Psalm 24: Living in God’s World

 

In less than a month we will be hosting the world’s greatest golfers at Wentworth, for the HSBC World Match Play Championship. Those coming include Michael Campbell from New Zealand, 24th in the world ranking and winner last year; David Howell, from the UK, 10th in the world and currently number 1 on the European Tour; and of course, the world’s number one, named after our cat, Tiger Woods. His smile is infectious and his composure unrivalled.

 

Not surprisingly, a number of international corporations are keen to sponsor him. Probably the most visual, when you see Tiger in action is on his cap - the simple tick logo of Nike. It’s associated with the phrase… ‘Just do it.’ Now that may win marks for being memorable but its not exactly motivational or even original. ‘Just do it’ Just do what? I much prefer the original version found in our epistle this morning,  “So … whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31). Now that’s what I call motivational, isn’t it? “So … whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

 

One of Tiger Wood’s other main sponsors is Accenture. You may know Tim and Michele Breene who are members of our extended church family now living in Boston. Tim is Accenture’s chief strategy officer and I happened to be visiting them in Boston a few years ago when the proofs came back for the first Accenture adverts featuring Tiger Wood.  I am sure you have seen them in magazines or airport terminals. I am using them as my screen saver at the moment. They combine both subtle humour and simple wisdom.

 

They sound like ancient proverbs. Here’s a few. With a picture of Tiger obscured by a tree, “They’re only obstacles if you can’t see round them” … In another Tiger is reflected upside down in the water of a hazard “Extraordinary insights often come from uncommon perspectives” Another shows him trying to hit off a steep slope with the words “There’s no such thing as a level playing field.”

 

Another shows him bent over the ball frozen in total concentration. The slogan says, ‘Some watch, some wait, some pounce - go on be a Tiger” The purpose of these adverts, and of any good adverts, is to motivate us and bring business to the sponsors. Now we may never be as good as Tiger but we can be the best we can. We just need motivation. My favourite advert in this series shows him in ecstasy with both arms stretched toward the heavens and with a broad smile from cheek to cheek. The slogan reads “There’s a moment when perfect theory meets perfect execution.” We know why it is rare in golf, even for the professionals, but why should the perfect be so rare in our personal lives, in our marriages, our families and in our work? It doesn’t have to be.

 

We just need to look in the right place for wisdom, motivation and encouragement. Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place?  Who in deed? Lets find out. Please turn with me to Psalm 24 and let’s find some answers. Before David even asks this question, the Psalm begins with God. Begins with David’s presuppositions. His base line. His foundation.

 

“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.” (Psalm 24:1)

 

Last week we considered Psalm 14. The first verse of that Psalm could not have been more different to this one. “The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. We saw last week that without that fear and respect, without that recognition of the presence of God, there is only fear and dread. Whether it be fear of global warming, fear of terrorism, fear of violent crime, fear of AIDS, fear of redundancy, fear of divorce, fear of being alone, fear of death, for in this world, without God there is only fear and read. That is why, if we are to find meaning and hope it begins by recognising, verse 1, that we inhabit a world created and sustained by Almighty God. He has created us with meaning and purpose, with dignity and value - in His image.

 

He is the Almighty (24:10)

He is the King of Glory (24:9)

He is strong and mighty (24:8)

He is the God of history (24:6)

He is the God our Saviour (24:5)

He is God the Lord (24:5)

He is the God who blesses (24:5)

He is God the Holy one, high and lifted up (24:3)

He is God the Creator (24:2)

He is God the Owner (24:1).

 

Notice how the attributes of Almighty God seep from virtually every verse of this short Psalm. Making sense of this world requires asking the right questions. Knowing we are in God’s presence, the right question is asked in verse 3.

 

1. The Question Asked
“Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place?”  (Psalm 24:3). Three observations implicit in this journey, this quest for meaning and purpose.


This is an Upward Path “Who may ascend the hill?”
This is an Inhabited Path “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord?
This is a Sacred Path “Who may stand in his Holy place?”


