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>>Eric Flickinger:
Welcome to "Sabbath School,"
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brought to you by It Is Written.
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We're studying
lesson number 12 this week,
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very nearly at the end
of our quarter together,
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and this week it's
"Worship That Never Ends,"
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something that we are most
certainly looking forward to.
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Let's begin our
study today with prayer.
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Father, we ask that You'll
be with us today as You have
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in the past and
guide us through our study.
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Help us to learn more about
worship and how we can gain
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depth and strength in our
worship from the book of Psalms.
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We thank You in
Jesus' name. Amen.
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Well, we're glad that
you could join us today,
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and we're also glad
that we could have our guest
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with us once again,
Dr. Dragoslava Santrac.
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She is an expert--
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we'll call it an
expert-- in the book of Psalms
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because by now, 12 weeks
into it, you know a whole lot
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more about it
than most of us do.
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And we're grateful for you
sharing some of your knowledge
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and wisdom and
experience with it.
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A PhD in Old
Testament doesn't hurt, either.
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And so we're
grateful to have you.
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Slava, let me ask
you this question.
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As we're looking at
"Worship That Never Ends,"
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what is worship in
the book of Psalms?
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>>Dragoslava Santrac: Well,
I would like to read two texts
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from the Psalms that
will give us the essence
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of what worship
is in the Psalms.
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And these are very,
very beautiful verses,
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actually my favorite, if I
could say I have favorite verses
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in the Psalms.
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So the first text will
be Psalm 104, verse 33.
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And the psalmist says,
"I will sing to the Lord
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"as long as I
live; I will sing praise
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to my God while
I have my being."
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And then another
one, 116, verse 2:
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"Because He has
inclined His ear to me,
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therefore I will call
upon Him as long as I live."
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So as long as I
live, with my whole being,
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while I have my
being or breathing in me--
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all these expressions point
that the worship in the Psalms
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is not just a sporadic
event, but it's a way of living,
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it's a way of breathing,
it's a way of approaching Lord
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and having this eternal
song of gratitude and praise
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in our hearts.
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And indeed, when we
spend time with the psalms
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on a daily basis, which I
really encourage all of us
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to embark on this journey,
we will have this continual
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worship in our hearts.
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Of course, the worship also
happens at particular place,
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like in the temple
or in the church today,
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on particular
occasions, but that worship--
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communal worship is fueled
by this individual worship
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that we have in our heart.
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And we have these outward
expressions of worship mentioned
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in the Psalms on so many places.
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They include
coming up to the temple,
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bowing down to
the Lord in prayer,
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bringing gifts and
offerings, singing praises.
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But all these
outward expressions are based
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on the inward
recognition of who the Lord is,
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that He's our
Creator, our Lord, our Judge,
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our Savior, the one
who-- whom we worship
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for all the wonderful
things that He has done.
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>>Eric: Slava, you
mentioned about worship,
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and part of
worship being singing.
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The Psalms talks
about, among other things,
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singing a new song.
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What is this new song
that we are encouraged to sing?
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How does that impact us?
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We're talking about
worship that never ends.
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What's this new song?
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>>Dragoslava: Yes,
a wonderful question.
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Throughout the book of Psalms,
we read about the many songs,
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and the psalms
themselves are songs.
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Therefore, when the
Psalms mention a new song,
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what is that new song indeed?
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And there are many mentions
of the new song in Psalm 33,
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Psalm 40, 96, 98, and so on.
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But I would like to read just
one verse to give us a context
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of this new song,
and in Psalm 40, verse 3,
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we read that it is the
Lord "who has put a new song
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"in my mouth, praise to our
God; many will see it and fear,
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and will trust in the Lord."
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This verse gives us a little bit
of a definition of a new song.
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It is a song that the
Lord puts in our heart. How?
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By performing a
new intervention,
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a new deliverance, a new
act of kindness in our lives.
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And by doing that, inspires
us to sing this new song to give
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this new fresh testimony of
His goodness to other people,
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who then by hearing our new song
get to trust the Lord even more.
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So this new song is a song
that represents a new experience
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with the Lord, a new,
fresh recognition of His grace,
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of His goodness.
