verses.  Or maybe you would have asked Him about four easy steps to doing miracles?  Christ did over 30 recorded miracles, cast out demons on almost 10 occassions and demonstrated His identity and power.

The only thing the disciples ever asked Jesus to teach them
How about this one - prayer?  In Israel, there were other teachers living during that time who not only taught on prayer and wrote on prayer but who were known for prayer.  So as a disciple of Jesus Christ, would prayer had been on your radar screen?  No doubt it was for the disciples.  They saw many examples of beautiful prayer, dramatic prayer and well worded prayer.  But from the request for Jesus to teach them how to pray - they evidently had never seen prayer with power (except John the Baptist).  Prayer to the faith-life of the disciple is as oxygen to the lungs. 

What is included in an effective prayer-life?
As Jesus goes down through His most famous prayer - "The Lord's Prayer", He lays out the key elements involved in an effective prayer life:

1. You begin and end with an exalted view of God the Father.
Jesus begins this prayer with "Our Father" and He then ends the prayer in the parallel passageof Matthew 6:13 with a declaration of the Eternal dominion of the Father.  How you begin your prayer-life will determine where you end. 

2. You Proceed through the promises of God through God the Son
As Christ continues to teach His disciples, He invokes several key promises and truths straight from the scripture.  He first of all prays about the Kingdom of God or the reign of God to allign  God's purposes in Heaven and on earth.  Next He prays for God to supply every need.  Then thirdly He prays for protection from the Evil One.  All of these promises find their completion in the Son Himself.  Christ will soon return. He is the Mediator between God and believers and is the source of every spiritual and physical provision.  2 Corinthians 1:20 reminds us that all the promises and truths of God are confirmed in Christ. 

3. Your prayer-life's connection to practical life is done through God the Holy Spirit
As Jesus concludes His teaching on prayer in Luke 11, we see Him speak about the Person and work of the Holy Spirit in Luke 11:13.  Why the Holy Spirit?  Because it is through the work of the indwelling Spirit that my prayer-life and practical-life are connected.  It is the Spirit who leads me and guides me whether I am in prayer about my life or living prayerfully between prayer-times.  (Romans 8:26)  We read in Galatians 5:25 - "If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." 

Breath-in the Oxygen of discipleship
I find it no accident that Christ's teaching on prayer is purposefully centered around the Trinity.  It is to God the Father that the disciple directs their prayers; it is through the Son that they can proceed confidently in prayer and it is by the strength of the Holy Spirit that they can continue to pray. (Ephesians 2:18) May you and I breath deep into the lungs of Christian faith the oxygen of prayer. 

Discipleship cannot occur without the local church

Matthew 16:18 “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

Over the past several days we have been exploring the concept of discipleship.  A disciple is someone who by grace, through faith, follows Jesus Christ with the purpose to become like the Master.  In the process of our study we have discovered so far the following about discipleship:

1. Call of Christ begins Discipleship 

2. Cross bearing through self-denial is how one steps into discipleship 

3. Christ must be prized above any counted cost to continue in discipleship 

4. Commitment to the text of the scriptures is how one grows in Discipleship

In today's blog, we want to answer the simple question: Why does discipleship include the ministry of the local church? We will discover that the design, call, aim and desire of discipleship cannot be accomplished apart from the local church.

1. The design of discipleship - dependance, not independance
On the one hand, discipleship emphasizes the "personal" effort and experience of the disciple in their journey with the Master - Jesus Christ.  However to think that discipleship is a Lone Ranger affair is a myth.  In fact, if I approach discipleship only as a "me and Jesus" activity, then I will undo the principles of self-denial and counting the cost.  Not only has Christ designed discipleship to make me dependant upon Him, but also to break me of the self-sufficient mindset that often accompanies my dealings with other people. 

2. The call of discipleship demands connection with other disciples
The word "church" comes from a Greek word meaning "the called out ones".  As we have seen already, discipleship begins with the Master Himself calling you.  However with this idea of the church, as true as it is that Jesus calls each disciple one by one, He calls them to come together in the journey of following Him.  Hebrews 10:24-25 states -  "and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near."  Becoming involved with a local church is not optional for disciple.  We know there will be times when emergencies arise or sickness occurs.  However beyond those reasons, there is no reason to ever attempt the Christian life apart from the church.   

