True Worship

Series on the Psalms

Text: Psalm 24

Title: True Worship

Introduction

The connections between the Psalms in the order they are given in the Psalter has been a subject of extensive contemplation. In Psalms 22,23, and 24 Christ has been identified as Savior, Shepherd and Sovereign. The themes have been described as Grace, Guidance and Glory, or as The Cross, the Crook, and the Crown. J.N. Darby who writes very well on Christ in the Psalms leads us from Psalm 16 through Psalm 24 identifying the Savior in a different aspect in each Psalm. There is no question but that Christ is revealed in some way in every Psalm and in some more than others as the New Testament quotations from the Psalms lead us to understand. W. Graham Scroggie writes, “In Jehovah of this Psalm we see Jesus; these Israelite worshippers have been superseded by the whole church of God; and the earthly Jerusalem has given place to the Heavenly Home, through the gates of which the triumphant Church shall soon pass, to be forever with the Lord.” This is very true and yet I would like us to see that the fulfillment of the age to come has begun now in Christ and this Psalm speaks not only of entering God’s presence at the end of the age, but now. The historical occasion is generally thought to be David’s bringing of the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem in Ii Samuel 6. It is a Psalm that has serious implications for our worship of the Lord. We shall look this evening at the three necessary ingredients to approaching God in worship. It requires an acknowledgment, an affirmation, and an assurance.

I. Acknowledgment

The Psalm begins with an acknowledgment in verses 1 and 2, The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. This a confession of who God is. Without this no worship is possible. The word “God” means different things to people, particularly to believers as opposed to non-believers. In Arabic the word God is “Allah”, but the Muslim means something different by Allah than the Christian who speaks Arabic and uses the word. In Greek the word God is “Theos” from which we get theology, but Aristotle means something different than the Apostle Paul when he uses the word. The words of the Psalm establish the fact that Israel’s God is the true and living God. He is not an idol or a false deity who belongs to Israel alone. He is the Creator to whom all things belong. Notice that the Psalmist says in verse 4 that the worshipper has not lifted up his soul to an idol.. He comes to the true God and this means that his conception of God is governed by God’s revelation of Himself which is found in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. One of the things this shows is the utter foolishness of measuring our worship by emotions and feelings. When I was a young Christian I went through a period, as we all do, in which I did not have a very good understanding of who God is. In the words of J. B. Phillips, “My God Was Too Small.” I did not have a good understanding of the Trinity, of creation out of nothing, of God’s sovereignty, or of the atonement. Even in my limited understanding I was endeavoring to approach the true God in Christ and surely God accepted that worship but it was deficient worship because my understanding was deficient. As I grew in knowledge my worship became more meaningful to me and glorifying to God as well because it acknowledged who he really was. The same is true in the life of every Christian. All this touchy-feely attitude towards worship is a real problem when it ignores the fact that worship must include an understanding of who God is, and the better the understanding the better the worship.

II. Affirmation

Knowledge, however, is not the only important principle in correct worship. There also needs to be affirmation as in verses 3-6, Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Savior. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob. That is, worship is essentially a pledge, a vow, and oath. Worship involves commitment. We are in a covenant relationship with the Great king of the earth. This covenant is circumscribed by the sovereign and what he expects from us is a loyalty oath. This is the reason the Psalmist asks the question, “Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord?” The language of the answer is describing sincerity and honesty. The holy God of Israel demands sincere commitment to his Lordship. He requires a genuine commitment to his person and cause. People can have a great deal of knowledge but if they are not willing to allow that knowledge to control their lives and their lifestyles they cannot worship. This is why Jesus reminds his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 5:23, Therefore if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your Brother,; then come and offer your gift. This is also why Jesus mentions oaths in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5: 33-37. Truthfulness in life is to be observed at all times. This is something we have lost in our national life. But Jesus point is that the oath is to be reserved for your faithfulness to God, for your worship. He is not contradicting the Old Testament dictum which he quotes, Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord. Rather, as is the case throughout the Sermon, he is addressing the abuses in the lives of those to whom he is speaking. Psalm 24:3-6 is simply setting before us this aspect of worship as a requirement, the clean hands, the pure heart the absence of loyalty to idols, the false swearing all point to the same thing-sincere commitment to the true God.

III. Assurance

The entire rest of the Psalm is describing the entry into the presence of the Lord in verses 7-10, Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is he, this King of glory? The LORD Almighty-he is the King of glory. They have come up to the holy city and the choir now sings of the entrance. But the worshippers do not enter alone. In fact the Lord precedes them. It is God who leads them into his own presence. Already in verse 5 there is an intimation of this as we are told that the sincere worshipper who makes a credible vow of allegiance to Jehovah is vindicated or justified. He is still a sinner, though he is a sincere worshipper, and he needs the righteousness of God. It is God who justifies. The hands are not so clean or the heart so pure that we can enter God’s presence without a mediator. They are only clean and pure with respect to the genuineness of our commitment. Now God must cleanse us. The Lord goes before his people in worship. This king of glory, this Lord mighty in battle, this Lord of hosts is Jesus the Son of God. His battle is with sin, his victory is over sin and death, his atoning sacrifice and perfect righteousness make him the one who can lead us into the presence of the Father. In the language of the Old Testament, the bringing up of the ark is the bringing of the presence of God Himself for God dwelt between the cherubim. However this is a picture of God’s mercy for the covering of the ark was the mercy seat where the annual atonement was made for the sins of Israel. Instead of the literal ark going before us we have the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact in I John 2:2 John says, Jesus is the propitiation or the atoning sacrifice for our sins, but in the Greek it is the word for the mercy seat. The doors swing open because the God of mercy goes before us. This gives us the assurance of our ability to approach him and is what the author of Hebrews is saying in Hebrews 4:14-16, Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are, yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. These three things then are indispensable in true worship. Acknowledging the true God, affirming our loyalty and having the assurance that the way into the holiest is open to us through the Savior.

Summary of Psalm 24

Psalm 24 describes the triumphal procession of Israel up to the hill of the Lord. It was probably written in connection with David’s bringing the ark up from the house of Obed-Edom to Jerusalem. The Psalm has much to teach us about the true worship of God and our approach to Him. The three significant aspects of worship are the acknowledgment of the true God in all his glorious character; the vow of his loyal people to serve Him alone and no other gods; and the realization that vindication or justification must come from our merciful God. In this Psalm the entrance of God into the Holy place leading his people is a picture of our victorious Savior opening the way to a holy God. As the Ark of God with the mercy seat where atonement was made preceded Israel, so Jesus our atoning sacrifice precedes us in our worship and makes it possible and acceptable.