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And it is so important
that we have these new songs
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in our experiences.
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Sometimes we share these
past events from our lives
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and say, oh, when the
Lord did this and this,
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this and that 5,
10, 20 years ago--
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but what about now?
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The Lord is available to put
new songs in our hearts to sing
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and share with others.
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And also, I would like
to mention Revelation 14.
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So it is not just the
Psalms that mention a new song.
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It is also the New Testament.
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And let's read,
just quickly, Revelation,
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chapter 14, verse 3
because we will learn something
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new there about the new song.
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Yes, so here it
says about the saved,
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about the 144,000, these
special people who were redeemed
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from great trouble.
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>>Eric: And it says
here also they saw the Lamb
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standing on Mount Zion.
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So there's that
connection to Mount Zion again.
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>>Dragoslava: With Zion,
exactly. And verse 3 says that,
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"They sang as it were a
new song before the throne,
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"before the four
living creatures,
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and the elders"--
and here's the key--
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"and no one
could learn that song
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"except the hundred
and forty-four thousand
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who were
redeemed from the earth."
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Now, this new song represents
a unique experience that
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these people--and
I would like to say
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each and every one of
us-- have with the Lord.
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It is a unique context
in which we live and sing
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in a strange land, and
it represents, as I said,
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this unique testimony
that each one of us can share.
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This means, Eric, if I
keep quiet about what the Lord
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has done for me, no one
can say that song because it is
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my unique experience, and my
unique testimony will be missed.
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But, you see, the Psalms
invite us to sing this new song
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and glorify God.
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>>Eric: So it's a new song.
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Each one of us
should, by the grace of God,
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be able to sing that
song, and through that song
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be a blessing to others and
help them to get to know Jesus
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a little bit better.
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When we talk about here standing
on Mount Zion with the Lamb,
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we're--it seems like there's
some communion with God here.
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Who is it that gets
to commune with Him?
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Who is it that gets to
worship in God's presence?
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We're over in
the book of Psalms,
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spending much of our time here,
but we're also coming over here
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into the book of Revelation,
which is more our day,
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as it were. How does
this all fit together?
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>>Dragoslava: Yes. We
mentioned, I believe, last week
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Psalms 15 and 24,
where they ask a question:
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Who may ascend to
the Lord's holy hill?
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Who may dwell in
His holy presence?
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And then the list that
is given is a list of simple
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ethical standards of
behavior in everyday life.
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So I will not repeat that,
but this is just a reminder
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of what we already spoke.
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Instead, I would like us
to read Psalm 111, verse 1,
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which also gives us
an invaluable insight
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into the people who
abide in the Lord's presence
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and have fellowship with Him.
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The psalmist says,
"I will praise the Lord
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"with my whole heart, in
the assembly of the upright
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and in the congregation."
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The first element here
is "I will praise the Lord."
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How? "With my whole heart."
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Therefore, we are
called to praise the Lord
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with this
holistic, pure attitude,
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which the whole heart represent.
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Other text in the Psalms
say "with a perfect heart."
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"Tamim," also
"perfect," means "whole,"
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holistic, which means
that there is no defect,
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that the holistic
devotion is given to God.
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So this is the first
aspect that's very important.
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The second one is "in
the assembly of the upright."
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Now, the Lord in the
Psalms is called upright.
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He is upright Lord. He
is upright in what He does.
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And by calling the assembly
of the believers the assembly
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of the upright means
that we are called to reflect
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God's character in our
inner self, in our character,
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and also in our actions.
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And these are the people
who know God and who abide
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in God's presence,
who reflect who God is.
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>>Eric: So this group
could conceivably include us.
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>>Dragoslava: Absolutely.
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>>Eric: So he's
calling us to be upright.
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And in and of ourselves, we
don't have the ability to be
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upright, but if we invite
Jesus to come into our hearts
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and take over not
just a corner of our hearts
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but, as you said, in
its entirety, all of us,
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a whole experience,
then we can experience this,
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being in the
assembly of the upright
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and in the congregation as well,
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so something very much
for us to look forward to.
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Let me ask this question here.
