This Psalm serves as a powerful eye-opener for new believers, offering clear reasons to engage in true worship. It highlights God’s care and protection for His people. The Holy Spirit also gives a solemn warning—not to harden our hearts, lest we risk losing our salvation. Ultimately, the Psalm speaks of the rest that is withheld from the rebellious but promised to those who genuinely follow God.
An Invitation to Worship
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. – Psalm 95:1-5 (NIV)
The Psalmist calls upon the people of God—those who have received abundant blessings and unwavering protection from Him. God had delivered them from the bondage of slavery to grant them the freedom to worship Him. Over time, worship through songs of praise and musical instruments became a cherished practice among God’s people. In this Psalm, the writer presents every reason to worship God, inviting the people to respond in reverence and praise.
Surrounded by nations like Egypt and others who worshipped multiple deities, the Psalmist emphasized the supremacy of the Lord over all other so-called gods. Though our God is the only true and incomparable One, the writer used comparisons to help the people grasp the greatness of their God in contrast to the false gods around them.
As the Creator, all creation belongs to Him. The Psalmist refers to God as “our God,” establishing a sense of personal relationship and belonging. The same God who rescued them from the hands of their oppressors was now calling them to worship Him wholeheartedly—with all their heart, mind, and soul.
God Cares
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 95:6-7a (NIV)
From God’s perspective, worship is more than offering thanks or singing praises; it is about surrendering ourselves fully—as living sacrifices—to the One who has rescued us from the dominion of darkness (Romans 12:1). The Psalmist recognized God as his provider and protector, having personally experienced His tender care.
How much more should we believe and respond in worship today? We have seen an even greater demonstration of God’s provision—He has given us salvation and is guiding us toward eternal life.
With such understanding of God’s abundant grace, do we still need someone to prompt us to worship or mediate our prayers? Let our knowledge of His goodness move us to worship freely and sincerely.
A Stern Warning
Today, if only you would hear his voice, “Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah, as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness, where your ancestors tested me; they tried me, though they had seen what I did. For forty years I was angry with that generation; I said, They are a people whose hearts go astray, and they have not known my ways.’ So I declared on oath in my anger, They shall never enter my rest.- Psalm 95:7b-11 (NIV)
There is a noticeable shift in the tone of the Psalmist, indicating that no one responded to the invitation to worship God. As a result, the Holy Spirit, through the Psalmist, raises His voice in warning. Whether or not the Psalmist fully understood the prompting, he faithfully recorded everything under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. While the Psalmist does not explicitly mention the Holy Spirit—likely because the concept of the Triune God had not yet been theologically developed—he nevertheless submitted to the Spirit’s leading.
In contrast, the author of the book of Hebrews clearly attributes these warnings to the Holy Spirit. Interestingly, while the Spirit warned the people through the Psalmist only once, in the book of Hebrews, the same warning about hardening the heart is repeated three times (Hebrews 3:7, 3:15, and 4:3).
Whether it’s the Psalmist or the writer of Hebrews, the Holy Spirit’s urgency in protecting our salvation is unmistakable. The word “Today” signifies that God continues to extend this warning to all humanity until the day of His judgment. While this is indeed a great privilege, it is a grace meant to be responded to now—not postponed.
When addressing the hardening of the heart, Scripture says that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart in order to glorify His name (see Exodus 4:21; 7:3; 10:1, 20; 11:10; 14:4, 8, 17). From the very beginning, God told Moses that Pharaoh would not let the people go because He had hardened his heart. Does this mean that, if God hadn’t hardened Pharaoh’s heart, he would have let Israel go?
Not necessarily. God sees the heart, not the outward appearance. He knew Pharaoh’s heart was already stubborn and unwilling to submit. If Pharaoh had a heart willing to listen, God would have spoken to him directly, just as He speaks to us. But instead, God had to engage Pharaoh through plagues. Each time, Pharaoh temporarily agreed to God’s demands—but only out of fear or personal interest, not out of genuine submission. His brief compliance was driven by selfish motives, not true repentance.
Today, when God warns us not to harden our hearts, it’s because He knows we are capable of responding but also vulnerable to the devil’s deception.
What causes our hearts to become hardened? In his epistle, John identifies three root causes: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). If we want to keep our hearts tender toward God, we must guard our hearts against these influences.
The Psalmist also speaks of a “rest” that can be forfeited if there is no repentance. When God spoke about this rest to Moses, even the devil misunderstood its significance and tried to claim Moses’ body when he died (Jude 1:9). The book of Hebrews elaborates further, describing a “Sabbath rest” that remains for God’s people (Hebrews 4:9) resting as God rested after creation. Many believers mistakenly think this rest refers only to life after death. But in reality, God offers us rest in the midst of our work—not from it—when we abide in Him. True rest is found not in ceasing from effort, but in being united with Him in all we do.
Lord, renew our hearts and place a fresh spirit within us. Take away our hearts of stone and give us hearts that are tender and responsive to You. Amen
The Jordan Valley 
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