WEBVTT 00:00:06.959 --> 00:00:12.720 This sermon was recorded at Faith Evangelical Free Church in Grand Forks, North Dakota. 00:00:20.239 --> 00:00:23.440 Take your Bible with me to the book of Psalms. 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:31.280 What do we consider on Christmas morning? 00:00:33.200 --> 00:00:39.359 Last night we we thought a little about Luke chapter 2 and the Christmas story. 00:00:39.600 --> 00:00:46.320 I know that at least some of you remember the way to be able to count down Luke's story, right? 00:00:46.640 --> 00:00:50.159 Three, two, one, four. 00:00:50.479 --> 00:00:50.960 Yes. 00:00:51.280 --> 00:00:56.159 Ending in an explosion of responses to the gospel story. 00:00:56.399 --> 00:00:58.479 How will you respond? 00:00:59.759 --> 00:01:04.159 That leads, I think, very well into Psalm 98. 00:01:04.400 --> 00:01:10.959 If you have your Bible, I encourage you to open it with me to the 98th Psalm. 00:01:11.200 --> 00:01:28.480 Yesterday evening in our Christmas story reading from Luke 2, we heard the angel's words from verse 10 for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 00:01:29.840 --> 00:01:41.519 The good news of great joy present in the birth of the Savior was not just for the shepherds guarding their sheep in the middle of the night. 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:45.120 It was not just for Mary and Joseph. 00:01:46.239 --> 00:01:48.400 It was for all the people. 00:01:48.959 --> 00:02:00.079 The peace made available to the earth was not just to the shepherds or those suffering under the dominion of Rome or the Magi traveling from the east. 00:02:00.640 --> 00:02:02.879 It was for all the people. 00:02:04.480 --> 00:02:05.840 How can that be? 00:02:06.799 --> 00:02:13.520 How can it be that the good news of the birth of Jesus is good news for all people? 00:02:13.840 --> 00:02:27.439 Now, as Christians, we believe that the good news is about the Lord's coming so that he might restore sinful, hostile people to the God who made them. 00:02:28.639 --> 00:02:32.240 He did that not simply by coming, but by dying. 00:02:32.479 --> 00:02:35.120 It's in that Savior that we trust. 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:45.280 But I would suggest to you that we can find a broader answer given long before the angel's announcement in the prayer book of the Psalms. 00:02:45.439 --> 00:02:56.879 I suggest that Psalm 98 answers how the news of the Savior's birth is good news of great joy for all people. 00:02:57.759 --> 00:03:04.080 But then we might ask, how is Psalm 98 a Christmas text? 00:03:05.039 --> 00:03:16.960 Well, we've already heard that Christmas is a divinely provided opportunity to lift our voices and sing the song of Emmanuel. 00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:24.080 The song we just heard declared, lift your voices and now proclaim. 00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:34.000 Psalm 98 calls us to do just that in praise of the great things that God has done. 00:03:34.159 --> 00:03:35.680 Look at it with me. 00:03:35.840 --> 00:03:36.719 Psalm 98. 00:03:36.800 --> 00:03:38.400 I'll read it if you would like to follow along. 00:03:38.479 --> 00:03:41.199 It starts out saying it's a psalm, a song. 00:03:41.439 --> 00:03:48.719 And it says, Oh, sing to Yahweh a new song, for he has done marvelous things. 00:03:49.280 --> 00:03:53.439 His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. 00:03:54.080 --> 00:03:56.080 Yahweh has made known his salvation. 00:03:56.240 --> 00:03:59.759 He has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations. 00:04:00.400 --> 00:04:05.360 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. 00:04:05.919 --> 00:04:10.719 All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. 00:04:11.919 --> 00:04:15.680 Make a joyful noise to Yahweh, all the earth. 00:04:15.919 --> 00:04:25.519 Break forth into joyous song and sing praises, sing praises to Yahweh with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody, with trumpets and the sound of the horn. 00:04:25.759 --> 00:04:29.680 Make a joyful noise before the king, Yahweh. 00:04:30.720 --> 00:04:35.439 Let the sea roar and all that is in it. 00:04:36.560 --> 00:04:39.120 The world and those who dwell in it. 