We continue our sermon series entitled ‘Joy Bringers’. This week’s preaching comes from Nathan Gordon.
Psalm 95:1 (Key Verse)
O come, let us sing unto the Lord : let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Authentic worship is more than a song it’s a lifestyle of obedience, sacrifice and service to the one who is dearest to the soul. However as part of our worship to our creator and Lord the psalmist encourages the believers to respond to the greatness of God by singing and making a joyful noise.
Songs, shouts, gratitude, and praise erupted from those gathered to worship the Lord. While Scripture gives many examples of stillness and silence in God’s presence, it also gives many examples of raucous worship. Both peaceful silence and enthusiastic praise are appropriate expressions of worship to our great God.
We are living in precarious times where a life of restrictions is becoming normality as we continue to grapple with Covid-19, and with the restrictions impacting our church services in the area of public singing is this call to sing and make a joyful noise appropriate today?
Let us consider the call to praise and worship and see how singing and making a joyful noise unto the Lord goes far deeper than gathering together for worship.
- The call to sing together – verse 1
- The call to make a joyful noise – verse 1
- The call to bow down – verse 6
“Worship is the proper response of all moral, sentient beings to God, ascribing all honour and worth to their Creator-God precisely because he is worthy, delightfully so.”—D.A. Carson
Q – With all of the restrictions imposed on our gathered worship services, how are you finding not being able to lift your voice audibly and sing hymns and songs to God?
Q – Do you prefer praise and worship accompanied with shouts and loud musical instruments or the more quieter moments of worship in the stillness and why?
Q – What creative ways can the church explore in making a joyful noise in our gatherings with the current restrictions on singing?
Sermon Details
Title: Joy in worship
Reading: Psalm 95:1-8
Preacher: Nathan Gordon