2023-01-29 How Lovely Is Your Dwelling

Songs of Encouragement

We began our foray into three songs of encouragement with Psalm 40 which, encouraged us to cry out to the LORD for what we need:

• Help

• Mercy

• Justice and Vindication

• Understanding

• Anything else we need

We saw from God's Word that "waiting on the Lord" is not a passive activity. Rather, we cry out to the Lord for what we need. The LORD longs to hear our cry and answer it!

Last Sunday, Psalm 27 showed us that whatever enemy or enemies we face, God offers us his protective presence in corporate worship. In corporate worship, God will nurture and encourage us through fellowship with himself and with our brothers and sisters in the Lord. God will heal our souls, he will be our light, giving us clarity about the paths we should walk. He will show us his deliverance.

How Lovely is Your Dwelling

This morning's song of encouragement continues the theme pursuing the experience of the presence of God particularly in corporate worship. There may be no more powerful opening to chapter of Scripture than what the Sons of Korah have given this psalm.

“How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.” (Psalm 84:1–2, NIV)

This is a beloved passage of Scripture, often it is quoted with a sense of sweet sentiment, but as we read the entire psalm we see that it is a call to do whatever it takes, endure any hardship, to obtain the blessing of the Lord's presence, which is to find the blessing of the adoration of the Lord himself in all his loveliness in all his beauty. This psalm is far from simple sentimentality it encourages to the relentless pursuit of God himself, a pursuit in which we are determined not to be denied find our full satisfaction in God alone.

The title of the Psalm 84 carries this ascription of it authorship: Of the Sons of Korah.

Who are the Sons of Korah . . .

who wrote this song encouraging us to to give ourselves completely to finding our satisfaction in God alone.

The Sons of Korah are the descendants of Korah who led a rebellion of 250 leaders of Israel against Moses and Aaron. The Lord consumed Korah and his rebels by fire. Korah's immediate family along with two other key leader's family were swallowed up by the earth as they stood at their tents (Numbers 16). Yet for some reason the sons of Korah were spared (Numbers 26:11). One commentator made this observation about the sons of Korah.

it seems from their later employment that, in gratitude to God and his mercy, they must have dedicated themselves to producing and performing the music used to praise God at the wilderness tabernacle and later in the temple in Jerusalem. [1]

Another commentator suggest that the Psalms written by the Sons of Korah show that they had a living memory of having escaped death by God's mercy.[2]

We know from Scripture that Sons of Korah were professionally dedicated to the service of the tabernacle and later of the temple as singers leading the worship of Israel and as doorkeepers of the temple both these roles are reflected in our psalm this morning.[3]

Let's get into it. If you would like a copy of my outline of the Psalm you can find it on audio-visual console.

We are designed to dwell with God (vs. 1-7)

God designed all creation to dwell with him (vs. 1-3)

[slide] “How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.” (Psalm 84:1–2, NIV)

there is an in born yearning for God.

Augustine quote from last week: a hole in our heart that can only be filled by God

Ecclesiastes: God has put eternity in the human heart.

"Lovely" is a term of endearment - pleasing to the eye and the heart (husband to wife), interesting that the word translated "dwell" later in the text can also mean to marry.

not only beautiful, but loveable in its essence.

Psalm 84:3 NIV

Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young— a place near your altar, LORD Almighty, my King and my God.

That yearning is also present in creation.

Paul: “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.” (Romans 8:22, NIV)

yearn for the day when all creation will be brought back into a right relationship with God.

Transition: Why would God give us this yearning in our souls and in all creation? Because God desires to bless us . . .

God blesses people who take action to dwell with Him (vs. 4-7)

Psalm 84:4 NIV

Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.

What does it mean to dwell in the Lord's house?

- to settle in, to make oneself at home, to be a permanent inhabitant.

- Dwelling in the Lord's house, certainly means more than a driving desire for corporate worship, but it certainly does not mean less than a driving desire. The whole psalm is about going to Jerusalem to worship the living God. It is intended to be sung along the way.

Psalm 84:5 NIV

Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

A determination to worship with the people of God, to be in the presence of the living God together.

Hearts are set "a set of internal direction, path already mapped out" (God-given drawing to himself)

What is pilgrimage and how is it related to strength coming from the Lord (relates to trust in v. 12)? "Blessed is the one who trusts in you"

Total dependence on the Lord for what is need for the journey.

Psalm 84:6 NIV

As they pass through the Valley of Baka, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools.

