Praise to the Lord the Almigfhty the King of Creation. The Lord blessed us with a full weekend of worship, fellowship, and praise. We all joined for a special birthday celebrations for one of our teens, Audrey, after the second service. Praise the Lord for the way He gives us ample reasons to celebrate His grace and His mercies.
One of the hymns we sang yesterday was “How Great Thou Art.” In it we sing about some of the sublime features of God’s creation. We sing of worlds, of stars, and of rolling thunder; of woods and forest glades and the sweet singing of birds; of lofty mountains grandeur, of the sound of the brook and the feel of gentle breezes. We praise and adore God because of the greatness of God implied in these things.
The theme of this hymn is a biblical theme. There is a theme in scripture that the natural world displays the majesty and glory of the spiritual God who created it.
For example, one Psalm speaks of how the heavens, with sun and stars, “declare the glory of God.” We see the majesty of God in his natural works, and cry, “How Great Thou Art!”
Scripture is very specific in its observation of the phenomena of nature, sometimes focusing on the Storm -- the “rolling thunder” of the beloved hymn.
The theme of this hymn is a biblical theme. There is a theme in scripture that the natural world displays the majesty and glory of the spiritual God who created it.
For example, one Psalm speaks of how the heavens, with sun and stars, “declare the glory of God.” We see the majesty of God in his natural works, and cry, “How Great Thou Art!”
Scripture is very specific in its observation of the phenomena of nature, sometimes focusing on the Storm -- the “rolling thunder” of the beloved hymn.
Last night Alice and I walked for over 4 miles under brilliant moon light, pondering about the majesty and splendor of the Lord.
One of the readings for yesterday was taken from Psalm 29. Seven times the Psalm speaks of “the voice of the Lord.” “The voice of the Lord,” however, is plainly referring to thunder. The Psalmist heard the voice of his God in the thunder and lightning of a mighty storm.
The common belief in times past was that God was the direct cause of thunder and lightning. This has been true of all peoples and all religions. The Psalmist was well-aware of how heathen view the storm, so he took the storm away from their gods to give it back to the One who truly made it. It is not Baal or Jupiter, but it is the voice of Yahweh, the Lord of Israel, the one and only God, that sounds forth in the storm.
This scripture, moves us to hear God’s voice in the thunder. When we speak of the majesty of God, we mean the greatness of God. We mean the yawning gulf that lies between his greatness and our smallness. The voice of a human compared with the voice of thunder, gives us an illustration of the difference between human beings and their Creator. This Psalm reminds us that however available God has made himself to us, because of the work of Jesus his Son, God is not like us. Karl Barth, the Swiss theologian said, "He is Wholly Other ". He is eternal, infinite, and almighty. He is to us as the thunder is.
The Psalmist spoke of the lightning splintering the great cedars of Lebanon, snapping them like toothpicks. There is, however, something else besides fear and trembling. There is also a fascination, even a joy, that we have been in the presence of something so rare and terrible and beautiful. He also spoke of the mountains being made to skip about like colts in a pasture.
Psalm 29 praises the voice of God. Surely it is easy for us to feel the majesty of God’s voice, when we hear it in a great clap of thunder, but this is not the only way God’s voice comes to us. The writer of Hebrews says that God has spoken to us in diverse manners and ways. The scriptures also speak of a time when, once again, we will hear the voice of God, direct and without mediation. We will hear the voice of Christ calling to the dead, “Come forth,” and they will all come. We will hear his voice from the throne of judgment, saying to us either, “Depart from me,” or, “Enter in to the joys of your Lord.” The book of Revelation says that we will hear a voice from God’s throne, which proclaims the dawn of the new eternal day: “Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” (Rev 21:1-4). If it is an experience to hear the voice of God in a thunder clap, what kind of experience will it be to hear his voice, welcoming us to eternity. So then we have this Psalm, which moves us to listen to the thunder of a storm, and hear the voice of God. It moves us to appreciate the majesty of God and the wide gulf that lies between his greatness and our smallness. It focuses our attention on the majesty of his voice, which remains just as majestic wherever and however it may speak.
