Psalm 84
For the director of music. According to gittith. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.
1 How lovely is your dwelling place,
Lord Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.
3 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.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.
Lord Almighty!
2 My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.
3 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.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house;
they are ever praising you.
5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion.
whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
6 As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
they make it a place of springs;
the autumn rains also cover it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength,
till each appears before God in Zion.
8 Hear my prayer, Lord God Almighty;
listen to me, God of Jacob.
9 Look on our shield, O God;
look with favor on your anointed one.
listen to me, God of Jacob.
9 Look on our shield, O God;
look with favor on your anointed one.
10 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.
11 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.
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
11 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.
12 Lord Almighty,
blessed is the one who trusts in you.
blessed is the one who trusts in you.
The "sons of Korah". Who were they? We see through the Biblical genealogies that they were from the line of Levi and their lot in life was to take care of the temple which at this time in history was not a fixed structure but a movable "tent". They were responsible for picking it up, moving it, staking it down, keeping the candles lit, the incense burning, the bread baked and kept fresh, the music being played, and probably in this immediate family, watching the door or gate. I guess they were sort of like the bouncers making sure no one came into the presence of the Lord without doing it right. We also know that the Levites were not given land when Canaan was divided up because their inheritance was the Lord. When you look at the Psalm this way, you can't help but see some brothers getting together and writing a song about how stoked they were to go be bouncers at the "church" every day for the rest of their lives, because they got to be near the presence of God on a daily basis. They were even jealous of the birds that flew freely in this open air tabernacle and got to even make nests nearer to the presence of God than the sons could get. Plus, the sons had to take shifts and leave the presence while the birds got to live there.
As I searched the sons of Korah, I found that they also wrote Psalm 42 which starts, "As the deer pants for water, so my soul longs after You". If you were to write a song about what your heart longs for, what would it be about? Probably it would be about vacation at the beach, hanging out with family, a relationship with the opposite sex, travelling the globe, a new kitchen, a winning lottery ticket, a new car or house - most likely anything but hanging out in the presence of God. Yet, these guys are saying, "You got some time off work and you are using it to travel to come to Zion to be in God's presence? That's awesome! You are going to be so blessed and energized and refreshed. Your strength and passion for life will be renewed."
Fast forward to the New Testament where Christ comes to give us direct access to the Father as symbolized by the torn veil in the Holy of Holies. We can have 24-7 access to the Father through His Son who took away our sins and put His Spirit inside us who gives us life. Because His Spirit is alive in us, we no longer have to go to a building to be in the presence of God, but rather, we are the temple. We are the Holy of Holies. Therefore, in a very complicated way, we can be at the beach, on vacation, with our families, driving a new car, renting a new house with an amazing kitchen and yet be in the presence of God and worshipping Him in the midst of and at the center of everything around us.
How do we get to this place where our minds are yearning, fainting, longing, panting for Him and our hearts are praising and crying out for Him, in the midst of a fallen, sinful and wicked world? This is the question, isn't it, because if loving God is the well - spring of our lives, basically we have arrived. There are a few hints in this passage. The first is seen in the sons of Korah calling God, "The God of Jacob." Why the God of Jacob? Do you remember who Jacob was? His name meant "deceiver" or "He cheats". He was a schemer who got the best of his uncle Laban and his brother Esau and lied to his old blind dad to get the inheritance. The first step in falling in love with God is to see ourselves as Jacobs, unworthy sinners. Luke gives an account of this at Simon's house where a woman "of ill repute" washed Jesus' feet and Simon was outraged that "a holy man" would let such a person touch him. Jesus then rebuked Simon in a parable about two debtors, one forgiven a small sum and one forgiven an insurmountable sum by a master, and asked Simon, "Who would love the master more?" Simon reluctantly answered, "The one with the larger debt", and Jesus' point was that if you think you are a pretty good person, your love for God is going to be lacking. When we realize the depth of our sinful heart, our "Jacobness", we can't help but love our forgiver, redeemer, and savior more and more.
The second factor related to desiring God's presence more than anything else is "passing through the valley of Baka". This was not a specific geographical location but rather an idiom for sorrow as Baka means "weeping" or "desolation". As we go through those tough times or as David would say, "The Valley of the shadow of death", we meet God. We get rains of blessing showered on us which in Palestine, which averaged 25 inches of rain annually, was a good thing. When David talked about being led through this valley in Psalms 23, from that point on in the Psalm he no longer referred to God as "He" but as "You", almost as if to say, like Job, "I knew about You, now I know You." As much as we try to avoid these hard times and pain, they are means, unfortunately, that God uses to get to know, need, and love Him more.
