Title: A Call to Worship
Bible Book: Psalms 148 : 1-14
Author: Franklin L. Kirksey
Subject: Worship
Objective:
Introduction
A call to worship is an important element in the assembling of ourselves together as believers on the Lord’s Day. Dr. Mark D. Roberts explains, “If we want to worship God with vigor, we ought not to rev something up in our hearts. Rather, we need to focus on who God is and what he has done. Most of all, we bring to mind God's revelation and salvation in Jesus Christ, the Word of God Incarnate. The more we reflect upon Christ, the more we will be drawn to worship God expansively, offering all our praise and all that we are for his honor and glory.”[1]
Erling C. Olsen (1896-1966) admits, “I am aware that there are those who cannot see the infinite beauties of God’s revelation which are buried in these Psalms.”[2]
Dr. A. C. Dixon (1854-1925), former pastor of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Church, London, England, shares the following, “The Bible unsearched is a mine unworked, the difference between the Klondyke years ago and the Klondyke enriching its industrious owners today. To learn the Word of God requires diligent and persistent searching. A man who died in an English almshouse several years ago gave to his relatives an unproductive piece of land, so worthless that he did not have to pay taxes on it. The relatives searched it, and as a result they are today millionaires. The pauper was rich without knowing it, and he was ignorant of the fact because he did not search his possessions.
Every Christian with the Bible in hand is rich whether he knows it or not.
Let him search and find hidden treasures.”[3]
Evangelist Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899) shares, "A friend of mine told me some years ago that his wife was very fond of painting, but that for a long time he never could see any beauty in her painting; they all looked like a daub to him. One day his eyes troubled him and he went to see an oculist. The man looked in amazement at him and said:
'You have what we call a short eye and a long eye, and that makes everything a blur.' He gave him some glasses that just fitted him, and then he could see clearly. Then, he said, he understood why it was that his wife was so carried away with art, and he built an art gallery, and filled it full of beautiful things, because everything looked so beautiful after he had his eyes straightened out.
Now there are lots of people that have a long eye and a short eye, and they make miserable work of their Christian life. They keep one eye on the eternal city and the other eye on the well-watered plains of Sodom."[4]
Psalm 148 encourages the worship of the living and true God, as it is part of a series of Psalms from 146-150. This psalm which begins and ends with the word Hallelujah (praise the Lord) is a call to worship. The term “praise” appears 13 times in the 14 verses of Psalm 148. Here we find the psalmist summoning heaven and earth to praise the Lord.
From Psalm 148:1-14 we read, “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; / Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; / Praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; / Praise Him, all you stars of light! Praise Him, you heavens of heavens, / And you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord, / For He commanded and they were created. He also established them forever and ever; / He made a decree which shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, / You great sea creatures and all the depths; / Fire and hail, snow and clouds; / Stormy wind, fulfilling His word; / Mountains and all hills; / Fruitful trees and all cedars; / Beasts and all cattle; / Creeping things and flying fowl; / Kings of the earth and all peoples; / Princes and all judges of the earth; / Both young men and maidens; / Old men and children. Let them praise the name of the Lord, / For His name alone is exalted; / His glory is above the earth and heaven. And He has exalted the horn of His people, / The praise of all His saints—Of the children of Israel, / A people near to Him. Praise the Lord!”
Dr. Herbert Lockyer, Sr., shares the following, “A living poem is not to be dissected verse by verse,” says [Rev. Charles Haddon] Spurgeon [1834-1892] in the Preface to this Psalm, although he does give us a remarkable exposition of it verse by verse.”[5]
Allow me to share three calls to worship from our passage.
I. First, the psalmist issues a call to the Lord’s primary palace. (Psalm 148:1-6)
From Psalm 148:1-6 we read, “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; / Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; / Praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; / Praise Him, all you stars of light! Praise Him, you heavens of heavens, / And you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord, / For He commanded and they were created. He also established them forever and ever; / He made a decree which shall not pass away.”
In Isaiah 66:1 the Lord God says, “Heaven is My throne”. From Psalm 11:4a we read, “The Lord is in His holy temple, / The Lord’s throne is in heaven. . .” British biographer and fishing author, Izaak Walton (1593-1683), explains, "God has two dwellings; one in heaven, and the other in a meek and thankful heart."[6]
James Montgomery (1771-1854) published these words in his Sheffield, England, newspaper, the Iris, on Christmas Eve in 1816, “Angels from the realms of glory, / Wing your flight o’er all the earth; / Ye who sang creation’s story / Now proclaim Messiah’s birth.”[7] From Job 38:4-7 we read God’s questioning of Job, “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, / When the morning stars sang together, / And all the sons of God shouted for joy?”
