How does someone come to live with God in true joy and blessedness? In perfect satisfaction forever?
Every religion has its own answer. In terms of difficulty, it differs quite a bit. On the one hand, some make it relatively easy: all you must do to go to heaven is die. And on the other, it appears hopelessly out of reach: you must be good enough that God will accept you. Even to seemingly impossible – you need to be perfect.
Most cultural Christians say having a pleasant after-life depends on being a good person and doing good deeds. These same people would admit that no one is perfect, but God saves good people. Who could possibly imagine it any other way? God certainly wouldn’t condemn good people!
What do you think? How would you answer this important question? What makes you worthy to come and eat and drink with the Lord this morning.
Who is going to eat and drink with the Lord this morning?
The question
The answer
The confidence
The Question: Who?
King David asked and answered this question in Psalm 15, “O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill?” (Ps. 15:1). Who is welcome to come and stay in the happiest place imaginable?
What’s the answer? David writes, “He who walks blamelessly and does what is right…” (Ps. 15:2). Reading these words could take the air out of the room. Is David saying that only the blameless are welcome to stay?
Yes, that’s what he’s saying.
God is perfect, and perfection is what he demands. Nothing more nothing less. This perfect standard is upheld in the NT when Jesus says, “be perfect as your hevenly Father is perfect.”
The question is who will go to dwell with God? Only those who are perfect. Lets not lower the standard. Gods standard.
Let’s look at what this means.
The answer: Perfection
This is a person who is perfect in (1) character (2), relationships (3), values (4a), integrity (4b), and money (5).
Character: He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks the truth in his heart. Your walk is your way of life. Your walk speaks a lot louder than your talk. How is your walk… blameworthy, or blameless? It is not just doing right, but literally doing righteousness. Not talking about it, not thinking about it, but doing it. What path are you on? Do you speak the truth in your heart? Are you honest with yourself? Are u single minded and single hearted. Jesus was and is. Perfectly.
Relationships: Who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor nor takes up a reproach against his friend. O if only we saw slander and sins of the tongue for what it is… We think drunkenness is bad. Stealing is bad. But I wonder if not ten times more damage is done with the sin of the tongue! How many times have you spoken badly about someone without speaking to them. And if you knew they heard what you had said about them you would be horrified. It happens so quickly. Are you for your neighbor. Loving them as Christ loved you. All the time. serving them, and speaking well of them even when no one is watching. All the time? Jesus did. Perfectly.
Values: “In whose eyes a vile person is despised, but who honors those who fear the Lord.” The word here speaks of a rejected one. This is not just an unbeliever but one who is familiar with the ways of the LORD – a covenant member - but has rejected him, stubbornly persisting in wicked rebellion. Do you honor those who fear the Lord. Are these the people you desire to fellowship with? Those that share Christ with you?. Or do we honor and love what is vile and feel obliged to come to church, even though we can’t stand the people. Jesus despised hypocrites for whom everything was just a duty, and love the sinners who feared the Lord and sought repentance.
Integrity: Who swears to his own hurt and does not change. Are you honest even if it might cost you everything? Can we obey God knowing we might suffer for it? Do we want His glory revealed even when it will cost us something dear? Vows are a painful thing. We have made them. Those who have professed their faith. Vows to the church. Those who are married. Professed vows to each other. Those who have baptized children. These are hard questions that appear to have obvious answers to those who haven’t been tested. But for those of us who have, you know the “church answer,” while easily professed, can be painful to apply. Jesus kept his promise to death.
Money: Who does not put his money at interest and does not take a bribe against the innocent. What would you do for a bit of money? No Israelite was allowed to charge interest from his neighbor. Corruption is all around us.. But the church can so easily buy into it. But look to the mount! Would you like to ascend the mount to experience true glory! True riches! The hope of true glory should quench the fires of greed and the allure of quick wealth. Jesus had nothing. And gave all.
The Confidence: Who?
How do we measure up? If we’re honest, we don’t. I hope you see that. Who among us could wear Psalm 15:2 as our life verse, “I walk blamelessly, do what is right and speak truth in my heart”? If we are tempted to raise our hand and say, “me!” We’re undone by the third clause concerning speaking truth in our hearts.
So what do we do about this? Will anyone come to the table this morning? When God gave his law on the mountain the people stood far off. Terrified. Even the mount shook.
O dear ones this psalm is a cry for the lamb without blemish. The blameless one! This is a cry for the messiah! Who can ascend! Jesus Christ! He has in our place!! The immovable cornerstone! “He who does these things shall never be moved!”
It is true; only the blameless are welcomed to stay in God’s presence. Only those who do what’s right are permitted to dwell on his holy hill. And this happens because our Lord Jesus Christ took the mountain for us. He marched up the holy mount of God and kept his word to death to win our entrance to heaven. He defanged Satan and defeated death. He earned our everlasting righteousness and paid our everlasting debt. Our sin is removed and our passage to glory secured.
Without a savior the requirements become an impossible barrier.
But in the savior these requirements become the path to life!
He has opened the way. And he himself is the way. Through union with him this Psalm must begin to characterize our life! If you’re a professing Christian, you might read this and be discouraged and confused at first?
But as you feed on Christ - you have noticed them growing in your life. You find yourself living more in line with God’s Word, protecting the reputation of others, speaking to give grace to those who hear, keeping your word (even when it’s costly), and valuing people more than money.
Should this noticeable but imperfect reflection of God’s Word discourage you? On the contrary, the emerging buds of godly character should encourage you. In Christ we are a new creation. In him we ascended the hill. In Christ – God is our dwelling place! We are citizens of the kingdom. And our position as citizens of heaven should motivate us to live according to the customs and standards of our heavenly country.
Lets ask this question everyday. Who will ascend? And look to christ! Living out of him. And for him. We want to be today more of who we will perfectly be then! What if every Christian lived with the awareness that heaven is our true homeland and that’s where our true inheritance lies? Maybe that would quench the fires of greed and the allure of quick wealth, the self-righteousness of our tongues. Our double-hearted way of life. Do you actually desire to live with God! Then this is what you will desire! And you need to feed on Christ in this supper to grow in it.
Because Jesus walked blamelessly, and did what was right, speaking the truth from the heart, because he never slander, but bore the slander of others his whole life long, because he loved his neighbor perfectly, even though they hated him, because he was despised as a vile person although he was innocent, and honored the Lord by keeping his promise even though it cost him everything. He was the innocent one sold with a bribe!
Because of that we have an immovable, and sure anchor!. Let all those who believe in him come.
Amen