Heart of a Psalmist - Worshipping Christ Through The Psalms

God is the architect of the earth and its massive oceans. By virtue of creation, he is the owner of all the inhabitants of the world. He holds the copyright on humanity and is enacting his plan of redemp- tion for all nations.

II WHO MAY CLIMB THE MOUNTAIN OF THE LORD ? (3-6)

“ Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies.” (3,4)

The psalm microscopes from a panorama of the entire earth to the small hill of Zion in Jerusalem where David’s tent was set as a home for the Ark of God. People from all over the earth came to this hill to wor- ship the God of Israel. Unlike Moses’ Tent that represented the Law and kept people separated from God’s presence, David’s Tent represented grace and provided a way for all the nations to be close to the Lord. Today the presence of the Lord has moved to the ‘Tent’ of the believer’s heart requiring it to be prepared for this honor. This poem is a companion with Psalm 15 as they address the qualifications of the worshiper: • “ Clean hands ” represents a life of excellence in outwardly following the commands of Christ. • “ Clean hearts ” represents an inward life of moral excellence, having good attitudes, thinking on things that are good; not holding bitterness or jealousy. “ God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.” (Mt. 5:8) • “ Who do not worship idols… ” This is an unnatural craving to possess persons or things that God has forbidden; it kills our spiritual hunger for Him. They who have met the qualifications will receive three essential benefits: 1. The blessing of the Lord- “ They will receive the Lord’s blessing…”(5) 2. The righteousness of the Lord- “ …and have right standing with God their savior.”(5) 3. Access to His Presence- “T hey alone may enter God’s presence and worship the God of Is- rael.”(6) The present day location of His presence is in the human heart that has welcomed Jesus as their savior: “ Believe me, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Fa- ther here or in Jerusalem.”…”true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for anyone who will worship him that way.”(Jn. 4:21,23) Choir 1- “ Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Choir 2- Who is this King of glory? Choir 1- The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Choir 2- Lift up your heads, o you gates! And lift them up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Choir 1- Who is this King of glory? Choir 1&2 The Lord of hosts (Sabaoth), He is the King of glory. Selah” (NKJV) This portion was to be sung antiphonally by two choirs much like the dual choirs that dedicated the walls of Jerusalem in Nehemiah’s day. Perhaps they sang this Psalm at the newly renovated ‘gates’ of Jerusalem as they dedicated and opened the ancient doors to the worshippers of the world! “ I led the leaders of Judah to the top of the wall and organized two large choirs to give thanks. One of the choirs proceeded southward along the top of the wall …The second choir went northward around the other way to meet them.”(Neh. 12:31,38) The phrase: “ Lift up your heads, O you gates… ” is a poetical way of saying ‘take the doors off the gates and raise the height of the entrance, make it bigger’ because the king is coming into the city. Isa- iah saw the Lord of hosts and the worship of the seraphim around his throne had a similar effect upon the doors of the heavenly temple: ” And one cried to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts (Ps.24:10!); the whole earth (Ps.24:1!) is full of His glory!’ And the posts of the door(Ps. 24:7) were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.”(Isa. 6:3,4) God wants III WHO IS THIS KING OF GLORY ? (7-10) • “ …who never tell lies. ” The tongue must be fully dedicated to truth. • “ Interlude” (Selah) It is good to meditate deeply on these qualifications!

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