For her science project a middle school girl made a
machine that would keep dogs happy when their owners were away. The dog would step on a pedal and a voice
recording of their owners would be heard.
I know that my dog likes to hear the sound of my voice when I am away. The same thing is true for babies. Nothing soothes them as much as the sound of
their mother’s voice. The psalmist said
that this happiness can also belong to God’s child. Psalm 89:15 says, “Blessed are the people who
know the joyful sound.” Verse 16 adds,
“In Your Name they rejoice all day long.”
The master’s voice, or in the case of the psalmist, the
Master’s Name, brings blessing or happiness to those who know it best and rely
upon it for their daily needs. John
Newton wrote the hymn “How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds”. The first verse reads, “How sweet the Name of
Jesus sounds in a believer’s ear! It
soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds and drives away his fear.” Isn’t that exactly what the sound of the
mother’s voice does for the distressed baby?
There is assurance and security and certainty in that voice. That is what we hear in the voice of God, the
voice our spirit hears whenever His name is uttered.
Sadly there are those who have an entirely different
reaction to that Name. They fear instead
of being calmed. That Name to them is
the name of certain judgment. That name
to them is of the authority that would crush their unrepented evil ways and
calls them to a life of righteousness.
John 3:19-20 speaks of these people as those who loved the darkness
rather than the light and that they even hate the light. It is sad because Jesus is calling them to
the light and to life through Him. But
rejecting the hope that He brings leaves them only with the fear of His
judgment.
The psalmist had said that the joyful sound was for
those who rejoice in the great name of God.
The dog rejoices in the presence of its owner. The baby rejoices in the presence of its
mother. The sheep know their shepherd’s
voice and follow. The believer knows the
care and love of His heavenly Father and finds it a blessed sound. Meditating on the Apostles’ Creed or the
Doxology or the Gloria Patri with their repeated use of the Name of God should
bring sweet comfort and peace to the believer and happiness to their
heart.
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