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And we may not be able to
cover it all before our break.
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We'll come back and get
a little bit more of it.
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But we're talking about
the assembly of the upright.
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Let's delve a little
bit into individual worship
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versus communal
worship. What's the difference?
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Are there--is one more
important than the other?
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Do the two go together?
How does that balance out?
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>>Dragoslava: Yes,
that's a question that people
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frequently ask, and I would like
to say that sometimes with hopes
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that the answer would be,
"Well, the individual worship
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is just perfect
and just enough."
00:12:19.20\00:12:23.00
In this individualistic
culture, we have this tendency
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to approach worship exactly
in this individualistic way
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and perhaps prefer to stay at
the comfort of our home and read
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the Scripture and worship
the Lord from our arm chair,
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which is all right.
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And many people don't
have the opportunity to join
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the community of believers
and have fellowship there.
00:12:49.60\00:12:54.34
So the individual
worship is crucial,
00:12:54.37\00:12:57.57
as we mentioned, because
it is with a whole heart,
00:12:57.61\00:13:01.21
with my inward
recognition of who the Lord is
00:13:01.24\00:13:05.35
that I approach the worship.
00:13:05.38\00:13:07.82
But the ideal form of
worship in the Psalms,
00:13:07.85\00:13:11.55
I have to say, is
the communal worship.
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Let's take just Psalm 22.
00:13:14.52\00:13:17.33
And this is the
psalm, the prayer of Jesus
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on the cross, and the
first part of the psalm
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is this prayer for deliverance.
00:13:25.63\00:13:28.60
So this--we can say,
like, it's individual worship.
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We must have individual worship.
00:13:32.27\00:13:34.78
That's the root, that's
the heart of spiritual life.
00:13:34.81\00:13:39.81
But then look how
the psalm progresses.
00:13:39.85\00:13:42.55
The psalmist moves
towards communal worship.
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And then in verse 22, he says
that once the Lord has answered
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his prayer, what will he do?
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"I will declare
Your name to my brethren;
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in the midst of the
assembly I will praise You."
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And then verse 25:
00:14:05.04\00:14:07.61
"My praise shall be of
You in the great assembly;
00:14:07.64\00:14:11.85
I will pay my vows
before those who fear Him."
00:14:11.88\00:14:16.95
And then, "The poor
shall eat and be satisfied."
00:14:16.99\00:14:19.55
Meaning that the others
who are maybe poor spiritually
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will eat of that
testimony and that praise
00:14:24.33\00:14:27.86
and be satisfied,
meaning brought closer to God,
00:14:27.86\00:14:31.83
so yes, the
individual worship is the heart
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of our spiritual life, and
it feeds the communal worship,
00:14:35.37\00:14:39.47
but the individual worship
finds its full realization
00:14:39.51\00:14:44.91
in the worship in the community,
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in the
fellowship of the believers.
00:14:47.65\00:14:49.42
And the book of Psalms
ends with Psalm 148, 149,
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and 150 with the entire
universe and all the angels
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and creation
worshiping the Lord.
00:15:00.93\00:15:03.67
>>Eric: So individual
worship, very important--
00:15:03.70\00:15:06.13
>>Dragoslava: Yes.
00:15:06.17\00:15:07.24
>>Eric: ...but don't
neglect the communal worship.
00:15:07.27\00:15:08.94
>>Dragoslava: Absolutely, yes.
>>Eric: You miss out on a lot.
00:15:08.97\00:15:10.67
>>Dragoslava: Yes,
yes. >>Eric: Very good.
00:15:10.71\00:15:12.27
We're going to come back in
just a moment as we continue
00:15:12.31\00:15:14.28
taking a look at
the book of Psalms,
00:15:14.31\00:15:16.68
a deep look at
the book of Psalms,
00:15:16.71\00:15:18.85
and how we can continue to
worship here on Mount Zion.
00:15:18.88\00:15:22.98
But don't miss the opportunity
to pick up the companion book
00:15:23.02\00:15:26.89
to this quarter's
"Sabbath School" lesson.
00:15:26.92\00:15:28.72
It is, of
course, called "Psalms,"
00:15:28.76\00:15:30.56
and you can find it
at itiswritten.shop.
