A Message For All Peoples
Psalms 96
January 31, 2021
Tonight is the final service we are having in what is traditionally our “Missions Month” here at church.
• I realize that this year, aside from a few videos and the offerings, we really didn’t take a close focus into missions.
• In all honesty, I could not bring myself to put Luke’s gospel and this message of the cross on hold for a month.
However tonight, as God’s providence would have it,
We do get one final study that is very missional in focus.
Tonight we study the 96th Psalm.
Certainly it is a Psalm bent on worshiping God as God deserves.
• (3x) “Sing to the LORD”
• (3x) “Ascribe to the LORD”
• “Worship the LORD”
The song recognizes
• (2) “His salvation”
• (3) “His glory”
• (3) “His wonderful deeds”
• (4) that He is “great”
• (6) His “splendor and majesty…strength and beauty”
• (10, 13) His judgement
And such messages are quite common in these songs of praise
Which we frequently read in the Psalms.
But more than anything Psalms 96 is a song for EVANGELISM
• (3) “Tell of His glory AMONG THE NATIONS, His wonderful deeds AMONG ALL THE PEOPLES.”
• (7) “Ascribe to the LORD, O FAMILIES OF THE PEOPLES”
• (10) “SAY AMONG THE NATIONS, “The LORD reigns”
There is a clear message included in this Psalm that
The truths celebrated here are not just for the congregation,
But are the very truths which are to be published to the world.
We might say that this Psalm provides us with a blueprint of sorts
For the message that we are to proclaim to the world.
The truths contained here are truths that the entire world needs to hear.
It is a song of evangelism.
(Not necessarily a song sung to the lost, but rather a song sung among the saved reminding them of the message they should be proclaiming to the lost)
Another unique aspect of this Psalms
Was a historical point in which it was sung.
TURN TO: 1 CHRONICLES 16
• This is the occasion for when David brought the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem.
• It was a great celebration in which David appointed several men to sing and play instruments as the ark was brought up.
Now the complete song listed is in verses 8-36,
But I want you to pay special attention to verses 23-33.
(READ 23-33)
Clearly Psalms 96 was one of the songs that was sung on that day.
(The rest of the song is excerpts from Psalms 105 & 106)
WHY THAT IS INTERESTING IS BECAUSE
Here you have the children of Israel establishing God’s presence in the city which God chose.
• God is on this day moving into Jerusalem.
• This will be His city forever.
• This is where His throne will be forever.
• When Christ returns, this is where He will reign.
And as God’s presence enters the city,
The song that was sung was a song of declaration to the world
That this was the true God and He will reign here forever.
IN SHORT, THE MOVING UP OF THE ARK INTO JERUSALEM
Was a precursor to the Second Coming of Christ.
God was now setting up His permanent residence
From where He would one day judge the world.
And part of the message of that day was that
While the celebration here is good, and the rejoicing here is fitting,
THIS EVENT IS ULTIMATELY TOO SMALL.
The WHOLE EARTH needs to be in on this…
ALL PEOPLES should be joining in this worship…
And indeed when Christ returns they will, for
“every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”
So perhaps that provides you with a little CONTEXT to this Psalm
And gives you a GREATER UNDERSTANDING of what we are studying.
Now in that, we will divide this Psalm up in to 4 points.
It would simply be 4 points that we should remember that the world needs to hear.
Consider this Psalm an encouragement to you and to me
Regarding what our message to this world should contain.
Call it an Old Testament gospel message…
Call it Israel’s evangelism training…
I simply call it “A Message For All Peoples”
4 points
#1 ANNOUNCE HIS SALVATION
Psalms 96:1-2
The only 3 lines that are listed in Psalms 96,
Which are not in 1 Chronicles 16 are the first 3.
“Sing to the LORD a new song; Sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, bless His name;”
It is an obvious call for singing.
• It is a song to for everyone.
• It is a song meant to bless God.
• And it is encouraged to be “new”
“New” here DOESN’T necessarily mean that
You should write new lyrics or compose a new musical score,
Though there is certainly nothing wrong with that.
Rather, it means to sing it a new.
• Sing it again.
• Start another one!
• Don’t simply rely on the fact that you sang last week.
God’s mercies are new every morning,
And so should your song be as well.
• Sing it again!
