The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Psalm 15:1,
"Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?"
David here is musing with the Lord on who might be qualified to spend eternity in heaven with the Lord. This is what we are all created for in the first place, to spend an eternity in God's family. This is also the purpose of our temporal life in the here and now: to find our way into God's family.
David lists a dozen reasons in this psalm as to why I do not pass muster. The terrifying thing is that the one and only alternative for not making it into God's family is an eternity in a fiery lake of burning sulfur, see Revelation 21:8.
David's dozen includes:
A blameless walk
Does what is right
Speaks the truth from the heart
Utters no slander
Never wrongs a neighbor
Casts no slurs
Despises vile people
Honors those who fear the Lord
Keeps promises even when it hurts
Doesn't have a change of mind (faithful)
Lends money without interest
Doesn't accept a bribe against the innocent (incorruptible)
We know from the Scriptures that all it takes is just one infraction! No way I qualify! What is to become of me?
Thanks be to God that he sent his Son to pay the penalty on my behalf for all my sins! As a matter of fact, he did so for everyone, all of us! Those who embrace the salvation God offers through his Son are forgiven all sins and are qualified for God's family for all eternity!
So why is this list provided us in the Psalms? The same could be asked of all the laws God has given, through Moses, through Jesus in his sermon on the mount, etc. God is communicating to us all that he is our refuge from the wrath of his own justice for the sins we have commited. Mankind lives a pretense and does not feel the need to have anything forgiven. Lost in a spiritual darkness, we find it difficult to comprehend we all deserve that fiery lake of burning sulfur. Because of that spiritual blindness the Lord helps us see the shocking reality of our own failure to be fit for the kingdom of God, by showing us our failures (sin) so that we might reach out to him, and throw ourselves at the feet of his mercy to be forgiven our sins.
"Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God's sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin." Romans 3:20. If we don't know we need saving, we won't reach out for a savior!
God wants us all and he helps us find him if we are willing!
A blog with my ruminations over the years can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know..
"Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?"
David here is musing with the Lord on who might be qualified to spend eternity in heaven with the Lord. This is what we are all created for in the first place, to spend an eternity in God's family. This is also the purpose of our temporal life in the here and now: to find our way into God's family.
David lists a dozen reasons in this psalm as to why I do not pass muster. The terrifying thing is that the one and only alternative for not making it into God's family is an eternity in a fiery lake of burning sulfur, see Revelation 21:8.
David's dozen includes:
A blameless walk
Does what is right
Speaks the truth from the heart
Utters no slander
Never wrongs a neighbor
Casts no slurs
Despises vile people
Honors those who fear the Lord
Keeps promises even when it hurts
Doesn't have a change of mind (faithful)
Lends money without interest
Doesn't accept a bribe against the innocent (incorruptible)
We know from the Scriptures that all it takes is just one infraction! No way I qualify! What is to become of me?
Thanks be to God that he sent his Son to pay the penalty on my behalf for all my sins! As a matter of fact, he did so for everyone, all of us! Those who embrace the salvation God offers through his Son are forgiven all sins and are qualified for God's family for all eternity!
So why is this list provided us in the Psalms? The same could be asked of all the laws God has given, through Moses, through Jesus in his sermon on the mount, etc. God is communicating to us all that he is our refuge from the wrath of his own justice for the sins we have commited. Mankind lives a pretense and does not feel the need to have anything forgiven. Lost in a spiritual darkness, we find it difficult to comprehend we all deserve that fiery lake of burning sulfur. Because of that spiritual blindness the Lord helps us see the shocking reality of our own failure to be fit for the kingdom of God, by showing us our failures (sin) so that we might reach out to him, and throw ourselves at the feet of his mercy to be forgiven our sins.
"Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God's sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin." Romans 3:20. If we don't know we need saving, we won't reach out for a savior!
God wants us all and he helps us find him if we are willing!
A blog with my ruminations over the years can be found here: http://worshipfortoday.blogspot.com/
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know..
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