A Vision Of Glory From The Porch (Psalm 29)
I can’t sleep very well through thunderstorms. But I do like to go outside and watch them happen. This is enjoyable as long as I can stay dry. There is just something so impressive about a thunderstorm that I want to watch.
The wind starts to blow pretty hard, and the dark clouds roll in. It gets so dark that the sun disappears, and it is almost as dark as if it were night. Then the lightning strikes and shortly after, depending on where the storm is, you hear the thunder. Sometimes the thunder is so loud that it shakes the house. And almost as quickly as that storm came in, it often disappears.
And then the show’s over and it’s time to go back inside because everything is now so wet that I don’t want to be in the yard at all.
But I just witnesses something tremendous. And next time the thunderstorm comes I will look at it again. It may just be for a few moments on the porch. Or I may sit down and watch again. But from my porch I get a vivid picture of God’s glory.
The psalm today comes to us from a thunderstorm. More accurately, David watches a thunderstorm and watches it go away. And this moves him to call upon the people to worship the Lord and ascribe to Him the glory that is due His name.
Step outside, look at the glory of creation and adore the Lord.
Worship The Lord (Psalm 29:1-2)
Here David commanded the angels to worship the Lord. The were to worship and adore Him. But this command should not be considered a command that only the angels need to hear. This is something we are all to do.
We have been created by God and we owe our entire existence to Him. Our life, breath, and everything are due to God’s gracious gifts to us. He is master and Lord over all.
Our society seems to understand this less and less. But all people everywhere are commanded to worship the Lord, even the angels.
And the glory of nature is proof of that.
Let Nature Fill Your Heart With Worship (Psalm 29:3-8)
Nature proves that the Lord is worthy of worship. And this should fill our hearts with worship. Modern man has explained many things away with purely naturalistic causes, or so he thinks. But God is the One who created the world and caused it to operate in the way that it does. God is the One who has planned all things from beginning to end. He is the One who is in control of all things. The world is not running outside of His control. God is in control. And we see this throughout the pages of Scripture.
God caused all sorts of things to happen in the Scriptures that let us know that He is in control of nature. God brought the flood that fell as judgment against the Earth. God caused different natural events to take place in Egypt. He caused the earth to swallow Kora and his followers. God made the sun stand still. He brought droughts and rains. Jesus calmed the storm in the New Testament.
The point is simple. God is in control of the weather, even if we understand the way that weather systems work. God made weather and controls the weather. So things like thunderstorms should cause us to stand in awe and wonder toward God.
As I think about the entire event that David depicts, it seems that he is viewing a thunderstorm with a pretty good view. He is probably in an elevated position, quite possibly the roof of the palace. From this position he sees a lot of things that I cannot view from my front porch. And all of them point him to a spirit of wonder at the majesty of God.
The first sight is a thunderstorm over the water (Psalm 29:3). I have seen these and they are quite impressive and sometimes terrifying.
I have spent a good number of nights on Beaver Lake night fishing. We would sit on my parents’ pontoon or my friend’s boat late at night and early in the morning with a light out of the boat to attract shad. Those shad would school up and circle the light. We would then catch them with a shad net and put them on a hook. On a good night, it made such a commotion that a feeding frenzy would be started and the whole night would be spent catching fish and putting more bait on the hook. But we were parked near a bluff and could not see the storms coming. We were in deep water with both the front and back of the boat anchored and if a storm rolled over the bluff we had to work very quickly to get out of there. And more than once I remember bouncing on white capped waves in heavy rain to get out before the storm got too bad. It was not a fun situation and as we looked behind us we could tell things could’ve been really bad.
I also remember camping with my parents on Bull Shoals Lake when storms would roll in. The view from those vantage points were tremendous. I remember watching the lightning strike lighting up what seemed like the entire lake on a few occasions. Those occasions are front row seats to a truly magnificent sight.
If you’ve watched a thunderstorm then you understand that the whole scene is full of power and majesty (Psalm 29:4). It is rather obvious that “the voice of the Lord” is thunder. And the thunder and lightning over the water are truly magnificent.
But David moves on to the forest. There is apparently great destruction as the thunder breaks the huge cedars of Lebanon (Psalm 29:5). These are massive trees, broken in an instant by the power of the storm. I wonder if he saw something in this moment or if he was just recollecting on the power of a thunderstorm. Whatever it is, we are not told.
When I was a teenager, a lady asked my Dad to come and cut down the rest of a tree that had been hit by lightning. This tree was so big that I could not reach even close to halfway around it. One lightning strike obliterated this tree. It is a picture of strength, power, and might.
As quickly as the storm came, it is then gone. David seems to be able to watch the storm and see where it is headed. It is headed to Lebanon and Syria to inflict damage there. The thunder brings with it fire as it moves along and shakes the wilderness of Kadesh (Psalm 29:7-8).
This thunderstorm has awakened in David a feeling of awe and worship. And it should in us as well.
We should not be able to walk around and see all that God has made and be unfeeling about it. Our hearts have often grown hardened to such a thing, but it should not be so.
Stand in wonder at God’s greatness.
The Lord is King Over All: Worship Him And Be Blessed (Psalm 29:9-11)
God’s people glory in the Lord and worship Him. The truth is that every creature should. God has power over every creature, that encompasses both life and death (Psalm 29:9). He is king over all and is “enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever.” (Psalm 29:10 ESV) He is the rightful king over all and is worthy of worship. And His people, those who worship Him are blessed.
Everyone everywhere has been shown the power and might of God. Everyone has seen that He is worthy of worship and are left without excuse before God.
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” (Romans 1:18-20 ESV)
God has been revealed to you through what He has created. Every thunderstorm will stand as part of the case against you and your unbelief on the Day of Judgment. You’ve seen the majesty and glory of God. You know who He is and what He has done. And you also know that you don’t measure up to His righteous standard.
And here is where we see the great blessing of being one of God’s people God sent His Son to the world to accomplish salvation on behalf of His people. His Son lived a perfect life and accomplished all righteousness on our behalf. He died on the cross and paid the punishment for sins. And He rose from the grave and completed the justification of all who would trust in Him. Now all those who trust in Christ have God’s forgiveness and everlasting life.
Conclusion
Step outside! Look outside! Look at God’s creation and see His glory and majesty in what He has made. Let that move you to worship. If you are not a believer and you are reading this then nature should lead you to see the glory of God. Someday you will stand before God without excuse because He revealed His glory and majesty in nature. Let this bring you to Christ.
R. Dwain Minor