And Know That I Am God - 12/05/10
By Philip Wenham
Psalm 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth."
Please imagine the words of Psalm 46 echoing to the very ends of the universe, as all creation quiets and sits up in awe, as it regards the majesty, might and power of the amazing creator as He speaks these words.
The word translated as "still" also means “weak" or "letting go"; so this sentence could almost have been translated “be weak and know that I am God". This carries the idea of more than just calm stillness, but also a trusting submission, a giving up of the bits and pieces of our lives to our trustworthy God. By obeying you come to know that God is God and are rewarded with such a view of God's greatness, God's majesty, God's goodness, God's everything as will match or even eclipse that grand picture at the start of this article.
Isaiah 40:12 asks: “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?”
In this passage God is pictured as just holding the waters in the hollow of his hand or measuring the heavens with the width of his hand. He is compared to the biggest, largest, mightiest part of creation as His people knew it ... AND HE WAS BIGGER! We are small, frail and finite − yet the infinite God speaks to us and listens to us. How amazing is that? He wants our praise. He wants us to be still, weak and know that He is God and He wants us to exalt Him.
If you’re anything like me you have quite a talent for doing things with a vacant mind! I can have whole conversations with people without listening to them, especially if I’ve had the same conversation with them before. Not a good thing! I know that God is almighty, I want to praise Him as I know He so deserves; but sometimes singing the same praises many times can make it hard to feel the passion and the enthusiasm. It’s natural that we just get used to things and they stop being fresh and inspiring − that’s even true of praising the almighty Lord. Yet to praise God as we ought, we must never lose sight of who God is.
Sometimes I think we don't even pay much attention to the addressee of the praises we sing. For example, sometimes the songs that we sing in church are addressed to each other, designed to encourage each other and spur each other on in our praise. For example, "Come, now is the time to worship" or "Did you feel the Mountains Tremble”. Let me ask you a question: when you sing words like this, are you aware of singing them to your Christian family? Have you even made eye contact with them, responding to the idea of ‘come on, let’s praise God together here’?
It’s hard when no-one else is thinking this way, but, truly our God is worthy of us actually paying attention to the words that come out of our mouths. "Shout to the Lord" might be directed to our brothers and sisters, but it is also directed at the whole earth − "all the earth, let us sing". Other songs of praise are prayers, directed to God himself: "God of wonders beyond our Galaxy, You are Holy", "My greatest love is you".
Many praises aren't addressed to anyone, but simply speak out truths about God and his greatness. They can be speaking to God, the church, the unsaved or to all who will hear. Interestingly, many praises alternate their addressee throughout the song.
Paying attention to the words, being aware of whom the praise is addressed to is all a part of truly praising our God with all our being, from the bottom of our hearts. So take a moment to remember the great God who created us, and don’t take this knowledge for granted next time you stand to sing in church.
Philip Wenham is in his 3rd year of accountancy. He likes basketball, soccer and fast paced music.
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