The most valuable thing for us to consider from the Psalm – as with all the Psalms & all the scriptures of both the Old Testament and the New – is how it preaches Christ to us. When the Psalm speaks of the Voice being in the wilderness, it speaks well of Jesus, when he went to the wilderness to be baptized by John and be tempted by Satan. It was there that the voice thundered from heaven, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
When the Psalm speaks of the Voice being in the mountains, it speaks well of Jesus, sitting before the people, teaching them a sermon on a mountain. We are told that they were amazed at him, because he spoke with a power beyond their experience. It speaks well, too, of Jesus on the mountain of transfiguration, standing there with two older instruments of the voice of God, Moses and Elijah. At that time, a word thundered down, identifying him as the Voice of God. “This is my beloved Son; hear him.” When it speaks of the Voice being over the sea, it speaks well of Christ Jesus, in the boat, as he often was, with his disciples. It speaks of the voice that said to the winds and the waves, “Be still.” The Psalm speaks of what Jesus was in the past, what he is at present, and what he will be in the future.
We see this in the testimony of the New Testament, in regard to what Jesus did after rising from the dead, and sitting down at the right hand of God. There was a sound from heaven like the rushing mighty wind of a storm. There were flames of fire, shining like lighting, on the heads of men. In this way the reign of God’s Messiah was announced and the gospel was first preached. The words of the Psalm were proclaimed: “The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as a king forever.”
The Voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, still sweeps over the earth. It spoke to Saul of Tarsus, and struck him down as he was hit by God’s lightning. Saul was changed forever by that encounter. John heard the voice too, speaking with the sound of mighty waters, exhorting the churches to be faithful in their tribulations.
The voice may not always come so directly but it comes just as powerfully, and just as majestically. Christ Jesus still rumbles and flames across the face of the earth, striking the hearts of men and women. Sometimes, when a storm moves through, afterward things are no different than they were before. At other times things are changed forever. The same is true with Christ, the Voice of God.
One day, the Lord will strike the whole earth, and change things in an absolute, final way. He will bring the present age to an end. When we see and hear a great storm, with its mighty clouds, its terrible thundering and lightning, and its sweeping rain and hail, we are naturally terrified and amazed. When a great bolt of lightning strikes nearby, followed closely by an explosion of thunder, we are struck dumb before it. These majestic forces of nature are symbols of the majesty of God. If we cower in fear or rejoice in fascination at the thunder, how much more when the voice of God speaks!
“Today if you will hear his voice, harden not your heart.” May God grant that you and I, each one of us, obey the Voice of the Lord.
The common belief in times past was that God was the direct cause of thunder and lightning. This has been true of all peoples and all religions. The Psalmist was well-aware of how heathen view the storm, so he took the storm away from their gods to give it back to the One who truly made it. It is not Baal or Jupiter, but it is the voice of Yahweh, the Lord of Israel, the one and only God, that sounds forth in the storm.
This scripture, moves us to hear God’s voice in the thunder. When we speak of the majesty of God, we mean the greatness of God. We mean the yawning gulf that lies between his greatness and our smallness. The voice of a human compared with the voice of thunder, gives us an illustration of the difference between human beings and their Creator. This Psalm reminds us that however available God has made himself to us, because of the work of Jesus his Son, God is not like us. Karl Barth, the Swiss theologian said, "He is Wholly Other ". He is eternal, infinite, and almighty. He is to us as the thunder is.
The Psalmist spoke of the lightning splintering the great cedars of Lebanon, snapping them like toothpicks. There is, however, something else besides fear and trembling. There is also a fascination, even a joy, that we have been in the presence of something so rare and terrible and beautiful. He also spoke of the mountains being made to skip about like colts in a pasture.
