TRUE WORSHIPPERS
"Lord who shall abide in thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in thy Holy Hill?" Psalm 15:1
David wrote Psalm 15 on the occassion of moving the Ark of the Covenant to Mount Zion as found in 2nd Samuel 6:12-19. His first two questions are powerful to anyone who wants more of the presence of God to be evidenced in their lives.
Who shall abide? ALAM in the Hebrew. It means to "tie fast" - to bind, especially the mouth and lips. What that means is who shall be awed in thy tabernacle. Who will stand before you in complete awe and amazement at who you are and what you do? David also asks who shall dwell? SHAKAN in the Hebrew. It means to permanently stay, to dwell, to live with. And what that means is who will be able to permanently live with the Lord in His Holy Hill?
So, to sum up Psalm 15:1 - we see that David asks two powerful questions. Who will stand in awe of God and who will be able to go on and permanently live with Him in His presence?
I could easily answer those two questions by my own personal experiences. I stand in awe of what He has done in my own life. After going for my 3 month check up to see if any cancer returned, I can tell you that all tests have shown that I continue to remain 100% cancer free!! I truly stand in awe of His power. I can also tell you that my desire is to go on and live in His presence because of how much I feel His overwhelming power and unfathomable grace.
Yet the reason I write to you today is not based on how I would answer these two questions. But rather on how David answered them for all of us who are chasing after God.
David said there are 2 things that will qualify us to 1. stand in His presence and 2. live in His power.
The 1st criteria is found in verse #2 of Psalm 15:2. "He that walks uprightly, and works righteousness...." It literally means "those who continue to walk in justice, those who seek equality, those who practice fairness to others.
The 2nd criteria is close to the 1st also found in Psalm 15:2. "and speaketh truth in his heart".
Amazingly this tells us that when we are truthful with ourselves, when we examine our own words and motives, and are not looking to rationalize our own faulty ideas, then we will be able stand in His presence and live in His power.
Oh to be honest with ourselves and to seek to live our lives in fairness to others. More than being healed from cancer, more than being able to teach thousands, more than being wealthy and popular - this is our quest. If we could only examine our thoughts and intents and walk in His ways, then we would be little arks of the covenant ourselves.
You see David wrote this Psalm as he was preparing to move the Ark of God's Presence from the house of Obed-Edom to Jerusalem. Where does God want to move you to? From disease to health? From bad decisions to Godly ones? From bitterness to love? From a feeling of hopelessness to great joy? I write to you today to tell you that God is ready to move you to a new and better location - just like He has recently done for me. You may well be on your way to experiencing more of His Presence and more of His Power!
Thank you all again - for your love and prayers. I will ever remain in gratitude to the saints who have prayed for me, and my God who has healed me.
In His Service,
Pastor Mark