• Everyone sing it! (“all the earth”)
• Sing it to bless Him!
Angels before the throne never tire of singing His praise.
“Day and night they do not cease to say, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy’”
And while we will never achieve such consistency in this weakened flesh,
It should certainly be our aspiration.
Sing-Sing-Sing
And the Psalmist adds for us THE SUBJECT OF THE SONG.
“Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day.”
Now we get to the evangelistic part.
Here the singing is for the purpose of
Announcing the greatness of God’s salvation.
“Proclaim good tidings” is one word in the Hebrew: BASAR (ba-sare)
It means “to gladden with good news” or “to preach good news”
It is what the angels did to the lowly shepherds:
Luke 2:10-11 “But the angel said to them, ” Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
The good news of the angel was that a Savior has been born.
And this is the same good news that the Psalmist is calling
For the congregation to sing and publish to the world.
“Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day”
Tell the world of His salvation!
We might say, PROCLAIM THE GOSPEL EVERY DAY!
You know the hymn by Priscilla Owens:
We have heard the joyful sound: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Spread the tidings all around: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Bear the news to every land, Climb the mountains, cross the waves;
Onward! ’tis our Lord’s command; Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Waft it on the rolling tide: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Tell to sinners far and wide: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Sing, you islands of the sea; Echo back, you ocean caves;
Earth shall keep her jubilee: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Sing above the battle strife: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
By His death and endless life Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Shout it brightly through the gloom, When the heart for mercy craves;
Sing in triumph o’er the tomb: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Give the winds a mighty voice: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Let the nations now rejoice: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
Shout salvation full and free; Highest hills and deepest caves;
This our song of victory: Jesus saves! Jesus saves!
It is the message of the church above every other message.
“Our God does what no other God does.”
Our God saves sinners!
Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
No other god does that.
• Imagine the grief of being born in Islam only to believe that regardless of your efforts, when you die there is no assurance whatsoever that you will be saved.
• Imagine the horror of the Hindu religion to know that you can spend your entire life seeking to appease your deity and may never accomplish it.
The gods of the nations are moody and petty and angry and vindictive.
And one thing they are not is forgiving.
It is the message that the world most needs to hear.
It is the message of the gospel.
Our God saves!
When He took on human form and became human,
He came to earth in the form of a Savior.
• We proclaim this Savior.
• We proclaim the person and work of Jesus.
• We talk of His obedience to fulfill the Law
• We talk of His submission to death for our sin
• We talk of His victory over the grave
• We talk of His work as our great high priest
And we are called to talk of it “day to day”.
Sing this song of the gospel every day!
Sing this song of the gospel to a world that needs to hear!
Titus 2:11-15 “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you.”
Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
You know the texts.
This is the song we are to sing to the world.
Isn’t it amazing that on the day that the Ark was carried into Jerusalem.
The message which was proclaimed to the world
Is that our God is a saving God.
“Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day”
Announce His salvation
#2 AFFIRM HIS GREATNESS
Psalms 96:3-6
The gospel message continues in verse 3.
• “Tell of His glory among the nations (who He is)
• His wonderful deeds among all the peoples” (what He has done)
We always say that the gospel is defined in this way.
It is the “Person and Work of Jesus”
And the Psalmist reminds us to declare that to the world.
But here it is NOT JUST that they may be saved.
Here we are called to proclaim the gospel
Because He deserves to have His person and work proclaimed.
(4) “For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.”
At times it is given as a peculiar excuse.
Men will abstain from sharing the gospel
Under the premise that the sinner won’t respond.
But listen, the salvation of the sinner is only part of the reason
We are called to proclaim the gospel.
We are also called to proclaim the gospel for the glory of God.
We boast of the Person of Christ because He is worth boasting about.
We boast of the Work of Christ because His work is worth boasting about.
It’s really not about whether or not they respond,
It’s about whether or not we proclaim it.
Who He is and what He is done should not be kept a secret.
It should be published, it should be proclaimed, it should be broadcasted,
If for no other reason than for His glory.
He deserves praise from all of His creation.
That was part of the point of them singing while bringing up the ark.
• It was a huge celebration and yet it fell far short of what God actually deserved.
• Are we to assume that if cram 300 people in this building and sing at the top of our lungs that it is a worship service worthy of His glory?
