In the previous article in this series, we considered the glimpse of the gospel that God gave to David when the Tabernacle was installed in Jerusalem, and the wonderful exhortations in Psalm 96 to “worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness”. In the final section of this super psalm, David changes his focus appreciably. Somehow, the LORD gave him further prophetic insight – the glorious prospect of a redeemed future. So remarkable was this vision that David positively explodes in rejoicing, encouraging all Creation to participate. Heaven, earth, seas, fields and “everything in it” are enjoined to share the gladness.
In verses 11 to 13, David uses five different Hebrew words for ‘gladness’, ranging from sameach (‘gleeful’) to the utterly exuberant alaz (‘jump for joy!’) and ranan (‘shout for joy!’). What is the exciting prospect that elicits such spontaneous exultation? It is the revelation that the Lord is coming (v13):
For he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with righteousness,
And the peoples with his truth.
We don’t know if David received this revelation directly from the Lord, or if he was helped by whatever inspired scriptures were available to him at that time. Although we have no direct access to those early texts, the brother of the Lord Jesus, Jude (Judah in Hebrew), tells us that the patriarch Enoch, the seventh generation from Creation, prophesied, “Behold! The Lord comes with ten thousands of his saints to execute judgment on all” (Jude 14-15). Maybe David had access to this ancient prophecy.
However, David’s excitement was not merely in the condemnation and removal of the wicked, but also in the restoration of righteousness and truth. What an exciting prospect for us, especially in these days when wickedness increases on every side. With David, we rejoice – the Lord is coming!
The Lord’s Return
To apply this crucial element of Psalm 96 today, we need to understand something of the times in which we live (see 1 Chronicles 12:22). It seems to me that over my lifetime of 75 years, interest in and awareness of the second coming of the Lord Jesus has waned appreciably. In fact, I can’t remember the last time I was present in a meeting when the Lord’s return was a major topic, whether in preaching, in teaching or in song.
As a boy and as a youth, hymns and choruses that looked forward to that event were commonly sung. I haven’t carried out a thorough survey, but a comparison of two hymnbooks provides some perspective other than my own. Redemption Hymnal’s revised edition was published in 1955 and has a dedicated section on the subject, containing 21 hymns (there is also a further section of 17 hymns on ‘The Future Life’). Out of the book’s 800 hymns, this represents about 2.6%, whereas the 2005 edition of Mission Praise has at best 8 out of 1144 (0.7%), some of which I have never heard used.
Roughly speaking, this one comparison suggests a 75% reduction in hymnody with that focus.
Although denominational differences may contribute, my impression is that a similar change has taken place in teaching and preaching in evangelical circles. As affluence, life expectancy and the influence of the ‘prosperity gospel’ have increased, so, overall, focus on the Lord’s return has reduced.
David positively explodes in rejoicing, exulting in the revelation that the Lord is coming.
Love and Judgment
There has also been a substantial change in the place given to final judgment in evangelism. Too often, an emphasis on God’s ‘unconditional love’ and ‘having your problems solved’ has replaced any previous emphasis on sin and judgment. For example, in promoting the Church of England’s report on LGBTQ+ matters in education, ‘Valuing all God’s Children’, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby wrote,
Central to Christian theology is the truth that every single one of us is made in the image of God. Every one of us is loved unconditionally by God…This guidance helps schools to offer the Christian message of love, joy and celebration of our humanity without exception or exclusion.1
Only when the fallenness of humankind and original sin are blithely ignored can such inclusive celebration be promoted. It seems that, almost unnoticed, the Pelagian heresy2 has raised its ugly head again within the Church.
Posters outside many of our churches may illustrate the trend, such as “Somebody up there loves you”,3 which (in tiny print) refers to John 3:16, neatly avoiding any direct mention of the danger of perishing. Others, no doubt well-intentioned, and pointing to a comforting Scripture, proclaim messages such as “Messed-up?...Join the club”,4 and “Every mistake you’ve made erased through Christ”.5
In such cases it appears that catchy marketing and graphics skills are massively devaluing the gospel: ‘messing up’ and making ‘mistakes’ fall well short of acknowledging the universal problem of original sin.6 In Psalm 96, David’s inspired coupling of judgment and renewal is a salutary reminder of divine realities: “He is coming to judge the world. He shall judge the earth with righteousness and the peoples with his truth”.
