“Then they believed his words; they sang his praise.”
– Psalm 106:12
I love Psalm 106:12 and here’s why. I say I love all the Bible, I trust we all do. But particular verses, and this one specifically, just so succinctly summarizes what I picture when I think about when we gathered together for worship in our churches, I think about the gathering of worship and now listen again to Psalm 106:12. “Then they believed his words; they sang his praise.”
Corporate worship is a rhythm of revelation and response. We gather, hear God’s Word, and respond in adoration of Him.
That’s what just happened the last Sunday I was gathered together with the church. I have the privilege of pastoring in greater Washington, DC, McLean Bible Church, this church family. We gather together every week, we open up God’s Word, we walk through it, we listened to what he says and we say, yes, we believe that. We believe what your Word says.
Psalm 106:12 Leads Us to Worship God
And you know what it leads us to do? And leads us to sing his praise. Why? Because we love what his Word says. We love what we believe because his Word gives promises to us, instructions to us, guidance for us, brings conviction in our lives, brings encouragement to our lives. And all of these things are good. All of these things are good. Because God is leading us to life through his Word. He’s showing us who he is in ways that lead us to sing his praise. He’s showing us how to live in ways that lead us to sing his praise.
I love the moments right after we’ve heard from the Word of God. When we respond to what we’ve heard and we sing his praise in worship, why? Because of his Word, because we believe it. We believe he’s good, we believe he’s gracious. We believe he’s our hope, our joy, our life in the middle of struggles in the middle of trials and the middle of temptations, we believe he’s better. All these things that we see in God’s Word week after week after week as we gather together for worship, they just lead us to sing his praise.
What a great summary of a worship gathering. They believed his words; they sang his praise. Week after week after week. This people gathered together and they believed God’s Word and they sang God’s praise. They go together. I have often talked about how worship is a rhythm of revelation and response. A rhythm of revelation and response.
Psalm 106:12 Reminds Us that God Reveals Himself To Us
So what happens in worship? God reveals himself through his Word. That’s why God’s Word must be at the center of our worship. Obviously under the leadership of his spirit, his Word, because we’re not just making up things about God. Preachers are not just saying their thoughts and their opinions or their political views or their whatever. And I know that’s not worship.
Worship revolves around the Word of God, the revelation of God. And when God reveals himself, then we respond in worship. And you see how if we don’t have the Word of God at the center of our worship, then what will we be worshiping? Ah, we’re worshiping a preacher’s thoughts or opinions or political views or whatever else is being revealed during that time. No, we want the Word to be central because our worship is a response to that Word. And as God speaks, we respond. Worship, a rhythm, a revelation and response.
This Verse Leads Us to Praise God
So God, as we gather together for worship in our churches, we pray that Psalm 106:12, would summarize what happens. That our gatherings would be full of people who believe your words, who love your words. Who believe what we hear, what we read. And love what we hear and read in your Word. Love your truth, your revelation of yourself, love the conviction and encouragement and challenge. And just everything your Word does in our hearts. We believe your Word, we believe it’s good. We believe it’s true. And we believe it’s right. God, we believe it is what we need, and as a result we sing your praise. Your Word leads us in worship. Your Word leads us to praise you, to thank you, to repent before you, to surrender to you.
Oh God I pray. Even as I’m thinking about this and my responsibility as a pastor, I pray that your Word would be central in everything McLean Bible Church does normally gather together. God I pray for that for every church represented and those who are praying this right now, may your Word be central. Or remove that which is not from your Word, directly from your mouth, in our worship gatherings. Please, oh God, saturate our gatherings with your Word. And flowing from this with true, authentic worship to you. It resounds to your praise and your glory. Lord may it be said of us every week when we gather, certainly in every facet of our lives, but particularly when we gathered together as your people, that we believed your words and we sang your praise. In Jesus’ name, amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