3. The aim of discipleship is to value what Jesus' values
The church is Jesus' own personal building project.  How important is it?  The Bible reminds us that He paid the price for the salvation of all His disciples - the church - with His own blood. (Acts 20:28; Ephesians 1:7).  Furthermore, God the Holy Spirit has been sent by the Father, in Jesus' own name, to help each individual disciple working with other disciples in being the church - in order to fulfill everything Jesus' commands. (John 14:16-21)  The Master has invested all of His eternal effort as God and all of His blood as man to provide the means by which His disciples can become more like Him.  Why would you not love what He loves? 

4. The desire to follow Jesus in discipleship is strengthened through the church
When Jesus says to Peter here in Matthew 16:18 "upon this rock I will build my church", what is the "rock" that He is talking about?  The idea of "rock" speaks of a foundation stone.  The only "rock" to which Christ could be referring to is none other than Himself.  1 Peter 2, written by the same Peter here in Matthew 16, speaks of each disciple being a "living stone", with Jesus Christ being the "Chief Cornerstone". (1 Peter 2:4-7)  Discipleship's calling is too demanding to be carried out only on the individual level.   Cultivating a deeper love for the Master can only take place in relationship with others whose goal is the same. (1 Peter 2:7)

A Simple illustration - Can you have a coach without a team
Is there such thing as a coach without a team?  Or how about a conductor without an orchestra?  Or a racecar driver without sponsors?  All these scenarios involve individuals who could never live out their identity, nor accomplish their tasks without their respective groups.  Now take what is true in the natural realm, and try to accomplish the God-ordained call to discipleship.  Disciples need one another.  Christ has so designed discipleship that though the calling is issued to one person at a time, yet it's very nature requires every disciple participating at the same time.

The Bible is central to discipleship

John 6:66-68 66As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore. 67So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” 68Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.

Thus far in our study on discipleship, we have defined discipleship as the process whereby a person by grace through faith trusts in Christ in order to become more like the Master through the pattern of self-denial.  We have explored the following key principles:

1. Discipleship begins with the Call of Christ

2. Cross bearing through self-denial

3. Christ must be prized above any counted cost, if the disciple is to genuinely follow Him. 

Discipleship's effectiveness is not only measured by how well one begins (which we could say classifies the first few lessons in this blog series), but moreso by how well one continues on in Christ.  In today's blog, we want to understand the purpose of the scriptures in the disciple's spiritual growth.

1. Scripture is that which is written, communicating Christ's mind
Notice what Peter says to Jesus in John 6:68 "You have the words".  When we call the Bible "scripture", that word "scripture" comes from the Latin "scriptura" meaning "that which is written".  Perhaps you have heard of a "script".  In this sense then the Bible is Christ's script for your life.  Furthermore, if I want to get the mind of the Master into my own, I consult the scriptures.  The Apostle Paul writes about the scriptures in 1 Corinthians 2:16 "For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE WILL INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ."

2. Scripture's inherent property as a life-giving document communicates spiritual growth
As we once again notice Peter's response to Jesus in John 6:68, he states that Jesus has "the words of eternal life".  What is it about the Bible that makes it unique in being the Disciple's sustaining source for committment in discipleship?  We know from other scriptures that the scriptures are the sole means through which the converting power of God is communicated into the human heart. (Psalm 19:7; James 1:18)  Unless the word of God is present, read or communicated to the hearing ear, no one can become a disciple. (Romans 10:9-15). 

As true as the scriptures are used by the Lord to convert the soul, they are also used by the Lord to sustain the soul following conversion.  In the context of John 6, Jesus had performed his greatest mass miracle - the feeding of the 5,000.  Yet whenever the crowd saw that they were no longer going to be getting free handouts, they left in droves.  Yet Peter, a true disciple, knew the truth that "man shall live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God". (Mt 4:4) Were it not for the Bible, the disciple could not sustain the high call and cost that is discipleship.  It is a fool's errand to think that one can live the Christian walk apart from daily exposure to the word of God. (Psalm 1; 19:8-13)

3. The scripture as the written word points us to Christ, our Rabbi, the Living Word
The word "word" comes from the word "logos", from whence we get our word "logic" and "logical".  When we say the word "word", we are referring to how the Bible communicates God's logic, provides order and faithfully communicates His voice into our hearts.  Christ too is also called "The Word".  As the "Living Word", He does as The Living Person what the Bible does as the living document - He communicates God's logic, provides order to our world and communicates the very presence of God - since He is God.  (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:16-17)

4. Your attitude toward the Bible reveals your attitude toward Jesus
Jesus Himself recognizes the relationship between Himself and the scriptures, since they are the words which points the believing disciple to Him. (John 5:39; Luke 24:44)  Thus our attitude toward the Master will be directly related to what our attitude is towards the Bible.  The two in terms of their relationship are inseperable.  You cannot think of Christ apart from the Bible.  He as the author of life is spoken of by the the Author of the scriptures, the Holy Spirit.  This is why Peter says to Jesus in the same context of John 6: "To Whom shall we go, for you have the words of Eternal Life".

