Psalm 15:1  
Who may dwell?
       Well, after the sombre content of Psalm 14 and its portrayal of the wicked; this next Psalm of David lifts our spirits and turns our attention to more glorious things. But not without a degree of controversy!

The Psalm begins with two questions, addressed to the Lord: -
1.     Who may dwell in Your sacred tent?
2.     Who may live on Your holy mountain?
Before we take these questions one at a time, let’s quickly give a simple and literal answer. No one can dwell in the Lord’s sacred tent and no one can live on His holy mountain!  Well, at least no one could do either of these things in David’s day. The sacred tent was, of course, the tabernacle constructed by Moses when the Israelites wandered in the desert and which went ahead of them into the Promised Land. Priests alone were allowed to enter the inner room of the sacred tent and even they were only permitted to do so under a strict timetable and for ceremonial purposes. The Holiest Place, which contained the Ark of the Covenant could only be entered once a year, by the High Priest, so there was no way David could consider dwelling there! Obviously, these questions are really a heart cry from the Psalmist, he recognises that these are the places where a man may meet with Almighty God, where God’s glory dwells, where it may be possible to remain in a holy place, undefiled by the wickedness of the world and the schemes of the Satan. The heart cries are rhetorical, of course no one can dwell in these places but oh, how David longed for such intimacy and relationship with the Lord. How he yearned to be in the holy presence of the Lord God and to be free to worship in spirit and in truth. It seems that in his time, he was alone in his yearning. Do we have a yearning to be in God’s presence, to be intimate with Him? Do we long for His voice, His friendship, His glory? Do we wish to be free of this world and all its problems and its wickedness and be free to soar, like a bird, in that eternal country? Do we have an intense longing to be in the place where we truly belong, where there is no more sin and where righteousness rules? Do we long to hear our name spoken in love and mercy and to see the face of the Lord? If none of this means anything it’s time for a revaluation of who we are spiritually. This world is not home, we are nomads awaiting our call to a higher place and to a greater existence;  surely we should long for that in expectation?


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