Psalm 29 – The call to angels to sing praise to God is now given to us here below

Something to Sing About

based on Psalm 30

2^nd Sunday after Pentecost – June 10, 2007

Pastor Richard Mau

Immanuel Lutheran Church – Des Plaines, IL

Today’s Scripture

Psalm 30         1 Kings 17:17-24        Galatians 1:11-24

Luke 7:11-17

            “I’m so happy I could just sing!” “I whistle a happy tune.” “I’m singing in the rain.”

Psalm 30 is a song of praise for deliverance from death. It dates back to David. It is thought to be the Psalm he gave instructions to sing at the dedication of the temple that Solomon would eventually build. It is claimed to be the song of praise been sung celebrating restoring the temple after the Maccabean revolt in 164 BC. It is preceded by Psalm 29, the call to angels to sing praise to God. In Psalm 30 that call to sing praise to God is now given to us here below.

David many times lived in the threat of death from King Saul, his own son Absalom, and other enemies. In writing this Psalm he could have suffered an illness that left him weak to the point of death. Time and again David experienced the joys of victory as well as the fear of threats around him. (v. 2 you healed me). Time and again God restored David.

David had much to be thankful for and he expresses this joy, thanksgiving and praise in this and other Psalms. God gave David these words to write and has preserved these words for you and me today. Even though written at specific times and used in certain occasions, God’s word is always for his people of all times and places.

Please follow the Psalm as we continue today’s message.

v. 1 I will exalt you O Lord – the word exalt means to lift up, praise, and honor.   The reason to praise God is because: You have lifted me out of the depths. It is like a bucket in the bottom of a deep well. There is no way that bucket can float to the top. It takes someone to hook it with a rope and pull it back up. What are the depths you have fallen into? Who or what are the enemies that gloat, take great delight in your plight? How does Satan attack you in various persons and forms from day to day? We lift up God when we praise and honor him because he does not let enemies gloat/rejoice over you. Remember Psalm 91 as he has given angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways? Remember how angels ministered to Jesus in the wilderness following his fasting and temptation? God has provided the same supports for you.

v. 2 O Lord, my God, I called to you and you healed me. We remember God’s pledge in Psalm 50 that when you call upon him in the day of trouble he will deliver you. Jesus has promised that whatever you ask the father in Jesus’ name he will give it to you [John 15;16].

v. 3 …you brought me up from the grave – spared me from going down into the pit. Although you are dead in your sins, you are alive in Christ [Paul’s epistles]. With the widow’s son and Elijah and Jesus with the young man at Nain, we see the rejoicing when one who was dead is brought back to life. Each Sunday is an Easter celebration, celebrating our Lord Jesus who died on the cross and was restored to life again. Each day we celebrate the gifts in baptism, renewing our dead and sinful bodies to new bodies in God’s glory as we will be at the resurrection. You are spared from the pit of eternal death, Hell with Satan and all of his followers.

Psalm 118:13 I was pushed back and about to fall, but the LORD helped me.

Psalm 18:5 "The cords of death coiled around me, the snares of death confronted me."

Joseph was lowered into a pit, one that he could not get out of. He was sent to prison, one that he could not get out of. He was held in a foreign country, one that he could not get out of. But God restored him to a far greater position and through him saved his people.

v. 4 Sing to the Lord, you saints (saved ones) praise his holy name. Again and again we are reminded to thank and praise God for all of his wonderful works and gifts to each one.

v. 5 God’s anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lifetime. This shows you God's love in comparison to his anger. How great is this love that he lay down his life for his friends? [John 15;13].. “…weeping at night, but joy in the morning – this promise is spoken by Isaiah, Isaiah 26:19 But your dead will live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy. Your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead.. You are born again in baptism to a new day, a new life in Christ, now and forever. “All things last their season, God’s love to all eternity.”[1]

v. 6-7 When I felt secure speaks of your false senses of security when things go well. We feel indestructible. We trust in the gift as if it were our own making. Remember from Proverbs 1:32, it is the fool who says there is no God.

Psalm 10:4, 6 in his pride the wicked does not seek him, in his thoughts there is no room for God…”Nothing will shake me; I will always be happy and never have trouble.” When you turn from God, in your mind you think that God has turned away from you. Sometimes it is easier to praise God for good things that are with us than to call upon him when things are tough.

v. 8 Then I cried to the Lord, for his mercy. God allows us suffering and setbacks to bring our minds back to him and his promises to always deliver.

v. 9 What gain is there in my destruction? If God would destroy all sinners, there would be no one to sing his praise. He restores us as he is a "jealous" God and loves to hear thanksgiving and praise for his wondrous works - of creation and of salvation. God has placed you, a believer in this world, to witness his love to others. You do this by praising him, acknowledging to others all that he has given you. The fear of death is the fear of not being able to praise God any more. The purpose of man is to praise God – if he destroys a man, he loses a praiser. You are that important and dear to him. He wants you as he made you to be his. He entrusts you with all you have to use all you have to his glory, honor and praise to bring others to know him too.

v. 10 we ask God to “be my helper.” - You cannot do this by yourself. God sends you your helper, the Holy Spirit who works in you the faith and the desire to praise and please God. None of us can do any of this without God’s Spirit.

v. 10 We plead to God to “Hear me.” Remember Isaiah’s words, “…before you call, I will answer, while you are speaking I will still hear, “ [65:24]

v. 11-12 This is what baptism is all about. This is what repentance, forgiveness and restoring is all about. This is what redeeming is all about. This is what Elijah and the widow's son, Jesus and the widow's son at Nain, each one of us knowing that a loved one who has died in the Lord is restored to eternal life. The sackcloth of mourning is replaced with a wedding garment as Christ has claimed us as his bride.

v. 12 Our songs for joy are not just Sunday AM -

Liturgy - Glory to God on High and This is the Feast and Holy Holy Holy

not just when things go well or when with others but these prayers of praise and thanksgiving we will sing today and in all eternity knowing the joy and wonder that God has delivered you from a certain death to eternal life with him.

In Jesus’ undying love.

Amen.

Children’s Minute – Green emphasizes life and growth in Jesus Christ. Center panel – cross of Christ, waters of baptism, new tree of life. On the altar is the Bible – word, and Lord’s Supper, which bring us to faith and nurture and strengthen us in faith. Distribute green apples. As they provide nourishment to the body, so do God’s word and sacraments for eternal life.

[1] Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament, Vol. 5 p. 241.