The cost and benefits of being a true disciple of Jesus Christ

Luke 9:23-24 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. ^24 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. ^25 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?

The Radical Call of Discipleship
Yesterday we began to explore what discipleship is and how it begins - namely with Christ calling you by His grace to trust and follow Him.  Once you by grace through faith trust in Christ, the heart of the radical call to discipleship involves "denial of self" and "daily cross bearing".     In the original Greek and Hebrew a disciple first and foremost was a "learner".  But in the process of "learning", it wasn't just gaining facts and figures from the teacher.  Discipleship's aim is for the eager follower to forsake his desire for comfort and self-interest in order to follow the Master and  become like Him. No doubt, what Jesus is saying here in the above verses is radical - but necessary and expected, if anyone wants to truly follow Him.   

Why self denial is at the heart of discipleship
The disciple was "learning" how to talk like, walk like and live like the Master or "Rabbi" as it is termed in the original language of Jesus' day.  Therefore all Jews understood that if you ever had the privilege to learn under a respected "Rabbi" in Israel, then you had to be ready to place your intrests and selfish desires to the wayside to become like the Master.

What it means to "take up your cross"
Jesus makes an intresting statement concerning the level of committment it will take to be a "disciple".  He says that in order to follow Him, you must "deny yourself" and then "take up your cross". When Jesus made this statement about "cross-bearing", it was referring back to an event the took place before He had been born in Bethlehem.

During the days leading up to and after Jesus’ birth, Jewish expectation of a Messiah to come and break the yoke of Roman oppression was at an all-time high.  Many guys came and went, claiming to be the One who would break the tyranny of Rome away from the shoulders of the Jewish people.  One such wanna-be was named “Judas the Galilean”.  A first century Jewish Historian by the name of Josephus records  how this man had gained many followers.  According to the history of that time, this "wanna-be" convinced 2,000 followers in the regions of Galilee (a Roman province that was North of Jerusalem) that he was the One to lead a rebellion against Rome.

When Rome got wind of this news, they sent soldiers to that area, captured Judas the Galilean and his followers, and placed 2,000 Roman crosses throughout the roadways system of Galilee.  They then crucified everyone of these followers, along with their “wanna-be” Messiah, thus sending a message to everyone that if you follow anyone like this man, this will be your fate.  Thus in Jesus day, when anyone spoke of “taking up their cross”,  everyone knew it was in reference to the violent, bloody end of the failed coup against Rome.  

This radical commitment must be a daily reality
No doubt when Jesus made this statement, it instantly sent a message to all of his “wanna-be” followers – namely be ready to not only give up your claims to your own life; be ready, if need be, to give up your life period.  Jesus inserts that little word that adds another exclamation point to an already demanding call – “daily”.  Everyday the disciple of Jesus Christ needs to regard what God has said, regard his own selfish interests to be dead, in order that in Christ He may move ahead.  (Please compare Romans 6:4-11)

Keep your Eye on the prize
Despite what is no doubt a perceived loss, the gains in following Christ achieve a far greater prize – Christ Himself.  Jesus says in Luke 9:24-25 - "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. ^25 For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?  The Apostle Paul writes similar words in Philippians 3:7-8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ.” 

If we remind ourselves of the goal of discipleship – to be like the Rabbi in our thoughts, our actions and our life, demanding realities such as “self-denial” and “daily cross-bearing” will  more become delights rather than duties. 

The essential elements of discipleship

Luke 5:27-28 And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me. ²⁸ And he left all, rose up, and followed him.

Yesterday we looked at the background and implications of the terms "disciple" and "Lord" in the first century context in which Jesus and the apostles lived. Today we look at the essential elements of discipleship. What is a suggested definition of discipleship? Discipleship, by definition, refers to the process by which a person by grace through faith believes on Christ as Savior and Lord while forsaking himself to become like the Master.  Jesus brings forth the nuts and bolts of what it means to be a disciple throughout the Gospel accounts.  