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:49.199 Let the rivers clap their hands, let the hills sing together for joy before Yahweh, for he comes to judge the earth. 00:04:49.839 --> 00:04:55.920 He will judge the world with righteousness and the peoples with equity. 00:04:56.240 --> 00:04:56.879 Amen. 00:04:57.199 --> 00:05:07.600 Before we even think about Psalm 98's application to Christmas, we must remember that this song was part of Israel's worship. 00:05:07.839 --> 00:05:27.839 Whether sung in the Temple Commons or prayed as part of a congregational prayer, it reminded Israel of God's mighty work in the past in order to prompt worship in the present and trust for God's future salvation. 00:05:28.240 --> 00:05:34.879 It likely reminded Israel of God's deliverance of their people from the hand of the Egyptians. 00:05:35.439 --> 00:05:46.480 Maybe even from Exodus chapter 15 of Moses' song written after they crossed over the Red Sea and rescued from the armies of the Egyptians. 00:05:47.120 --> 00:05:59.439 It was sung to remind them of God's power, of his mighty salvation, his deliverance from the enemy, but also to generate praise for what God had done. 00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:13.279 Praise that we give today in the moment, so that we are reminded then we can trust Him for tomorrow, for the next day, and for eternity. 00:06:13.519 --> 00:06:16.480 Now there are three stanzas in this song. 00:06:16.720 --> 00:06:20.079 We might call them verses if we put it in our hymnal. 00:06:20.399 --> 00:06:27.680 Three verses, one through three, then a second verse, verses four through six, the third stanza, verses seven through nine. 00:06:27.759 --> 00:06:31.040 Most of our Bibles have it naturally divided that way. 00:06:32.160 --> 00:06:35.439 We're going to walk through these very simply, very quickly. 00:06:35.680 --> 00:06:44.399 The first stanza reminds us that God has done marvelous things, and it's a call to God's people to sing. 00:06:44.560 --> 00:06:49.839 So God's people, we gathered here today, are called to sing. 00:06:51.519 --> 00:06:54.800 Oh, sing! That's the first words. 00:06:55.040 --> 00:06:56.720 Oh, sing to Yahweh. 00:06:56.879 --> 00:06:58.079 A new song. 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:01.600 For He's done marvelous things. 00:07:02.079 --> 00:07:10.800 I'd like you to think with me about this first section, these first three verses, where God's people are called to sing. 00:07:11.360 --> 00:07:13.439 Why is it that we are called to sing? 00:07:13.600 --> 00:07:15.519 I think we can see at least three reasons here. 00:07:15.680 --> 00:07:18.480 The first one is that God has worked powerfully. 00:07:18.720 --> 00:07:20.319 It says, sing a new song. 00:07:20.399 --> 00:07:20.800 Why? 00:07:21.040 --> 00:07:23.439 Because he has done marvelous things. 00:07:23.759 --> 00:07:33.519 His right hand, that's a Hebrew way of saying God's power, his might, that's found in his powerful and strong right hand. 00:07:34.399 --> 00:07:37.839 His holy arm has done what? 00:07:38.959 --> 00:07:41.920 Has worked salvation for him. 00:07:42.240 --> 00:07:45.199 And God has done this for himself. 00:07:45.600 --> 00:07:51.360 It's not because he found anything good or righteous or worthy in his people. 00:07:52.160 --> 00:08:01.759 No, it's because he desired to show his power and his glory by doing something his people did not deserve. 00:08:02.959 --> 00:08:10.879 So when we sing a new song at Christmas, we remember that God has worked powerfully. 00:08:11.120 --> 00:08:14.879 Not only has he worked powerfully, he's also worked publicly. 00:08:15.040 --> 00:08:19.360 It says he's made known his salvation in the sight of the nations. 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:30.000 Not just in this little circle, not just in a single home or in a manger, but in the sight of the nations. 00:08:30.879 --> 00:08:33.759 This is not something that God did in private. 00:08:34.159 --> 00:08:47.440 He worked powerfully so that the whole world, the ends of the earth, could see it and not just see it one time, but to experience the results of this powerful work for the rest of eternity. 