Praised by Happy Voices
Discover how the harmony of a sincere life and a joyful heart transforms simple worship into a melody that gladdens the very heart of God.
Let Israel rejoice in their Maker;
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
(Psalm 149:2)
How happy God must be when His people sing to Him joyfully! God is love, and if, as I believe, God created us in order to love us, it can’t be anything but a joy for Him to receive the worship of those who are happy to praise Him. In this life, our praise is marred by many imperfections, but even the tiny attempts at worship we are able to offer our Father gladden His heart. If we are but children now, He knows we will one day grow up and praise Him with unmitigated joy, just as His Son, Jesus Christ, has always done.
There is, however, a sobering point that should be made: our praise does not bring gladness to God if it is hypocritical. Nothing is more disturbing to God than the “worship” of those whose daily lives contradict everything worship is meant to be. “One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer is an abomination” (Proverbs 28:9). To those in Israel who came to the temple to worship, apparently thinking God wouldn’t notice the immoral lives they were leading when they weren’t worshiping, God said, “I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting” (Isaiah 1:13).
Yet when our praises and our personal character are in wholesome alignment, how the heart of God must overflow! He most certainly knows, because He knows our innermost thoughts, that we long for a closer relationship with Him, and He rejoices that we value something that He paid such a high price to make possible for us.
At present, the joyfulness of our praise is based on faith. That doesn’t mean it’s not real; we can praise a God who is unseen, just as we can rejoice over the Son we’ve never seen. “Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:8). In both cases, we need to feed our faith so that the heavenly realities become our true treasures (Matthew 6:19-21).
A time is coming, however, when faith has become sight and our praises have risen to a new level. If there is as much difference between our praises then and now as there’ll be between our bodies then and now, I expect we’re in for quite a song service!
“You are worthy at all times to be praised by happy voices, O Son of God, O Giver of Life, and to be glorified through all the worlds” (Phos Hilaron - ‘Gladsome Light’).
Gary Henry - WordPoints.com