Psalm 2

February 16, 2020

Lord’s Day Worship

Sean Higgins

The sermon starts at 13:50 in the audio file.

Or, The Politics of Worship

In 1971 Coca-Cola ran a 60 second commercial with a jingle that became so popular that two singing groups recorded their own full length versions later in the same year without the Coke references. I wasn’t even born until 1974 and I remember the song. Once you get it in your head, watch your head.

I’d like to build a world a home

and furnish it with love.

Grow apple trees and honey bees

and snow white turtle doves.

I’d like to teach the world to sing

in perfect harmony.

I’d like to hold it in my arms,

and keep it company

I’d like to see the world for once

all standing hand in hand.

And hear them echo through the hills

for peace throughout the land.

It’s the real thing

what the world wants today,

That’s the way it’ll stay

with the real thing.

See all the lyrics here.

The commercial had a multicultural choir of teenagers singing on a sunny afternoon on top of a picturesque hillside. The message invites everyone, except hardened cynics (and Pepsi drinkers), to dream about what the world could be, to envision the peace and harmony we could all enjoy.

Coke’s advertisers were not creating categories for consumers, they were trying to fill the categories. Coke did not teach people that the world singing in perfect harmony would be a good thing. Ad agencies and beauty pageant contestants didn’t invent the idea of world peace. The vision is built-in to all of us. We come pre-packaged with that desire.

Of course fizzy sugar water doesn’t have enough bubbles to get us to stand together hand in hand. Coke is not the answer to world peace because Coke can’t save anyone. There is a Savior, though. He is God’s Son, and He has a song. I’d like to teach the world a song and, if I could choose just one, Psalm 2 might be it.

Here is one more Boom! message on worship for this round, a message that is also related to the politics seminar this afternoon, then I’ll be back to Revelation next Sunday. I originally preached Psalm 2 almost seven years ago, and it’s good. Politics is from polis, city, “the activities associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power” (New Oxford American Dictionary). Power is given by God (see John 19:11; Romans 13:1), and so we cannot really separate politics from worship, as we’ll see in this song.

Like Psalm 1, Psalm 2 sits in a special place in the Psalter. In fact, based on early manuscripts of Acts 13:33 that quoted verse 7 as being in the “first psalm,” Psalms 1 and 2 were seen as one song, starting in 1:1 with “blessed” and ending in 2:12 with “blessed.” Though they are split in our copies, Psalm 2 clearly provides another entrance into the entire Book. If Psalm 1 stresses the goodness of singing the Scriptures, Psalm 2 stresses the goodness of singing the Son. Psalm 1 makes men wise and fruitful who delight in the law of Yahweh. Psalm 2 makes men wise and joyful who submit to the rule of Yahweh’s anointed.

A thick thread in the pattern of the Psalms concerns the kings of Israel. Every song in Book 1 (of 5), from 1-41, has a heading that mentions King David except 1, 2, 10 and 33. In the latter two songs, however, there is good evidence that each one is part of the preceding Psalm (9 and 32). In other words, every psalm in Book 1 is Davidic except for 1 and 2. But in the latter divisions of Psalms, problems come as Israel goes into exile. There is no king. How can God’s promise to David in 2 Samuel 7:4-16 be fulfilled?

As the Psalter progresses the songs address this problem by recognizing David and Solomon and later kings as early types of the King, Jesus Christ. Psalm 2 prepar[...]