The Message, May 5, 2024, Music Sunday: "A New Song," Psalm 98

Author: Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
May 07, 2024

“A New Song”

A Reflection on Psalm 98

Rev. Scott W. Cousineau

            “Joy to the world! The Lord is come; let earth receive her king; let every heart prepare him room, and heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing, and heaven and heaven and nature sing.” (Isaac Watts)

            When Issac Watts wrote the words for that beloved Christmas anthem, he used the themes from Psalm 98 as the basis for the hymn. Joy to the world! The Lord is come; let earth receive her king!

            Five hundred years before Jesus Christ was born, the Hebrew people sang Psalm 98. They had been saved! They had been released from their bondage in Babylon. God had reached down and taken King Cyrus of Persia and led him to the gates of Babylon. God had set the people free. Psalm 98 is a song of celebration for all of the marvelous deeds that God had done for the People of Israel. It was also a song of celebration for all of the marvelous things that God would continue to do for all of humanity.

            The people of Israel had been given new life! They had been set free. They had returned home. They rebuilt that Temple that had been destroyed. They needed a new song. A song that was not only sung by the people; a song that was not only played by the orchestra; a song that was sung by all Creation. Let heaven and nature sing!

            They needed a new song. God rules the world! Not sin, not pain, not darkness. God rules the world and offers light and joy! God offers blessings … not burdens. Deliverance … not bondage.



            To be sure, there is still far too much pain and darkness and suffering in the world. There are far too many burdens being carried upon the backs and shoulders of people. There are far too many people experiencing bondage of every sort. But in the midst of it, we can still sing. We can sing songs of promise because we know that joy is still there. We can sing songs of hope because we know that the light will break forth.

            God sings with us in our sorrow and in our joy.
            God sings with us in our distress and in our celebration.

            In every moment, God offers us song; music to comfort and soothe, music to dance and shout, music to inspire and encourage.

            Every Sunday, we gather for worship and we offer our thanks and praise for everything that God has done for us. We thank God for every blessing. We thank God for every wonderful deed. And we sing with confidence that God will continue to bless us.

            God is still speaking.
            God is still creating.
            God’s Kingdom is still coming.

            God is not still; God is not static … and neither are we. We are part of God’s continuing creation. We play a part in helping create God’s Kingdom here on earth. We have a hand in bringing God’s music to life. Let us sing God’s song in every moment.

            Let us sing God’s song for those who have lost hope.
            Let us sing God’s song for those who are hurting.
            And let us sing God’s song with those who sing and dance for joy. God is love! God is peace! God is promise! God is comfort. God is warmth, and God is home.
            Let us sing a new song for God and with God. Amen.

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