Can I Get A Witness? Series

Introduction

Last week, we began considering the relationship between praise and thanks and how we are called in this Psalm to verbalize or express our gratitude. That expression should include some discussion of God’s attributes and the affect that he has on us, on creation, and even on his enemies.

This week, we are going to look at the next stanza of Psalm 66 in order to understand what gratitude expects or requires. In many ways, gratitude expects a witness or a testimony.

Let’s consider verses 1-7, then we’ll focus on verses 5-7. In fact lets read this aloud together.

Psalm 66:1–7 ESV

Shout for joy to God, all the earth;

sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise!

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.

All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name.” Selah

Come and see what God has done: he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.

He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. There did we rejoice in him,

who rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations— let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah

Let’s pray

?Verses 5-7 seem to communicate that

When God’s people testify to what God has done, others are invited to witness and respond.

?So, as we seek to apply this today, I think it’s important that we invite others to hear of God’s works - in our lives and in the world, so that they can respond. So, right at the outset, the we get to…

Invite others… (5a)

There is a story of pastor who took a Sunday off to play a round of golf. Everybody needs a day off from time to time. For this pastor, he had an amazing round of golf that day. He even hit a hole in one. Unfortunately, he felt so guilty about missing a Sunday that he couldn’t invite anyone to share in his joy. So his story is told in anonymity.

There are many times when it’s easy to invite people to witness or observe something that’s happened in our lives. Obviously for this pastor, he was a bit conflicted, but for others, there are a variety of reasons we want to invite people in. Maybe it’s a big life event like a birthday party or a wedding or an anniversary. Maybe it’s something smaller - like a good meal or a new outfit. Maybe it’s a milestone like a fitness goal or a completed project. We even like to include things about our kids - sporting events, new grades in school, final year photos and more. Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms make inviting others into these events in our lives easy. For those who aren’t on social media or, like me, don’t post on social media very often, the invitation to come and see takes a more conversational approach - maybe it’s over a meal or on a trip together or at community group or time of fellowship or even simply at the mail box with a neighbor. These times of sharing become an invitation.

Think about this, what is an invitation? Why do we invite people into something? We want them to enjoy the event in our lives. We want them to celebrate with us. We want them to get some sort of benefit from whatever has happened in our lives.

But how often do our invitations include an invitation to come and see what God has done? How often does God’s work in our lives cross our lips, especially to those outside of the household of faith?

The Psalmist reminds us:

Psalm 66:5 (ESV)

Come and see what God has done: …

?The Psalmist is modeling an invitation. I think it’s important that we invite others into our lives and the important events. This Psalm provides us an example that we should also invite others…

...to hear of God’s works… (5b-7a)

Let’s look again at this Psalm.

Psalm 66:5–7 (ESV)

…He is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man. He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the river on foot. There did we rejoice in him, who rules by his might forever, whose eyes keep watch on the nations…

The Psalmist begins by talking about…

God’s General Works

“He is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man”. Some people refer to this as “common grace.” These are the good things that we receive from God, simply because He is good and gracious. One theological resource defined common grace as:

Lexham Survey of Theology (The Spirit and Common Grace)

God’s general favor by which he restrains sin and its consequences, maintains human life and culture, and bestows a variety of gifts and blessings to all people indiscriminately.