SING A NEW SONG by Pastor Dave

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling amongst us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth).”
Matthew 1: 20-23
 
Psalm 98
 
     MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! May the blessings of this morning fill your hearts with joy as you consider Jesus, full of grace and truth and as you remember that our receipt of and belief in Him, gives us the right to become Children of God (John 1: 12)! As these truths set our hearts alight with God’s love let’s consider Psalm 98 to enable us to Sing a New Song of praise to our God and Saviour:
 
     Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvellous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The Lord has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God, (vs. 1-3). The subject of this Psalm is the Praise of our God, these first verses show why we are to praise Him: God has done a marvellous thing in Jesus, making His righteousness known and available to us in His proffered salvation. God is so faithful in His love. Reasons indeed to praise God on this day of celebration.
 
     Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music;  make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing,  with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn – shout for joy before the Lord, the King, (vs. 4-6). If the first verses show why we are to praise God these show us how to praise Him. Quite simply if we grasp the depth of the ‘why,’ we will shout, sing, dance and triumphantly proclaim His glory and praise Him for His salvation. Play the songs at the end of the blog and sing along…don’t hold back, this is a day of thanksgiving!
 
Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity, (vs. 7-9). Why, how and now who; who is to praise God? Everyone and everything; His whole creation, the universe, the seas, rivers and mountains and EVERYONE who lives in His creation. God is supremely worthy of this praise. The Psalm ends on a truth that is worthy of praise but which is also a reminder and motivator. Christ will return as judge; justice will reign and eternity continues. We must be ready and right with our Lord – He has provided the means of Grace, so let us receive Jesus.
 
Ponder: Where do we stand before God; have we received the Lord Jesus? If we have, do we truly grasp His Grace and do we live in His love, joy and peace? Our hearts will surely leap to praise our Father if we know the depths of His truth
 
Pray: Almighty God, you have given us your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin: grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen
 
Praise:  Salvation belongs to our God
O Come Let Us Adore Him by Jacob and Bruce Moore
Receive Him by Eliza King
This is the Child by Lauren Lehmen
Nine Lessons and Carols by St. Aidan's

N.B.
The Pastor’s Blog will resume on the 1st January 2021 as the Bible Blog as we begin our journey through the Bible in one year.
 
I pray for a very special blessing upon you all this Christmastide and for the New Year
Pastor Dave