Discipleship begins with the Call of Christ
Luke records the conversion of one of the twelve original disciples - Levi (or more commonly known as Matthew).  Matthew (Levi) would 30 years after this event write the first Gospel in our New Testament - the Gospel of Matthew.  But before Matthew became "Saint Matthew", he was sinner Matthew.  He took advantage, extorted and did whatever it took to make that next dollar.  As a tax-collector for Rome, he not only made it his business to get the necessary taxes from his fellow Jews, he also charged "hidden" fees over and above the tax to line his own pockets.  Jews hated tax-collectors - and tax collectors loved money.  The last thing that Matthew was thinking of doing was turning His entire life over to Christ to follow Him. 

The Call of Discipleship identifies the claim of Christ on your life
Matthew was into his career, his life.  He was making money.  Then came that voice - that voice which cut through the air and into his heart.  Suddenly the clinking of coinage and the rustling of bills were over-powered by the voice of the One who was now laying claim on Matthew.  

This was a voice that was unlike any voice he had ever heard.  Two words: "Follow Me".  What follows is as shocking as it is unexpected.  Matthew, the man of means, the man of money, was touched by Divine Grace.  The same voice which created all life and through whom came the entire universe was now through human vocal cords penetrating the dark heart of Matthew.  

The Call of Discipleship makes following Christ a foregone conclusion 
Grace made following Jesus a foregone conclusion.  He left all, rose up and followed Him. This is how life with Jesus Christ begins: with a call issued forth from Him, through His word, into your heart.  To be a disciple means to forsake all that you used to define yourself in favor of following the One who is unlike yourself.  By faith, as you follow the One calling your name, you will grow in your desire to be so much like Him that you too we see that what Matthew did was the only thing that makes sense - Go and Follow the Master. 

The radical nature of discipleship and Christ's Lordship

Luke 9:23-24 "And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. 24 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it."

Introduction

When we look at discipleship in the Bible, we understand it from two perspectives: the vantage point of the follower (i.e the disciple) and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Background and implications of what it means to be a "disciple"

First, what does it mean to be a disciple? The word "disciple" is the translation of a Greek word meaning "learner", "student" or within the context of Jesus' day, "follower". The Jews of Jesus' day would had witnessed young Jewish men following behind a traveling "Rabbi" or "Master". The Greek word we mentioned a moment ago is itself a rendering of a Jewish Aramaic word referring to students aiming to be like their master. By "learning" and "following" their Rabbi, their "Master", the Jews had a saying to describe such a way of life - namely "following in the dust of the Rabbi". That is to say, the student or follower's aim was to follow the Master so closely as to have the dust of his sandals falling upon himself. 

The above description sounds pretty radical. To hang on every word and action of a master, a "Rabbi", is surely an interesting tidbit that is no longer valid for today's "selfie" obsessed, comfort seeking 21st century life. Right? No! Discipleship is and always will be radical at its very core. Denial of self, not the promotion of one's agenda, lies at the heart of the word. Following the Lord, wherever and whenever He tells me to go or stop in His Word, defines the heart beat of true discipleship. 

Whenever we explore the description of a "follower" or "disciple" above, it is the exact same word we find in Jesus' instruction to His disciples in Matthew 28:19-20 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even tothe end of the age.” So whenever you think of what it means to be a disciple or follower of Jesus, the above description is very accurate and apropos. 

Background and implications of what it means to confess Jesus as "Lord"

The second part of the discipleship relationship is that of understanding the Lordship of Jesus Christ. When does Jesus become one's Lord? Some people teach that Jesus becomes Savior at saving faith, followed by the believer's later surrender to Jesus as Lord. The problem with this interpretation is that it would imply that one starts out as a convert to Christianity, with the idea of become a "disciple" at a later time. The aim of Biblical discipleship is not to make "converts" but "disciples". Jesus' Lordship is just a much a part of His identity as His role as our Redeemer. When a person trusts in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, they become a disciple, a follower, from that very moment. Undoubtedly, the realization of what Jesus' Lordship means will continue to unfold over the remainder of the disciple's growth in sanctification.

Romans 10:8-9 describes the very substance of saving faith: "But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved". Further study in passages such as 1 Corinthians 12:3 suggest that the Holy Spirit's activity in conversion elicits forth the immediate confession of Christ's Lordship from the heart - "Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit." 

