MONDAY MORNING PASTOR

Yesterday I began a brief series called "The Unshaken Life" from Psalm 15. In verse 1 David asks, "O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill (Psalm 15:1). David's question is not one of justification (how a person is made right with God) but one of sanctification (how does one grow and mature in the Lord). David is not asking how can one be saved? but, rather, how can we know who belongs to the Lord? Knowing this distinction is necessary because if one thinks that merely being the kind of person David describes in verses 2-5 is sufficient they will not only miss the point but they will miss God.

David is not describing the kind of person who gets God's attention, for nothing that sinners do warrants any attention from God other than His wrath (Romans 1:18). However, David will describe the life of a man or woman whose soul has been transformed because it has seen the Lord. Therefore, David asks, Who... (v1). When he contemplates the character of the Lord while he views the Ark of the Lord this lead David to evaluate what a life should look like whose soul is dwelling, or to use the words of Christ, abiding (John 15:2) in Him. To understand the Unshaken Life, I believe underneath all that David will say in verses 2-5 is a picture of the Lord that must captivate the soul if it is to dwell with God (v1) and live for the glory of God (vv2-5). Let me share, briefly, what I believe the soul must see.

The Holiness and Glory of God

The life that dwells with God and demonstrates its love for God flows from a soul that has seen that God is above all, greater than all, more worthy than all and that there is none like God! The soul that dwells with God is the soul that understands that God's holiness dictates that He would be just to condemn all. His eyes cannot behold sin (Habakkuk. 1:13) and yet we are born and shaped in it (Psalm 51:5). Knowing this reality will cause a soul to tremble as it did David's soul prompting him to wonder who can dwell with this God (compare Psalm 130:3). Yet, this soul rejoices because in Christ there is forgiveness for all that offends this holy God and, as a result, there is no condemnation for those who trust Christ (Romans 8:1). Forgiveness and grace do not eliminate the reality of holiness, however. Instead, they both open our eyes to see holiness more clearly. Thus, the moral consequence of forgiveness is not indifference, but a greater passion to love and live for this Holy God (Psalm 130:4; Romans 2:4-5).

The Soul's Stewardship of the Holiness and Glory of God

When a soul sees the Lord, it commands and demands a life that lives to His honor and glory. This is what I mean by stewarding the holiness and glory of God. In a word, it is worship. Worship is the lifestyle of the believer that flows out of God. It flows out of an ongoing and dynamic relationship with God. Worship is the intentional, deliberate, and habitual act of setting the Lord before us always (Psalm 16:8). This stewardship is rooted in the careful and cautious living that understands that indifference to God is the fruit of evil, not righteousness (Ecclesiastes 5:1). Lest one think this understanding of worship resides only in the Old Testament, the Hebrew writer warns us that if we do not worship the Lord in ways that are acceptable (in ways that reflect we dwell with Him) we will be consumed (Hebrews 12:25-29). Not because we did not act a certain way but because of our lack of reverence for Him. The soul that continually sets the holiness and glory of God before it will show in a life lived out, carefully, in an effort to bring glory to the Lord in all of life.

The World Is Not Our Dwelling

Those who long for heaven above this world are only those whose soul is always seeing glory. The soul is increasingly and deeply impressed upon by this vision such that nothing in this world compares to that which awaits the people of God. God, Himself, is the reward. The one who dwells with God is the one whose life demonstrates that they cannot get enough of God because God (Jesus) is enough. The question of who will dwell comes from a desire to dwell with God. Therefore, one way we should evaluate our lives and devotion to the Lord is by how much of this world consumes our passions, thoughts, time, and activities above Him. The soul that continually set the glory of God before its eyes will say "nothing on this earth compares to You" (Psalm 73:25-26), it will be willing to leave comfort for the place where God is (Hebrews 11:8-10) and it will say no to the fleeting pleasures of this life because it is hungry for eternal pleasure in and with God (Hebrews 11:25-26; see also Psalm 16:11).

When our soul gets a sight of this God, it will captivate us in such a way that a glimpse will not be sufficient even though a glimpse will feel overwhelming. God will be to us like a terrible - wonder and a crushing - joy. The sight of Him will bruise and bless; it will tear down and build up. We will want to turn from it but, like a kid anticipating Christmas morning, we will long for it with great delight.

It will become increasingly evident, as our souls see Him, that He alone deserves the best of our time, our minds, our affections, our giftings and, indeed, the whole of our lives!