Psalm 122:1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. 2 Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. 3 Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together: 4 Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the LORD. 5 For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David. 6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.
Jerusalem was known as the city of God. It was also called Zion at times. God chose this city as the capital of Israel under the days of king David. It was an important city. King Solomon built the temple there. It was also a busy place for commerce. The enemies of God longed to be able to capture Jerusalem, but God protected that city for many years. Eventually He would open the gates and bring the Babylonians in to destroy it and take captives and kill others. In verse 1 David, as the king wrote that he was glad to hear others talk of going into the house of the LORD. David understood the importance of true religion in the life of a nation. Today our country is trying to abolish true religion. They would sooner promote Islam than true Christianity . God designed the world to be run by a Theocracy. A democracy will always end in disaster. We are in the final stages of a “democracy” today in Canada. We are moving quickly to a dictatorship and tyranny. The word “Theocracy” begins with the word “Theos”. That is a Greek name for God. Not for a Greek god, but for the true God. The world ran perfectly prior to the fall of Adam. Since that time, there has been a war going on between good and evil. God is still supreme, but all people are born lost sinners and most remain that way throughout their entire lives. There are many false religions today. The Truth is still powerful and is opposed by many just as it always has been. The Temple in Jerusalem was not designed to be a social gathering place. It was designed to be the place where the people would come together to worship the LORD. It was important to know the LORD. The law was kept there and was supposed be taught there. The priests were to minister in the house of the LORD. They were to receive and administer the offerings and sacrifices brought by the people. The high priest was to enter the holiest place once a year to make an atonement for the nation. The king understood the importance of going to the house of the LORD. He found help and refuge in that place. We do not have a temple today. The Bible teaches that every born again Christian is the temple of the Holy Ghost. He indwells each one and those who are saved need to be led by God. God will lead His people to the house of the Lord today. That place is not the temple, but rather it is the local church. In I Timothy 3:15 we read:
I Timothy 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
The local New Testament church is still referred to as “the house of God.” God’s people should be just as glad today to go to the house of the LORD as king David was in his time. There was only one temple in Israel in Bible times. There were no breakaways. The priesthood became greatly corrupted, but there still was only one temple. The Pharisees set up their false religion and they ruled in many Synagogues, but the true saints had no other place to go. They needed to go to the place that God designed for them and they prayed for God to relieve them from the corruption they faced. God did that by sending the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Truth, and came to teach the truth and ultimately to die for the sins of the world. He provided the way to the Father. There is no other way than through the Lord Jesus Christ. Many have chosen to remain in darkness and they will suffer the ultimate consequences of that defiance. Their end will be destruction in the lake of fire. In verse 2 David wrote of the blessing of being in the house of the LORD. Not only his feet but he declared “our feet”. All those who would enter into the temple with a right heart attitude would find solid ground to stand upon. God’s Word is unchanging. Those who are saved should see the benefit of God’s house. They will find strength and hope there. One of the problems we have addressed in the past is that most people are not well versed in the Word of God. In my lifetime, most churches have submitted to governmental authority and placed God’s authority as secondary. Most churches run under the traditions of men rather than the Word of God. There is much confusion as to what is the Word of God. The devil has certainly been busy. Yet Jesus declared:
Mathew 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
There is no reason for God’s people to be discouraged. We need to be people of prayer and people of the Word. If we stand upon the Truth our feet will not slip. God will guide us into all truth when we stand upon His Word. In verse 3 David wrote that Jerusalem was builded a city that is “compact together”. King David was enabled by God to conquer Jerusalem. When he went up against it, the inhabitants of the city mocked at him. They felt they were secure, but they were not secure at all. They did not have the Lord and without Him there is no security. Our world is a very insecure place today. There was a report recently that stated that the U.K. would be out of ammunition in two months if they had to fight a war. The U.S. is also in a very dangerous place with its’ weapons stock pile. Of course Canada has next to nothing as well. Weapons of war do not keep a country secure anyway. Walking in the fear of the LORD is the way to security. Jerusalem was “compact”, joined or united in God. God was the one who brought blessing upon Jerusalem. King David knew better than to boast of his accomplishments. He was not foolish as Nebuchadnezzar would prove to be. David was the king and God blessed him in giving him victory over the enemies, however, David understood that Jerusalem could only be a blessing if God was in charge. The same is true today for local churches. A church can only be a blessing when God is in charge. He provides blessings to those who submit to Him and serve Him faithfully. In verse 4 we see that it was a habit for the people to go to Jerusalem to give thanks unto the name of the LORD. I read in the news that today is a day set aside by the world to honour sodomites. What a wicked thing to do. Born again Christians do not honour sodomites. We pray for their salvation. We also pray that we do not become careless with regard to our need to give thanks unto the Lord. The Bible tells us that people turn to vile affections in part because they are not thankful to God for His blessings. One of the reasons to go to the true local church is to give thanks unto the LORD. He is the same great God. He is worthy of our thanks. Again, king David was not so proud that he could not recognize God’s blessing upon Him. He was not an arrogant man. He walked humbly with the LORD. He had his sins and God judged him for that. However, he was not as king Saul had been. In many ways, he set a good example to follow. In verse 5 we see that the thrones of judgment are in the house of the LORD. Judgment is important. Our judicial system is broken. It is very difficult to get true justice today. When the highest official of the land is corrupt, that will affect all those under him. The only protection we have against that, is to know the LORD and to go to His house for teaching and fellowship. In verse 6 we are reminded to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is certainly not at peace today. Every day they are reminded of the turmoil that is created by their rebellion, and yet they do not realize their sin. We see that those who love the LORD will prosper. Prosperity is much more than dollars and cents. It is about knowing the Lord and being grounded in Him. That is what we need as individuals and as families and as a society. We cannot force change upon our society. We can make sure that we personally are walking in the peace of God. This is a good day to go to the house of the Lord and to go with a right heart attitude. Pray for your church. Pray for your pastor. Be a godly example to him and to others. Go with a desire to serve the Lord and to give thanks unto Him. Pastor Bartel
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