00:08:48.559 --> 00:08:51.679 He's done it in the sight of the nations. 00:08:52.879 --> 00:08:57.519 He's done it powerfully, he's done it publicly, and he's done it permanently. 00:08:59.440 --> 00:09:04.159 God continues to carry out his character. 00:09:05.279 --> 00:09:16.799 He remembers his steadfast, faithful, loyal love that he's had for his people in the past, and he continues to have today, and he will have tomorrow. 00:09:18.080 --> 00:09:20.159 He shows that to the house of Israel. 00:09:20.960 --> 00:09:25.759 In fact, it spreads to all the ends of the earth. 00:09:26.879 --> 00:09:28.480 Where's the end of the earth? 00:09:29.039 --> 00:09:32.639 It's not flat as some think, so it doesn't have an end. 00:09:33.120 --> 00:09:34.720 And I think that's the point. 00:09:34.960 --> 00:09:44.720 The psalmist says if you go to the end of the earth, you keep going and you keep going, you cannot find the place where God's salvation has not touched. 00:09:45.519 --> 00:09:54.879 The ends of the earth, he has worked permanently so that the world has seen who he is, his power, and what he has done. 00:09:54.960 --> 00:10:06.559 And that's what the New Testament echoes in Romans chapter 1, where every single person who has ever lived or who will ever live knows that God exists and that he is a powerful God. 00:10:08.559 --> 00:10:18.799 Here, the psalmist says that God has worked in such a way in the past so that everyone going forward knows his saving work. 00:10:18.879 --> 00:10:28.240 And that awareness of God's work is a reason, he says, to sing a new song to the Lord. 00:10:29.039 --> 00:10:48.960 So at Christmas, on Christmas morning, we are given a divinely provided opportunity to remember that God has done marvelous things by sending a Savior who is Messiah Jesus. 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:57.200 And we remember that by singing, by singing, even singing a new song. 00:10:57.600 --> 00:11:01.840 The second stanza begins in verse 4 and goes all the way through verse 6. 00:11:02.000 --> 00:11:05.759 And this stanza begins with commands. 00:11:05.919 --> 00:11:09.919 In fact, there are there's a string of three parallel commands. 00:11:10.080 --> 00:11:15.120 Make a joyful noise, break forth in joyous song, and sing praises. 00:11:15.519 --> 00:11:17.039 Sing, sing, sing. 00:11:18.559 --> 00:11:20.159 That's how he starts. 00:11:21.519 --> 00:11:32.080 We should be so blown away by the power of God to deliver and bring salvation in the past that we do nothing but sing and make noise. 00:11:32.480 --> 00:11:34.159 Notice how this is described. 00:11:34.240 --> 00:11:35.440 First in verse 4. 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:38.320 We are to make noise demonstrably. 00:11:39.120 --> 00:11:45.279 Make a joyful noise to Yahweh, all the earth, break forth into joyous song, and sing praises. 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:49.759 You can't do that, singing joy to the world. 00:11:51.600 --> 00:11:52.960 It doesn't work. 00:11:55.200 --> 00:11:57.519 This is demonstrably. 00:11:57.759 --> 00:11:59.919 This is you can't sit still. 00:12:00.159 --> 00:12:01.600 You can't do it sitting down. 00:12:01.759 --> 00:12:03.600 You've got to get into it. 00:12:04.320 --> 00:12:08.320 Because you are so moved by the power of your God. 00:12:09.679 --> 00:12:11.120 In fact, he extends that. 00:12:11.200 --> 00:12:14.559 Not only do we do it demonstrably, we do it deafeningly. 00:12:14.960 --> 00:12:16.159 I'm not sure if that's a word. 00:12:16.240 --> 00:12:18.639 I may have made up some new words for this morning. 00:12:19.600 --> 00:12:22.559 Sing praises to Yahweh with the lyre. 00:12:23.120 --> 00:12:25.759 With the lyre and the sound of the melody. 00:12:26.080 --> 00:12:31.440 The lyre is a stringed instrument that was like a harp, most likely, that was plucked. 00:12:32.159 --> 00:12:35.200 But then we get louder with trumpets. 00:12:36.480 --> 00:12:38.080 And with the horn. 00:12:39.279 --> 00:12:41.919 The writer here is very specific. 00:12:42.399 --> 00:12:48.799 Trumpets are those man-made brass instruments that are loud. 00:12:48.879 --> 00:12:53.120 And the horn here is the shofar, a ram's horn. 00:12:54.559 --> 00:12:57.519 So we have voices making joyful noises. 