“It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night, Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound.” —Psalm 92:1-3
If we were to classify this text, it would come under the heading of “worship.” Here it is enjoined upon us and two elements are distinguished which, in fact, are interwoven throughout scripture: thanksgiving and praise. Effective thanksgiving demands reflection upon God’s goodness, and praise requires reflection upon His character. If we are not thinking about God, we are not worshipping.
Both elements noted here are reiterated in the New Testament. Thanksgiving is rooted in the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. and in the New Testament context is rendered through His Name. “Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come. By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name [Heb. 13:12-15].” Those who do not approach God through Christ, whatever their exercise, are not worshipping Him. Remember that Jesus said, “No man cometh unto the Father but by me.” A functional relationship with the Savior is the foundation for all true worship, and the ultimate ground of thanksgiving.
Beyond thanksgiving are those exercises in worship that result from a contemplation of the glory of His Person. The nineteenth Psalm begins, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handywork.” The redeemed ought to do the same, and are encouraged here to do it in song. This too is reiterated in the New Testament. “Let he word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord [Col. 3:16].”
The purpose of worship is to “show forth” the goodness, grace and glory of God. Clearly, thanksgiving and praise are not intended to be confined to private devotion, but to be a public demonstration of faith’s appreciation of “the God Who IS.” The next clause indicates not only something of that for which we may render praise—His lovingkindness and faithfulness—but the frequency with which we are to be so engaged: “in the morning” and “every night.” Rightly understood, this removes worship from a weekly event in a “church” and makes it a daily exercise in the world. Once again Psalm 19 reinforces the point: “Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words unto the the end of the world.” (v. 2-4) May we never be ashamed to affirm our faith in public. The Savior said, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when He shall come in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels [Luke 9:26].”
Nevertheless, that the Spirit of God had in mind here primarily formal worship seems evident from the reference in the last verse of today’s “nugget,” where He makes reference to the use of musical instruments. It is interesting to see the varied opinions regarding musical instruments in the church throughout church history, a controversy that extends to this present day and helps the adversary divide the body of Christ. It is, perhaps, worthy of note that singing is employed in scripture as a means of praise from Exodus through Revelation. On the other hand, reference to the use of musical instruments is confined to the Old Testament. In the New Testament we have neither authorization nor prohibition of the use of instruments and it is evidently a case where each must prayerfully decide the matter for himself.
What is to be learned from our text, however, is that even in the Old Testament context the instruments were to be used “with a solemn sound.” One is inclined to wonder when listening to music, both vocal and instrumental, even in our evangelical churches, whether God is being glorified or the congregation merely entertained. Jonathan Edwards’ observation, though related to singing, is apropos to the whole subject of music in the church and worthy of note: “One thing more of which I would take notice, before I conclude this part, is the mismanagement of singing praises to God. …the mismanagement I have respect to is a way of performing it, without almost any appearance of that reverence and solemnity with which all visible, open acts of divine worship ought to be attended… Let Christians abound as much as they will in this holy, heavenly exercise, in God’s house and in their own houses; but, let it be performed as a holy act, wherein they have immediately and visibly to do with God. When any social open act of devotion or solemn worship of God is performed, God should be reverenced as present.” Selah!
For the glory of HIS Name,
"Pastor" Frasier
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