Lastly, as much as I emphasize that the sanctuary of God has moved from a place into our hearts, I would be remiss to imply that we don't need the place. We need to meet with fellow believers. We need to worship with other Christ followers. In fact, this is why this very Psalm exists - it was written for a choir to be sung in the assembly. No matter how vehemently one argues that they don't need to go to a place to worship God, without that place where other believers assemble, their love for God will grow cold. Putting a mildly glowing charcoal square in amongst other glowing coals, soon causes a raging fire. When did you feel closest and most in love with God in your life? Chances are it was at a camp, retreat, conference, or mission trip. What do all of these have? Fellow believers hanging out with each other discussing, serving, and worshipping God together. The doorkeepers in this Psalm could interact with every single worshipper of God and it made them say, "Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere."
Can you say this? If not, chances are your love for God has grown cold. Immerse yourself in the presence of God and His people. Cry out for the presence of God. Serve Him and His people instead of yourself and you will be moving in the right direction towards a change of heart - a change of passion.
As I searched the sons of Korah, I found that they also wrote Psalm 42 which starts, "As the deer pants for water, so my soul longs after You". If you were to write a song about what your heart longs for, what would it be about? Probably it would be about vacation at the beach, hanging out with family, a relationship with the opposite sex, travelling the globe, a new kitchen, a winning lottery ticket, a new car or house - most likely anything but hanging out in the presence of God. Yet, these guys are saying, "You got some time off work and you are using it to travel to come to Zion to be in God's presence? That's awesome! You are going to be so blessed and energized and refreshed. Your strength and passion for life will be renewed."
Fast forward to the New Testament where Christ comes to give us direct access to the Father as symbolized by the torn veil in the Holy of Holies. We can have 24-7 access to the Father through His Son who took away our sins and put His Spirit inside us who gives us life. Because His Spirit is alive in us, we no longer have to go to a building to be in the presence of God, but rather, we are the temple. We are the Holy of Holies. Therefore, in a very complicated way, we can be at the beach, on vacation, with our families, driving a new car, renting a new house with an amazing kitchen and yet be in the presence of God and worshipping Him in the midst of and at the center of everything around us.
How do we get to this place where our minds are yearning, fainting, longing, panting for Him and our hearts are praising and crying out for Him, in the midst of a fallen, sinful and wicked world? This is the question, isn't it, because if loving God is the well - spring of our lives, basically we have arrived. There are a few hints in this passage. The first is seen in the sons of Korah calling God, "The God of Jacob." Why the God of Jacob? Do you remember who Jacob was? His name meant "deceiver" or "He cheats". He was a schemer who got the best of his uncle Laban and his brother Esau and lied to his old blind dad to get the inheritance. The first step in falling in love with God is to see ourselves as Jacobs, unworthy sinners. Luke gives an account of this at Simon's house where a woman "of ill repute" washed Jesus' feet and Simon was outraged that "a holy man" would let such a person touch him. Jesus then rebuked Simon in a parable about two debtors, one forgiven a small sum and one forgiven an insurmountable sum by a master, and asked Simon, "Who would love the master more?" Simon reluctantly answered, "The one with the larger debt", and Jesus' point was that if you think you are a pretty good person, your love for God is going to be lacking. When we realize the depth of our sinful heart, our "Jacobness", we can't help but love our forgiver, redeemer, and savior more and more.
The second factor related to desiring God's presence more than anything else is "passing through the valley of Baka". This was not a specific geographical location but rather an idiom for sorrow as Baka means "weeping" or "desolation". As we go through those tough times or as David would say, "The Valley of the shadow of death", we meet God. We get rains of blessing showered on us which in Palestine, which averaged 25 inches of rain annually, was a good thing. When David talked about being led through this valley in Psalms 23, from that point on in the Psalm he no longer referred to God as "He" but as "You", almost as if to say, like Job, "I knew about You, now I know You." As much as we try to avoid these hard times and pain, they are means, unfortunately, that God uses to get to know, need, and love Him more.
Lastly, as much as I emphasize that the sanctuary of God has moved from a place into our hearts, I would be remiss to imply that we don't need the place. We need to meet with fellow believers. We need to worship with other Christ followers. In fact, this is why this very Psalm exists - it was written for a choir to be sung in the assembly. No matter how vehemently one argues that they don't need to go to a place to worship God, without that place where other believers assemble, their love for God will grow cold. Putting a mildly glowing charcoal square in amongst other glowing coals, soon causes a raging fire. When did you feel closest and most in love with God in your life? Chances are it was at a camp, retreat, conference, or mission trip. What do all of these have? Fellow believers hanging out with each other discussing, serving, and worshipping God together. The doorkeepers in this Psalm could interact with every single worshipper of God and it made them say, "Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere."
Can you say this? If not, chances are your love for God has grown cold. Immerse yourself in the presence of God and His people. Cry out for the presence of God. Serve Him and His people instead of yourself and you will be moving in the right direction towards a change of heart - a change of passion.
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