| The Voice of God |
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| Written by David Charlton |
Scripture: Psalm 29God uses a ‘still small voice’ when he wants to speak with us in an intimate way. However, God also has a deep, commanding and powerful voice that can dominate everything. With this voice, God maintains ultimate control and has authority over all that has been created. This voice is sufficient to calm any storm. Whether we find ourselves in a financial, relational, violent or health storm, God can calm it. If God doesn’t calm the storm right away, He’s right there with us in the midst of the storm. We serve a great and loving God. Halleluiah!!! SERMON OUTLINE Scripture Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. 2 Ascribe to the LORD the glory of his name; worship the LORD in holy splendor. 3 The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over mighty waters. 4 The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty. 5 The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon. 6 He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. 7 The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire. 8 The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness; the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9 The voice of the LORD causes the oaks to whirl, and strips the forest bare; and in his temple all say, "Glory!" 10 The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever. 11 May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!
Focus and Function Focus: God's voice is sufficient to calm any storm. God is in control. Function: To encourage the congregation to rely on God during times of chaos and tribulations.
The Sermon
I. Introduction: The booming voice of my Scoutmaster A. Some voices are very distinctive and evoke various reactions in people · Darth Vader's voice invokes fear · John Wayne's voice evokes confidence and courage · Pee Wee Herman's voice invokes laughter · I remember the distinct voice of my Scoutmaster B. My Scoutmaster's voice · He was over 6' tall and had a deep booming voice · His voice elicited respect. We paid attention to him when he spoke · His voice also elicited fear - Whenever we got to loud at night, we would hear his voice from the men's campsite telling us to be quit. - He also had a knack of sneeking up on us when we were doing something wrong. Then we would suddenly here that voice. C. My scoutmaster's voice, however, has nothing on God's voice · We often speak of God's still small voice. God uses this voice when he wants to speak to us in an intimate moment · God, however, also has a big, booming, powerful voice that can convey his power and authority. Psalm 29 speaks of this voice. II. Psalm 29 A. Psalm 29:1-2: Simply states that we should honor and worship the Lord. That we should recognize His holiness, glory and strength. B. Then the Psalm begins to describe God's voice · Psalm 29:3-4: The voice of the Lord thunders over the waters. In ancient times, water represented chaos - In creation, God hovered over the waters and created order from the chaos (Gen.1:1-2) - Sea faring extremely dangerous. Storms greatly feared. Seas equated with destruction and chaos. - God's voice thunders over the chaos and brings order. While the boat was about to be capsized by the storm, Jesus simply rebuked the storm and made the sea calm. (Mat. 8:23-27) - Story of my 3rd grade elementary teacher leaving the class room. The class immediately started talking, running and playing around. Unbeknownst to us, however, the teacher was listening to us on the intercom. When she heard enough, she yelled through the class speaker, "I'VE HEARD ENOUGH!!! YOU'RE ALL IN TROUBLE! GET TO YOUR SEATS AND BE QUIET!!!!" We heard the voice that brought order out of chaos. - God's voice can bring order out of our various areas of chaos 1) Relational chaos 2) Financial chaos 3) Moral chaos · Psalm 29:5-6: God's voice breaks the cedars - Cedar was one of the strongest and most durable wood used to build temples and mansions. - By breaking cedar, God can take down any human accomplishment. Nothing made by human can withstand God's voice - Tower of Babel - Militaries are created by humans. We tend to depend on our military for security. We should depend on God (Psalm 20:7). God can take down any military force. Recal the story of God scaling down Gideon's force from 32,000 to 300 and then using that force to defeat the Midiam force of thousands. - God's voice can shatter human created philosophies that run counter to Scriptural truth: Stoicism and Gnosticism are examples of this. · Psalm 29:7-9: The voice of the Lord is like fire on a forest C. Psalm 29:10-11: The Lord is sovereign and takes care of his people III. The Good News of Psalm 29 A. Let's remember that God is a loving God B. This loving God is in control and can take care of all our needs C. When your life is in chaos, remember, God loves you and is in control. D. We can have a personal love relationship with this loving God
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