00:15:30.59\00:15:33.66
Again, that is itiswritten.shop.
00:15:33.70\00:15:35.56
And it will give you a
deeper dive into everything
00:15:35.60\00:15:38.43
that we are
talking about week by week.
00:15:38.47\00:15:41.14
We're going to be back in just
a moment as we continue looking
00:15:41.17\00:15:43.44
here at week number 12,
"Worship That Never Ends."
00:15:43.47\00:15:46.44
We'll be right back.
00:15:46.47\00:15:47.78
¤¤¤
00:15:47.81\00:15:49.81
>>John Bradshaw: He had it all--
00:15:51.95\00:15:53.95
extravagant
wealth, immense power,
00:15:53.98\00:15:56.45
and wisdom far greater
than any person before him.
00:15:56.48\00:16:00.16
He'd seen the glory of God,
had spoken personally with God,
00:16:00.19\00:16:04.26
and was told by God he
could have anything he wanted,
00:16:04.29\00:16:07.46
but as his focus shifted
over time, his life collapsed.
00:16:07.50\00:16:12.23
As he
contemplated his existence,
00:16:12.27\00:16:14.27
he concluded
that all was vanity.
00:16:14.30\00:16:17.41
Don't miss "Great Characters
of the Bible: Solomon"
00:16:17.44\00:16:21.41
as we look at the
story of the wisest man
00:16:21.44\00:16:23.95
who ever lived, a man who
wrote three books of the Bible,
00:16:23.98\00:16:27.02
a man who was revered
by monarchs and feared
00:16:27.05\00:16:29.82
by his enemies, the man who
constructed what may have been
00:16:29.85\00:16:33.05
the most beautiful temple
ever built, and yet turned away
00:16:33.09\00:16:36.39
from faithfulness to God,
but God didn't turn from him.
00:16:36.42\00:16:40.26
The story of Solomon is
a tragedy and a victory.
00:16:40.30\00:16:43.73
Don't miss "Great Characters
of the Bible: Solomon"
00:16:43.77\00:16:47.50
brought to you
by It Is Written TV.
00:16:47.54\00:16:50.17
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>>Eric: Welcome
back to "Sabbath School,"
00:17:26.21\00:17:27.51
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:17:27.54\00:17:29.44
We are looking at
"Worship That Never Ends"
00:17:29.48\00:17:31.35
here in lesson number 12.
00:17:31.38\00:17:33.68
Slava, what's one of
the not-so-obvious aspects
00:17:33.72\00:17:37.25
of worship that
Psalm 96 talks about?
00:17:37.29\00:17:41.72
Dig into that
with us because there--
00:17:41.76\00:17:44.53
worship is very
personal to a lot of people,
00:17:44.56\00:17:47.50
and there are some
opinions, one way or the other,
00:17:47.56\00:17:49.86
on things that are
appropriate and inappropriate.
00:17:49.90\00:17:53.03
What about Psalm 96? What
sometimes gets missed there?
00:17:53.07\00:17:56.07
>>Dragoslava: Yes. So,
00:17:56.10\00:17:57.31
obviously, when we
say the word "worship,"
00:17:57.34\00:18:00.18
people rightly assume it
is something very personal,
00:18:00.21\00:18:04.25
like prayer, study
of the Word of God,
00:18:04.28\00:18:07.45
singing to the
Lord, and, of course,
00:18:07.48\00:18:10.05
then in the
church, in the community,
00:18:10.09\00:18:12.45
the worship with songs,
praise, the Word of God,
00:18:12.49\00:18:17.09
but sometimes we tend to
forget one very important aspect
00:18:17.13\00:18:21.73
of worship, and we don't think
of it as a part of or an act
00:18:21.76\00:18:26.74
of worship, but the Psalms
stress the importance of that
00:18:26.77\00:18:30.84
and especially Psalm 96.
00:18:30.87\00:18:33.34
I will read few verses, and I
believe just the text will speak
00:18:33.38\00:18:38.51
for itself, and the
people will be able to draw
00:18:38.55\00:18:41.32
the conclusion for themselves.
