Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples!
Shout to God with the voice of triumph!
For the LORD Most High is awesome;
He is a great King over all the earth.—Psalm 47:1-2
God is the great King over all the earth. Some day He will assume His rightful throne and all the nations will come and pay homage to Him.
Beloved…as believers we can shout to God in praise and triumph even now. He is the Lord of our hearts. God is the great I AM, and He is our Savior. We are more than conquerors through Him who loves us. In Christ we have a place of refuge to which we can continually resort. He is our sanctuary of protection, of mercy, of grace, of comfort, of love, of holiness, of deliverance and of communion. Nothing happens to us in this life without it passing through His sovereign hand first.
Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
Or ever You had formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God—Psalm 90
Let all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.
The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.—Psalm 33
So…
When the enemy besieges our soul,
When fear and anxiety threaten on every side,
When hope seems to be crushed,
When the “walls” of this life seem impregnable and insurmountable
We CAN rejoice and clap our hands in thanksgiving and expectation because in the midst of trial and trouble He is our Sovereign who cares, sees and is right there with us. When trouble comes, we don’t have to run away and hide. We can instead remember that He is our King. He has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of the Son of His love. We are His precious children. He has seen us through before and will see us through again. We don’t need to worry. We can worship instead.
Beloved…when the battles come, lift up Your hands and shout for joy in triumphant praise, and watch the the walls of fear and faithlessness fall down flat. God has done (and will do) great things for us and we are glad.
1 Corinthians 15:56-57
"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
Deuteronomy 20:1-4
"When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. He shall say: 'Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.'"
Ephesians 6:10-12
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."
Colossians 1:16
"For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him."
Romans 8: 38-39
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Colossians 2:15
"And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross."
1 Peter 5:8-9
"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings."
2 Thessalonians 3:3
"But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one."
Psalm 20:7-8
"Some boast in chariots and some in horses, But we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God. They have bowed down and fallen, But we have risen and stood upright."
1 John 4:2-4
"This is how you can recognise the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world."
