“Sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for Him.” (Psalm 98:1 NIV)
God is good at many things. Probably all things, truly. But what is He best at?
This verse makes me think of the Clifton Strengthfinders assessment. It’s a human resources tool that helps identify and therefore harness and individual’s strengths. I suspect that if we could give God the strength finders assessment, salvation would be His strongest characteristic. Scripture tells us He is mighty to save. Salvation is what He does best.
God takes what is broken, lost and utterly unrighteous and somehow manages to redeem us: restore us into something useful. It’s miraculous, really! I’ve seen the Lord’s strong arm of salvation in my own story. I have watched Him redeem what I had labeled as unredeemable. Salvation is His superpower and He wields it for us, not against us!
What is our proper response to such miraculous intervention? If we keep reading, the psalmist tells us: shout for joy, burst out in jubilant song, make music with harp and voice, trumpet and rams horn. Our right response to salvation is praise and worship.
“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music, make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn – shout before the Lord, the King.” (Psalm 98:4-6 NIV)
Lord, we are so glad for Your strength in salvation. What a great quality for our God to possess. Thank You for pulling us out of the pit of our own choices. May our response today and always be a shout of joy and a song of praise. We are glad to be Your people, saved by Your strong arm. Amen.