Psalms of Enthronement
Learning to Pray from the Psalms, Part 4
(Click here for part one, part two, and part three)
by Pastor Paul Dugan
The Psalms provide a “playlist” for all dimensions of the human experience, for all parts of the human soul. This playlist includes a wide variety of genres that help us gather the whole of our lives in honest and grateful prayer before God.
The Psalms have changed my life. They have become medicine for my soul.
Today we practice praying the enthronement psalms. Psalm 95 is a classic example:
Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.
For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. (Psalm 95:1-7)
For an example of Psalm 95 put to music, click here (Courtesy: Sons of Korah)
Enthronement psalms call believers to praise and worship God who is Lord and King of the universe. They celebrate his rule over the world, the nations, and over his people whom he has chosen. Examples of enthronement psalms: Psalm 2, 24, 29, 47, 93, 96, 97, 98, 99, and 110.
Like the great prophets of Israel, the poets who crafted the enthronement psalms pointed ahead to a time when God’s kingdom would come with justice, righteousness and peace. They celebrate God’s long-expected rule.
By the first century A.D. kingdom expectations were white hot in the Jewish world.
And Jesus at first seemed to fan these coals. His opening words in the Gospel Mark put the kingdom of God front and center:
“…Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. ‘The time has come,’ he said. ‘The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!’” (Mark 1:14-15)
Jesus has brought the kingdom of God “near.” The enthronement psalms are being fulfilled. This is amazing good news!
But… the kingdom Jesus brought was not what most people expected. He did not overthrow the Romans, expel foreigners from Jerusalem, or restore the long awaited Davidic rule of Israel. Instead, Jesus demonstrated God’s rule by healing the sick, confronting demonic powers, delivering the oppressed, and welcoming repentant sinners from the “wrong side of the tracks.” And this was his radical call: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”(Mark 8:34). In this call to discipleship, Jesus was actively disrupted all rival kingdoms…particularly the rival kingdom of self. And so it is today. Our allegiance to Jesus brings a liberating revolution to every area of our lives.
But the most unexpected part of Jesus’ kingdom mission was the way it ended. Following his “triumphal entry” into Jerusalem, Jesus was rejected, tortured, and shamefully executed. No one expected a crucified messiah. Yet, the gospel writers imply that this death was actually a victory. Jesus was given a “crown” of thorns and a robe. He was lifted up- onto a cross rather than a throne. People witnessing his crucifixion mocked Jesus, saying, "behold, the king of the Jews!". Little did they know that the words they hurled at him as mockery were actually true. Jesus was a different kind of king, a king who was enthroned on a cross. And three days later he was vindicated in his resurrection.
In death, Jesus defeated sin and evil, and he established a way by which all of his followers can take part in the kingdom of God. His final call to his disciples was this, “All authority in heaven and earth have been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples…” (Mt 28:18-19)
And so the enthronement psalms become for us prayers of discipleship. Here are some ways to create your own enthronement psalms around King Jesus:
“Lord Jesus Christ, continue to bring your kingdom in my world,
healing the sick…
delivering the oppressed…
welcoming repentant “outsiders”…
calling me to follow you into every area of life, including…
and by winning through losing, by ruling in self-giving love, in my…
“Lord Jesus, bring a liberating revolution over my life- (over my body, time, money, possessions, politics, relationships, vocation…)
“Lord Jesus, overthrow all rival idols, lords, and powers,… until everything heaven and earth is united under your generous reign. (Ephesians 1:10).
This is part four in a ten-part series on how to pray the psalms. Part five is here.
For an index to digital prayer guides for more than one hundred individual psalms, click here.