Dr. Henry M. Morris (1918-2006) explains, “Angels are created beings, probably created on the first of the six days of creation.”[8] In Psalm 104:4-5 we read, “He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters, / Who makes the clouds His chariot, / Who walks on the wings of the wind, / Who makes His angels spirits, / His ministers a flame of fire.” Dr. Morris comments, “According to the record here in Psalm 104, the next act after the creation of the space-time cosmos and the establishment of God’s light-arrayed throne therein was the creation of the angels.”[9]
II. Second, the psalmist issues a call to the Lord’s privileged planet. (Psalm 148:7-13)
From Psalm 148:7-13, “Praise the Lord from the earth, / You great sea creatures and all the depths; / Fire and hail, snow and clouds; / Stormy wind, fulfilling His word; / Mountains and all hills; / Fruitful trees and all cedars; / Beasts and all cattle; / Creeping things and flying fowl; / Kings of the earth and all peoples; / Princes and all judges of the earth; / Both young men and maidens; / Old men and children. Let them praise the name of the Lord, / For His name alone is exalted; / His glory is above the earth and heaven.”
In Isaiah 66:1 the Lord God says, “Earth is My footstool”. Dr. Luke writes in Acts 7:44-50, “Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen, which our fathers, having received it in turn, also brought with Joshua into the land possessed by the Gentiles, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers until the days of David, who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling for the God of Jacob. But Solomon built Him a house. ‘However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says: ‘Heaven is My throne, / And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the Lord, / Or what is the place of My rest? Has My hand not made all these things?’”
As we read the first two chapters of the Book of Genesis we discover that humans are the crown of God’s creation on this privileged planet. From Genesis chapter 3 we learn that part of the results of Adam’s sin is the curse of planet earth. Paul the Apostle writes in Romans 8:18-25, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.”
John writes in Revelation 21:1-5, “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’ Then He who sat on the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ And He said to me, ‘Write, for these words are true and faithful.’”
III. Third, the psalmist issues a call to the Lord’s principal people. (Psalm 148:14)
From Psalm 148:14 we read, “And He has exalted the horn of His people, / The praise of all His saints—Of the children of Israel, / A people near to Him. Praise the Lord!”
We read in Psalm 135:4, “For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself, / Israel for His special treasure.” From Exodus 19:5 we read, “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine.” In Deuteronomy 14:2 we read, “For you are a holy people to the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.”
Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:4-10, “Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, / ‘Behold, I lay in Zion / A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, / And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.’ Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, / ‘The stone which the builders rejected / Has become the chief cornerstone,’ / and ‘A stone of stumbling / And a rock of offense.’ They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.”
In Romans nine through eleven we read about Israel’s rejection and the grafting in of the Gentiles. Even though God is using the church today, from these chapters we learn that God is not through with the Jew.
Conclusion
Dr. Ray Pritchard shares the following concept from the aforementioned noted scientist, Dr. Henry Morris, “He notes that the entire universe is trinitarian by design. The universe consists of three things: matter, space, and time. Take away any one of those three and the universe would cease to exist. But each one of those is itself a trinity.
Matter = mass + energy + motion
Space = length + height + breadth
Time = past + present + future
Thus the whole universe witnesses to the character of the God who made it (cf. Psalm 19:1).”[10] From Psalm 19:1 we read, “The heavens declare the glory of God; / And the firmament shows His handiwork.”
Dr. Adam Clarke explains that the psalmist “calls on all creation to praise the Lord.”[11] Psalm 148 provides a call to worship.
[1]Mark D. Roberts, “An Expansive Call to Worship”, September 12, 2010, Available from: http://www.thehighcalling.org/reflection/expansive-call-worship Accessed: 11/26/12
[2]Erling C. Olsen, Meditations in the Book of Psalms, (Neptune: Loizeaux Brothers, 1939, 1985), p. 1022
[3]A. C. Dixon, The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth, Volume 4, “The Scriptures”, Chapter 19, Available from: http://www.ntslibrary.com/PDF%20Books%20II/Torrey%20-%20The%20Fundamentals%204.pdf Accessed: 11/26/12
[4]D. L. Moody, Men of the Bible, "Abraham's Four Surrenders (Chicago: New York: Toronto: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1898), pp. 15-16
[5]Herbert Lockyer, Sr., A Devotional Commentary: Psalms (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1974, 1993),p. 781
[6]Available from: http://www.bibleornot.org/god-has-two-dwellings-do-you-know-where-they-are/ Accessed: 11/27/12
[7]James Montgomery, “Angels From The Realms of Glory” (1816), Available from: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/a/f/afrglory.htm Accessed: 11/27/12
[8]Henry M. Morris, Sampling the Psalms: A Scientific & Devotional Study of Selected Psalms, (El Cajon, CA: Master Books, 1978, 1991), p. 260
[9]Henry M. Morris, Sampling the Psalms: A Scientific & Devotional Study of Selected Psalms, (El Cajon, CA: Master Books, 1978, 1991), p. 76
[10]Ray Pritchard, “God in Three Persons: A Doctrine We Barely Understand”, January 1997, Available from: http://www.keepbelieving.com/sermon/1997-01-12-God-in-Three-Persons-A-Doctrine-We-Barely-Understand/ Accessed: 11/19/12
[11]Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary on The Old Testament, Database © 2004 WORDsearch Corp.
By Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey, pastor First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort 30775 Jay Drive Spanish Fort, Alabama 36527
Author of Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice Available on Amazon.com and WORDsearchbible.com
http://www.wordsearchbible.com/products/Sound_Biblical_Preaching_1476.html
http://www.webspawner.com/users/franklinlkirksey / [email protected] / (251) 626-6210
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