Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will!
Psalm 103:21
These last verses repeat a similar phrase to signal the importance of obedience by enjoining “those who do his word…obey the voice of his word…and who do his will” to bless the Lord. We can only bless the Lord with consistency—whether it be His angels or His children—if we are obeying the will of our God and submitting ourselves to Him. If we follow the pattern of this psalm, we begin by acknowledging our trespasses and sin, but we also praise the Lord who forgives and cleanses us. As a cleansed vessel we can bless the Lord because we are loving Him in obedience to His will.
On the other hand, the unrepentant sinner is disobedient and cannot fulfill or even desire to do God’s will. In the Garden of Eden, in the moment of their disobedience, Adam and Eve went against God’s clear instruction. They immediately needed a savior from their death sentence, since this was God’s promise upon their trespass. Satan tempted them to question God’s design and perfect plan, which ultimately brought a curse upon the entire human race. Sin leaves us hopeless until we are made children of the eternal Father whom the psalmist leads us to praise. We can rejoice as we count His magnificent blessings of forgiveness, healing, redemption, righteousness, mercy, steadfast love, and the promise of everlasting life with Him. When we reflect on these blessings in our own lives, our hearts cannot help but overflow with a thanksgiving that moves us to love Him in obedience, which is the proper context for us to bless the Lord.
We cannot confuse this with the vain hope of meriting God’s love or salvation with our works, but rather our works acknowledge that He is our Savior whom we honor and give glory with our obedience. James, Jesus’s half-brother, explains, “Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead…I will show you my faith by my works” (James 2:17-18). Instead of disobeying God’s commands, or being burdened by them, we show God honor and our full trust in Him when we echo the psalmist, “For I find my delight in your commandments, which I love. I will lift up my hands toward your commandments which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes” (Ps 119:47-48). We obey whom we love, and loving God is living in obedience to His Word.
Keys for the Kingdom 
The phrase from Psychology comes to mind……’Identifying the problem……is half way to the solution”. If we don’t acknowledge we are with and in sin……then we will not choose or be drawn to repentance or behavior change. But once we know the problem and the fix……it would behoove us not to address the sin and have it cleansed. jim >
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