Sermons

Psalm 115 - You Become Like What You Worship

November 1, 2020 Speaker: Josh DeGroote Series: The Psalms

Topic: Worship Passage: Psalm 115:1–18

Well, there is an election this week - the most important of our lifetime, we are told. Isn’t it amazing how politics has become all consuming in our society? THat is not to say that it is unimportant, but it has become all important. Consuming. That’s why I think the message of this psalm is so important. We ought to be involved in the political process, and prayerfully vote for the candidate or party or platform we believe will uphold justice and do what is right before God. But we ought to do it as Christians who are first and foremost worshipers of God. Political activism is not ultimate, worship is because American politics is not ultimate, God is.

Yesterday was Reformation Day. 503 years ago, Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the castle door in Wittenberg, Germany and kicked off the Reformation. We often think of the Reformation as a time when certain important doctrines were recovered in the church: justification by grace through faith. The five solas. But something else happened. Worship exploded, especially in congregational singing. The Reformers, especially Martin Luther, understood that there could be no reformation by merely returning to doctrinal fidelity. The glorious truths that needed to be recovered also needed to find expression in doxology - in praise, in worship, in singing. Listen to Luther said, rather bluntly, how important he believes music is in the church:

Next to the word of God, music deserves the highest praise. But any who remain unaffected by music are clodhoppers indeed and are fit to hear only the words of dung-poets and the music of pigs. 

Worship is central. In this time where politics is at feverish pitch, we want to go deeper and grow higher in our worship of God. And so it’s fitting that we are still in the psalms; the Church’s, divinely inspired songbook. 

When it comes to worship, there is an inexorable truth in the bible: we become like what we worship. Worship is such a powerful, transformative experience that you WILL become like whatever you worship. GK Beale puts it this way: "We resemble whatever we revere - either for ruin or restoration.” [REPEAT]  We see this with young children imitating their parents - for good or for bad. We are told of the deadly danger of worshiping false gods in verse 8 with the statement: “Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.” You become like what you worship. Thomas Manton (17th century Puritan pastor) wrote: “They that serve a base god cannot but be of a base spirit, and so can do nothing worthily and generously. Every man’s temper is as his god is.” If you worship something or someone other than God you will become like it: which will lead to being spiritually, deaf, dumb, and lame. On the other hand, when we worship Christ, we become more like him! 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 says,

And we all with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.

Worship is ultimate. Worship is central. And worship transforms. So what are the hallmarks of true worship; worship that transforms; worship that makes us more like Jesus? That’s what we want to look at today. What are the hallmarks of true worship? Well it starts right here in verses 1-3: 

 

1) True worship magnifies the glory of God (verse 1)

True worship seeks to elevate and exalt the beauty and wonder and magnificence of God - not us. Worship is not about us. This is what is so distressing about so much of the entertainment driven church gatherings. People want to be entertained and want to have fun and don’t want to think too much and don’t want to be distracted from what is most important to them, namely themselves and so that’s how the worship is oriented. But in that kind of setting, who is the object to worship? We are. People are.  

So the psalmist says, “Not to us, O LORD, not to us”. It’s repeated for emphasis, because of our natural tendency to seek our own glory. Not only does this dishonor God, but it goes against what we were made for. Stephen Charnock, a 17th century pastor from London said, “It is vile and the dishonor of the creature, who, by the law of his creation, is referred to another end.” In other words, we were not originally created to look into a mirror and become infatuated with ourselves. We were made to worship God. Sin has disfigured our hearts and so to have our hearts awakened to the glory of God so that we turn away from ourselves and glory in Him is a gracious work of the Spirit. May he do it today!

Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory. Worship is about God. True worship magnifies the glory of God. This magnifying the glory of God or giving glory to the Lord is more than just an emotional feeling. To be sure our emotions will be stirred, but it will be stirred as we come into contact with truth that glorifies God. Notice the psalmist says, “to your name give glory.” The name of the LORD is to be given glory. In the bible, to speak of God's name is to speak of his nature and character. Mindless mantras do not glorify the Lord. Specific names given to God describe what He’s like. (Ex: El Shaddai, El Elyon, Adonai).  