• What if we fill our football stadium? What if we put the entire 1200 people of Spur, Texas in that stadium and sing with all we’ve got, is that big enough for His glory?
Of course not!
We read where this is headed:
Revelation 7:9-12 “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”
That’s more like it.
We go out and proclaim this message
Because our great God deserves for it to be proclaimed.
You don’t have any problem bragging on your kid’s achievements…
Jesus deserves for His work to proclaimed everywhere.
His greatness must be declared.
AND THIS IS THE MESSAGE TO THE WORLD.
We proclaim His greatness
Because their gods do not compare in any way to Him.
In fact the Psalmist said that our God “is to be feared above all gods”
He is to be held in awe above them all.
No god should captivate you like our God.
(5-6) “For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the LORD made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before Him, Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.”
I love that statement.
“For all the gods of the peoples are idols…”
• That is to say they are all imposters
• They are all usurpers
• They are all “wanna-bes”
• They are frauds; they are phonies
They’ve never done anything in their life, in fact they aren’t even alive,
But our God “made the heavens”
Speaking to idols, God says:
Isaiah 41:21-24 “Present your case,” the LORD says. “Bring forward your strong arguments,” The King of Jacob says. Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place; As for the former events, declare what they were, That we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming; Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that you are gods; Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and fear together. Behold, you are of no account, And your work amounts to nothing; He who chooses you is an abomination.”
Psalms 115:3-8 “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, The work of man’s hands. They have mouths, but they cannot speak; They have eyes, but they cannot see; They have ears, but they cannot hear; They have noses, but they cannot smell; They have hands, but they cannot feel; They have feet, but they cannot walk; They cannot make a sound with their throat. Those who make them will become like them, Everyone who trusts in them.”
I did a simple internet search where I am told that
• Of the 7.8 billion people in the world
• 1.7 billion claim to be Muslim.
• 1.2 billion people are Hindu.
• 500 million are Buddhist.
Now just on those numbers alone that means that 43% of the world wakes up in the morning and gives glory to and fears a god that does not exist.
And that doesn’t even take into account lesser religions or those who claim atheism.
The point is simple.
The world needs to hear about the greatness of our God.
The world needs to hear about who He is and what He has done.
In what news I’ve watched or listened to in the past months there are a few terms or words that continue to pop up. Words like “Propaganda” or “Gas lighting” or “Psy-op”
• Well I’m telling you that half the world is a victim of propaganda.
• Half the world has been gas-lighted
• Half the world is falling for a psy-op
They are worshiping a god that does not exist
And they do not know about the greatness of our God.
THE WORLD MUST KNOW.
“Splendor and majesty are before Him, Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.”
• These are defining characteristics that are unique only to Him.
• No other god has splendor or majesty
• No other god has strength or beauty
• Those things are unique to Him and Him alone.
And yet half the world does not know Him.
Which is why the Psalmist says “Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples. For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.”
Isaiah 43:11-13 “I, even I, am the LORD, And there is no savior besides Me. “It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,” declares the LORD, “And I am God. “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
Announce His salvation, Affirm His greatness
#3 ASCRIBE HIM GLORY
Psalms 96:7-9
You clearly see the call to “Ascribe”
It means “to give” or “to provide”
Especially that which is deserved and due.
And it reminds us here that this One true God
Who alone is the savior of the world
Also has requirements for the mankind He created.
God created mankind to worship Him.
Those who refuse incur His wrath and are judged.
Romans 1:18-21 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”
Our world DOESN’T JUST need to know that
God alone saves and that God alone is real.
Our world also NEEDS TO KNOW that a failure to give honor and glory to the God who created them will cause them to incur His wrath.
Our job is to call the world to worship the Lord and worship Him properly.
• “Ascribe to the LORD, O families of the peoples” (that is everyone)
• “Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength”
• “Ascribe to the LORD the glory of His name”
It is time for all peoples to worship God as God deserves to be worshiped.
What does that look like?
(8b) “Bring an offering and come into His courts.”
Make no mistake, God requires an offering.
God requires a sacrifice.
• Now, you know, and we have talked about the many verses where God indicates that it is not the blood of goats and bulls that He requires.
• Those things were merely a symbol of the coming sacrifice of Christ.
