Princeton Presbyterian Church

Princeton Presbyterian Church (EPC) Sermon # 1716

February 1, 2026

Psalm 105.1-11, 23-27, 36-45; Acts 2.14-16, 22-24, 29-36          Click here for audio worship.

Dr. Ed Pettus

(This is an extended outline, not a verbatim transcript.)

 

“Make Known God’s Deeds of Redemption”

 

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! ²Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! ³Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! ⁴Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! ⁵Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered, ⁶O offspring of Abraham, his servant, children of Jacob, his chosen ones! ⁷He is the Lord our God; his judgments are in all the earth. ⁸He remembers his covenant forever, the word that he commanded, for a thousand generations, ⁹the covenant that he made with Abraham, his sworn promise to Isaac, ¹⁰which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, ¹¹saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan as your portion for an inheritance.”

...²³Then Israel came to Egypt; Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham. ²⁴And the Lord made his people very fruitful and made them stronger than their foes. ²⁵He turned their hearts to hate his people, to deal craftily with his servants. ²⁶He sent Moses, his servant, and Aaron, whom he had chosen. ²⁷They performed his signs among them and miracles in the land of Ham.

... ³⁶He struck down all the firstborn in their land, the firstfruits of all their strength. ³⁷Then he brought out Israel with silver and gold, and there was none among his tribes who stumbled. ³⁸Egypt was glad when they departed, for dread of them had fallen upon it. ³⁹He spread a cloud for a covering, and fire to give light by night. ⁴⁰They asked, and he brought quail, and gave them bread from heaven in abundance. ⁴¹He opened the rock, and water gushed out; it flowed through the desert like a river. ⁴²For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham, his servant. ⁴³So he brought his people out with joy, his chosen ones with singing. ⁴⁴And he gave them the lands of the nations, and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil, ⁴⁵that they might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Praise the Lord!

 

• Response to God’s Deeds

 

The message today is a two-fer. That is, it is almost two sermons in one! Since we did not get to meet last Sunday and today, I decided to combine the planned sermon from last week from Psalm 105 with the sermon that was planned for this Sunday from Acts 2. Psalm 105 is about Israel’s history revealing the mighty deeds of God and this Sunday was scheduled to speak to the history of Jesus also revealing the mighty deeds of God. Fear not, I will not be preaching twice as long...hopefully.

We begin with how we are called to respond to what God has done for us. In Psalm 105.1-5 we see several imperatives. First is to give thanks. We are called in many places throughout Scripture to be thankful for God’s works, His deeds, His blessings, and more. Gratitude is a mark of the character of those who are redeemed by God’s grace.

Secondly, the Psalm calls us to call on His name. We call on the name Jesus in prayer and in worship. We call on the names of God if we so choose: Adonai, Abba/Father, Yahweh, El Shaddai. Now I know we seldom comb through all the names of God for the sake of calling on the name, but perhaps we would do well to know more of those names. Of course, knowing too that Jesus Christ is the name above every name (Philippians 2.9)!

Third response, make know His deeds. This is the call to evangelism, the call to encouragement, the call to teaching and possibly preaching, the call to remembrance, the call to knowledge and wisdom. This is also repeated in verse 2, “tell of His wondrous works!” It is important to note repetitions in the Word. Twice called to proclaim God’s mighty deeds.

Fourth, glory in His holy name. Again the name of God is highlighted and I would relate glory to rejoice from the second line in verse 3. Glory and rejoice are synonyms and expressions for worship, both private and public.

Fifth, three times we see the term “seek”. Seek the Lord is mentioned two times, and seek His presence continually. Sixth, remember His works, miracles, and judgments.

 

All of these imperatives are proper responses to all that God has done from Genesis to Revelation, from Revelation to today, and for all that is to come.

 

• Covenant with Abraham

 

So, what is it to which we are responding? Psalm 105 gives us two major stories of the Old testament, in Genesis - the covenant with Abraham, and Exodus with the deliverance from bondage in Egypt.

Psalm 105 touches on Genesis 13 and the promise of land, Genesis 20 and 26 for the promise of protection. What is most central to the telling of Israel’s history at this point is in the covenant made between God and Abraham. It was an everlasting covenant. It was an unconditional covenant. It was a covenant that would not be forgotten.

Genesis 12.1-3, Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. ²And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. ³I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

 

Psalm 105 recalls the covenant made with Abraham and we will come back to that later in the Psalm.

 

• Deliverance from Egypt

 

Psalm 105 then moves into the exodus narrative. The history moves from Jacob coming to dwell in Egypt, through the Israelites increasing in number, and then Joseph’s death and a new king in Egypt who did not know Joseph. That is to say, that the new king did not have a good relationship with the Israelites. This begins the period of bondage and labor and the story of Moses delivering the people. This is Israel’s defining story, their salvation story, and the story that will mark them even more as a people and God’s chosen.