The word that best describes this journey or quest is ‘transcendence’. R.C. Sproul tells us that transcendence means literally, "to climb across." It is defined as "exceeding the usual limits." When we speak of the transcendence of God we are talking about that sense in which God is above and beyond us. He is higher than the world. He has absolute power over the world. The world has no power over Him. Transcendence describes God in His consuming majesty, His exalted loftiness. He is an infinite cut above everything else. [The Holiness of God p. 55]. The question asked.


2. The Conditions Given
Four things are needed to ascend the hill of the LORD “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.” (Psalm 24:4)


There you have it. Four simple conditions: Clean hands. Pure heart.

Devoted soul. Honest motives. Clean hands and a pure heart.


The first two are intimately connected. The term “clean hands” is a neat illustration. At any given time your hands can have millions of bacteria crawling all over them. Right now you have more bacteria on your body than there are people in the world. Your hands are the hardest things to keep clean, because we use our hands to open doors and shake hands, to touch things we maybe shouldn’t and then we put them in our mouths. We use them to clean ourselves with and then we eat with them - so no wonder we get funny tummies sometimes. Yet our hands also affect our hearts as well as our stomachs. We use our hands to choose the TV channels. To open books and magazines. To pick up the phone. To touch. Our hands and hearts our intimately connected. They either help us ascend into God’s presence or they lead us downward, and astray.


So the Pharisees naturally thought, “if we wash our hands and can refrain from eating unclean foods, then our hearts will be clean.” Jesus said, “don’t be so naive!” “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make you ‘unclean.’ The hands are only motivated by what is within - from our heart. So we need clean hands AND a clean heart.


David gives the second part of his answer, “who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.” (Psalm 24:4)


Both of these sins have to do with God’s reputation. God is known as a “jealous” God - in the sense that he will not share his glory with any other false god. He demands our exclusive worship and devotion. He is the only true God and the only God of truth. Therefore, we need to be devoted to him only and ask him to help us only speak the truth. We cannot serve both God and materialism.

 

But if the Psalm finished there we would never be able to enter into God’s sanctuary. There is no way that alone, in our own efforts, we can stand in the presence of holiness. It is as if we are standing at the bottom Mount Snowdon with two broken legs, with two fifty pound weights strapped to our arms, and with dirty hands that can’t grip anything. Like Jack and Jill, we may try to get up the hill to fetch a crown of glory, but in our own strength, we will fall down and break our crowns. The hill is too steep. As David said, in Psalm 51

“I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:3-5) So we have the question asked and the conditions given. But notice thirdly,


The Benefits Bestowed

He will receive blessing from the LORD and vindication from God his Saviour. (Psalm 24:6)

David realized that he didn’t have the hands or the heart to enter God’s presence. He needed someone with more wisdom and strength to climb the hill and enter God’s presence. He needed a Saviour! And so in His Psalm he continues,

 

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.” (Psalm 24:7-10)


Jerusalem is up on a hill. When you enter it from the south, east or west, there is a steep incline leading up to it. On the Eastern side, overlooking the Kidron Valley and the Mount of Olives is the Golden Gate. It is blocked now but tradition says that Jesus entered through them on Palm Sunday. Many people had entered Jerusalem through this way. But none of them had clean hands and a pure heart. When Jesus entered through these gates, the prayer of David was answered. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ‘The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”


The gates lifted up their heads and welcomed Jesus. Why did they respond to Jesus this way? He had shown his power. He had shown his might. He had exorcised their demons. He had healed their diseases. He cared for them with clean hands and a pure heart, unlike their religious leaders. But Jesus was not done climbing the mountain. He was only at the foothills. He was just beginning the ascent. He still had to climb another - called Golgotha. This mountain would be muddy, grungy, filthy, disgusting, and steep. The only way that he could re- enter the Most Holy Place that he had come from - was if he - like the priests of the Old Testament - would offer a sacrifice - not for his sins - but for the sins of the world. It was on that cross that Jesus pure hands were nailed with impurity. His heart was stabbed by the spear of our sins and poisoned with our sinful blood. God would accept no other sacrifice - than that of a pure Lamb - to enter into that Holy Place. This was the battle that Jesus came to fight - the hill that he came to climb. Not to fight against the Romans. But to fight against sin. To conquer Satan, and suffer through hell itself in our place.


