Psalm 21 PART 4 — Exalted in His Own Strength

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[SECTION NINE — The Closing Doxology]
[Cello note sustained, warmer]
[Preacher — measured, pastoral]

The psalm closes with a single verse 
that gathers up everything that has come before.

Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength.
So will we sing and praise thy power.

Notice the structure of this closing.
The community asks God to be exalted 
in his own strength.
And then the community responds 
by singing and praising his power.

The exaltation comes first.
The praise comes second.
The order matters.

We do not exalt God 
by the strength of our own praise.
We acknowledge that he is already exalted 
in his own strength, 
and we respond with the singing and praising 
that is appropriate 
to what he has already done.

This is one of the marks 
of biblical worship correctly ordered.
The worship is not what produces God's glory.
God's glory exists in itself, 
prior to our worship.
Our worship is the proper response 
to the glory that is already there.

[SECTION TEN — What We Have Received]
[Cello note steady, warm]
[Preacher — theological, pastoral]

So what shall we take with us, dear friends, 
from Psalm twenty-one?

We take, first, 
the recognition that we are recipients 
before we are askers.
The blessings of goodness go before us.
What God grants is prior to our prayer.
Our prayer is the response to grace already given.

We take, second, 
the great Christological hope 
that runs through the eternal-life verse 
and the most-blessed-forever verse.
The king who received length of days for ever and ever 
is our risen Lord Jesus Christ.
His exaltation at the Father's right hand 
is the answer to this psalm.
His eternal joy in the Father's countenance 
is what awaits all who are united with him.

We take, third, 
the honest acknowledgment 
that the wrath of God against evil is real.
The God we worship 
is not a soft God 
who is indifferent to what destroys his creatures.
He is the holy God 
whose wrath against evil 
is one expression of his love for the victims.
We do not soften this.
We do not weaponize this either — 
we do not turn it into warrant for our own vengeance.
We acknowledge it 
and we recognize that, 
in Christ, 
the wrath that should have fallen on us 
has fallen on him instead.

We take, fourth, 
the great doxological closing.
Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength.
The worship of the church 
is the proper response 
to a God who is already glorious.

[SECTION ELEVEN — The Final Word]
[Cello note settling, warm]
[Distant small bell once, very softly]
[Preacher — quiet, benedictory close]

Let us therefore pray Psalm twenty-one 
as those who have received the king 
whose victory has now been won.

The corporate prayer of Psalm twenty 
has been answered 
in the corporate thanksgiving of Psalm twenty-one.
But behind both psalms — 
the petition and the thanksgiving — 
stands the deeper reality 
that the church has been celebrating for two thousand years.

The king has gone into the day of trouble.
The day of trouble was Holy Week.
The battle was the cross.
The victory was the empty tomb on Easter morning.
The crown has been set upon his head.
The life he asked, the Father has given him.
Length of days for ever and ever, 
indeed.
Exceeding glad with the countenance of the Father, 
indeed.

And we who have been baptized into him 
share his victory.
We pray Psalm twenty-one 
as those whose king has been exalted, 
whose enemies have been judged in his cross, 
whose own sins have been answered 
in the wrath that fell on Christ in our place.

Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength.
So will we sing and praise thy power 
across this morning's worship, 
across this day's faithfulness, 
across this life's pilgrimage, 
until we come at last to that worship 
where the king himself 
will be visibly present 
in the unmediated countenance 
that this psalm describes.

In the name of the Father, 
and of the Son, 
and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

[end]

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[intro] [American Episcopal Scholarly-Preaching Sermon] [Mid-sized Episcopal church acoustic] [Single sustained low cello note, warming] [Faint sanctuary atmosphere] [Preacher — continuing, approaching the close, warm pastoral] [SECTION NINE — The Closing Doxology] [Cello note sustained, warmer] [Preacher — measured, pastoral] The psalm closes with a single verse that gathers up everything that has come before. Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength. So will we sing and praise thy power. Notice the structure of this closing. The community asks God to be exalted in his own strength. And then the community responds by singing and praising his power. The exaltation comes first. The praise comes second. The order matters. We do not exalt God by the strength of our own praise. We acknowledge that he is already exalted in his own strength, and we respond with the singing and praising that is appropriate to what he has already done. This is one of the marks of biblical worship correctly ordered. The worship is not what produces God's glory. God's glory exists in itself, prior to our worship. Our worship is the proper response to the glory that is already there. [SECTION TEN — What We Have Received] [Cello note steady, warm] [Preacher — theological, pastoral] So what shall we take with us, dear friends, from Psalm twenty-one? We take, first, the recognition that we are recipients before we are askers. The blessings of goodness go before us. What God grants is prior to our prayer. Our prayer is the response to grace already given. We take, second, the great Christological hope that runs through the eternal-life verse and the most-blessed-forever verse. The king who received length of days for ever and ever is our risen Lord Jesus Christ. His exaltation at the Father's right hand is the answer to this psalm. His eternal joy in the Father's countenance is what awaits all who are united with him. We take, third, the honest acknowledgment that the wrath of God against evil is real. The God we worship is not a soft God who is indifferent to what destroys his creatures. He is the holy God whose wrath against evil is one expression of his love for the victims. We do not soften this. We do not weaponize this either — we do not turn it into warrant for our own vengeance. We acknowledge it and we recognize that, in Christ, the wrath that should have fallen on us has fallen on him instead. We take, fourth, the great doxological closing. Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength. The worship of the church is the proper response to a God who is already glorious. [SECTION ELEVEN — The Final Word] [Cello note settling, warm] [Distant small bell once, very softly] [Preacher — quiet, benedictory close] Let us therefore pray Psalm twenty-one as those who have received the king whose victory has now been won. The corporate prayer of Psalm twenty has been answered in the corporate thanksgiving of Psalm twenty-one. But behind both psalms — the petition and the thanksgiving — stands the deeper reality that the church has been celebrating for two thousand years. The king has gone into the day of trouble. The day of trouble was Holy Week. The battle was the cross. The victory was the empty tomb on Easter morning. The crown has been set upon his head. The life he asked, the Father has given him. Length of days for ever and ever, indeed. Exceeding glad with the countenance of the Father, indeed. And we who have been baptized into him share his victory. We pray Psalm twenty-one as those whose king has been exalted, whose enemies have been judged in his cross, whose own sins have been answered in the wrath that fell on Christ in our place. Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength. So will we sing and praise thy power across this morning's worship, across this day's faithfulness, across this life's pilgrimage, until we come at last to that worship where the king himself will be visibly present in the unmediated countenance that this psalm describes. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. [end]

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