Today’s Reading: 1 Chronicles 16
1
Chronicles 16 describes for us the awesome worship celebration which broke out
after the Ark of the Covenant was finally returned to Israel and placed in
Jerusalem. The Levites brought the Ark and then they thanked, praised, and made
offerings to the Lord for His wonderful works. David even prepared a feast for
the nation and “distributed to all Israel, both men and
women, to each a loaf of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins.” What
an amazing and awesome day. It was a time for rejoicing in the goodness of God
and declaring His glory.
In verse 29, as part of David’s song of thanks, he says
“Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name.” The word “ascribe” means “to give
credit to; to attribute to; to assign.” Here, David is calling upon the people
of Israel to give due credit to the Lord for His glory and wonderful works. He
calls them to shout words of highest praise because the Lord is worthy. In awe
of the glory and strength of the Lord, sing praise and shout “hooray” to Him. In view of all he had done
for them, God’s people were urged to praise Him and to proclaim His mighty acts
aloud to others.
David
was deeply concerned about the passionate worship of Yahweh. He strongly
believed that worship should not simply be a “casual sing-a-long” that we
half-heartedly indulge in once a week, but it should and MUST be a time of
complete abandonment of ourselves to declare the glory of the Lord. Our worship
should be an expression of our deep, heartfelt love for our Creator. David
played. David sang. David danced. All of his being was immersed in the worship
of His Awesome Creator!
It
is so easy to be distracted during times of worship and praise. Our minds begin
to wander. Our thoughts turn to the activities going on in our home, our work,
our hobbies, our life. When that happens, our lips may still move, but our
heart is not engaged. This is when we should “check ourselves” and turn our
attention fully back to the God who created us, who loves us, and who has
brought us His awesome redemption through the blood of His Son. “Great is the
Lord, and highly to be praised, and His greatness is unsearchable.” (Psalm
145:3)
Take
a moment NOW and ascribe (give credit to) the Lord the glory due His name. Come
before Him and worship Him in the splendor of holiness, “For great is the Lord,
and greatly to be praised” (V25). Do it with abandonment. Immerse yourself in
worship.
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