This psalm magnifies the glory of God by pointing out several things about God for our consideration. First, we see God is magnified because he is a SAVIOR. Verse 1: 

To your name give glory, for the sake of [or because of] your steadfast love and your faithfulness.  

Why do I say these tell us God is a Savior? Because I think His steadfast love and faithfulness point to the fact that God is a Savior of sinners. Let’s think about these words. Steadfast love (Chesed) - enduring, loyal, covenantal, never ending, undeserved love. It is a gracious love. The Lord’s love is gracious - we don’t deserve it. It is love that comes only to the undeserving. This Hebrew word is all throughout the OT. It’s NT counterpart is probably a mixture between grace and agape love. Faithfulness, some translations say “truth”. I think it points to the reliability of God. He can be counted on to keep his word. He is stable. He is not finicky, like us - up one day and down the next. It’s not hard to see how these two things go together. Imagine if God was unstable, like a volcano that could erupt at any time. Could we rest in his steadfast love? No, but he is glorious because of his love and faithfulness. 

Lamentations 3 brings these two words together beautifully: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.” The love and mercy of God which never ceases for his covenant, beloved people rests on and is evidence of his faithfulness. Ultimately we see these two qualities - God’s love and faithfulness - find their fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ. John 1:14 says that Jesus is “full of grace (very similar to steadfast love) and truth (faithfulness).”

 What else does this psalm say about the glory of God’s name? How about this? That he is a SOVEREIGN RULER. In verses 2-3 it says, 

Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?” Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

Our God, the true God is in heaven and does all he pleases. He does what he wants, all the time. He doesn’t merely do what he must or should do. God is not externally constrained to do what he wouldn’t otherwise want to. He does what he desires to do, what pleases him and nobody can stop him. He has no rivals. If he wants to do something, nobody has veto power over God - not supreme court, Trump, Biden, Senate, Russia, China, not you, and not the devil. Our God does whatever he pleases.

God is sovereign in the earth and nature. Psalm 135:6 says, “Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all the deeps.” God is sovereign over rulers and their actions. Daniel 2:20-21 says, “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might. He changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings.” Proverbs 21:1 says, “the king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord, he turns it wherever he will (pleases).” With the upcoming election, isn’t this encouraging. Our God, to whom belong might and wisdom will have his way for his purposes. And God is sovereign even over sinful acts of men. Really? Yes! The most sinful act in human history - the crucifixion of Christ - turned out to be according to the Father’s plan (Acts 4). What they meant for evil, God meant for good. 

Here’s one more thing this psalm says about God to the glory of his name. He is the CREATOR. God is Creator of heaven and earth. Verse 15 says, “May you be blessed by the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” In other words, the One who made everything. Remember the opening words of the bible say, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth...” Ex nihilo, out of nothing. I suppose in one sense, all true and transformative worship starts here. God is the Creator. One of the reasons we are in the mess we are right now is because this most basic, fundamental truth is almost completely lost upon us: There is a Creator. God is the Creator and we are his creatures. We live in his world. He has given us his law. AW Tozer once said that there are two fundamental categories. God and all that is not God, which is just another way of describing God as Creator. Why is there the moral insanity we see right now in our society (from the dismembering babies, the pride of homosexuality, transgendered madness)? What is going on? Paul tells us it’s a worship issue.

God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator who is blessed forever! (Romans 1:25)

The reality is that we will either worship the triune God who is our Creator for our restoration, or we will worship another created thing for our ruin. And so worship is about God - the Creator, Sovereign Ruler, and Savior. True worship. Worship that transforms magnifies the glory of God

 

2) True worship expresses trust in God (verses 5-11)

Right after showing us the insanity of worshiping idols made by human hands - gods that cannot hear, see, touch, walk, or speak - the psalmist says “those who make them become like them, so do all who trust in them”, he says in verses 9-11:

O Israel, trust in the LORD! He is their help and their shield. O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD! He is their help and their shield. You who fear the LORD, trust in the LORD! He is their help and their shield.

The point couldn’t be clearer. True worship expresses trust. These dumb, mute, lame, deaf gods can’t help anyone, they can’t protect anyone. Trust the LORD! The Hebrew word is “batach” (baw-takh). It means to have confidence, to be bold and secure. To feel safe. And you can see how magnifying the glory of God leads to having this kind of bold trust in God. And why? Because he is our help and shield! No matter what. When everything is giving way, what do you turn to in trust? What do you run to for help and safety? That is your god/God. Trust in the LORD! What does the old hymn say: “When all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay!” Trust in the Lord. True worship expresses this confidence in God.