00:12:57.759 --> 00:12:59.600 We have this lyre making a noise. 00:12:59.679 --> 00:13:00.960 We have the sound of melody. 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:06.799 To that is added the cacophony of trumpets and horns making a joyful noise. 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:08.080 This is deafening. 00:13:08.320 --> 00:13:10.960 Christmas morning ought to be deafening. 00:13:12.320 --> 00:13:16.320 In joyous praise for what God has done. 00:13:17.039 --> 00:13:18.559 But he doesn't end there. 00:13:18.879 --> 00:13:26.000 He finishes this theme in verse 6 by saying, We are to make noise devotionally. 00:13:26.080 --> 00:13:27.440 Now, what do I mean by that? 00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:32.159 I don't mean that you go to your room and you're quiet and you open your Bible and you read it. 00:13:32.240 --> 00:13:33.600 That's a good thing. 00:13:34.000 --> 00:13:38.320 No, this means that you are devoted to the King. 00:13:40.080 --> 00:13:46.879 Who in this case is Yahweh, the God of Israel, the God of creation. 00:13:47.279 --> 00:13:54.480 We sing demonstrably, we sing deafeningly, and we sing because we are devoted to the King. 00:13:57.120 --> 00:13:58.799 That's what the angels meant. 00:14:01.279 --> 00:14:05.759 And they sang in the middle of the night. 00:14:06.240 --> 00:14:16.639 To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Messiah Yahweh, the coming of the King. 00:14:16.799 --> 00:14:33.919 So at Christmas, we are given a divinely provided opportunity to make joyful noise with our voices, with all kinds of instruments in praise of his marvelous work of providing salvation. 00:14:34.080 --> 00:14:35.679 And these things just build. 00:14:35.840 --> 00:14:39.360 Remember that the second stanza builds on the first stanza. 00:14:39.519 --> 00:14:47.200 The commands to praise with joyful noise are because God has done marvelous things in providing salvation. 00:14:47.519 --> 00:14:50.960 And that leads us to the third stanza. 00:14:51.440 --> 00:14:52.639 Verse 7. 00:14:53.039 --> 00:14:57.600 God's people are charged here to respond. 00:14:58.799 --> 00:15:02.639 To respond specifically to his coming. 00:15:08.559 --> 00:15:11.120 And not just the sea, but everything that fills it. 00:15:13.200 --> 00:15:16.240 The world and those who live in it. 00:15:17.840 --> 00:15:20.559 That the rivers clap their hands. 00:15:20.639 --> 00:15:26.320 I've never seen rivers with hands, but by now we ought to get the picture, right? 00:15:27.200 --> 00:15:39.279 That the understanding of what God has provided is so astounding that even the rivers are heard as having hands that make noise because of what God has done. 00:15:40.080 --> 00:15:42.320 Let the hills sing for joy. 00:15:42.480 --> 00:15:50.399 So what do we hear in this verse of God's people responding to his coming? 00:15:50.799 --> 00:15:53.679 We respond first comprehensively. 00:15:54.399 --> 00:15:56.320 Everything responds. 00:15:56.960 --> 00:15:59.440 There's not a part that does not respond. 00:15:59.679 --> 00:16:08.639 Remember when the Lord Jesus was coming down the hillside on the donkey into the city of Jerusalem on the triumphal entry? 00:16:09.279 --> 00:16:13.039 The Pharisees were all upset and they said, Jesus, you need to make your disciples quiet down. 00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:15.120 And he said, No, you don't get it. 00:16:16.240 --> 00:16:20.080 Because if they didn't give praise, even the rocks would cry out. 00:16:21.679 --> 00:16:23.279 That's the image here. 00:16:23.759 --> 00:16:28.799 That when Christ the King comes, there's nothing that's silent. 00:16:29.519 --> 00:16:31.120 Everything gives praise. 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:38.960 It's comprehensive and encompasses the entire earth because, secondly, we respond captivatedly. 00:16:39.279 --> 00:16:43.279 We are captivated by who is coming. 00:16:45.679 --> 00:16:49.759 We're so enthusiastic and so overwhelmed by who comes. 00:16:49.840 --> 00:16:51.360 It's before Yahweh. 00:16:51.519 --> 00:16:52.320 It's Him. 00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:54.320 It's He who comes. 