Psalms 1, Do you hear what I hear?

Thursday night we came to our break in the Psalms 1 class, reading from Psalms 32, 34, 37 and 49. While each of these Psalms covered different subject matter (including “the remission of sin,” God’s unique brand of justice, and the fate of sinners and the righteous), you could not mistake the message of truth and divine wisdom spoken clearly and with zeal.

Each of the four Psalms is like an exhortation by the singer, a call to others. In Psalm 49, the appeal practically shouts at us to wake up and listen. Psalm 49 makes me think of the Christmas song, “Do you hear what I hear?”

“Hear this, all you peoples! Give ear, all who inhabit the world,” (Psa 49:2)

The Christmas song “Do you hear” was written by a married songwriting couple during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Their concern for the fate of the world turned to God and the birth of the Prince of Peace. The lyrics of the song herald Christ’s birth from aloft, “the wind to the lamb.” The lamb then informs the lowly shepherd boy, who tells the king, who instructs the whole of humanity to pray for this child and for peace.

Each player in the song has the opportunity to receive this great wisdom, regardless of their status, and do something with it. When the shepherd boy speaks to the king, “In your palace warm,” he asks if the king knows that the messiah shivers in the cold. In one short verse we are asked by these songwriters to consider both our role in letting the poor suffer, and the denial of Christ’s divinity, God’s saving grace offered to us on the night of his son’s birth.

Are we going to leave the anointed one’s mission shivering in the cold, or are we going to praise it, honor it with gifts, and help the Lord bring justice to his creation?

Isn’t that what our Psalmists in effect have been doing for the last three months with us? Haven’t they been asking us what we think of the true nature of God, the need to seek God’s wisdom and act righteously?

This Christmas season, as we sing praises to God for his choice to become incarnate and save our souls, let us know if perhaps the Christmas Carols and church Christmas hymns we readily take for granted perhaps take on new meaning for you in light of the Psalms.

Yes, Christmas songs can seem trite at times through the overexposure of commercial radio. But singing God’s praises with awe and sincerity takes many forms. Throughout HIS history, God has inspired great artists to paint and sculpt miraculous wonder in his honor. Would he stop inspiring modern people simply because their expression may appear less grand?

If you still have your doubts, here is the once wonderful Whitney Houston singing “Do you hear” on the Jay Leno show many years ago. Enjoy.

We will take up Psalms again in late February as we enter the Lenten Season. Until then, we hope you continue to pray the Psalms and gain both comfort and wisdom from them. We hope they are opportunities for you to continue to glorify God with praise and exaltation. And if the spirit moves you, feel free to continue our discussion through this page.

God bless you and your families and a very Merry Christmas to all.