What I'm about to share is part of what I have been writing for a new essay that I've been working on for my unit on the exegesis of the Psalms. I've been learning so much and just had to share this little nugget...
The Speech Act Theory
There is a fascinating idea in philosophy called speech-act theory. It was developed by a philosopher named J.L. Austin, and the heart of it is this: Some words do not just describe something. They actually do something.
Think about it. When a pastor says, "I now pronounce you husband and wife," those words are not merely describing a wedding. They are enacting a marriage. When you say, "I promise," you are not narrating a promise. You are making one. The words themselves perform the action.
Demonstration in the Psalms
And as I have been studying Psalm 96, I have come to see that the writers of the psalms understood this long before anyone gave it a name. The song is not just an expression of worship. The song is doing something. And theologians like Thiselton, who applied speech-act theory to the Psalms, would agree.
So, take a look at Psalm 96. It does not say, "We will sing to the Lord." It commands: Sing. Declare. Ascribe. Bring. Come. Fall down. Tremble. Action after action after action. The psalm is not telling you about worship. It is pulling you into worship and accomplishing something in the singing of it.
And then it goes further. The psalmist turns to creation itself and says, "Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound... let the fields be jubilant... let all the trees of the forest sing for joy" (Psalm 96:11–12 NIV). It is as though the song that begins in one human heart becomes so full of God's reality that it spills out past the walls of the room. The heavens cannot help but answer. Creation joins in. This kind of song doesn't just do something to you; it does something to creation. (Photo via Unsplash)
Your Worship Shifts Things in a Significant Way
This is not poetic exaggeration. The psalm is showing us what happens when worship is rightly understood. Your song does something. It enacts something. It moves something in the unseen places, and it changes the landscape, inside you and around you.
So here is what I want you to sit with today. This idea is so incredible, and one that those in the ancient Near East understood. When you next open your mouth to sing to God, you are not just describing how you feel about Him. You are not just performing a duty. You are participating in something that does something. Your worship is not background music to your life. It is a holy act that shifts things in a significant way.
God knows this, and that is why the command is to sing. It's not simply because He deserves our praise (which He of course does), but it's also because the song doesn't just describe, it enacts.
I don't know about you, but that is absolutely mind-blowing to me. When we worship, there's so much more going on than singing a tune. And I think if we really believed that, we would sing differently. We would sing even when we did not feel like it, because we would know that the song is not waiting on our feelings to catch up.
So all of that to say... if you feel lost, if you really don't know what to do, your worship is doing more than you think. One of the best things you can do to change your situation is worship.
Whatever you do, don't miss another ELIJAH LIST email! Subscribe at this link: elijahlist.com/subscribe.
Roma Waterman
HeartSong Prophetic Alliance
Email:Â click here
Websites:Â www.romawaterman.com
|Â training.romawaterman.com
Roma Waterman has been one of Australia's foremost Christian artists for over twenty years and has traveled the globe leading worship and teaching on the prophetic, worship leading and songwriting. Her passion is not just to release Heaven's song over the nations, but to teach others to do the same.
To receive more words like this in YOUR inbox, subscribe FREE to the Elijah List at this link: elijahlist.com/subscribe.
Thank you for making the always-free "ElijahStreams" possible. To partner with us, click here.
Your donations truly help us keep these emails free for you. Donate at:
Find us on:
* Facebook click here