Psalm 29 praises the voice of God. Surely it is easy for us to feel the majesty of God’s voice, when we hear it in a great clap of thunder, but this is not the only way God’s voice comes to us. The writer of Hebrews says that God has spoken to us in diverse manners and ways. The scriptures also speak of a time when, once again, we will hear the voice of God, direct and without mediation. We will hear the voice of Christ calling to the dead, “Come forth,” and they will all come. We will hear his voice from the throne of judgment, saying to us either, “Depart from me,” or, “Enter in to the joys of your Lord.” The book of Revelation says that we will hear a voice from God’s throne, which proclaims the dawn of the new eternal day: “Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” (Rev 21:1-4). If it is an experience to hear the voice of God in a thunder clap, what kind of experience will it be to hear his voice, welcoming us to eternity. So then we have this Psalm, which moves us to listen to the thunder of a storm, and hear the voice of God. It moves us to appreciate the majesty of God and the wide gulf that lies between his greatness and our smallness. It focuses our attention on the majesty of his voice, which remains just as majestic wherever and however it may speak.
The most valuable thing for us to consider from the Psalm – as with all the Psalms & all the scriptures of both the Old Testament and the New – is how it preaches Christ to us. When the Psalm speaks of the Voice being in the wilderness, it speaks well of Jesus, when he went to the wilderness to be baptized by John and be tempted by Satan. It was there that the voice thundered from heaven, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
When the Psalm speaks of the Voice being in the mountains, it speaks well of Jesus, sitting before the people, teaching them a sermon on a mountain. We are told that they were amazed at him, because he spoke with a power beyond their experience. It speaks well, too, of Jesus on the mountain of transfiguration, standing there with two older instruments of the voice of God, Moses and Elijah. At that time, a word thundered down, identifying him as the Voice of God. “This is my beloved Son; hear him.” When it speaks of the Voice being over the sea, it speaks well of Christ Jesus, in the boat, as he often was, with his disciples. It speaks of the voice that said to the winds and the waves, “Be still.” The Psalm speaks of what Jesus was in the past, what he is at present, and what he will be in the future.
We see this in the testimony of the New Testament, in regard to what Jesus did after rising from the dead, and sitting down at the right hand of God. There was a sound from heaven like the rushing mighty wind of a storm. There were flames of fire, shining like lighting, on the heads of men. In this way the reign of God’s Messiah was announced and the gospel was first preached. The words of the Psalm were proclaimed: “The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as a king forever.”
The Voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, still sweeps over the earth. It spoke to Saul of Tarsus, and struck him down as he was hit by God’s lightning. Saul was changed forever by that encounter. John heard the voice too, speaking with the sound of mighty waters, exhorting the churches to be faithful in their tribulations.
The voice may not always come so directly but it comes just as powerfully, and just as majestically. Christ Jesus still rumbles and flames across the face of the earth, striking the hearts of men and women. Sometimes, when a storm moves through, afterward things are no different than they were before. At other times things are changed forever. The same is true with Christ, the Voice of God.
One day, the Lord will strike the whole earth, and change things in an absolute, final way. He will bring the present age to an end. When we see and hear a great storm, with its mighty clouds, its terrible thundering and lightning, and its sweeping rain and hail, we are naturally terrified and amazed. When a great bolt of lightning strikes nearby, followed closely by an explosion of thunder, we are struck dumb before it. These majestic forces of nature are symbols of the majesty of God. If we cower in fear or rejoice in fascination at the thunder, how much more when the voice of God speaks!
“Today if you will hear his voice, harden not your heart.” May God grant that you and I, each one of us, obey the Voice of the Lord.
In Christ,
Brown
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Praise and Worship Service
First United Methodist Church, Endicott .
Sponsored by Union Center UMC
6 PM Gathering - Coffee - Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship
Music: Jane Hettinger,
Speaker: Dave Hettinger
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