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Sunday School Lesson
Praise God For Creation (Psalm 33:1-9)
the people of the world will join God’s people in praise. Part of our primal reality as created beings (whether part of the covenant com- munity or not) is to praise our Creator for his creation.
The music is identified in verses 2 and 3. Instru- ments, content, excellence, and volume are all part of this music of creation. The harp and lyre are the instru- ments.
Excellence is part of play- ing skillfully. Finally the volume is loud. Heaven may well be a noisy place. Keep in mind how rather quiet the ancient world re- ally was. There were no jets flying overhead and no 18- wheelers going down the highway. The musicians were everyone, and the music was loud.
The Maestro Psalm 33:4, 5
Wonderful qualities of the God of creation are under- lined in these two verses. He is right, righteous, and
just. These are synonymous for the most part. God con- forms to his own standard. He is true in himself and to himself.
In addition to this, God is faithful. Simply put, he does what he says he will do. His yes really is yes, and his no really is no. But all of his rightness and faithful- ness are wrapped up in his unfailing love. It is love that makes him do the right thing. It is love that de- mands that he keep his word. It is love that bal- ances his truth.
The Music Hall Psalm 33:6, 7, 9
The greatest concert hall in the world is the world. God made it, and his praise fills it. The word of the Lord and the breath of his mouth are parallel. God’s voice— his spoken word (see Psalm 29) and his Spirit (breath)—act like two hands in shaping creation into existence. The highest heavens (Paul talked about
at least three heavens in 2 Corinthians 12:2) were the products of his word. The atmosphere (starry host—angelic armies or stars) were products of his Spirit. Psalm 33:9 affirms that the world was spoken into existence and com- manded to be from God himself.
The Creator can put the waters of the sea into jars and he can put the deep wa- ters into storehouses. The creation is impressive, but the Creator is even more impressive. And this is not just poetry. The New Testa- ment affirms these truths in plain speech. Jesus is “the firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15). Christ “upholds the universe by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3, English Standard Version). “The universe was formed at God’s command, so that what was seen was not made out of what was visi- ble” (Hebrew 11:3).
The New Year of giving Thanks!
Because God is Creator, Lord, Savior and Deliverer, he is worthy of our trust and praise. Because he is faithful and his Word is de- pendable, we can rejoice and sing, giving thanks and praise.
Our five lessons in Janu- ary (all from the book of Psalms) call God’s people to praise him for his creation, sovereignty, steadfast love, and provision. It is impor- tant that we learn the “tunes” (i.e. content) of these psalms. Today’s Psalm 33 is one of the
many that praise God for his creation. The verses be- yond our printed text (Psalm 33:10-22) cele- brate God’s sovereignty and our response to it in eager waiting. But first comes the music.
The Musicians & the Music | Psalm 33:1-3, 8 The musicians are identi-
fied in verses 1 and 8. First God’s people (the righteous and upright—notice the parallelism) are called to sing joyfully and to praise him. If God’s people do not sing, then who will teach the world the song of God? Later all the earth and all
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