Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
I want to ask three questions of this text: the what, the who, and the where. What is happening here? What are we being told to do? The answer is, I will proclaim Your name.
What: Proclaiming God's Name
I will proclaim the name of God. That doesn't just mean saying the name of God over and over again. This means something different, because what a name means is a name signifies all that a person is and all that a person does. Think about somebody you know very well, and if you were to hear their name, you wouldn't just think of the letters that make up their name. You would think of that person and you would think of all they are to you.
When we proclaim the name of God, we're proclaiming His character. We're proclaiming His attributes. We're proclaiming all that He is and all that He's done. That's the what: I will proclaim Your name.
Who: Our Brothers and Sisters in Christ
Next—who? Who is this? I will proclaim Your name to my brothers and sisters. We're proclaiming God's name and we're proclaiming His character. Who are we proclaiming His name to? Our brothers and sisters. Now, this does not mean your family that has the same last name as you. It is your family that bears the name of Christ. These are your brothers and sisters in Christ. These are other Christians. We're being called here to proclaim the goodness of God to other Christians.
Where: Among the Assembled People
The last question we have answered here is: where do we do that? I will praise You among Your assembled people. That means in the local church. If you're not in a local church, I hope you're in a local church this Sunday, because otherwise you can't do what the psalmist is doing here. You can't do what Paul calls us to do in Ephesians, or what he calls us to do in Colossians, and that is that we are to sing songs to God.
Go look those verses up, because we're not just singing songs to God when we're in a local church together, we're singing songs to one another. We're encouraging one another, and we're proclaiming the truth of God and the goodness of God to one another. The ESV version of this verse says, I will tell of Your name in the midst of the congregation.
Singing Truth to One Another
Here's what we're doing. We are proclaiming, we are singing the goodness of God to one another. Here's something R.C. Sproul said about that: "When we sing praises to God, we are proclaiming His name, His attributes. This is a theological activity. We are reminding ourselves and teaching one another what is true about God. Therefore, the content of our songs is of immense importance. We are in effect preaching to one another in song."
Here's what happens when we preach the truth of God's Word to one another in song on a Sunday: you encourage others. Not only that, but others encourage you. I can't tell you how many times I've been in a worship service, and we've been singing about the faithfulness of God or the mercy of God, and I see someone else that I know in my church, and I know what they're going through, and I know that maybe they're in a valley of the shadow of death. I know that life is painful. I know they're suffering and yet, I see them standing there with tears in their eyes, singing about the faithfulness of God. In that moment, I am deeply encouraged.
Don't rob other people of that encouragement that they need from you, and don't rob yourself of that encouragement that you need from others.
Where will you be on Sunday? Who will you be singing to and who will be singing to you? Psalm chapter 22 verse 22: I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters. I will praise you among your assembled people.