The Lordship of Jesus Christ begins at the same time as Jesus' Saviorship for the Christ follower. To divide Lordship from the redemptive work of Jesus Christ is to have a divided Christ. Other words are used in describe Jesus as Lord. As Lord, Jesus is the believer's Master. In the Master/disciple relationship, Jesus Christ is the disciple's "Rabbi". Hence, to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ is to follow Him. Luke 9:23-24 is perhaps the clearest verse in the Bible on what it means to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ - "And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. 24 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it." 

To confess Jesus Christ as "Lord" also refers to confessing Him as God in human flesh. Fully and uncontested Deity in humanity is captured in this title "Lord". In the first century, the Roman emperor used a Latin term translated "Lord" to describe himself as "Lord" over the Roman empire. By the days of Jesus, the Roman emperor had come to view himself as some sort of deified man to be worship and adored. Hence to confess Caesar as "Lord" meant to acknowledge allegiance to Roman and the Roman Emperor. 

As the early disciples began to confess Jesus as "Lord", especially following His resurrection, the Roman empire soon saw Christianity as a rival claimant to the cult of the emperor. The Christian confession of Jesus as "Lord" meant that Jesus, not the Caesar, was the contested Sovereign. The early Christians were avid readers of the then popular Greek version of the Old Testament - the Septuagint. In that translation, the Holy, sacred name of God, "Yahweh" or "Jehovah" was rendered into a Greek word meaning "LORD". Thus to confess Jesus as "Lord" was not only to combat the Emperor cult, but moreso to assert faith in the full Deity of the man Jesus Christ - i.e as God revealed in human flesh. (see John 1:14; Colossians 2:9) Moreover, to confess Jesus as "LORD" was to proclaim Him as Savior, since in the Old Testament, salvation was and still is from the Lord alone. (Isaiah 43:10-11; Jonah 2:9)

To truly confess the Lordship of Jesus Christ grew to meant exclusion from access to public services and ultimately to the losing of one's life in martyrdom. 

How willing would many so-called professing Christians to go in their allegiance to Jesus Christ if it meant loss of tax benefits, comforts or even life? Lordship is radical. One cannot be a disciple without the Lord to follow. There is only One worthy of the title "Lord" - namely Jesus Christ. 

Conclusions

Today Christians ought to realize how radical it is to follow Jesus Christ as a disciple and to acknowledge His Lordship. These thoughts represent the background and implications of the discipleship relationship that contains the disciple following after the Rabbi - the Lord Jesus Christ. 

The Runway of God's Greatness - Thoughts from Psalm 103

Psalm 103:1 "Bless the Lord, O my soul,And all that is within me, bless His holy name."

Anytime I have ever flown in an aircraft, the take off is personally among the most interesting aspects of airtravel. Dozens of people are responsible for taxiing the aircraft out to the tarmac to get it ready to zoom down the runway and into the air. Great care is taken to ensure that the aircraft itself is ready for the voyage into the sky. Runway lights show the way to point the pilot and passengers into their journey into the air. When that aircraft is positioned, the engines roar to their full speed. The passengers being pushed back into their seats indicate the proper velocity needed to go from ground to air. Once the bumpiness of the runway is gone, I know we have succeeded in enjoying the view from above. All of this imagery (whether the reader likes flying or not) illustrates how I feel when reading Psalm 103. The Psamist is commanding himself: "Bless the Lord, Oh my soul, and all that is within me, praise His holy name". Today I want us to strap ourselves into the seats of Psalm 103 and discover how God in this Psalm gets us down the runway to view His greatness. Notice these thoughts...

1. The redemption won by Jesus Christ - the vessel for beholding God's greatness. Psalm 103:1-5
Someone may wonder how we see Jesus and His finished work in these first five verses, being that this Psalm was written a millennium before Christ came to this world? We must ever remember that the people of God in the Old Testament were saved as much by the cross of Christ as we are, with the distinction being that of perspective. Old Testament saints, like David, looked forward to Christ through the types and shadows of the temple, sacrifices and promises, as spelled out in New Testament passages such as Luke 24:44 and Hebrews 1:1-2. We in the New Testament look back on Christ's finished work. In order for anyone to truly know God, they must begin at the cross. The forgiveness and redemption of God, promise and predicted in the Old Testatment, finds its finish and starting line at the cross. Outside of the cross, God cannot be known in a saving way. Martin Luther in his commentary on Galatians says it well: "If you ask how God may be found, who justifies sinners, know that there is no other God besides this man Christ Jesus. Embrace Him, and forget about the nature of God. But these fanatics who exclude our Mediator in their dealings with God, do not believe me. Did not Christ Himself say: "I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me"? Without Christ there is no access to the Father, but futile rambling; no truth, but hypocrisy; no life, but eternal death."

