Psalm 96
July 25, 2021
preached by Pastor Doug Cooper
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Time of Reflection Quotations

“God’s dynamic plan is predicated on shalom – the intended state of peace and wholeness that all of God’s creation is meant to experience. This isn’t peace as we Americans conceive of it, like snoozing in a hammock; rather, it is an active presence of what is right, true, nourishing, joyful, and the like. Shalom is the plumb line, and when we see injustice in the world, we see that things are not as they ought to be. Put another way, injustice and sin tear the fabric of shalom–and shalom is the all-encompassing desire of God for peace and goodness throughout His creation.”

~ Ken Wytsma, contemporary pastor and writer

“The purpose of Jesus’s coming is to put the whole world right, to renew and restore the creation, not to escape it. It is not just to bring personal forgiveness and peace, but also justice and shalom to the world.”

~ Timothy Keller (1950-present), American pastor and writer

“Is authority to be placed in human wisdom or cultural experience, or is it to be located in an incommensurable divine revelation that intrudes into our world from the beyond? (…) Is it a truth waiting to be uncovered through diligent searching, or is it a word personally addressed to us, calling us to repentance and obedience?”

~ Donald Bloesch (1928–2010), American professor, pastor and writer

“God does not always act with justice. Sometimes he acts with mercy. Mercy is not justice, but it also is not injustice. Injustice violates righteousness. Mercy manifests kindness and grace and does no violence to righteousness. We may see nonjustice in God, which is mercy, but we never see injustice in God.”

~ R.C. Sproul (1939-2017), American theologian, writer and pastor

“Any justice which is only justice soon degenerates into something less than justice.”

~ Reinhold Niehbuhr (1892-1971), American writer and professor

Sermon Passage

Psalm 96 (ESV)

¹  Oh sing to the Lord a new song;
sing to the Lord, all the earth!
²  Sing to the Lord, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.
³  Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!
⁴  For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
he is to be feared above all gods.
⁵  For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,
but the Lord made the heavens.
⁶  Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
⁷  Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!
⁸  Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
bring an offering, and come into his courts!
⁹  Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth!
¹⁰ Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.”
¹¹ Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
¹² let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
¹³ before the Lord, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
and the peoples in his faithfulness.