What is the meaning of the Valley of Baka? The Valley of Tears

This appears to be a mixture of tears of grief (the desolate places, that are transformed into tears of joy) and the pathway of the pilgrim to Jerusalem transforms the desolate environment in to a flourishing oasis.)

A willingness to stay the course, to allow God to turn our pain, our trouble, our difficulties, into blessings for us and for others.

Psalm 84:7 NIV

They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion.

This is the point, God will gives us the desire the yearning to do whatever it takes to get to him . . . and God takes it upon himself to do whatever it takes to get us there, when we take action to follow that yearning.

› Transition: Therefore, we have a choice to make, we can choose to respond to God's drawing or we can choose to reject it. The Sons of Korah are urging us to

Chose to live in the Lord's favor (vs. 8-12)

Cry out for the Lord's favor (vs. 8-9)

“Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty; listen to me, God of Jacob. Look on our shield, O God; look with favor on your anointed one.” (Psalm 84:8–9, NIV)

"shield" and "anointed one" reference to the King.

Paul instructs us to pray for those who are in authority.

Christians are instructed to pray for persons in authority in 1 Timothy 2:1-7, which states that petitions, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving should be made for all people, including kings and those in authority. This is further reinforced by other passages such as Romans 13:1-2, which states that all authorities have been instituted by God. Praying for those in authority is a biblical command and means asking the Lord to open their hearts to the truth of the Gospel message[4]

What should we pray? Based on the Psalm so far, it would be good to pray that our President, Vice President, and all our elected officials would respond to inborn yearning to find their rest in God.

› transition: Why should we do this? Because . . .

God gives his favor on those who dwell with him (vs. 10-12)

Because . . .

Psalm 84:10 NIV

Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

O)ne day dwelling with God is better and an eternity doing anything else. The infante fullness of God satisfies more than all of our finite pursuits combined.

I'd rather be a humble beggar in the courts of the Lord than to be considers an important person, while I make my home with the wicked.

Because . .

Psalm 84:11 NIV

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

God is our shield (our king). Jesus is our anointed one. When we dwell with God, we come under his protection. When we dwell with God he gives to us favor (the thing we are crying out for, and beyond that) He give us honor. God honors us by

not withholding any good thing for those whose walk is blameless - who are in a right relationship with Him.

Because . . .

› [slide do not read]

Psalm 84:12 NIV

LORD Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in you.

Everyone who trusts in the Lord is blessed.

Everyone who will take action to follow their God-given yearning to find their satisfaction alone in Him will be blessed.

Do you want to be blessed?

[Slide]Here's how you know if you really want to be blessed.

How would you honestly complete this these verses:

How ______________ is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty, my soul ________________ , even __________ for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh _____________for the living God.

If we complete this honestly, it will reveal to us what we really think about corporate worship. If it is not something similarly positive to what the Sons of Korah wrote, then we probably really don't want to be blessed because a deep, driving desire to experience the living God in worship with God's people is the foundational posture of heart that leads to blessings promised in this Psalm.

[slide] Is your heart set on pilgrimage. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to get experience the presence of the living God no matter where the journey takes you and no matter how difficult the path? If not, then you probably really don't want to be blessed, because the Psalm promises blessings for those who will not be deterred from doing whatever it takes to dwell in the house of the Lord.

[click] Are you willing to experience the Valley of Baka? Are you willing to trust that God will turn your weeping into blessing that not only nourishes your soul, but the soul of others? If not, then you probably really don't want to be blessed, because every one will go through the valley of weeping those who do so trusting the Lord for strength will be blessed, and those who refuse the Lord's favor will be bitter.

[click] Are you willing to cry out for the Lord's favor? To cry out for what you need? Are you willing to be a humble beggar in the courts of the Lord, or would you rather be whatever you have in mind and heart that would make you a successful and important person? You see, you get to choose between prosperity and blessing, the two are not fundamentally the same. Blessing is finding complete satisfaction in God alone. If that's not what you desire, if that's not the end-game of your life, one can only conclude that you do not really want to be blessed.

For here is the promise:

Psalm 84:11–12 NIV

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. LORD Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in you.

References

1. James Montgomery Boice, Psalms 42–106: An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2005), 366–367.↩︎

2. David Willgren, “Korahites,” in The Lexham Bible Dictionary, ed. John D. Barry et al. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).↩︎

3. Thomas J. Shepherd, The Westminster Bible Dictionary (Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1880), 306.↩︎

4. Perplexity query: Where in the Bible are Christians instructed to pray for persons in authority?↩︎