Thoughts for the Day

Praise to God Who Comes in Judgement

O sing to the Lord a new song;
sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.
Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvellous works among all the peoples.
For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
he is to be revered above all gods.
For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.
Honour and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come into his courts.
Worship the Lord in holy splendour;
tremble before him, all the earth.

Say among the nations, ‘The Lord is king!
The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved.
He will judge the peoples with equity.’
Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
let the field exult, and everything in it.
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
before the Lord; for he is coming,
for he is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with righteousness,
and the peoples with his truth.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I have a beautiful old clock inside a glass case, which is unfortunately broken. Looking at it the other day it reminded me of the television show 'The Repair Shop'. Many of the craftsmen and women can restore works that seem suitable only for the dustbin. The horologist, Steve Fletcher for instance can often take dozens of balance wheels and screws and restore a beautiful working clock, or for that matter pretty much any other mechanical item.

Psalm 96 has a feel of a master at work, in this case God who orders and controls our universe and where all is in harmony. The writer of 1 Chronicles thinks this psalm is so important that he uses almost all of it, along with excerpts from Psalms 105 and 106, to describe what happens when King David brings back the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 16.1-36). The singing and dancing, the shouts of praise from the crowds, and the noise of the trumpets must have been amazing as the people climbed the hill to celebrate Yahweh's coming. But it is not just the people of Jerusalem who are called to celebrate God's glory. It is the whole earth, for the King is coming to judge His world.

As Christians we neglect the ending of this Psalm at our peril, for God is coming to judge our world - for the way we have not used the talents He has given us; for the damage done to our world so that it is not perfect; perhaps for the way we have not shared the Gospel; and for the hurt and pain caused to others. God the Great Restorer can repair the mess we have made of things, and get His world working in harmony, but we have to work with Him.

↠ Who have we helped to nurture and grow in faith this week; or what have we done to help in a small way to restore earth's balance?

Heavenly Father,
as we move toward a new Liturgical Year
that starts on Advent Sunday
and brings in a time of reflection,
so may we begin to prepare for the coming
of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
He has promised that He will return
to judge the earth.
May we be found to be faithful servants
for whatever awaits us,
even as we prepare for the anniversary
of His birth.
Amen.