Text: Psalm 81
Synopsis: Psalm 81 served as a call to worship when the people of Israel gathered for the Feast of Tabernacles (a week of living in tents to remember the years their forefathers lived in the wilderness). However, the Psalm calls not only for worship but for decision (see vv. 8, 13). Israel cannot remember the wilderness years without remembering how often and how significantly their ancestors refused to listen to God during those years. And so Psalm 81 frames the Feast as an opportunity for Israel to recommit themselves to being God’s listening people…a commitment that’s every bit as necessary for us as it was for them. On the Mount of Transfiguration, God hearkens back to the call of Psalm 81 when he tells us to listen to his beloved son. Jesus perfectly fulfilled the call of Psalm 81, and by faith in him, all the promises of the Psalm become ours. Our call is to listen to and devote ourselves to him.