This week’s Song To Live By is Psalm 29

Phil writes:

This song overflows with worship to the Lord King. David's call to worship is not just a rally cry for the people in his realm, but he calls the heavenly beings to ascribe glory and strength to the Lord. But what's the cause of this outpouring of worship?

It's a response to the Lord's Power, His Majesty and His Holiness. David demands that the Lord's name alone requires the giving and ascribing of glory to the Lord.

Names make things personal. A name gives our attention a direction, and this name has a voice. The voice of the Lord. Seven times in this song, we hear the repeated lyric, “The voice of the Lord.”

“The voice of the Lord is powerful and majestic, and the earth responds to his voice.
Cedars break regions leap deserts, shake oaks twist and forests are stripped bare by his voice.”

The idea that a voice could break the cedars of Lebanon into pieces could have, quite frankly, been the terrifying concept for David. After all, his own palace, his home where his family were housed and where he would have been at his most vulnerable, was made of this exact brand of timber. When David worships his heavenly King, he is acknowledging that the power of the Lord is above any human strength or feat of engineering.

Which things do we so easily put our strength in in our culture? It might not be the bricks and wood that form the places that we call home, but it might be that we put our strength in knowledge, our political persuasion, our passions or our skills. We know all too well that these things are often short lived, overestimated and have a sell by date. Whereas if we choose to rest upon the voice of the Lord, we know we'll have something that we can really rely upon and in this wonderful kingdom.

The twist is that as the Lord sits enthroned as king forever, he gives strength to his people, and the Lord blesses his people with peace by letting go of our own grip on the world. And by leaning on the Lord and giving him glory, he graciously empowers us with strength, blessing and peace.

A Prayer

Lord God, your name is beautiful. I choose to transfer my affections from the stuff of this world and instead ascribe glory that is due to your name. Jesus, thank you that you tore down the barriers and have made a way for me to come into the holiest place to worship the Lord in the splendour of His Holiness. Holy Spirit, help me to hear the Lord's voice through the words of the Bible and also through the incredible creation that surrounds me. Thank you that strength, blessing and peace all come from you. I choose to give the glory to you alone.