Storing up Wrath
The ‘Apostle of Love’, John, having asserted “God so loved the world”, also writes “he who does not believe is condemned already…because their deeds are evil” (John 3:18-19). Meanwhile Peter, in the Temple courts, had no compunction in declaring to his religious Old-Covenant countrymen, “Repent therefore, and be converted, so that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19).
When Paul wrote to the early Church in Rome, he asserted that he was “ready to preach the gospel” there (Rom 1:15). His motivation was threefold, as he stated:
1. “It is the power of God to [produce] salvation” (v16)
2. It reveals “the righteousness of God” (v17)
3. It reveals “the wrath of God” (v18)
That wrath, Paul stated, is against two issues: ‘ungodliness’, meaning absence of reverence towards God (in other words, a wrong heart-attitude); and ‘unrighteousness’, meaning injustice, wrongdoing and violation of law (wicked deeds). Verses 20 to 22 form a famous range of humanity’s evil attitudes and practices, all rightly deserving judgment.
As affluence, life expectancy and the influence of the ‘prosperity gospel’ have increased, so, overall, focus on the Lord’s return has reduced.
In Paul’s second chapter he returns to explain why he wants to preach the gospel. He points out that continuing in sin makes things worse, that wrath accumulates: “you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath” (v5). Moreover, that day will be truly dire: “a day of indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish” (vv8-9).
The Areopagus in Athens by Leo von Klenze, 1846Rather earlier, in Athens, Paul had preached the gospel privately in the synagogue and publicly in the marketplace. When various philosophers took him to the Areopagus so that they could be free of the hubbub of commerce, he very quickly moved from speaking of God as Creator and Sustainer to declaring, “God has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness”; moreover, God would do this “by the man he ordained", that is, by Jesus.
The gentle Jesus, the Good Shepherd, is also the awesome ultimate Judge. He himself declared it: “The Father judges no-one, but has committed all judgment to the Son” (John 5:22). Jesus also spoke far more about judgment and hell than he did about heaven, such as in Matthew 10:28; “fear him who is able to destroy both soil and body in hell”. The Good News only makes sense in the light of the bad news! One wonders, then, why we are so reluctant to declare the full gospel.
Clarion Call
KP Yohannan, founder of Gospel for Asia, writes:
I have come to see that many evangelical Christians do not really believe the Word of God, especially when it talks about hell and judgment. Instead they selectively accept only the portions that allow them to continue living in their current lifestyles.7
What a contrast to the Apostle Paul’s reminder to the church in Corinth: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ…knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men…” (2 Cor 5:10-11).
I wonder, when was the last time you heard a message to believers about the Judgment Seat of Christ, let alone the judgment of the unsaved? It appears that Yohannan is right: we have largely lost sight of the terror of the Lord, of which Paul speaks so authoritatively!
Although in Psalm 96 David is speaking long before the first coming of Messiah, and no doubt had limited understanding of prophetic fulfilment, his clarion call in this Psalm is crystal clear: “The LORD is coming to judge the earth…Proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day”! That call is to each one of us today.
This article is part of the series studying the Psalms in their original context. Click here to read previous instalments.
References
1. Homophobic, Biphobic and Transphobic (HBT) bullying tackled in New Guidance for Church Schools. Church of England news article, 30 November 2017.
2. Pelagianism is the belief that original sin did not taint human nature and that mortal will is still capable of choosing good or evil without divine aid.
3. For example: Valentine’s Day Posters, CPO.
4. See ‘Messed Up? Join the club’ poster at CPO.
5. See ‘Erased Through Christ’ poster at CPO.
6. See also my previous Prophecy Today UK article on this subject.
7. Yohannan, KP, 2016. Revolution in World Missions. Gospel For Asia, p90