Begin with two minutes of silence and stillness before God.

When you read the Old Testament, and especially the Psalms, keep in mind that as Christians, we have a greater vantage point than the authors. What we see in full, they only saw in part. The light of God's truth that we see was dimly visible to them. We have experienced the fullness of what God promised them long ago. The Old Testament saints did not know of the coming, the life, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus. They knew God would one day fully and finally rescue His people and establish a New Covenant with them, but how that would take place, they could only speculate. And yet, notice how the psalmist emphasizes joy and rejoicing in the Lord in these two songs.  

The whole earth is called to rejoice (97:1), Zion is glad in the Lord (97:8), and the righteous are summoned to rejoice in this God and give Him thanks (97:12). The next song calls us to make a joyful noise (98:4,6) and to lift up a joyous song (98:4). Even the sea, the rivers, and the hills joyfully sing, clap, and roar to this God (98:9).  

The message should be clear: worship and joy are inseparable!  

If you have joy in the Lord, that should turn into worship. When you worship, that should translate into joy in the Lord. When we sing to God, praise Him, lift up our voices and shout to Him, our hearts can't help but resound with joy, enthusiasm, and celebration. We should note, however, that while worship should naturally include joy, the psalmist also commands us to "make a joyful noise before the King" (98:6). Sometimes joy in worship happens automatically; other times, we have to tell our hearts to rejoice in God. But make no mistake, joy is at the heart of genuine worship. 

Now, back to the point we began with at the start. The psalmist talked this way about God before the Cross and the Resurrection. He called Israel to joyfully shout to the King who would one day ride into Jerusalem on a donkey to be treated as a servant and slaughtered as a lamb. The very hills that would sing for joy at the Lord would one day support a wooden cross. We have this vantage point! We know of His marvelous things, His salvation, His righteousness, and His steadfast love (98:2–3) in far greater ways than the psalmist could imagine, but do we have his joy? Do we rejoice in our worship the way he describes? Oh, how much more should we worship and joyfully sing to our King? How much more should we rejoice in our God and eagerly lift up songs of praise and thanksgiving to Him?  

Take two minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

Use the S.O.A.P. Method to study God's Word.

• SCRIPTURE: What stands out to you in today's passage?
• OBSERVATION: What is this text saying? What is the context? How does it fit with the verses before and after it? Are there any commands, instructions, or promises?
• APPLICATION: How can you apply this verse to your life? What does this mean today? What is God saying to you?
• PRAYER: Respond to the passage in prayer. Ask God to help you apply this truth to your life and spend some time listening to what He may be telling you.

Be Generous 2025

On Be Generous Sunday, November 30th, through Tuesday, December 2nd, 100% of all financial gifts will go toward funding three special projects to ignite ministry and lead more people to know, love, and follow Jesus! For more information, visit venturechurch.org/begenerous.