WHO IS ABLE TO LIVE WITH THE LORD

Proclamation:

“Lord, who may dwell in Your sacred tent?  Who may live on Your holy mountain?  The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart;”  Psalm 15:1-2 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God by King David.  In contrast to psalm 14 in which David describes the characteristics of the godless man, in this psalm he describes the characteristics of the godly man.  This man walk blamelessly, does what is righteous, speaks the truth, and does not slander or do wrong to his neighbor.  He honors those who obey The Lord and he keeps his word.  His financial dealings are fair and he does not take bribes.  He is steadfast in the ways of The Lord.

Application:

If we are honest with ourselves, we know that we do not possess all of these characteristics.  These are the traits which we should yearn to have and strive for.  While we know that we are not perfect, most of us think of ourselves as being good people.  “What kind of world would this be, if everybody in it were just like me?” (Author unknown)  We think that the world would be a better place if everyone behaved as we do.  While it is true that a lot of crimes probably would not occur, but it is also true that a lot of good that is currently being done by others would go undone.  We don’t help the homeless, or give to the poor, or donate to all of the charitable causes.  We do not always do that which is righteous or always obey The Word of God.  We do not always tell the truth, and we think slanderous thoughts.  As believers we will be in heaven because of the grace of God for it is by grace that we will be saved, not because of our works or deeds. (Ephesians 2:8-9)  Let us not think too highly of ourselves. (Romans 12:3)  None of us deserves to go to heaven on our own accord, nor have we earned the right to live with The Lord in His holy place. (Matthew 19:17)  We are to walk in His way, not to earn our way to heaven but to show Him that we love Him. (John 14:15)  We will reside with Him in eternity because Jesus, The Christ, died for our sins and we believed in Him. (John 3:16)  We should thank God for this every day.