God's glory in Psalm 29 (Part 2)

Say you agree with Psalm 29. I believe that God’s glory is in His voice. 100%. But so what? What does that have to do with me? You know who else has a glorious voice? Colin Hay. You can’t get a more aussie voice that comes from a land down under. Or my childhood favourite whom I’m not ashamed to say, Celine Dion.

Forget Celine Dion for a moment, if you just think about it, God’s glory is in His voice, doesn’t that just seem a bit mundane to you? God’s glory is in His voice. But why not his biceps? Surely God has pretty big guns. Why not his knowledge of all things? That’s impressive! Or being present everywhere? That’s cool. You’ll never be late for anything. God’s glory is in His voice? That’s pedestrian. Even plebs have voices. I have a voice too. Jono has a voice, have you guys heard him sing? My 1 year old has a voice even if all he can say is waddle.

Is God’s glory really His voice? Why can’t God shoot lasers out of his eyes? You should see the gods of other religions! Every time they sneeze, lightning comes out. It’s amazing. The God of the Bible, get this, He just talks a lot. And it’s so hard to understand. At least Celine Dion will say nice things to me and tell me that my heart will go on.

You know what I wish? I wish God’s glory is in His judgment. Then he can punish those people who treated me unfairly. I wish God’s glory is in His healing. Then maybe my brother wouldn’t have died. I wish God’s glory is in His generous blessings. It’ll be nice to have a bigger bank account right.

I wish God’s glory was me. This is why people think the Bible is boring. Can’t you give me something that actually makes a difference in my life come Monday. God’s glory is in His voice. My children can’t eat that.

This morning I want to show you why this is not just powerful, but incredibly comforting. It’s bread for our soul. It’s antibiotics that can heal any broken heart. Why? Because the God of glory speaks into our hearts through Jesus Christ.

God speaks into our hearts through Jesus Christ

Let me read to you 2 Corinthians 4:5

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians that the same God who created the world with his voice, spoke into our hearts. Stop and think about that for a moment. The voice that said let there be light, speaks into our hearts through Jesus Christ.

Look at psalm 29 again.

In verse 3 we read the voice of the Lord is over the waters. Jesus was once in a boat in one of the biggest recorded storms in history. Everyone on the boat thought they were going to die. But Jesus spoke a word and the storm died.

So there you are tomorrow morning you get out of bed and look at yourself in the mirror as you brush your teeth. What is the thing you are dreading the most? What is giving you the most anxiety? Ask yourself: Is it bigger than a hurricane or more powerful than a lightning storm? Because the voice of Jesus is over the waters.

Verse 5 tells us the voice of the Lord breaks the cedars. It’s stronger than anything you can throw at it. Think about how many Pharisees stood opposed to Jesus. Where are they now? They’re gone and forgotten in history. What’s standing between you and God this morning? Ask yourself: is it higher and stronger than a cedar tree? Because the voice of Jesus breaks the cedars.

Verse 8 tells us the voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness. Have you forgotten Lazarus? Who was sick and died while Jesus was out of town? He had already been buried for 3 days when Jesus finally got there. And what did Jesus do? He said, Lazarus come out.

You might feel like you’re in a wilderness this morning and Jesus isn’t even here. He’s out of town. Maybe someone you know recently passed away and you think where’s Jesus. He’s here. In psalm 29. Listen, the voice of Jesus shakes the wilderness.

Verse 9 tells us in his temple all cry glory. Jesus stood in front of the temple and said tear this down and I will rebuild it in 3 days. We know now that he was talking about His body, his death, and his resurrection. Jesus promises us not a temple building, but the temple of his body. What can be more glorious than rising from the dead? Look, how many of you wish you still had a body of a 20 year old? And not just the one in your basement. What can be more glorious than rising from the dead?

When you finally see the resurrected Jesus, and everything else that He promises, on that day, I guarantee that you will not be worried about your job. You won’t be losing sleep over the rent. In his temple, all of us will cry glory.

What is Psalm 29 all about? God’s glory is in His voice. But the glorious God speaks into our hearts through Jesus Christ.

I have 2 young kids. Our girl Emi is 3 and our boy Lucas is 1. And they both love books. My daughter loves books because she loves to read. My boy loves books because they taste nice. That’s better than nothing, I guess.

The thing about children’s books is that they are almost 80% pictures. And some story about Mary goes to market. The Bible is all words. God’s glory is in His voice, not in His looks. But the words spoken by the voice paint a picture. Like a mosaic where lots of little pieces all come together to form an image. The Bible is the same. Everything we read all come together to form an image. The face of Jesus Christ.