Our psalm for this week is a psalm of praise to God. Many psalms are ones of praise, leading us to come to the conclusion that praising God is an important duty for believers, something that we should be actively doing.
In verse 1 we are told to sing a new song to the Lord. God wants us to sing a new song, in other words, bring Him new praise each day. Sometimes we may hear someone, quite possibly even ourselves, praying “Thank you, God, for this day. Thank you, God, for this food.”, praying that same prayer, day in and day out. Don’t get me wrong - thanking God for our food and the day is right and proper. Yet should we really be saying the same old prayer, same old thanks and praise each day, words we say by rote without any real thought? If our spouse or children said the exact same words to us every day, possibly without any feeling or emotion, would we feel loved? We should thank and praise God for everything, but each day we should look for new things in our life, things new and glorious, to give Him praise for. Every day we should open our eyes and look around, and find a new song of praise to sing to Him.
As believers, we know that God is great and awesome, and that He has done marvelous things, both in our own lives and that of the world at large. When we truly realize this, we can’t help but tell others (vs. 2-3). When we witness to others with a heart filled with praise for what He has done for us, others are much more likely to respond. A praise-filled witness or testimony is so much more effective than a ho-hum, dreary witness. Who wants to hear that? We have good news to proclaim! If I have some really good news that I want to share with you, won’t I be excited? If I have found a great treasure, something wonderful, I will want to share it with you. The fact that God has saved my soul, delivered me from the power of sin, and promised me a home in heaven, is very good news, and one that should be shared joyously with everyone.
As we continue on in our psalm the psalmist proclaims that the Lord God is greater than any of the false, pagan gods of the neighboring lands (vs. 4 - 5). These gods did not really exist, except in the minds of those who worshipped them, but nonetheless, the psalmist proclaims that Yahweh is greater than any of these false, pagan gods. They are nothing but idols, just pieces of carved wood or stone, but Yahweh made all of heaven and earth.
Yahweh is a holy God, and thus He is worthy of all honor, majesty, glory, and worship from His children (vs. 6 - 9). This is His due, as verse 8 declares. Yes, He is a holy God, one that should be feared, treated with respect and awe. The people of the earth, especially those who do not worship or serve Him, should tremble. He is not one to be treated as something of little worth or respect.
In verses 11 and 12 we read of the heavens and earth giving the Lord praise. He is their Creator, and they know to bring Him glory. Have you ever stood by the ocean’s shore and listened to the crashing waves? This psalmist must have at some time, and pictures it as roaring its praise to God. The fields and trees of the woods also sign their praise to Him. Many of the people of the world may not do sing His praise, but creation does.
Finally, in closing our psalm, the writer gives a reminder to his readers that the Lord God is coming one day to judge the world (vs. 10, 13). This will be a righteous judgment, one where all of those who have not put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, will be judged. Those who have mocked God and treated their fellow men with scorn and abuse may think that they can do as they chose and never come to any reckoning, but they are making a foolish mistake. The Lord is coming one day, and He promises to make all right, judging in truth and righteousness.
Very good, Sarah! Point well taken about stale praying same words over and over. As wonderful as the Lord's Prayer is, it is often just recited and so are many mealtime or bedtime prayers. We indeed need to sing a new song and say a new prayer.
ReplyDeleteThanks again for your blog and for your prayer lists and comments on UR.
I agree that keeping things fresh and new help keep the relationship fresh and vibrant.
ReplyDeleteI think that there are also times when we can rely on a memorized prayer, such as the Lord's Prayer to get us started, especially if we are feeling a bit empty ourselves, or if we need the comfort of the familiar, tried and true.
So both are good, in their way.