Psalm 149:1-5
[1] Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly! [2] Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King! [3] Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre! [4] For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation. [5] Let the godly exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their beds.
One of the reasons why I choose a solitary quiet place for prayer is, when I sing, I really don’t want any one to hear me but the Lord. It’s awful. I truly make a joyful noise, but it’s more noise than anything. I love to sing however. I especially love to sing the older hymns. As far as I’m concerned there is no better song than Nearer My God to Thee. If you don’t know it, or have never heard it, then your church is robbing you of not just of a good song, but they are disinheriting you of the rich Christian tradition that is rightfully yours . Uh, oh, I said the T word didn’t I. Tradition is not a bad word at all. Sure it can lead to some bad things. But don’t blame tradition for that, it is ungodly men in the present that disturb the church with either an unhealthy love for or hatred of what they perceive as tradition. Interesting that I would bring up tradition when the Psalm plainly says, “Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song”. It does not mean to write a new song, it means sing to God with a renewed heart. The song may be old, or new, the age of the song does not matter. It is the state of the singer that is being addressed here. The Psalmist draws our attention to why we should be singing in verse 4, “For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.” Consider that phrase. Let it roll around in your mind for a minute. THE LORD TAKES PLEASURE IN HIS PEOPLE! God takes pleasure in you. When He thinks you, He sings over you. When you sing you are harmonizing not just with Angels in the worship of God, but there is a song of love that is being sung over you as well. So, when you go to the Lord, go with joy. When nobody is looking, dance. If you play an instrument, play a song and sing to the Lord. Let the first thought you have in the morning be, “the LORD takes pleasure in his people”. Let your last thought at night be, “he adorns the humble with salvation.”