Psalm 98:4–6
Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth;
break forth into joyous song and sing praises!
Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre,
with the lyre and the sound of melody!
With trumpets and the sound of the horn
make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!
The Jews have a legend that when Abraham started on his journeys he saw the stars in the heavens and said, “I will worship the stars.” But ere long the stars set. Then Abraham saw the constellations—the Pleiades and the rest of them—and he said, “I will worship the constellations.” But the constellations also set. Then Abraham saw the moon sailing high in the heavens and he said, “I will worship the moon.” But the moon also vanished when her season was over.
Then Abraham saw the sun in all his majesty, coming out of his chamber like a bridegroom and rejoicing as a strong man to run a race. But when the day was spent, he saw the sun sink on the western horizon. Stars, constellations, moon, and sun—all were unworthy of his worship, for all had set and all had disappeared. Then Abraham said, I will worship God, for he abides forever.”
God alone is worthy of your worship, whatever else you worship—ambition, money, appetite, beauty, affections, friends—all of them, one by one, like the heavenly bodies, set and disappear. But God remains. Jesus Christ remains. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Give him first place in your life. Give him your devotion, your strength, and your love.
Likewise this psalm calls the church, the nations, and nature to worship God because he is the Savior, the King, and the Judge. Every creature is summoned to worship the God over all creation.
The first three verses of this Psalm show us that God is the savior of the church. In verses 4-6, the psalmist turns from God’s people to the unbelieving nations and commands them to worship the true God. This is what Ed Clowney, former president of Westminster Seminary, calls “doxological evangelism.” The idea is that as we worship with enthusiasm and energy and with a sense of expectation, others will be attracted to God’s reality, be reconciled to him, and begin to worship alongside us. There are a couple of strategies here for worship that will point unbelievers to a God worthy of worship.
The first is what C.S. Lewis calls “gusto.” If unbelievers are going to be encouraged to join us in worship, they must see that we enjoy worship. As we have seen already, the saints of the Old Testament worshipped energetically, even loudly. If you were to look at a passage like 2 Chronicles 29:25-30 you would see that there was a lot of noise made in a worship service.
In fact, in Ezekiel 3:10-13, we are told that the shouts of the people could be heard far away. In the early church, Tertullian said that the corporate “amen” was like a “thunderclap.” And John Wesley urged his Methodists: “Sing lustily, and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead or asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sang the songs of Satan.”[1]
Sing to the top of your voice, participate in the corporate readings and amens with all of your might, smile when you are happy, let your tears flow in joy or repentance, raise your hands in prayer or to receive the benediction. Let unbelievers know that God is desirable in worship.
The other strategy for doxological evangelism noted here is the presentation of the greatness of God. In these verses he is represented as God, that is the Creator, Lord, that is sovereign covenant maker, and the King. We must make sure that in worship this God is not minimized, lest he be disrespected.
Then Abraham saw the sun in all his majesty, coming out of his chamber like a bridegroom and rejoicing as a strong man to run a race. But when the day was spent, he saw the sun sink on the western horizon. Stars, constellations, moon, and sun—all were unworthy of his worship, for all had set and all had disappeared. Then Abraham said, I will worship God, for he abides forever.”
God alone is worthy of your worship, whatever else you worship—ambition, money, appetite, beauty, affections, friends—all of them, one by one, like the heavenly bodies, set and disappear. But God remains. Jesus Christ remains. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Give him first place in your life. Give him your devotion, your strength, and your love.
Likewise this psalm calls the church, the nations, and nature to worship God because he is the Savior, the King, and the Judge. Every creature is summoned to worship the God over all creation.
The first three verses of this Psalm show us that God is the savior of the church. In verses 4-6, the psalmist turns from God’s people to the unbelieving nations and commands them to worship the true God. This is what Ed Clowney, former president of Westminster Seminary, calls “doxological evangelism.” The idea is that as we worship with enthusiasm and energy and with a sense of expectation, others will be attracted to God’s reality, be reconciled to him, and begin to worship alongside us. There are a couple of strategies here for worship that will point unbelievers to a God worthy of worship.
The first is what C.S. Lewis calls “gusto.” If unbelievers are going to be encouraged to join us in worship, they must see that we enjoy worship. As we have seen already, the saints of the Old Testament worshipped energetically, even loudly. If you were to look at a passage like 2 Chronicles 29:25-30 you would see that there was a lot of noise made in a worship service.
In fact, in Ezekiel 3:10-13, we are told that the shouts of the people could be heard far away. In the early church, Tertullian said that the corporate “amen” was like a “thunderclap.” And John Wesley urged his Methodists: “Sing lustily, and with good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead or asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sang the songs of Satan.”[1]
Sing to the top of your voice, participate in the corporate readings and amens with all of your might, smile when you are happy, let your tears flow in joy or repentance, raise your hands in prayer or to receive the benediction. Let unbelievers know that God is desirable in worship.
The other strategy for doxological evangelism noted here is the presentation of the greatness of God. In these verses he is represented as God, that is the Creator, Lord, that is sovereign covenant maker, and the King. We must make sure that in worship this God is not minimized, lest he be disrespected.
[1] Spurgeon’s Treasury, s.v. 98, p.212