Psalms 66 Family Worship Notes:
Translation: NASB 95
Key Terms:
Covenant between God and Humans: An authoritative agreement between God and humans. God is the one in authority, giving commands for humans to follow. There are rewards and consequences in this divine agreement.
Day 1:
Verses 1-4: Let all the earth, especially Christians, worship God through joyful vigorous singing. God has been merciful providing blessings such as hope and encouragement through the forgiveness of sin through Jesus Christ alone. The fully God and fully human without sin at birth Jesus Christ accomplishes salvation stretching back to Adam until His physical visible return. Singing is done respectfully as Christians sing with thankfulness of God’s mercy through salvation. No human or anything else can eliminate what God has done through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Any human who rebels against God will submit themselves to Him. Humans lost in sin will submit themselves to God as God’s power surpasses their rebellion. Their rebelling knees will bend to the king of kings. This shows the remarkable power of God, where nothing can or will stop God from accomplishing what He desires in the world. This should lead Christians to greater worship through respectful and vigorous singing. No enemy of God will stay in rebellion forever but will be stopped. It may seem non-believers and sinful leaders will continue forever. They will not continue forever as God will stop them in His wise time and way. The wise time is when He decides it is best. Christians should pray for patience and grace when dealing with the sinful world while waiting for God’s wise time.
In time the whole earth will praise the Lord. The worship of God will come as God’s enemies are subdued and all of God’s people are saved alone through Jesus Christ. Either God saves non-believers from sin, or God stops human rebellion through His justice. God will subdue sin that seems to spread on earth or even after humans die to meet God. This should cause Christians to pause with reflection.
Verses 5-10: The works of God are plain and clear for humans to know. God created a pure universe without sin and it’s sinful effects into existence through speaking. Sin and sinful effects that humans notice daily came from one human. Adam fell to condemn all humans after him. Sin spreads as humans follow sin more as seen in Genesis 6. God in His wise time flooded the whole earth out of justice except for saving one family to repopulate the newly formed earth. To save one family is an act of mercy. This act of mercy leads to Jesus Christ. There are many more acts done by God to bring Christ into the world to crush Adam’s curse. Adam fails to give life as he represents the human race in the garden. Christ gives life as He represents some humans. Humans are fools as all suppress the truth of God working in the world. This may seem harsh for simple disbelief. It is a denial of God and His kingship. God is lord, master, and king over all humans. There is one true God revealed in the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit beyond human opinion. God is one yet having three divine essences. The three divine essences do not divide God into parts as God remains one with one will. God made the Red Sea into dry land for Israel to escape from Egypt. Egypt was a land of slavery for Israel and an enemy of God. God subdued His enemy as in the drowning of Pharaoh, the King of Egypt and his armies with the same Red Sea that was dry for Israel. Do the nations act without being watched by their heavenly king? No. God is there watching the nations. This means rebelling humans have God’s justice act on them at the wise time. God is not an opinion held by some. All humans should plead for mercy to have their sins forgiven by God and to avoid God’s justice. May all humans pause and reflect that God’s justice may come on them, or that God’s mercy can come through salvation.
Humans who bend their knees in salvation through Jesus Christ before death are safe from God’s justice. Christians will still be under God’s discipline. May praises from God’s people go from all the earth to God who is in heaven. God does not have a body as in having ears. But God being God still hears praises to Him. Praise God all Christians with the nations since God gives life and then preserves it. Sin and all its effects would continue to corrupt without God preserving life. The earth would be worse than Genesis 6 leading to destruction if sin is allowed to continue. Please look again at Genesis 6 as sin became too dark requiring God to subdue it through His justice. God will be with Christians to support them throughout battles with sin. God is refining His people through times of testing. God’s testing is in the context of showing where sin remains requiring repentance. This darkness needs to be refined away just as metals need impurities removed. Christians need the remaining effects of sin removed from within them too. This is done because God cares for His people.
Day 2:
Verses 10-12: God continues in explaining how He tests by putting pressure on Christians. This is meant to transform Christians. Temptations that are followed need to die. Unrepentant sin needs a change of mind to seek greater light that turns a lukewarm faith into a hot faith. God puts pressure into the Christian’s life as Christians hide as humans fly over their heads, going through fire, and into the depths of the water. There are many more events that are meant to transform Christians. Where does God lead His people? God’s people enter a place of abundance. This is a place of abundant mercy and rest in God. Christians will still be in the dark world until physical death or Christ’s return. Darkness will be far away. God’s rest and mercy is a place away from sin for rest. This rest from sin leads to greater worship of God.
Verses 13-15: Israel followed the covenant that comes through Moses. God spoke to Moses to have Moses write down the covenant requirements. Moses’s covenant rested on the Jews following the requirements to have God’s blessings. Good Jews brought perfect animals to be burnt on an alter. Perfect animals sacrificed pointed to Christ. This has fallen away for Christians due to Christ’s covenant as a covenant of grace. The covenant of grace rests on Christ’s infinite offering for sin. Why? No animals can remove sin. Only God through the Lord Jesus Christ can crush sin. There needs to be a perfect saviour as the perfect animals point too. Humans cannot do anything to earn God’s mercy like Adam in the Garden. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross creates merit that is given to all Christians. Christians include Jews and non-Jews together. Now Christians come together with vigorous and respectful singing about the great God and saviour Jesus Christ. The praises of Christians are heard by God through Jesus Christ alone during trials and testing. There is thankfulness of Christ’s infinite sacrifice for sin leading to life for some humans. Pause and think, Christians, what comes out of your mouth during the Lord’s testing?
Verses 16-20: Christians should listen to other Christians as they proclaim the wonders of God during and after a time of testing. A time of testing is meant to purify sin away. This is not a time to be distracted away from Christ speaking about personal experiences or how painful life is. It is a time to explain from the Bible how great God is. A good example is speaking about God’s patience as I kept falling into this same temptation. Then continuing through God’s testing and purifying now there is greater light. This explaining what God has done should not distract away from the teaching of the Bible or centre on the Christians. This can be done in casual conversation. Christians should be encouraged hearing about God’s work. This should lead Christians to greater prayer and song. The Bible guides these spiritual activities. God hears and works among Christians because of Jesus Christ’s salvation alone. God will not turn a deaf ear or remove His spiritual care from Christians. There is no hope in Jesus Christ as the forgiver of humans in sin if God stopped listening and providing spiritual care. All humans would be lost in darkness since God would treat Christians as non-believers. Be glad Christians that God listens, tests, and provides spiritual care. Amen!
Reformed Baptist Reflections 