2. God's benefits, the windows through which we delight in God's greatness. Psalm 103:2-18
Thus when we are told in Psalm 103:2 to not forget any of God's benefits - those benefits include:

a. Forgiveness (103:3)

b. Healing (103:3)

c. Deliverance (103:4). Such saving benefits not only save us "from" something, but also "unto something" - namely the crowning of God's people with heavenly benefits (103:4).

d. God's mercies. This includes God's abiding peace in this world (103:5-18). Again, what Jesus would achieve and did achieve reaches backward to where David was and forward to where we are at and must be grasped by grace through faith. The redeeming work of God in Christ is the vessel which we must climb into by faith to behold and appreciate God's greatness. 

e. God's Sovereignty. (103:19) If we try to behold God's greatness through any other way, we are no better than a man falling to the ground with no parachute. Anything outside of Jesus Christ leads to certain death. So the redemption won by Jesus Christ is the vessel for beholding God's greatness, but notice something else in this Psalm...

3. God's works and ways are the wheels upon which we roll down the runway of His greatness. Psalm 103:6-18
An airplane needs wheels upon which to roll down the runway. When we are strapped into Jesus Christ by faith, we are ready to live out and soar for Him. What is ever needed in the Christian life is a great love and appreciation for the greatness of God brought to us. David in this Psalm focuses upon four kinds of works of God in Psalm 103:7-18 - God's righteous acts (103:6-7) and three-fold cord of lovingkindness, tender mercies and compassions (103:8-18). At one point the Psalmist makes the distinction between God revealing His acts to the children of Israel (103:7) and His ways to Moses (103:7). It's one thing to see God's hand in our life (i.e His acts). However, whenever God shows us His face in Christ, it is then we pine after Him and are so satisfied with God in Christ that we are fulfilled in every point of faith. The thrust of thus Psalm takes us from contemplating to what God has done (His benefits, His acts, His ways) to the kind of God God is. It is in this pattern of focusing on God's works, ways to actual Person that causes the aircraft of the faith-life to get off of the runway and into the air. We know that in this world, getting into the air is not always easy. God has given us every conceivable grace possible to ensure we will endure to the end (Romans 10:13; 1 Peter 1:5; Jude 24-25). We have seen the vessel and the wheels needed to get down the runway of God's greatness. In Psalm 103, David mentions one final act of God's grace towards us that oftentimes we don't thin about...

4. God's angels are thr runway lights pointing to His greatness. Psalm 103:19-22
David writes the following striking words in Psalm 103:19 "The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all." One of the plainest declarations we would ever want to read regarding God's Sovereignty and control is found in Psalm 103:19. But now, in this world where the sky overhead is often dark and distractions abound, how is it that the child of God is able to keep focused on this plain and simple truth? David's command to his soul to "bless the Lord" is stated in the language of prayer to God. Also too, the fact that we are reading these words in our Bibles indicates that the words of God - the scriptures - are Divinely appointed by God to ensure our endurance in God. God elsewhere in His word has prescribed secondary means that reinforce to us these truths, among which are His angelic hosts. Passages such as Psalm 91:11 and Hebrews 1:14 explain how angels are ministering spirits sent by God to aid His people in striving forth in their faith. Like runway lights in the middle of the night, angels function to aid the people of God in both taking off in their faith (Hebrews 1:14; 13:3) and ensuring that at the end of their journey, they land in God's intended destination for them - Himself (Luke 16:22). The ministry of God's angels mentioned by David reminds us of this truth in Psalm 126:5 "Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting." Psalm 103:20-22 states - "Bless the Lord, you His angels,Mighty in strength, who perform His word, Obeying the voice of His word! 21 Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You who serve Him, doing His will. 22 Bless the Lord, all you works of His, In all places of His dominion; Bless the Lord, O my soul!" Hence David ends this Psalm with the repeated reminder to himself and us: "Bless the Lord oh my soul.

Closing thoughts
The runway of God's greatness and the assurance we have of having enjoyment in God's greatness and being more heavenly minded is instructed to us in this Psalm. May we today go down the runway of God's greatness in the vessel of Jesus Christ's accomplished work, the wheels of God's acts, benefits and ways in Christ and being all the while encouraged by the runway lights of God's angelic hosts that point the way to God's greatness for us to live in, feast upon and enjoy!