Psalms 103:22:  “Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the LORD, O my soul.”

As we reach the conclusion of the Psalms where David is exhorting everyone and their mother to bless the Lord he is now calling upon all of God’s works to bless or praise the Lord.   The word works is ma’aseh which comes from the root word ‘asah which means to make for form,  a product or handiwork.  It is interesting that Solomon Hirsch relates this word to ‘atsah.  This is an interesting word as it is often used for sticks or wood that is used for fuel.  Solomon Hersch calls it concentrated energy.  He was, after all, a nineteenth century linguist and not a scientist.  In the one hundred and fifty years since the passing of Solomon Hirsch we have come to learn a lot about concentrated energy, particularly with the splitting of the atom and the discovery of the Higgs particle.

The simple definition of energy is anything that gives off power.  At the turn of the century physicists started to explore the relationship between energy and the structure of matter. In doing this the Newtonian material universe that was at the very heart of scientific knowing was dropped and the realization that matter is nothing but an illusion replaced it. Scientists began to recognize that everything in the Universe is made out of energy. Physicists now teach that physical atoms are made up of vortices of energy that are constantly spinning and vibrating, each one radiating its own unique energy signature.  You and I as everything else in the word are just beings of energy and vibration, radiating our own energy signature.

If you focus closer and closer on the structure of the atom you will see nothing, you will observe a physical void.  The atom has no physical structure which means we have no physical structure.  Atoms are made out of invisible energy, not tangible matter.   The Nobel Prize winning Danish Physicist Niels Bohr said: “Everything we call real is made of things that cannot be regarded as real.”

I believe in the nothingness lies God who began to vibrate and from that vibration all matter was created.  How can a rock, a mountain, a tree which has no consciousness bless God.  That is what David is commanding here that everything that God created is to bless Him. I think that the word ‘asah is sort of a play off the word ‘atsah.  In other words everything that God created ‘asah is to praise Him  and they are to praise him with the ‘atsah the very vibrations and make up of which God created them.  In other words David is declaring that all the world is to vibrate in harmony with Him.

That is not the case today, we have polluted God’s creation, we have altered the vibrations of God.  We are driving God’s creatures to extinction we are creating a world which is no long tov good or in harmony with God.  One day God will correct it, one day he will bring everything back on line and in harmony with Him.

So as we approach the conclusion of this Psalm, just what is it that blesses God, what is it that is a praise to God?  Is it a song, is it uplifted hands, it is the ability to stand for 30 minutes singing a song over and over. Just what is worship, what is praise?

Worship is not that just that thirty minutes of singing on Sunday morning, worship is not the feeling you get with loud music or a drum beat.  Is God that arrogant that he needs us to tell Him daily what a great God He is?   Is he like that dictator who has his cronies watching people as they applaud him and the first one to stop applauding is arrested?  Is our worship services a marathon to see how long we can stand and how long we can endure music that may not be appealing to you?   Is God up in heaven keeping a record of our praise and worship and those whose praise and worship reaches a certain level of  heartfelt will be honored?

What does it mean when God inhabits our praise.  Is He that insecure that He needs that constant reassurance that He is a good God and is loved?  What are the dynamics of true worship and praise? I think at the conclusion of this Psalm we find it in a simple word play on the word ‘atsah.  Let everything that vibrates bless the Lord.  How is He blessed?  When our vibrations when the vibrations of this world are all in harmony with His vibrations. Like a massive orchestra the universe is vibration in tune with God’s vibrations and this blesses Him and brings Him pleasure.

Any dischord, any instrument that is out of tune with God disrupts his harmonization.  That is why He inhabits the praise of His people, He surrounds Himself with those who are in tune with Him, vibrating is sync with Him.  That is why only those redeemed by the blood of the Lamb will be heaven for only in heaven will all things, all His words ‘asah but in harmony with Him.  Anything not in harmony with Him can not exist along side of Him and thus must be banished from His presence.

Our worship services are nothing more than a rehearsal for that grand symphony in heaven.