Three times in Psalm 71, David used the phrase “all the day.” In Ps 71:8 he wrote, “Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour all the day.” In Ps 71:15 he wrote, “My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day; for I know not the numbers thereof.” In Ps 71:24 he wrote, “My tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long…”
Notice that these are all references to what David did with his mouth or with his tongue. He used his mouth to praise God, honour God, shew forth his righteousness, and shew forth his salvation all the day. As Christians, we can learn a great lesson from David. We should do all day what he did. All the day:
My mouth shall be filled with thy praise – Ps 71:8 – In Ps 34:1 David wrote, “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” By the time David wrote these passages, he had evidently come to the place in his life where he was praising God vocally all day long. Did you know that we are supposed to praise God continually? See Heb 13:15. Just imagine what praising God with your mouth all day long would do to your life. Imagine how pleased God would be with your praise, Heb 13:16. The best way to praise God with your mouth continually is by singing hymns and giving thanks. These are two things that you can and should do all the day no matter where you spend your days. In everything give thanks, 1 Thes 5:18, and for everything give thanks, Eph 5:20, all day long.
My mouth shall be filled with thy honour – Ps 71:8 – David wasn’t writing about lip service here, Is 29:13. He wrote about real honour. David was the king, the highest position of authority in the land. And yet he humbled himself and honored God, instead of himself. He magnified the Lord, Ps 34:3. Just think about all the people who speak to the dishonor of God today. They curse and take his name in vain. They lie about his words and deny the truth of what he said and what he did. God is the creator of the universe. Yet they deny that he exists or that he created us. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Yet they scoff at the promise of his return to rule. We should honor him with everything we say all the day. You say, “But they don’t want to hear that.” And I say, “Yes, but the Lord sure wants to hear us honor him and he deserves every bit of honor we can give him, all day long, everyday.” Do you know anyone else in the world that is going to honor him, if his own children don’t? God is our Father; we are his children. Children are commanded to honor their parents. Our mouth should be filled with God’s honor all the day.
My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness – Ps 71:15 – God is righteous. Ps 119:160 says, “Thy word is true from the beginning; and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.” What God says about a matter or how God judges a matter or a person is right every single time. You and I shew forth the righteousness of God with our mouths when we speak as the oracles of God, 1 Pet 4:11. God’s words are right all the time. You say, “But there are so many people who don’t believe God’s words.” True enough. But the fact that they don’t believe God doesn’t make them right and God wrong. They need to know where God stands on everything. Imagine a college student who unashamedly proclaims God’s righteousness among his or her peers on campus. What an outstanding Christian they would be. Imagine what your life would be like if you could speak of God’s righteousness in every conversation. You can do this. You can shew forth the righteousness of God all the day. The question is, “Will you?”
My mouth shall shew forth thy salvation – Ps 71:15 – do you know how to lead others to the Lord? The answer is simple. Your mouth must shew forth the Lord’s salvation. Years ago, I had lunch with some friends who were attending another church in town. When I asked what they had been studying at church, they excitedly replied, “We’re learning about soul winning.” I asked how long they had been studying. They said six months. “Have you been out yet?” “No.” You can and should study about leading others to the Lord. But I have found that they don’t get saved until you open your mouth and preach the gospel to them. David said, “my mouth shall shew forth thy salvation.” And he said he did this “all the day.” After lunch, I took my friends to the sea wall to pass out tracts and to talk with people about the Lord. We met a couple that afternoon who didn’t yet know the Lord but who desperately needed him. I preached the gospel to them and after about 45 minutes, they received the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. We need to shew forth the Lord’s salvation all the day. You know people who need to hear about the Lord’s salvation from you.
Conclusion: all the day we talk about a lot of different things. David has given us four things to say that should occupy our mouth all day. Our mouth should be filled with the Lord’s praise, with his honor, with his righteousness, and with his salvation. We should take what we have heard today to heart. We should pray now and ask the Lord to really help us do with our mouths what David did with his. After all, like David, we don’t know the numbers of our days, Ps 71:15. So, we should plan to use the rest of them to proclaim his praise, honor, righteousness, and salvation.