International Sunday School Lesson - December 14, 2014 Make a Joyful Noise . . . . . . . . . .Psalm 95:1-7a The Psalm 95 that we are discussing today is a song that the Israelites sang as they came together in the temple. The appeal was to worship the Lord through singing and praying. As I was studying this lesson I thought about the fact that singing was created by God for his glory, his honor, and to break chains, lift spirits of his people. Before Lucifer (Satan) fell, he was in charge of the angelic chorus. When he fell, he took this awesome gift of singing and encouraged us as sinners to sing, entertain, show off, and make money off of this awesome gift that God had given him. But because greater is He that is in us, the anointed singers touch hearts and bring joy to the souls of both believers and non-believers! Oh to return to Worship! Psalm 95:1-7 O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. This was a song of triumph! O come was a call to the Israelites to go, shout aloud, sing together unto the LORD! The Jews knew that LORD meant Jehovah, the one true God! Their singing was to be with a loud, joyful noise, as if to sound an alarm to the rock (the Lord), their refuge and their strength, their deliverer, their Savior, their security! I can imagine that when they got to this part about the rock, they must have taken the key up a notch, in high pitch! They knew about the rock Jehovah which is Christ himself, as their source! It was that spiritual rock that their forefathers drank from which followed them through the wilderness and the Red Sea. Paul says that Rock was Christ. He always existed. He is the only God! (I Corin. 10:4). My son gave a message one time that if you can’t stand on the rock, sit on the rock! The Rock is Christ, our Savior, our source! Hallelujah! As believers, we are also commanded to sing and make melody in our hearts to the Lord (Eph 5:19). If I sing, I must sing to the Lord, not to people, not to entertain, not to show off! God forbid. I thought about David when he told the chief of the Levites to appoint singers for the temple (I Chronicles 16:16). Singing should be under the anointing and directed to God, then will souls be delivered and touched through songs. Battles will be won both spiritually, physically and mentally. Look at Jehoshaphat, (2Chronicles 20:22). The enemy was coming against them. At God’s directions, he appointed singers and when they began to sing, the Lord set ambushments against the enemy and they destroyed each other! Singing will be your battle-axe against the enemy anywhere, in the home on the job, wherever! Just sing to the Lord! Glory to God! 2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. This line in the song says they were to come in God’s presence with a spirit of thanks and with a loud noise. It was a time of worship! Singing will break the chains in your life. I thought about Paul and Silas when they got victory through singing and praying! They were in jail! Not complaining, but giving God some glory. They got God’s attention! The Lord sent a great earthquake that shook the prison, the doors were opened and everybody’s chains were broken (Acts 16:25). It doesn’t take a crowd for you to connect with God. And it doesn’t always have to be loud. It’s personal! Just sing and pray! Thank you Jesus! 3 For the LORD is a great God and a great King above all gods. They said Jehovah is great – mighty, powerful, much more than man, high and above all else. They honored him in song as King and royal above all gods (angels, false gods, rulers and magistrates). There were many false gods in Israel at that time. But Israel’s praise was meant to show that none of the other gods meant anything. The Almighty God is King over everything! Surely our God is great and above false gods. I thought about Elijah and the prophets of Baal (false god). The false prophets called on Baal, the false god, from morning till noon, but he didn’t answer. These false prophets prophesied to their false god Baal till the evening sacrifice, but still no answer. But Elijah’s God, Jehovah, answered by fire! When the fire fell, it consumed the wood, the dust, the burnt offering and licked up the water (I Sam. 18:22-38). I also thought about the false wooden god Dagon the people worshipped. He fell upon his face, they set him up again but when they got up the next morning he had fallen again, his head and both palms were cut off, only the stump was left! (ISam.5). False gods are no match for this great God that we serve! Anything that we put before God is an idol to us, and it won’t stand! 4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. 5 The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. In his hand, meaning everything in the deepest part of the earth is under his power and his strength. The whole creation belongs to him. The mountains and the range of hills are all under his power and authority. He created them! Look at the mountains, they remain as they were when he created them. Glory to God! The Israelites sang with a loud voice that all the waters belong to the Lord. He brought forth the seas and oceans. He doesn’t allow them to overflow their borders! What an amazing God! Then he formed (molded or squeezed together) the dry land by his own hands (strength and power). He had no help. It all belongs to him, though man has taken it upon himself to charge thousands of dollars for one to occupy! Everything belongs to God! So what is it that you desire to have! Ask the Lord! It’s his! God has Divine ownership that can overrule man’s decisions. He will open the door when man says no! 6 O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. Now in this part of the song, the Israelites sang come, here meaning enter into God’s presence to worship him and to bow down in prayer before their creator. Most likely they were standing as they sang, but their hearts were centered on bowing before the Lord in humility whether physically or mentally. The song acknowledges Jehovah as their maker, the creator! Christ is our creator and it is in him that we live and move and have our being! Whether we kneel, bow or stand or recline, we are to do so in humility. I can recall when I was too sick to stand, couldn’t kneel, but I prayed in my heart and got in his presence. He’s not limited to a certain posture to reach him. I could kneel from sun up to sun down, but if my heart is not right, all of my kneeling is in vain. Oh to worship him in spirit and in truth! Glory to God! 7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. As they sang this line, they shouted that the Lord, Jehovah is their God! They knew Jehovah would care for them and provide, feed them. They were the people of his pasture and He would lead them like sheep as their Shepherd. The words of the song seem to push one’s faith to a higher level that no matter what happened, they knew Jehovah would care for them! Oh to put our singing into action! As Israel sang this song of praise to God, we too can sing it and add to it that we are his people, a peculiar treasure, and a chosen generation, zealous of good works for his glory! He is our Savior, our Redeemer! Yes He is! We are his sheep; he provides all of our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus! Oh let us Worship him in song! God help me not to just enjoy singing or the singer alone, but when I hear singing to focus on you, so that I may glean moments of Worship in your presence Lord! https://youtube/watch?v=LjIXX6OxSzI
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 02:44:37 +0000
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