Sabbath Meditation

Not a Good Stunt to Pull

Douglas Wilson

We have noted earlier that Psalm 22:3 says that God lives in the praises of His people. He dwells there. This means that our songs, our psalms, our hymns are the living stones of a glorious Temple. This means that our music is a cloud of glory, the same kind of cloud that God used to display His glorified presence in the Temple.

This means that we must not be apathetic or listless in how we sing. If you were invited to sing for the queen of England, would you slouch as you did so? If you were asked to sing the national anthem before a ball game, would you do it with your chin on your chest? Would you mumble?

The complaint registered by the prophet Malachi is appropriate here (Mal. 1:8). When the people were bringing defective animals as a sacrifice to God, the prophet asked what the governor would think if you tried that stunt with him. The answer is not much, and it is curious that we would all think twice about offering some slipshod gift to a human dignitary—but we have to be reminded to offer our best to God of all creation. What does this say about us? If you were asked to make a gift for the president, one that would be on display in the Smithsonian, would you make a little box out of Popsicle sticks?

Proverbs says that if a man excels in his work, he will stand before kings. This is true of earthly kings, but it is also true of the king of all heaven. We have been summoned. This is a command performance. And He has said that in His grace, He is willing to inhabit, dwell in, the praises we offer up to Him. Now it is clear He is a God who stoops—He was willing to dwell in a manger at one point. But if we are preparing a place for Him, we must not arrange that kind of place for Him deliberately.

So come, in our worship today, let us sing as is fitting.
First posted in Blog and Mablog 5th August, 2009