These days we measure the importance of something by how many people are talking about it.
Is this something that is getting attention from only a few and in a limited area, or is it well-known and global? Is it going viral? We should know that this is rarely the best measure of something’s value, but it actually is when it comes to the LORD.
Psalm 113 tells us that God should be honoured by everyone, and He should be glorified everywhere:
From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised!
For God has done great things in this world. This Psalm says that He created everything by the word of his mouth, and now he rules over the universe from his heavenly throne (vv. 5-6).
He is enthroned in glory, but God is not a distant and uncaring king. He takes a close interest in the peoples of the earth, and he shows rich mercy to those who are lowly. This is what verse 7 says about the LORD:
He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap.
In his power and grace the almighty LORD is willing to transform the condition of those who are suffering deeply. It is especially through Jesus his Son that he does this, for in Christ the guilty are made righteous, the poor are made rich, and the broken are healed.
This stunning kindness of God should lead to great praise, at all times and in all places. How far? “From the rising of the sun to its setting,” the Psalmist says, because he wants to describe a place of the greatest extent. As far as you can see, from the west to the east, throughout all the world, the gracious God ought to be praised for his marvelous works.
When Jesus came to suffer and die and rise again, and then when he sent his Holy Spirit, he revealed wondrous new things about the LORD God. And Jesus revealed these things to all nations! His gospel was too amazing to be kept confined to the land of Israel, but it needed to be shared world-wide.
And so it has been. Through his Word and Spirit, Christ has been gathering a global church, one body from every nation of the world. All who believe in him can be saved!
The gospel of Christ has come to you also. May you receive it in true faith and repentance. May the Holy Spirit move you to praise God your Saviour.
And may you spread God’s glory in every place, and to everyone!
Kommentare