Most of us are scared to shout a loud Amen even when we heartily agree with what is being said. We all have either been to a ball game or seen one on television, when the bases were loaded and a home run was needed to win the game. We have felt tension mount as the last batter comes out on the field. The pitcher throws a fast ball. Strike one! He pitches a curved ball. Strike two? The batsman spits on his hand and looks anxiouslyat the bases, at the pitcher, at the crowd. The pitcher winds up for the kill. The ball comes flashing in. The batsman strikes.
There is a solid resounding smack as a good connection is made between bat and ball. The ball soars up, up, straight and true, and flies clean out of the park. And the crowd goes wild! They yell and shout, they hug each other, they rush out onto the field. All for a game that will be forgotten in a week. Yet we can't even say a loud Amen when someone says something about the Lord that stirs our hearts.
Advertisement
So we have the call to praise. The Holy Spirit calls on the Gentile nations to praise the Lord. When this verse was quoted by the apostle Paul (Romans 15:11), his missionary outreach was to the Roman Christians. He had been writing about accommodating the weaker brother, telling us that there are some matters about which we should be willing to give and take. We are not to do things that might cause someone else to stumble. We are to bear the burden of the weak. Love compromises.
But then he comes to a bedrock issue, a point of belief on which there can be no concession. In this case, love goes on loving but stands its round and refuses to compromise. The issue at stake in Paul’s argument was the bringing of Gentiles into the church of God on the same basis as Jews. To support his point, Paul quoted from Psalm 18:49, Deuteronomy 32:43, and Isaiah 11:10. Note that he quoted from all sections of the Hebrew Bible, from the law, the prophets, and the book of Psalms. Then, amid an avalanche of quotations he quoted from Psalm 117:1. "And again, `Praise the LORD, all ye Gentiles; and laud Him, all ye people." (Romans 15:11). He nailed down his point with a quotation from this minipsalm. Let us remember that, if we are tempted to pay it scant heed.
There is always the temptation to overlook the little fellow. This little fellow, however, has a mighty voice; he packs a powerful punch; he is not about to be ignored. Nor is he about to be overshadowed by Psalm 119. We have a pygmy and a giant among the psalms — almost nextdoor neighbors. Let us Gentiles remember that this little fellow puts in a powerful voice for us. Without him we might have found ourselves secondclass citizens in the kingdom of God, poor brothers and sisters in the family of faith.
This little psalm refuses to let us be overlooked. It brings us in as joint-heirs with Christ to join our voices with those who praise His Name.
II. THE CAUSE FOR PRAISE (117:2a, b)