“Ride on, ride on, in majesty. In lowly pomp, ride on to die!” It sounds like a strange song. But at the bottom of a slippery hill, that’s the only way that we could get to be in God’s presence. When Jesus went to the cross, he took us with Him. He exchanged His holiness for our sinfulness. He gave us the pure heart and cleansed hands we need to enter God’s presence.

 

“Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God” (Psalm 24:6)
When David looked at this world, he compared it to an uphill struggle. God never said life would be easy. But many times, it seems like we’re at the bottom of a mountain. We ask, how will I ever get through these health problems? How will I ever raise these kids in a right way? How will I ever stand before God’s judgment when I have so many evil thoughts and deeds? The mountain is high, and we don’t have the resources to climb with.

Who May Ascend the Hill of the LORD? The King of Glory has come and answered it - not just with words - but with actions.

 

Jesus rode into Jerusalem to die in your place. And so when David asks, “who may ascend the hill of the LORD?” you know the answer. You may. And you will - if you are in the hands of Christ. I’d like to close with a video clip…

 

The Bible says my King is a seven-way king....He's the King of the Jews; that's a racial king....He's the King of Israel; that's a national King....He's the King of Righteousness....He's the King of the Ages.....He's the King of Heaven....He's the King of Glory....He's the King of kings, and He's the Lord of lords. That's my King. Well....I wonder, do you know Him?.... David said, "The Heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork. My King is a sovereign King. No means of measure can define His limitless love. No far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coastline of His shoreless supply. No barrier can hinder Him from pouring out His blessings. He's enduringly strong....He's entirely sincere....He's eternally steadfast....He's immortally graceful....He's imperially powerful....He's impartially merciful....... Do you know Him?

 

He's the greatest phenomenon that ever crossed the horizon of this world. He's God's Son....He's a sinner's Saviour....He's the centerpiece of civilization....He stands in the solitude of Himself....He's august....He's unique....He's unparalleled....He's unprecedented....He's the loftiest idea in literature....He's the highest personality in philosophy....He's the supreme problem in higher criticism....He's the fundamental doctrine of true theology....He's the cardinal necessity for spiritual religion....He's the miracle of the age.... He's the superlative of everything good that you choose to call Him....He's the only one qualified to be an all sufficient Saviour...... I wonder if you know Him today?

 

He supplies strength for the weak....He's available for the tempted and the tried....He sympathizes and He saves....He strengthens and sustains....He guards and He guides....He heals the sick....He cleanses lepers....He forgives sinners....He discharges debtors....He delivers captives....He defends the feeble....He blesses the young....He serves the unfortunate....He regards the aged....He rewards the diligent....and He beautifies the meek....... I wonder if you know Him?

 

Well, my King....is the King....He's the key to knowledge....He's the wellspring to wisdom....He's the doorway of deliverance....He's the pathway of peace....He's the roadway of righteousness ....He's the highway of holiness....He's the gateway of glory....... Do you know Him?

 

Well....His office is manifold....His promise is sure....His light is matchless....His goodness is limitless....His mercy is everlasting....His love never changes....His word is enough....His grace is sufficient....His reign is righteous....and His yoke is easy, and his burden is light. I wish I could describe Him to you, but He's indescribable....He's incomprehensible....He's invincible....He's irresistible.

 

Well, you can't get Him out of your mind....You can't get Him off of your hand....You can't out live Him, and you can't live without Him....The Pharisees couldn't stand Him, but they found out they couldn't stop Him....Pilate couldn't find any fault in Him....The witnesses couldn't get their testimonies to agree....Herod couldn't kill Him....Death couldn't handle Him, and the grave couldn't hold Him. Yea!!!, that's my King, that's my King.

 

Father..."Thine is the Kingdom....and the Power....and the Glory....Forever"....and ever, and ever, and ever, and ever. How long is that? And ever...and ever...and when you get through with all the forevers, then.... AMEN!....AMEN!

 

By Dr. S.M. Lockridge

 

 

 Listen to “That’s My King”


Video of “That’s My King”

 

Further free versions of the video

 

 

With grateful thanks to John Pankow and Colon Coombs for some of the ideas used in this sermon, gratefully found at www.sermoncentral.com