00:18:41.35\00:18:43.49
So I will read
Psalm 96, verse 2.
00:18:43.52\00:18:47.32
"Sing to the
Lord, bless His name;
00:18:47.36\00:18:51.13
"proclaim the good news of
His salvation from day to day.
00:18:51.16\00:18:55.96
Declare His glory"--verse 3--
00:18:56.00\00:18:58.70
"among the nations, His
wonders among all peoples."
00:18:58.73\00:19:04.07
Verse 10: "Say
among the nations,
00:19:04.11\00:19:08.24
"'The Lord reigns; the world
also is firmly established,
00:19:08.28\00:19:13.68
"'it [will] not be moved;
00:19:13.72\00:19:15.78
"He shall judge the
peoples righteously.'
00:19:15.82\00:19:19.12
"Let the heavens rejoice,
and let the earth be glad;
00:19:19.15\00:19:22.82
"let the sea roar,
and all its fullness;
00:19:22.86\00:19:26.03
"let the fields be
joyful.... For He is coming,
00:19:26.06\00:19:28.73
...He is coming."
00:19:28.76\00:19:30.17
So, here we see in the midst
00:19:30.20\00:19:32.60
of a worship service,
which includes joy on one side
00:19:32.63\00:19:37.67
of the brackets
like an envelope,
00:19:37.71\00:19:39.87
and then rejoicing
in the Lord's salvation.
00:19:39.91\00:19:44.11
In the midst of
that, there is a message
00:19:44.15\00:19:47.45
as part of the
worship: Declare to the nations.
00:19:47.48\00:19:52.12
"Tell--proclaim the
message of the Lord's salvation
00:19:52.15\00:19:56.52
to all the peoples.
00:19:56.56\00:19:58.59
So part of the worship
that's maybe an unusual,
00:19:58.63\00:20:02.36
from our
understanding, is evangelism.
00:20:02.40\00:20:05.47
Evangelism, sharing
the good news of the gospel
00:20:05.50\00:20:09.10
with the people,
is an act of worship.
00:20:09.14\00:20:13.44
If we want to give
the Lord true praise,
00:20:13.48\00:20:16.81
we will tell others about Him
so that they also can join us,
00:20:16.85\00:20:21.78
and our praise to
the Lord is multiplied.
00:20:21.82\00:20:26.29
>>Eric: So this gives us
another way that we can actively
00:20:26.32\00:20:29.76
be engaged in worship.
00:20:29.79\00:20:31.09
And if we're not
sharing God's love with others,
00:20:31.13\00:20:34.60
we're missing out on maybe
another depth of what worship
00:20:34.63\00:20:40.74
could and really should be.
00:20:40.77\00:20:43.51
If we truly love the Lord
with all our hearts, mind,
00:20:43.54\00:20:46.94
soul, and strength, part of that
00:20:46.98\00:20:49.44
is gonna
manifest itself in sharing
00:20:49.48\00:20:51.45
that good news with others.
00:20:51.48\00:20:53.11
>>Dragoslava: Yes.
And communities that have
00:20:53.15\00:20:55.12
an active evangelistic
life, they're active in sharing
00:20:55.15\00:21:00.12
the gospels with
their neighbors, et cetera,
00:21:00.16\00:21:03.46
or supporting
overseas missionary travels,
00:21:03.49\00:21:07.66
supporting ministries that are
committed to sharing God's Word.
00:21:07.66\00:21:13.27
I've noticed,
and many will agree,
00:21:13.30\00:21:15.94
these churches, these
communities have such vibrant
00:21:15.97\00:21:19.57
worship services on Sabbath
and prayer meetings. Why?
00:21:19.61\00:21:24.05
Because they have fresh
experiences to thank God for.
00:21:24.08\00:21:29.08
They have new
people to introduce
00:21:29.12\00:21:31.92
to the wonderful
things we do as the community.
00:21:31.95\00:21:35.22
And all of that really brings
a new life into our worship.
