Worship in Spirit and Truth (2)

Who Shall Ascend the Hill of the Lord?

Psalm 72:8–11 ESV

8 May he have dominion from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth! 9 May desert tribes bow down before him, and his enemies lick the dust! 10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! 11 May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!

Psalm 24:1–10 ESV

The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, 2 for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. 3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. 5 He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah 7 Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle! 9 Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory! Selah

Introduction

This Psalm is generally though one that was written by David on the occasion of the Ark of the Covenant being returned to Jerusalem. As such it has much to teach us about worship. It poses(and answers) two questions that clearly refer to worship.

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Psalm 24:3 ESV

3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place?

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1. Background

Israel at War with Philistines. Israel losing.

Decide to take the Ark of the Covenant to the battle. Hophni and Phinehas

Israel rejoicing, Philistines panic stricken.

Israel slaughtered 30,000 killed Hophni and Phinehas.

The Ark captured.

Eli, the High Priest, dies.

The Ark placed in the Temple of Dagon.

Next day the statue of Dagon fallen flat on its face.

Following day had fallen again and was totally smashed.

Philistines infected with fatal illness.

Decided to return the Ark.

Made a new cart hitched two cows which had never drawn a cart.

Went straight to Beth-shemesh.

People looked in the Ark and were struck dead.

Was sent to Kiriath-jearim stayed there for 20 years.

David had been made King, conquered Jerusalem (Jebus)

He made a tent for the Ark and had it returned.

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2. The Earth is the Lord’s v1-2

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Psalm 24:1–2 ESV

1 The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, 2 for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.

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a. All Belongs to God v1

Psalm 24:1 ESV

1 The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,

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Psalm 19:1 ESV

1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

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b. All is in God’s Control v2

Psalm 24:2 ESV

2 for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.

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3. Who Can Worship God? v3-6

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Psalm 24:3–6 ESV

3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. 5 He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah

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a. A Vital Question v3

Psalm 24:3 ESV

3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place?

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With Psalm 24, God has brought us to a place where we need to stop and think about this ultimate issue of what God expects from us. No other question or concern is more important right now than that great question of where we will spend eternity after we die. Johnston, J. A. (2015).

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b. The Only Answer v4

Psalm 24:4 ESV

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.

God is a holy God; he is absolutely pure. Those who come into his presence must be holy and pure also. Johnston, J. A. (2015).

Deuteronomy 4:24 ESV

24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

Hebrews 12:28–29 ESV

28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.

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i. Clean Hands

Psalm 24:4 ESV

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.

This talks about our actions. We cannot come into God’s presence with hands stained by wrong things we have done… Our hands are stained with a lifetime of sins. And God says that those who come into his holy place must have “clean hands” (Johnston, J. A. (2015).

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ii. A Pure Heart

Psalm 24:4 ESV

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.

The first two qualifications focus on purity, and the third and fourth requirements focus on truthfulness.

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iii. Do Not Lie

Psalm 24:4 ESV

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.

If you have a problem with lying, you need to recognise that it starts with your heart. You are worshiping falsehood, trusting lies to do things for you when you should be worshiping God by trusting him. Johnston, J. A. (2015).

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Romans 2:8 ESV

8 but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.

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Ephesians 6:14 ESV

14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

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iv. Do Not Swear Deceitfully

Psalm 24:4 ESV

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.

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Deuteronomy 4:19 ESV

19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.

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James 5:12 ESV

12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

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c. Jesus Our Righteousness v5-6

Psalm 24:5–6 ESV

5 He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. 6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah

So Christ alone met these four requirements. And as our text promises, he received “blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation” (Psalm 24:5). The Resurrection was God’s great vindication of his sinless Son. The good news of God’s Word is that Jesus Christ did not meet God’s requirements just for himself. He came to make you and me qualified to come into God’s holy presence. Johnston, J. A. (2015).

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2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV

21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

And when Christ purifies us, he also makes us into what we should be. He transforms us by his Holy Spirit into people who keep God’s requirements ourselves, men and women who are self-controlled and godly, eager to do good.

Psalm 24:6 ESV

6 Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah

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4. The Entrance of the King v7-10

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Psalm 24:7–10 ESV

7 Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle! 9 Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory! Selah

a. The Mighty God v8

Psalm 24:8 ESV

8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle!

b. The Lord of Hosts v10

Psalm 24:10 ESV

10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory! Selah

Conclusion

Malachi 1:14 ESV

14 Cursed be the cheat who has a male in his flock, and vows it, and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished. For I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and my name will be feared among the nations.