Entering the Lord’s Presence
Psalm 84 is about entering into the presence of God. Unless God’s people enter into the house of the Lord according to His terms, they that build the house build it in vain.
Psalm 84 is a cross reference to Numbers 16 about the sons of Korah who rebelled against Moses, God’s prophet. When Moses confronted them about their murmerings and disputing, the sons of Koreh were swallowed up by a earthquake along with a number of the children of Israel who had risen up against God’s prophet and the Word of the Lord. God also allowed a plague to destroy the unbelievers in the ranks of the house of Israel.
Psalm 84 makes reference to the sons of Koreh whe were rejected because of their earthly lineage… the curse that had followed their tribe from generation to generation.
According to Psalm 84:
1 HOW amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.
3 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.”
6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”
In 4M men’s groups we learn that prayer is the way to align our hearts in a vertical relationship with God. Corporate prayer is the way to collectively bind our hearts together in unity of purpose as members in the body of Christ. Praying together builds the dwelling place of the most High for we are collective God’s temple… His dwelling place.
Christianity is God’s rescue plan to deliver desperate men. When men are desperate and wondering how they will provide for food, shelter, and clothing, God will meet his men in their moment of need. It’s not the things of this world that meet our needs, it’s the Lord. He is our Jehovah Jireh. He is our supply, our portion, our allotment, our all in all.
We’re are instructed to keep and guard our heart with all diligence for out of it are the issues of life. The eye gate protects our heart. What is it that you look at and regard longingly? If thy eye be single, with singleness of mind, the whole body will be flooded with the light of the Word of God. The eyelid protects the eye… we need to condition our eyelids to protect us from being distracted from the baubles that the world dangles in front of our eyes.
The epistles say, grieve not the Holy Spirit. As the deer longs for streams of water, Lord I long for you. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled. Jesus Chrsit is the bread of life… he is the fountain of living waters. He who drinks from the water of life shall never thirst.
As the darkness of the world increases, we need to approach the presence of God. Repentance means to turn from sin, the missing of the mark, and unto the mark of the high calling of God in Chrsit Jesus. When we forsake our pride and approach his throne of grace with meekness and humility then God will welcome us into his presence.
According to verse 3, Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.
God created the sparrow with an instinct to return home. Sparrows are called home because God has created a homing instinct in the depth of their beings. This is our prayer, that we would develop a homing instinct to be drawn unto the Lord.
As we God’s people pass through the the valley of the shadow of death, the valley of pain and guilt and shame, we can turn aside from the darkness and destruction and into the presence of the Lord. Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
The spirit of God in Christ in us is his homing spirit in our hearts. Without his Holy Spirit, those who attempt to enter into God’s presence are just “playing church.” Home is where the heart is.. When our heart is at home with the Lord, then we’re never alone… for Jesus. Said, take heed and beware of covetousness, for I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. Therefore forsake the terrestrial to approach the celestial.
According to Psalm 84 verses 6 and 7, “Who passing through the valley of Baca (tears) make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools. They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.”
Psalm 56:8-10 says, “put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book? When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me. In God will I praise his word: in the LORD will I praise his word.”
What does it mean to put thou my tears in a bottle? An ancient belief in biblical times was to collect tears in a bottle that were shed when moved with compassion for God and in service to God and His people. These righteous tears were an individual’s most prized possession. They were buried with the person at death. People believed that these tears would be weighed to determine rewards after death as an indication of a life of compassion for God and his righteousness. They believed that their tears in the bottle along with their names written in thy book are the record of their compassion and service to God.
In Luke 7:37-38, “And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.” She took her most prized possession, her righteous tears, and poured them on Jesus’ feet, wiping them with her hair. Then she poured precious perfumed ointment on his feet. This is an indication that she sacrificed everything she held precious in service to her Lord. She wiped Jesus’ feet with her hair which was considered a woman’s crowning glory. This was an act of extreme humility for her Lord and Master. At the feet of Jesus, in humility, all my trophies at last I lay down….
Psalm 118 says the Lord is our refuge and strength. When our own strength fails and we’re at the end of our ropes, thy strength is made perfect in my weakness, thy grace is sufficient for me.
The blessings in Psalm 84 start with verses 4 and 5: Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.: The blessing in Verse 12 says: “O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.”
God empowers us with his Holy Spirit to work within us to will and to do of His good pleasure as we delight in the Lord with all our hearts and lean not unto our own understanding. Jesus Chrsit is the solution to all of the problems of life. In the throes of addiction, He’s not the 12-step program…. he is the one step program. As we walk in the light as he is in the light, the blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
…. That we mean ever live to the praise of the glory of God’s grace!
Your brother in Christ,
Michael
