Make a Joyful Noise:
How to Take the Awesome Power of God Personally
a sermon on Psalm 66
by David C. Mauldin
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Mobile, Alabama
I stopped by the Greek Festival very briefly on Thursday afternoon, and I took
Joseph into the church. We walked in during the question and answer portion of a
tour, and the priest was finishing his answer to someone’s question. I don’t
know what the question was about, but it interested the priest because he asked
the person, “What denomination are you?” The person answered, “None. I don’t
really believe anything.” The priest replied with a mixture of skepticism and
sadness, “You have to believe something.” And he is right. A person may belong
to a church or not, may identify with a religion or not, may reflect and think
about life’s big questions or not; but regardless, every person lives and makes
decisions on the basis of beliefs about who we are and why we are here and how
things work. You have to believe something. What I want to know is: Do you
believe in the God of the Bible? The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God
of the exodus. The God who revealed himself most fully in Jesus of Nazareth. The
triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Do you believe in that God?
There are some who say the word “god” is losing its meaning, and I think they
are on to something. Once upon a time, you could say the word “God” in America,
and nearly everyone would understand the same reality behind that word—basically
the God of the Bible. Not everyone was theologically informed, and there were
minor differences among the denominations; but you could say the word “God” and
what came to people’s minds? Stories from the Bible: Creation, the Exodus, the
Ten Commandments, Jesus, and more. That is, unfortunately, no longer true. Say
the word “god” and some people still think of our God. Others may think of an
impersonal force or some spark buried deep within our psyche. To some people,
“god” is just the totality of everything, while others think of “god” as a kind
of soul for the physical world. Despite seismic changes in American values and
religious life, one thing never seems to change: Over 90% of Americans answer
the question, “Do you believe in God?” by saying Yes. The question that counts
today is, “In which God do you believe?”
Psalm 66 invites us to make a joyful noise to the Lord. Why? Because God is
worth celebrating! If you do believe in the God of the Bible—a God who is
present, personal, and powerful—then you have something worth singing about. God
is real. He is powerful. He knows. He cares. He rules. He works in history and
in our lives with a plan and a purpose. Once you know that, once you realize the
reality of the great things he has done (and is doing!), praise erupts
naturally. Glimpse the glory of God, and you will be changed.
I like to preach the Psalms, and this is a good one. It is kind of odd because
it switches in the middle. It begins as a hymn of praise, then at verse 13 it
turns into a song of thanksgiving. The hymn of praise is about the wonderful
things God has done for “us”—God’s people. The song of thanksgiving celebrates
what God has done for “me”—the individual. Psalm 66 not only tells us something
important about God; it also demonstrates how we ought to take God’s mighty
saving deeds personally. God did not just rescue Israel. Working out the same
plan and purpose, he also rescued you and me.
My plan is simple. First we break down the hymn of praise. Then we move into the
song of thanksgiving and make things personal. Finally we end as practically as
possible.
I am going to start on the hymn of praise in the middle. It has three stanzas:
verses 1-4 are an invitation to praise, verses 5-7 talk about the exodus, and
verses 8-12 tell us about the exile. It makes sense to me to start with the
second stanza about the exodus.
“Come and see what the Lord has done … he turned the sea into dry land.” The
Bible consistently affirms that the One True God makes himself known. Not only
can something of his glory be discerned from his creation itself, but also he
remains active in it. When God brought Israel out of Egypt, he was showing the
world who he is. He is God who hears his people’s cries. He is God of power and
might. He is God who saves. He is God who makes a way where there is no way. The
exodus was a defining moment both for God’s people and for God, who chose to
make himself known in this way.
Actions speak louder than words, and often the things we do define us. A heroic
deed or a scandal can mark a person for life. If a person donates a kidney to a
stranger or passes up wealth and the fast track in favor of family, those
actions tell you something important about who that person is. Likewise, the
exodus tells us about God. This stanza ends with a warning, “Let the rebellious
not exalt themselves.” That makes sense. The exodus reveals God as one who cares
for the oppressed and who establishes justice. Both Pharaoh and the generation
of Israelites that rebelled against Moses learned this lesson the hard way. God
delivers his people, and we cannot help but praise.
A similar thing happens in stanza 3 with the exile. You may not have noticed the
exile in verses 8-12, but they are teeming with allusions to the prophets.
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Zechariah, and Malachi all described the exile as a testing or
smelting of metal. The net comes from Ezekiel, and “water and fire” come from
Isaiah.
In the exile God showed a willingness to prune his people. He will not let even
his own people stand in the way of his loving plan and purposes. Yet he also
showed his commitment to them and his power to restore a faithful remnant. You
may find it odd that the psalm praises God for laying burdens on the backs of
his people and letting strangers trample them down; yet looking back, they were
able to see God’s loving care even in the hard times. It was all part of God’s
love affair with his people—and the world.
Now we are ready to go back to the first stanza. Although the exodus and the
exile were done for Israel, the whole world is invited to praise God because in
a real way, these things were done for everyone. If God had chosen Israel and
rejected the rest of humanity, why would “all the earth” make a joyful noise?