00:16:55.120 --> 00:16:56.799 Not somebody else. 00:16:57.919 --> 00:17:12.640 In the New Testament, there was no word translated for the divine name, and so often they simply used the word Lord when they translated the Old Testament into New Testament language of Greek. 00:17:13.759 --> 00:17:24.079 I think that's exactly what's happening in Luke chapter 2 when the angel says, To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Messiah Yahweh. 00:17:25.519 --> 00:17:26.079 Why? 00:17:26.960 --> 00:17:33.200 Because the psalmist says, Give praise, for Yahweh comes. 00:17:34.480 --> 00:17:35.279 Here he is. 00:17:35.599 --> 00:17:36.799 It's Christmas morning. 00:17:37.440 --> 00:17:38.720 How will you respond? 00:17:40.240 --> 00:17:46.319 Lord willing, we respond comprehensively because we are captivated by the God who comes. 00:17:46.880 --> 00:17:50.720 It's not his emissary who comes, it's not a rep representative who comes. 00:17:50.960 --> 00:17:53.680 It's God himself who comes. 00:17:54.400 --> 00:17:58.400 And so then, lastly, we respond cordially. 00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:01.759 I don't mean we just say nice things about him. 00:18:02.880 --> 00:18:12.000 It doesn't suggest that, oh, we are we're kind to him, and okay, yeah, there's a baby that's born, so we ooh and we yaw and we're all nice and friendly. 00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:18.720 No, this is because you recognize that the one who's coming is the judge of all the earth. 00:18:19.839 --> 00:18:23.200 And this judge is the one who has provided salvation. 00:18:23.759 --> 00:18:26.880 He has provided salvation for his people in the past. 00:18:27.519 --> 00:18:34.720 He's going to provide salvation for his people in the future, and he has the powerful right arm to be able to do it. 00:18:35.759 --> 00:18:37.200 And so he comes. 00:18:37.440 --> 00:18:39.279 And he comes to judge. 00:18:39.519 --> 00:18:47.119 But in this passage, this is interesting because if you go back to verse 2, you find this parallelism happening in this poetry. 00:18:47.279 --> 00:18:50.960 God has made known his salvation, he has revealed his righteousness. 00:18:51.119 --> 00:18:55.440 In this context, righteousness and salvation are equivalent terms. 00:18:55.599 --> 00:18:57.200 They're used back and forth. 00:18:57.359 --> 00:19:02.799 So when we get to the end, he will judge the world with salvation. 00:19:04.319 --> 00:19:12.960 It's his righteousness that comes to provide salvation, and it's his salvation is the means by which he provides judgment. 00:19:13.200 --> 00:19:22.079 And so we ought to have respect and awe for the one who comes to judge with salvation, with his righteousness, with equity. 00:19:22.400 --> 00:19:26.640 He is able to do what is right in his judgment. 00:19:27.440 --> 00:19:31.839 The one who comes is both judge and savior. 00:19:32.640 --> 00:19:47.279 So we see then that the Psalm looks back at God's provision of deliverance, of salvation at some past point to remind us that God is also going to provide deliverance, salvation at some future time. 00:19:47.920 --> 00:19:57.279 God Himself would come to bring judgment, resulting in his righteousness being given through a Savior. 00:19:59.359 --> 00:20:06.400 And remember, the angel announced that a savior had been born. 00:20:06.960 --> 00:20:08.559 Which was good news. 00:20:08.960 --> 00:20:09.599 For who? 00:20:11.200 --> 00:20:12.240 Everyone. 00:20:14.240 --> 00:20:21.119 It is that event, that event when a savior was born to provide good news for everyone. 00:20:21.279 --> 00:20:27.680 It is that event that God had in mind right here in Psalm 98. 00:20:28.960 --> 00:20:37.599 It is the coming of Christ the Lord, Messiah Yahweh, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth that we hear echoed in this Psalm. 00:20:37.759 --> 00:20:40.880 Now that might seem like a crazy tale to you. 00:20:41.200 --> 00:20:44.000 So let me let me back that up if I can. 00:20:44.400 --> 00:20:56.000 We can tell that, that this has in mind the future coming of Christ the Lord in Psalm 98 by following the trail backwards. 00:20:56.559 --> 00:20:59.200 Let's start at the end of the trail. 00:20:59.920 --> 00:21:01.920 Luke chapter 2. 00:21:03.359 --> 00:21:05.759 Jesus is brought to the temple. 