00:21:35.26\00:21:39.63
>>Eric: I think when we
share our faith with others
00:21:39.66\00:21:41.93
and they begin to understand
what genuine Christianity is,
00:21:41.96\00:21:45.83
what a genuine
walk with Jesus is,
00:21:45.87\00:21:47.94
you see that
light in their eyes,
00:21:47.97\00:21:50.14
that spark, and that encourages
you, and it really just benefits
00:21:50.17\00:21:54.41
well, really, everyone.
00:21:54.44\00:21:56.24
So talking about worship,
this can get a little bit sticky
00:21:56.28\00:21:59.91
sometimes with people.
00:21:59.95\00:22:01.32
They say, "Well, that's
inappropriate for worship,"
00:22:01.35\00:22:03.65
or, "This is
appropriate worship."
00:22:03.69\00:22:05.65
And you go to
different parts of the world,
00:22:05.69\00:22:07.16
even same part of the
world, diff--maybe across town--
00:22:07.19\00:22:10.76
and you find that different
groups, different churches
00:22:10.79\00:22:13.09
have different ideas of
what is appropriate for worship.
00:22:13.13\00:22:17.87
Do we find any
guidance in the Psalms
00:22:17.90\00:22:20.60
of what's appropriate,
what's inappropriate?
00:22:20.64\00:22:23.37
Is everything appropriate?
00:22:23.41\00:22:25.17
How does that kind
of shake itself out
00:22:25.21\00:22:26.84
in the book of Psalms?
00:22:26.88\00:22:28.18
>>Dragoslava: Yes,
yes, you are right.
00:22:28.21\00:22:30.08
Different cultures, different
groups around the world have
00:22:30.11\00:22:34.12
different ways of worshiping
the Lord that are completely
00:22:34.15\00:22:38.62
appropriate and
acceptable in their regions.
00:22:38.65\00:22:42.52
When we read the Psalms,
people will find expressions
00:22:42.56\00:22:46.36
like "clap to the Lord,"
"shout to the Lord with joy,"
00:22:46.39\00:22:51.47
"sing loudly," "make
[the] music to the Lord,"
00:22:51.50\00:22:56.27
"make [the] joyful noise."
00:22:56.30\00:22:58.94
And as I am now listing
all these various verses
00:22:58.97\00:23:02.64
from the Psalms,
some people would say,
00:23:02.68\00:23:05.05
"Whoo, this is too loud.
This is such a huge commotion.
00:23:05.08\00:23:09.15
I don't want to
see that in my church."
00:23:09.18\00:23:11.39
And that is all right.
00:23:11.42\00:23:13.02
That is all right because we--
Lord has created us differently,
00:23:13.05\00:23:19.06
and there are different cultures
and different ways in which
00:23:19.09\00:23:23.53
we express joy and
praise and appreciation.
00:23:23.57\00:23:27.50
So, the Psalms
reflect this biblical
00:23:27.54\00:23:30.84
ancient Hebrew culture that
involves all these movements,
00:23:30.87\00:23:36.88
and--but we also notice that all
of that is done in appreciation
00:23:36.91\00:23:43.25
and awareness of
the Lord's holiness.
00:23:43.28\00:23:46.05
It was done in peace and order.
00:23:46.09\00:23:49.06
So we are not to imagine some
kind of partying or celebration
00:23:49.09\00:23:54.73
that's almost
worldly. It is not.
00:23:54.73\00:23:59.13
So these clappings and
rejoicings and shoutings
00:23:59.17\00:24:03.17
are holy celebrations done
in awareness of God's holiness.
00:24:03.20\00:24:09.24
But, Eric, you touched on
one very important question,
00:24:09.28\00:24:13.88
and that a worship
service can become inappropriate
00:24:13.92\00:24:19.49
and unacceptable to God.
00:24:19.52\00:24:22.02
>>Eric: So what would that--
without digging a hole too deep
00:24:22.06\00:24:27.03
because, of
course, we are talking
00:24:27.03\00:24:28.86
with a worldwide audience here--
address some of the questions
00:24:28.90\00:24:32.67
about outward
expression of that, that might
00:24:32.70\00:24:37.44
or might not fall on the
inappropriate side of worship.