But, as it turns out, God chose Israel for the sake of the world, because he
loves all of us. His great plan reached its climax when he sent his Son to die
for us and then raised him from the dead. If we were writing Psalm 66 today, we
would have to add another stanza about the cross and resurrection. This was
where God was moving all along, in the exodus, exile, and everything else. He
was moving toward the moment when Jesus would die in our place and evil, sin,
and death would be defeated. This is the greatest of God’s awesome deeds, and
the one in which he reveals himself to us most clearly. In Jesus we see God as
he is. In the cross and resurrection we behold the extent of his love and power.
He loved his rebellious enemies, and gave his life for us. Yet even death could
not hold him, and he rose victorious with the power to make all things new.
Again, if you believe this, you have something to sing about.
You need to praise God, and when you do, be sure to make it personal. God turned
the sea into dry land, he restored his people, and he saved the world; but he
did all this for you! Jesus did not just die for the sins of the world; he died
for your sin. The song of thanksgiving in the second half of Psalm 66 contains
the excited confession of someone who experienced God’s love and power
personally. This person prayed, and God heard. This person appealed to God, and
God acted.
If you want to take God’s power personally, you need to do two things. First,
appropriate his mighty saving deeds as your own. This can be done through faith
and the sacraments. Through faith and baptism you become part of God’s people.
Those stories in the Bible are not about strangers long ago, they are about our
people—and us. In a few moments, you will be invited to celebrate the Lord’s
Supper. Jesus gave us this supper as a way for us—as a church gathered in his
name and as individual believers—to partake of his death and resurrection. When
we eat and drink, we are saying, “He did this for us—for me.” And as we do so,
he gives himself to us, not physically but spiritually and truly. The first part
then is to identify with God’s people and know that you are part of the Bible’s
story.
The second way to take God’s power personally is to look for God’s hand in your
life. The psalmist was excited about the exodus and exile, but he also had seen
that same love and power at work on a smaller scale in his own life. We have no
idea what God did for this person, but it does not matter. What matters is what
God has done for us.
What has God done for you? Has he given you faith? Forgiven your sins? Made you
his child? Given you an identity and a purpose? Given you the promise of eternal
life? Has he called you to serve others in his name, and through that work made
himself known to you in new and exciting ways? Has he given you loving friends?
Has he provided for your needs? Delivered you from sickness? Healed your broken
heart or calmed your troubled mind? What has God done for you? How have you
experienced his love and power?
I have been reading a fascinating book by Edith Schaeffer titled L’Abri. L’Abri
is French for “the shelter.” Edith and her husband Francis, along with their
four children, were Presbyterian missionaries to Switzerland beginning in 1948
and continuing for decades. They had been sent there by a mission board in an
effort to revitalize Christianity in Europe after the awful devastation of World
War II. In 1955 they were nearly booted out of Switzerland—that’s right,
Switzerland—because they were accused of having “a religious influence.” They
were Protestants in a Roman Catholic canton. The story of how they managed to
stay in Switzerland, relocate, and begin a new ministry no one had anticipated
is a litany of God providing one dramatic answer to prayer after another. At one
point, Francis was home packing to leave, and Edith had only half an hour to
find a new place to live or they would be forced out. Out of nowhere, she ran
into a realtor, who showed her a house that would be ideal. Unfortunately, it
was for sale, not rent. She prayed that if God wanted them there, that he would
provide the money necessary—$1,000, which in 1955 was a lot of money—by tomorrow
morning. A check came.
Soon after moving they resigned from their mission board and lost their income,
resolving to rely on God both for their needs and the shape of their ministry.
People began to come to them, to stay for a weekend or a month. Students,
doctors, artists, you name it—they came from all over the world and discussed
the Bible’s answers to the human condition. Many, many became Christians, and
the work grew and spread. Despite every obstacle, including medical crises, God
made a way. Today there are L’Abri Fellowship study centers in England, Holland,
Korea, Sweden, Canada, two in the United States, and the one in Switzerland. It
really is an exciting story.
But, Edith tells both sides of her family’s story. Yes, they were certain God
was guiding and they were doing his will. Yes, time after time he made a way
where there was no way. But it was not easy. At times they faced worry and
anxiety about where money would come from. They nursed children through various
illnesses, including their young son through polio. And when the ministry was
thriving, they worked long hours. Returning from a busy trip in another part of
Europe, it was often straight from the train to a discussion group. Visitors
constantly came and went. Both Francis and Edith spent hours talking with eager
people, often to the wee hours of the night. Days were filled with cooking and
cleaning, washing sheets, writing, cutting wood, and more. It was not easy. It
was hard on family life. God was leading. God was at work in exciting, amazing
ways. They saw new Christians being born constantly. But it was not easy.
My point is, you ought to take God’s power and love personally. You ought to
open yourself to God and give yourself to him. Pray. Look for his hand in your
life. Give him praise and thanks. But do not expect that God’s love and power
means an easy ride for you. How many of God’s chosen servants in the Bible got
an easy ride? Nevertheless, give your life to God and you will know what it
means to really live.
Our God is awesome. He is present. He is personal. He is powerful. Give him
praise. Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Amen.