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Psalm 9 - Worship

Psalm 9

 Praise God for His Work

 Introduction:
Written by David as a testimonial in a ABCABC format - he has 3 main points to bring out, with point A being his focus for this Psalm.

Summary
v1-2, 11-12 - A - Praise & Glory to God
v3-6, 13-18 - B - God's earthly work
v7-12, 19-20 - C - God's eternal work and His character

Praise and Glory to God
David declares to praise God
- With all his heart
- Proclaiming His works and wonders among the nations
- Being glad and rejoicing in Him
- With singing (expression of joy)
- Because God remembers and does not ignore the afflicted
David also lists more reasons for him to praise God in sections B and C.

God's earthly work
Yes, God does work in earthly ways. This section of Psalm 9 seems to focus on the things God does very specifically on earth to glorify Himself on earth amongst the nations. Very specifically it shows how God relates to man, and in particular as judge of the nations.
- Stumbles, destroys and turns enemies back
- Upholds David's right and cause
- Righteously judging
- Rebukes the nations
- Destroys the wicked
- Blots out the names of the wicked
- Gives mercy on the afflicted
- Causes enemies to fall in their own traps
- Sustains the hope of the needy and the afflicted
We see God as the righteous judge here, acting amongst the nations to provide hope and mercy for the afflicted, turning back the wicked. Note that at no point of time does David actually mention that the righteous will have a "good life" because of God, even with all this goodness that God brings about. Conversely, the righteous are often described as afflicted.

God's character & eternal work
This section is more focused on a Kingdom perspective of God's work as well as His character. Here's some of the things David describes
- Established His throne
- Judges world in righteousness
- Provides refuge for the oppressed
- Is a stronghold in times of trouble
- Does not forsake those who seek him
- Does not let man triumph
- Strikes terror
- Reminds the nations that they are but men

Key points:
This passage is full of points, all pointing to the reason why we worship God. What is key to this passage is how we worship God.
1. We worship God with all our hearts
 - Needless to say we cannot be preoccupied with other things. God must be centric to our worship.
2. We proclaim God's works and wonders among the nations.
 - Even at a time when Israel was God's chosen nation and salvation was not preached openly to Gentiles, David already recognised God's will for his works and wonders to be preached among the nations. Go back to the original formation of Israel. Genesis 12:3b - and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you. God tells (then) Abram, the purpose of Israel, to bless all nations by allowing them to know Him.

 Also key to the passage is why we worship God. Note that this isn't the primary reason, but these are good reasons nevertheless!
1. God's earthly work to actively judge and sustain the afflicted.
 - God's sustenance for our daily lives, judging to prevent the complete depravity of man. We often label man "totally depraved". It is inaccurate. To be "totally depraved" would be to be completely without God's intercession to right the wrongs in our lives - we probably don't want to imagine how bad that will look.
2. God's character and eternal work
 - God establishes His throne and reminds mankind that He is God and we are but man. He does not allow for man to triumph, lest we become conceited and consider ourselves equal or above God. For He is God, and all glory, honor and power must be directed to God and not us.

Question:
How do we worship God? Do we consider evangelism a form of worship? Do we treat worship as a ritual, or do we go into it joyfully and with all our hearts?

If we truly understand the reason for worship, as part of God's Creation, as thanksgiving for Jesus Christ's death and resurrection, as thanksgiving for the new hope in the new life that God has given us, for God's work of daily sustenance and for God's character - then we should be compelled to worship Him wholeheartedly. We should preach the works and wonders of God with a heart that seeks to bring this same joy we have in God to others.

How can we proclaim God's wonderfulness to the world today?
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