WHEN GOD SANG
“The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing." Zeph.3:17 (NIV)
One guy told this story - Stopped for a routine seatbelt check, my wife and I were asked by the officer if we had our belts on. Then he shone his flashlight into the backseat and asked our six-year-old son Riley, “can you put your hands up, buddy?” As we continued our way, my wife noticed Riley was upset. “What’s wrong?” she asked him. “I thought he was going to SHOOT ME!” (Readers’ Digest, Feb.2005, p.71)
I seems that’s how some think when it comes to worship and praise of God. They think if God shows up, He is going to shoot them or something worse. When and if God shows up, God’s gonna be like a policeman citing all the offenses they have committed. They will be left unglued, totally blown away with shame, disgust. It seems some people get upset at church, or feel like they have to put on a show looking so dead serious, just to see who is more dead serious or spiritual. Ever seen people get really uptight or upset, like 6 year old Riley, especially when told to put their hands up to worship or sing or read the words of God. But go with them to a see something like U2 concert, or Canucks game (why am I bringing up NHL hockey?) or boxing day shopping, they would be cheering and clapping and standing up with no complaints, having a good old time. Is there something wrong with this picture?
Let me ask do you think God wants a funeral or a celebration when you show up for worship? As you think about it, let us review what an ancient book of worship instruction says,
But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Psalm 5:11
You have made [ Or You will make ] known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Ps.16:11
Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy. Ps.33:3
Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Ps.66:1
Sing for joy to God our strength; shout aloud to the God of Jacob! Ps.81:1
Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD ; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation Ps.95:1
Now that’s just a small sample… if I were to take the time to read to you all the instructions to clap, shout, sing, play music instruments, this message would take several hours to complete. Just to add balance let’s see the instruction in the New Test.
The New Testament also agrees with the Old. It also spells out clearly that it is God’s will for us, who are believers, to come joyfully in celebration…
Read with me 1 Thess.5:16-18:
16Be joyful always; 17pray continually; 18give thanks in all circumstances, for this is GOD’S WILL FOR YOU in Christ Jesus.
Does the Bible tell us that God wants to shoot us, or to have sad droopy faces or to spread joylessness as if there is no good news about Christ? Many folks want to find God’s will for their lives… Well, hello??? Here it is… written and spelt out for us.
I am not speaking here. These here are not my words. The Bible says in Philippians 4:4-7
4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Once again we receive instruction to get the celebration of God to be a complete package in our lives.
How do you do this celebration especially given the fact that life has a way to really get us down, bored, and just routine blahs?
A. Change the picture
Song that has touched my heart written by Benny Hester…
Almighty God, the great I am
Immovable rock, omnipotent, powerful, awesome Lord
Victorious warrior, commanding King of Kings
Mighty conqueror, and the only time
the only time I ever saw Him run
CHORUS:
Was when He ran to me, He took me in His arms
Held my head to His chest, said “My son’s come home again”
Lifted my face, wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice He said,
“Son do you know I still love you?”
He caught me by surprise when God ran
The day I left home I knew I’d broken His heart
And I wondered then if things could ever be the same
Then one night I remembered His love for me
And down that dusty road ahead I could see
It was the only time – it was the only time I ever saw Him run
And then He ran to me, He took me in His arms
Held my head to His chest, said “My son’s come home again”
Lifted my face, wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice He said,
“Son do you know I still love you?”
He caught me by surprise as He brought me to my knees
When God ran – I saw Him run to me
BRIDGE:
I was so ashamed, all alone and so far away
But now I know He’s been waiting for this day
I saw Him run to me, He took me in His arms
Held my head to His chest, said “My son’s come home again”
Lifted my face, wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice I felt His love for me again
He ran to me, He took me in His arms
Held my head to His chest, said “My son’s come home again”
Lifted my face, wiped the tears from my eyes
With forgiveness in His voice He said, “Son”, He called me Son
He said, “Son do you know I still love you?”
He ran to me and then I ran to Him
When God ran
Here with a God who runs to us… Look at how He ran… Look at Jesus, it was Jesus who told us the story in Lk.15 Lost sheep, Lost coin, lost son… all of them story of a search for precious lost items… when items found, there was joy, with a blow-out party… Jesus gave us a picture here that God is just running for us.
