Psalm 148
Preaching
A Journey Through the Psalms: Reflections for Worried Hearts and Troubled Times
Preaching the Psalms Cycles A, B, C
Object:
Into everyone's life comes a moment of complete abandonment of all the careful boundaries and filters we have put into place. For each person there is a moment of wild joy and unrestricted passion.
For us as a people of faith, these moments come as we abandon ourselves to unqualified praise of the almighty God. In some of our traditions, such abandonment causes discomfort. Passion is not easily controlled. But then, neither is the Holy Spirit.
It is this kind of wild praise that can be felt in this psalm. The call is clear and unambiguous. Praise the Lord! Everyone and everything is called upon to shout out the glory of the creating God! From sea monsters to the elements to topography and back again; all are called upon to enter into the dance of praise.
It is easy to imagine Saint Francis shouting out the words to this psalm as he danced through the forest and claimed a life of simple service and poverty. It is a little less easy to imagine one's pastor in such a paroxysm of praise. It is still harder to imagine oneself stomping and shouting out praises to God.
Yet, it is the call, not merely of this psalm, but of our faith.
God, after all, is God. The great "I AM" (Exodus 3:14). This is the creator God, the one who brings us redemption through (his Son) on this Christmas Day. This is the God who knows each person down to the number of hairs on the scalp. This is the God who loves each one of us just as we are.
If all this is true, which we claim today that it is, how can we do anything but jump and shout our praises? How can there be any other response than this? Let all creation issue forth a chorus of wonder and joy, a cacophony of celebration. How blessed and fortunate we are! For God has done great things for us and given us a Savior, born this day in Bethlehem. And his name is called Jesus.
What else can we do but sing our praises?
What other choice do we have but to set aside our puny agendas and complicated tasks and simply shout to the heavens, "PRAISE THE LORD!"
For us as a people of faith, these moments come as we abandon ourselves to unqualified praise of the almighty God. In some of our traditions, such abandonment causes discomfort. Passion is not easily controlled. But then, neither is the Holy Spirit.
It is this kind of wild praise that can be felt in this psalm. The call is clear and unambiguous. Praise the Lord! Everyone and everything is called upon to shout out the glory of the creating God! From sea monsters to the elements to topography and back again; all are called upon to enter into the dance of praise.
It is easy to imagine Saint Francis shouting out the words to this psalm as he danced through the forest and claimed a life of simple service and poverty. It is a little less easy to imagine one's pastor in such a paroxysm of praise. It is still harder to imagine oneself stomping and shouting out praises to God.
Yet, it is the call, not merely of this psalm, but of our faith.
God, after all, is God. The great "I AM" (Exodus 3:14). This is the creator God, the one who brings us redemption through (his Son) on this Christmas Day. This is the God who knows each person down to the number of hairs on the scalp. This is the God who loves each one of us just as we are.
If all this is true, which we claim today that it is, how can we do anything but jump and shout our praises? How can there be any other response than this? Let all creation issue forth a chorus of wonder and joy, a cacophony of celebration. How blessed and fortunate we are! For God has done great things for us and given us a Savior, born this day in Bethlehem. And his name is called Jesus.
What else can we do but sing our praises?
What other choice do we have but to set aside our puny agendas and complicated tasks and simply shout to the heavens, "PRAISE THE LORD!"