• And so yes, in one sense we understand that when Christ presented Himself to God, He did so on our behalf and in many ways there is no other offering that needs to be presented.
If you’re following along in our Hebrews devotion,
This is what Hebrews 9 and 10 is all about.
Christ offered that one perfect and sufficient sacrifice to God.
BUT LISTEN, the “offering” referred to here is not just one of atonement.
It is also one of TRIBUTE, and we never stop bringing that.
Psalms 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.”
Romans 12:1 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”
Even the writer of Hebrews who went to such great detail to make sure we understand that Christ was our one sufficient sacrifice to God ENDED HIS BOOK BY SAYING THIS:
Hebrews 13:15-16 “Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”
We understand that while Christ alone atones for our sin,
Our great God still deserves a great tribute from us.
• We bring Him offerings for the work of His kingdom…
• We bring Him songs of praise…
• We bring Him generous and grateful hearts…
• We present our bodies as living and holy sacrifices…
The world is certainly called to understand this.
Micah 6:6-8 “What God Requires of Man With what shall I come to the LORD And bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, With yearling calves? Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, In ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?”
There is a lost world that needs to hear this.
• You watch those Muslims on their knees bowing during times of prayer convinced that this is what god requires…
• You watch Hindus struggling under the cast system for fear of offending the god who put them their…
• You watch them cramming food in the mouth of their carved idol to feed their deity…
THEY HAVE NO CLUE what the God who created them desires from them.
We are called to show them so that they may give what He desires.
(9) “Worship the LORD in holy attire; Tremble before Him, all the earth.”
You know that garments represent character.
God demands holiness.
Certainly we find this only in Christ.
• And a religious world following Mormonism or Jehovah’s Witness who assume that their own righteous garments are good enough must be told otherwise.
Remember the parable of the wedding banquet?
Remember that one man who snuck in their without wedding clothes?
Matthew 22:11-14 “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ “For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Certainly we understand that
We only approach God clothed in the righteousness of Christ
And with the humility that He requires as we bring our tribute.
There is a lost world which does not grasp this and they must be told.
Announce His salvation, Affirm His greatness, Ascribe Him glory
#4 ANTICIPATE HIS COMING
Psalms 96:10-13
This is also a message that the world needs to hear.
Matthew 16:27 “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”
Matthew 3:12 “His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
We are called to remind a sinful and rebellious world that
• Despite their current wickedness,
• Despite the fact that their sin seems unnoticed.
The God who created them has not abdicated the throne.
He reigns and soon He will judge.
(10) “Say among the nations, “The LORD reigns; Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity.”
Christ will return and He will return for judgment.
Every man will be judged and our world must hear that.
This message is pure delight to all who hate sin and long for a righteous land.
(11-13a) “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; Let the sea roar, and all it contains; Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy, Before the LORD, for He is coming,”
Paul said:
Romans 8:19-22 “For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly 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 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.”
• Creation remembers life before sin.
• Creation remembers life before the fall.
• My how frustrated creation must be having been forced to endure this evil
administration of Satan who is the god of this world.
And we too, after our redemption…
We too are awakened to the filth of our current prison.
That is why Paul went on to say:
Romans 8:23 “And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.”
• We used to love this world.
• We used to be knee deep in the corruption.
• We used to enjoy the sin that permeated it.
And then we were awakened!
Then we were filled with the Spirit of God!
And we joined in the groan of creation.
We also began to long for “a better country”,
A land “where righteousness dwells”.
And that land is coming.
“for He is coming”
“For He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His faithfulness.”
Isaiah 11:1-5 “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.”
That is the land we wait for!
But, just as we long for it, we must lift up our eyes and recognize
That the world is not ready for that day.
If Christ were to return today, there is a massive amount of humanity
That would be swept up in the judgment.
They must be warned.
And this is why we are here.
• We are here to ANNOUNCE HIS SALVATION
• We are here to AFFIRM HIS GREATNESS
• We are here to ASCRIBE HIM GLORY
• We are here to ANTICIPATE HIS COMING
As the children of Israel moved the Ark into Jerusalem,
• They could see with their mind’s eye a better day.
• They could see the day when Christ would return and set up permanent
dwelling upon the earth.
And so as they rejoiced they encouraged the people
That the truths about our great God must be proclaimed to the world.
This is a message for all peoples.