00:24:37.47\00:24:41.34
>>Dragoslava: Well,
when we turn to Psalm 50,
00:24:41.38\00:24:45.15
we realize that
the Lord is unhappy
00:24:45.18\00:24:50.79
with His people's worship--
00:24:50.82\00:24:53.02
and I'm reading from
verse 7-- when the Lord says,
00:24:53.05\00:24:56.59
"Hear, O my
people, ...I will speak,
00:24:56.62\00:24:59.03
"O Israel, ...I
will testify against you;
00:24:59.06\00:25:02.30
I am God, your God!"
00:25:02.33\00:25:04.40
And then the Lord
says, "I will not rebuke you
00:25:04.43\00:25:07.40
"for your sacrifices
or your burnt offerings,
00:25:07.44\00:25:11.04
which are
continually before me."
00:25:11.07\00:25:14.11
So, the Lord actually
does not judge harshly
00:25:14.14\00:25:18.95
the outward expressions
of worship of His people.
00:25:18.98\00:25:23.89
He says, "I don't
complain about the sacrifices."
00:25:23.92\00:25:27.89
And then He says,
"I will not take a bull
00:25:27.92\00:25:31.36
"from your house, nor
goats out of your fields.
00:25:31.39\00:25:34.60
For every beast of
the forest is mine."
00:25:34.63\00:25:37.53
Verse 12: "If I were
hungry, I would not tell you;
00:25:37.57\00:25:40.64
"for the world is mine,
and...its [all] fullness.
00:25:40.67\00:25:43.77
Will I eat the flesh of bulls,
[and] drink the blood of goats?"
00:25:43.81\00:25:49.08
So the Lord is saying
00:25:49.11\00:25:51.55
you are hiding behind
these outward expressions
00:25:51.58\00:25:55.35
of worship that now become
formalistic in its essence.
00:25:55.38\00:26:00.29
Why? Because the
inward appreciation,
00:26:00.32\00:26:04.13
the true inward
motivation is missing.
00:26:04.16\00:26:08.96
And the Lord says, verse
14, "Offer to God thanksgiving,
00:26:09.00\00:26:14.24
"and pay your
vows to the Most High.
00:26:14.27\00:26:17.54
"Call upon me in
the day of trouble;
00:26:17.57\00:26:20.51
I will deliver you,
and you shall glorify me."
00:26:20.54\00:26:24.58
The Lord longs for us
to truly call upon Him.
00:26:24.61\00:26:30.32
When we pray, He longs that
we mean what we say in prayer.
00:26:30.35\00:26:35.19
When we offer thanksgiving,
that we are faithful
00:26:35.22\00:26:39.76
and obedient to His instruction.
00:26:39.79\00:26:42.26
So when can a
worship become unacceptable?
00:26:42.30\00:26:45.80
It's when it is formalistic.
00:26:45.83\00:26:48.47
When it is without the
true inner appreciation
00:26:48.50\00:26:52.94
and recognition
of who the Lord is.
00:26:52.97\00:26:56.58
>>Eric: And we're
grateful that God has inspired
00:26:56.61\00:26:59.38
the psalmist to
give us some guidance
00:26:59.41\00:27:01.48
and some direction in this.
00:27:01.52\00:27:03.95
And we hope that this
has been beneficial to you as
00:27:03.99\00:27:06.39
we have taken a look at worship
today in the book of Psalms.
00:27:06.42\00:27:10.29
It's something that
should be individualistic,
00:27:10.33\00:27:13.70
it should also be communal,
and it should be heartfelt.
00:27:13.73\00:27:18.57
And by God's grace, it
will really be all of us
00:27:18.60\00:27:23.30
that is
involved in that worship.
00:27:23.34\00:27:26.21
So we pray that you
will experience that as well.
00:27:26.24\00:27:29.04
We have one more
week this quarter.
00:27:29.08\00:27:30.71
We'll be back again next
week as we continue and bring
00:27:30.75\00:27:33.78
to a close our study
of the book of Psalms
00:27:33.82\00:27:36.45
here on "Sabbath School,"
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:27:36.48\00:27:39.82
¤¤¤
00:27:39.85\00:27:44.86
¤¤¤
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