Psalm 105 recounts the plagues and then summaries the departure from Egypt with the people being cared for through the wilderness journey. Now, for a moment I want us to visit the end of Psalm 105, beginning at verse 42.

 

⁴²For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham, his servant. ⁴³So he brought his people out with joy, his chosen ones with singing. ⁴⁴And he gave them the lands of the nations, and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil, ⁴⁵that they might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Praise the Lord!

 

The reason we have the exodus from Egypt is the covenant God made with Abraham. Verse 42 points us to the promise of God to Abraham. The covenant is key to the exodus. Psalm 105 wraps the entire story of God’s mighty work in deliverance in the covenant He made with Abraham. It all ties back to Abraham. This is the main redemption story of the Old Testament, the covenant making God delivering the people with whom he promised to give all the land, all the blessings, and all for the sake of showing the nations the existence and the power of the true God.

 

We have the movement of the Abraham promise/covenant → Egypt bondage → Deliverance → Remembered Abraham promise/covenant.

 

 

• The Plan of God

 

Let us now turn our attention to the main story of deliverance in the New Testament in Acts 2.14-16, 22-24, 29-36

¹⁴But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. ¹⁵For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. ¹⁶But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: (He then quotes from Joel)

...²²“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—²³this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. ²⁴God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

...²⁹“Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. ³⁰Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, ³¹he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. ³²This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. ³³Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. ³⁴For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, ³⁵until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ ³⁶Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

 

This is the other major story of the Bible as preached by Peter on the day of Pentecost.

This is our story as Christians. This is our story of deliverance. This is how God has acted again to bring redemption and deliverance. Moses is a prefigure of Christ. The Exodus narrative is a precursor to the Christ narrative. Both stories are our stories. Both stories are also for Jews and Gentiles. This is the gospel story, and it is the story to which all the Bible points. We get a taste in the covenant with Abraham as well as the exodus from Egypt. We get a prophetic word from Joel and David and all the prophets.

Just as God made a promise to Abraham, He also made a promise to all He has chosen and He has kept that promise in the plan of salvation – verse 23, ²³this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.

Psalm 105 can again come into play as we respond with the same gratitude, call, proclamation, singing, rejoicing, and remembrance as did the Jews for God’s might deeds in covenant and deliverance. We respond to God in His gift of grace in Jesus Christ.

 

• Obedience and Praise

 

Now, back to end of Psalm 105, beginning at verse 42.

 

⁴²For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham, his servant. ⁴³So he brought his people out with joy, his chosen ones with singing. ⁴⁴And he gave them the lands of the nations, and they took possession of the fruit of the peoples' toil, ⁴⁵that they might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Praise the Lord!

 

The reason we have the exodus from Egypt is the covenant God made with Abraham. The reason we have the Christ narrative is also because God is a God of covenant.

 

New covenant -

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more” (Jeremiah 31.31-34).

 

Listen also in 1 Corinthians 11.25, In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

 

Therefore, we might conclude from Psalm 105.45 that God has done all this great works so that we “might keep his statutes and observe his laws. Praise the Lord!” It comes down to obedience and praise. In essence that is a summary of at least one aspect of reformed faith, to bring glory to God. We bring that glory in our obedience and trust, in our faithfulness and fidelity, in our worship and praise. Covenant and deliverance lead us to obedience and praise. That is the proper response to what God has done.

These are the two main stories of God’s redemption. God saves Israel from bondage to Egypt, through Moses. God saves us from bondage to sin and death through Jesus Christ. Parallel stories all based in God’s covenant promises. God keeps His promises. God alone has the power to save. God alone redeems and delivers. God alone. And so, we place our lives in His hands, in His laws and commandments, in His Spirit, in His care and love. We follow the One who has saved us from bondage to sin and death. Remember these stories for they are the stories that define our very existence. They are the stories that shape our lives. They are the stories of our God who saves. Therefore, we express our gratitude, we call upon His name, we proclaim the salvation stories, we sing, rejoice, and remember. The stories are not just stories, but they are the Word of God. They reveal the love of God and the power of God. They shape our lives as we integrate them through our obedience and praise.

And remember too that God is still at work, still doing mighty things, still saving, still keeping promises, and all who trust in Him are still reaping the blessings from covenant, deliverance, and the good news of Jesus Christ. This is all good news, the news we need to hear every day in the midst of this troubled world. May the Lord sanctify us through His Word and by the power of the Holy Spirit. May we all rejoice in the story of God’s redemption and love. Thanks be to God. Amen.