Prophecy from OT, picture is given of how God really feels, how God really wants to treat us, how He is just so please to have us in His arms…
“The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing." Zeph.3:17 (NIV)
Change the picture you have of God - if it is a picture of a distant father, uninvolved, uncaring, abusive, who seem to have set his sights on you to make sure you stay miserable, bored that you want to end your life going on suicide pact with others on the internet. Change the picture, there is God, who loves you and sent Jesus, to find you and bring you home that He may sing over you, delighting, quieting you with His love. That’s what the cross is for He died for all our sins, yours and mine! Change the picture…
Colossians 3:2 (NLT) “Let heaven FILL your THOUGHTS. Do not think only about things down here on earth.”
Meditate on the heavenly picture of God singing over you! Let this thought dominate, just bring you to your knees. So that nothing corrupt enters in. If anything corrupt does enter in, time to fess up, time to get clean with a God who is mighty to save, takes great delight in you, come back home. Picture this God jumping up and down, saying oh yeah, throwing a party with you as the guest of honor. Let this picture of heaven be in you.
2. Live Out Loud.
Shout the praise of God. Psalms is filled with that command.
I remember once how I shouted at my son’s basketball game, what I thought to be encouragement to my son “get aggressive” and it backfired, threw him off his game. He misunderstood my intention, and thought I was angry or something. But I couldn’t be prouder. I think God, unlike my son, can understand when we shout to Him in praise. He knows we are not angry, or just making a mockery of Him but just delirious with joy. We are responding to God’s “My son’s come home again.” That God would love, forgive and welcome me… that God would sing for me. Isn’t that something to celebrate or shout for? It is not a blasphemous act, nor a crazy thing, nor an unChristian thing to do, to live out loud. For God surely lives out loud for us. How loud is that love of God? The Bible says nothing can separate us from His love…
God sees right through the inner most being, my intentions, my hidden motives, when we come with joy before Him. In fact that’s how I come to know God, through the joyous praise of His people. Their songs of joy got me to come to church. Heard many testimonies of how God used songs to draw people to Him.
3. Come with your heart.
What’s tomorrow about? What wife would be moved, if a husband says it is merely his duty to give her flowers and chocolates on every Valentine’s Day? What wife would be moved with these words, “hey yo wife, here’s the flowers and don’t get fat on the chocolates.” Then, and go plop right in front on the TV and do channel surfing, you think that’s gonna do wonders for the relationship?
However if, the husband were to woo her with love, being gentle affectionate, whispering passionately words “I love you” performing tasks with joy for her, will she feel loved?
Lip-synching is not worship/praise of God.
Mark 7:1-7 (NLT)
One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to confront Jesus. 2 They noticed that some of Jesus’ disciples failed to follow the usual Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating. 3 (The Jews, especially the Pharisees, do not eat until they have poured water over their cupped hands, as required by their ancient traditions. 4 Similarly, they eat nothing bought from the market unless they have immersed their hands in water. This is but one of many traditions they have clung to—such as their ceremony of washing cups, pitchers, and kettles.) 5 So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked him, “Why don’t your disciples follow our age-old customs? For they eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony.”
6 Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was prophesying about you when he said,
7 ‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far away.
Their worship is a farce,
for they replace God’s commands with their own man-made teachings.’
I trust that it is loud and clear that God wants authentic worship that comes from within, not a farce, not religious fluff, not unthinkingly uncritically following traditions, going through the motions, moving the lips and meanwhile the heart is far away. Just doing the duty is not what God is after… here we have Jesus telling the religious folk of his day, the traditionalist, the keepers of the law, law abiding not getting into trouble, decent folk, the conservative religious right, they have got it all wrong. They have not known the picture of when God sang His song of love. It is not about age old customs, handwashing or any man made rules.
I have to confess there were times when I worship on Sundays, the heart is far away. Thinking of other things, like who won the Stanley Cup playoffs, are the NY Yankees going to win the World Series again, who’s that girl with the cute freckles…
That is why we need to come back to Jesus, the bearer of Good news and rejoice that He forgives us. That He proclaims to the thief who hung on with Him “today you will be with me in paradise.” God’s accounting book you have to remember is an auditor’s nightmare. It seemly says… debt erased. All paid up in the blood of Christ. We gotta have our hearts checked by Christ, let every day be filled with prayer… Lord have mercy on me a sinner.
There was a guy who was just beside himself, cuz he kept sinning. He wanted to perfect. So he prayed “God I want to be perfect,” God smiled and said “My son, if I did that, you won’t need me anymore.”
Today are you bogged down with some nebulous cloud hanging over you? Or is God singing over you? Do you see God jumping up and down or are you uptight, upset, having the wrong idea that God wants us to be bored, beset with rules, fearful of being shot by the policeman of heaven? are you rejoicing in the Lord, responding to God’s word who sings over you and So today change the picture, live out loud and come with your heart! Why? Simply because God sang.