00:21:06.079 --> 00:21:10.400 And an old man by the name of Simeon comes up, and it says he is filled with the Spirit. 00:21:10.480 --> 00:21:12.480 He's being driven by the Spirit of God. 00:21:12.559 --> 00:21:14.640 And he makes this statement to God. 00:21:14.720 --> 00:21:21.759 He says, My eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples. 00:21:23.039 --> 00:21:28.559 A light of revelation for the Gentiles and for glory to your people, Israel. 00:21:30.640 --> 00:21:37.599 God's Spirit moved Simeon to do that at the exact moment that Joseph and Mary brought Jesus into the temple. 00:21:37.920 --> 00:21:46.000 Now, in his spirit-driven praise, Simeon is quoting Isaiah 52 10. 00:21:46.559 --> 00:21:47.119 Hmm. 00:21:47.279 --> 00:21:48.400 What's that say? 00:21:48.720 --> 00:21:59.599 Isaiah 52 10 says, Yahweh has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation. 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:00.960 Of our God. 00:22:01.200 --> 00:22:07.440 Simeon is standing there with this infant in his arms, and he's saying, God, he's here. 00:22:09.200 --> 00:22:10.319 You promised. 00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:15.440 And now I can depart in peace. 00:22:16.480 --> 00:22:20.400 Because my eyes have seen your salvation. 00:22:23.680 --> 00:22:25.359 Now here's the neat part. 00:22:26.160 --> 00:22:36.240 Simeon quotes Isaiah 52, but Isaiah, when he wrote his text, Isaiah, the prophet, quoted Psalm 98. 00:22:38.400 --> 00:22:45.440 We know that because there are only two places in the Hebrew Bible where we see the phrase his holy arm. 00:22:46.640 --> 00:22:52.319 One is Isaiah 52, 10, and the other is Psalm 98. 00:22:53.599 --> 00:23:00.079 Isaiah is looking back at Psalm 98 and saying, God, you already said it. 00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:07.039 You already said that your holy arm would be bared before all the nations, bringing salvation. 00:23:07.200 --> 00:23:08.400 And he wrote it down. 00:23:08.559 --> 00:23:13.279 And Simeon read Isaiah's text and he said, God, you said it. 00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:14.960 Here he is. 00:23:16.480 --> 00:23:33.039 So by tracing the hand of God in fulfillment, we see that Simeon through Isaiah looks at the infant Jesus in fulfillment of God's promise to reveal his holy, mighty arm once more in providing salvation, not just for the Jewish people, but for the nations. 00:23:34.400 --> 00:23:46.640 Psalm 98 reminded Israel of God's mighty work in the past, to prompt worship in the present and trust for his future salvation. 00:23:48.000 --> 00:24:02.079 And it reminds us on Christmas morning of God's powerful redemption provided at the cross, of the forgiveness of our sins brought through our Savior. 00:24:02.480 --> 00:24:09.839 And it motivates trust that he will ultimately bring our salvation to its perfect completion. 00:24:11.839 --> 00:24:26.720 That, my friends, is a reason to sing, to make noise, to make a joyful noise, and to rejoice at the coming of our Savior, Christ the Lord. 00:24:29.279 --> 00:24:43.359 In 1719, the text of a hymn was published in Isaac Watts's hymnal with the title, The Messiah's Coming and Kingdom. 00:24:44.640 --> 00:24:53.119 Isaac Watts composed his lyrics as a paraphrase of the last few verses of Psalm 98. 00:24:54.000 --> 00:25:04.880 He wanted to celebrate God's provision of salvation to remove the cause of sin through the Lord's coming. 00:25:05.839 --> 00:25:17.519 Today, that hymn by Isaac Watts from Psalm 98 is known worldwide by the title Joy to the World. 00:25:19.519 --> 00:25:27.599 As Connie and Webb come, would you stand with me as we sing Psalm 98 on Christmas morning? 00:25:28.079 --> 00:25:30.160 Joy to the world. 00:25:30.480 --> 00:25:39.920 Psalm 98 leads us to make a joyful noise in praise of God's marvelous work of giving a Savior. 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:46.240 That concludes this sermon from Faith Evangelical Free Church. 00:25:46.400 --> 00:25:53.279 Our mission is to declare the Word of God and disciple believers into mature, devoted followers of Jesus. 00:25:53.519 --> 00:25:57.519 You can learn more by visiting our website at faithfree.com.