 I’ve been thinking about what has been going on. What is God up to in 2020? In the midst of all the chaos, what is God doing? Here’s one thing I believe he is doing. He is causing everything to shake that can be shaken so that what remains is that which cannot be shaken! Remember that from Hebrews 12? Psalm 125:1 says, “Those who trust in the Lord are like (what?) Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.” Worship expresses this trust in God. Which is why the Lord Jesus Christ and his perfect, redeeming work (death and resurrection) have always been central in the singing of God’s people. Because it strengthens our faith - “faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ” or the “message of Christ”. On Christ the solid rock we stand, right!?!? We trust in Christ and our worship expresses this trust! True worship. Worship that transforms expresses trust in God.

 

3) True worship is brought by the people of God together

Notice the pronouns used - us (v. 1), their (v. 2), our (v. 3) , we (v. 18). Notice the households and groups mentioned - “House of Israel, house of Aaron, you who fear the Lord” (v. 9-13). Worship at its highest level is done together, not in isolation. When God called Moses to lead the people out of Egypt, what was the purpose? So they could worship Him. Who? Everyone. Pharaoh wanted to let the men go. And the Lord said, “Nope - the men, women, and children.” All the people, both young and were lead out in order to assemble to God in worship together. What is the emphasis throughout the book of Hebrews: “Let us draw near…” The individualism of our society can creep into the church and our reading of the bible and when that happens, we apply all of these things to us individually. Or at least in the first instance and only secondarily to the church. That’s a mistake. 

The psalms are replete with the call to worship corporately. Psalm 95:6: “Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.” My favorite is Psalm 34:3: “O magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together! 

Of course this does not mean that there is no individual aspect to worship. You cannot worship for me, nor can I for you. And I may and must worship the Lord when I am all alone. But all throughout the bible, the emphasis is on a worshiping people. A worshiping community. So the summit or apex of our worship of the Lord ought to be the experience of worshiping together. [Gov’t shutdowns] And it is when we draw near to God in worship together for the glory of God, to magnify the greatness of God, expressing our trust in God that we become like him. True worship. Worship that transforms is brought by the people of God together. 

 

4) True worship receives the blessing of God (v. 12-15)

The LORD has remembered us; he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron; he will bless those who fear the LORD, both small and great. May the LORD give you increase, you and your children. May you be blessed by the LORD, who made heaven and earth!

Those who truly worship God in Spirit and truth receive the blessing of God. The Lord pours the motherload of blessings on those who revere and honor him - and their children. Parents, the greatest blessing you can give your children is to teach them to worship the Lord. To worship the Lord with them, in front of them, and help them do the same so that the blessing of the Lord is upon you, to a thousand generations. 

And I love the phrase: “May you be blessed by the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” May you be blessed by the One who owns everything and made it all out of nothing. May this God bless you and your children. And of course much of the blessing that is heaped upon us is that we become like Jesus our Lord - loving, joyful, peacemakers, strong, patient, kind, steadfast, generous, forgiving, faithful, gentle, humble.

You become like what you worship - this is a non negotiable reality. And you were made to worship the triune God of scripture. You were made to worship the Father and the Son in the power of the Holy Spirit. We were made to do this TOGETHER in order to magnify the glory of God, express our trust in God, and receive the rich blessing, along with our children and grandchildren, forever. 

We don’t know what the future holds. With the election on Tuesday, it seems like the world is hanging in the balance. But we know who rules the world. It’s important to vote and to do so with our eyes open and in a way that we believe honors the Lord. But we do it as an act of worship, trusting that God in fact rules the world. Our God is in the heavens and he does all that he pleases. And he loves us and is faithful. He will accomplish his purposes for his glory and our good. And our highest aim and calling is not to be political activists, but to be white hot worshipers of God.

More in The Psalms

January 3, 2021

Ten Reasons To Build Your Life On the Bible

December 27, 2020

The Curing Power of God's Love

November 29, 2020

God Is the Answer To Our Fear

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