Psalm 149 (NRSV)
Praise the Lord!
Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.
For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory.
Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their couches.
Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to execute vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, to bind their kings with fetters and their nobles with chains of iron, to execute on them the judgment decreed.
This is glory for all his faithful ones.
Praise the Lord!
As we read through this Psalm and talked about its meaning I first remarked that the Psalm had several warfare images in it that are out of vogue in the mainline church. I really think this is too bad, because when we exclude warfare imagery we lose a lot more than we gain. First, believers begin to view themselves as doormats, laying down in the face of opposition rather than standing up to fight for what is right. Second, we lose the joy of Christ's VICTORY on the cross. Third, the Greek word, euagglion, was often used to announce the Good News of victory in battle. There is truly a victory in our faith, a victory of Christ over sin, death and the devil upon the cross. To dismiss passages like Psalm 149 because of their warfare imagery is unacceptable. To reject warfare imagery in the church is to truncate the Gospel.
As I read this Psalm over, I am also struck by its order. The Psalm begins with a celebration. The victory party is in the BEGINNING. The battle comes next. In our Christian faith, the beginning is victory, the battle follows. In Christ Jesus we have already achieved victory over sin, death and the devil. After the victory begins the war between the flesh and the spirit. The victory is assured, but the battle is still fierce.
Let's stand on the side of Christ Jesus who gives us the victory and continue to fight, continue to struggle, continue to take up your arms and battle on, Christian soldier.
Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King.
Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.
For the Lord takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with victory.
Let the faithful exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their couches.
Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to execute vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, to bind their kings with fetters and their nobles with chains of iron, to execute on them the judgment decreed.
This is glory for all his faithful ones.
Praise the Lord!
As we read through this Psalm and talked about its meaning I first remarked that the Psalm had several warfare images in it that are out of vogue in the mainline church. I really think this is too bad, because when we exclude warfare imagery we lose a lot more than we gain. First, believers begin to view themselves as doormats, laying down in the face of opposition rather than standing up to fight for what is right. Second, we lose the joy of Christ's VICTORY on the cross. Third, the Greek word, euagglion, was often used to announce the Good News of victory in battle. There is truly a victory in our faith, a victory of Christ over sin, death and the devil upon the cross. To dismiss passages like Psalm 149 because of their warfare imagery is unacceptable. To reject warfare imagery in the church is to truncate the Gospel.
As I read this Psalm over, I am also struck by its order. The Psalm begins with a celebration. The victory party is in the BEGINNING. The battle comes next. In our Christian faith, the beginning is victory, the battle follows. In Christ Jesus we have already achieved victory over sin, death and the devil. After the victory begins the war between the flesh and the spirit. The victory is assured, but the battle is still fierce.
Let's stand on the side of Christ Jesus who gives us the victory and continue to fight, continue to struggle, continue to take up your arms and battle on, Christian soldier.
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3 comments:
I'm not so sure about being a Christian soldier, Bill, but I am glad you're a blogger now. There's something about the us vs. them mentality that comes along with warfare that doesn't quite mesh with "come, follow me." I'm not trying to say Christians are supposed to be a bunch of wussbags, but I also don't think we're "marching as to war" either. God's power is made perfect in weakness, right?
Troy
I agree that "us vs. them" is damaging to the church and the faith. I would counter with a well-worn phrase, "I have met the enemy, and the enemy is us."
Paul frequently speaks of a war between the flesh and the spirit, and it is in that war that we need to be engaged.
Further, the church must be able to speak out against evil. You and I will disagree about what exactly the church should speak for and against, but we can agree that the church must speak, must testify, must fight.
Hi Bill,
How's it going? I hope life is great in S. Oregon. We are doing well up here. Ups and downs of church in transition are the norm this year, but God is good and faithful. Let me know if you are ever up in the Seattle area. It would be awesome to hang out and catch up.
DH
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