Psalm 24.
Psalm of David.
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof.
! The world and those who dwell therein.
! For he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.
! Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
And who shall stand in his holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart.
He does not lift up his soul to what is false.
He does not swear deceitfully.
He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
Such is the generation of those who seek him.
Who seek the face of the God of Jacob.
Selah.
Lift up your heads, O gates.
And be lifted up, O ancient doors.
That the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty.
The Lord, mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, O gates.
Lift them up, O ancient doors.
That the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts.
He is the King of glory.
Amen.
There are a few passages in the Bible that we return to over and over because they so helpfully summarize the gospel message.
I just want you to think about some of those passages that maybe you return to over and over because of how they cover this amazing gospel.
The most famous is probably John 3, 16, right?
For God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life.
A wonderful verse to memorize and have in our hearts.
Something that kind of concisely brings the heart of the message of the gospel that we can be encouraged by day by day.
That we can share with others in our evangelism and so on.
But there's a lot of passages like that, aren't there?
You might think of a passage like Philippians 2, 11 to 15.
That great Christology, or excuse me, 6 to 11.
That great Christology about Christ who, though he was in his essence God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
but took on human flesh and became lower, a servant, obedient to death, even the death on the cross,
so that now he is exalted as the Lord of all, right?
We might return to that one again and again.
Isaiah 53, we read it just a minute ago with the prayer of confession.
We might go to that all the time just thinking about the goodness of the atonement of Christ that he has made for our sins.
I want to suggest this morning that Psalm 24 is one of those gospel texts that we should return to again and again and again.
That like Isaiah 53 and John 3, 16 and Philippians 2 and a host of other passages,
this one really helpfully summarizes and almost gives an expansive look at the whole message of the Bible from beginning to end.
It starts with God and creation.
Then it confronts us in our sinful condition.
Then it points us to a Savior who does what we were unable to do
and then rejoices in our place in God's kingdom.
And it does all of this by keeping one thing at the forefront of the attention.
Rather, one person at the forefront of the attention.
The King of Glory.
The Anointed King that David writes about over and over and over in these psalms.
It's a great gospel psalm.
Now, no specific setting is given for it.
And to be honest with you, attempts to try to force it into a historic setting, I think, tend to be unhelpful.
Many have suggested that perhaps this was a liturgical psalm used at an event like when David goes up with the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem.
But there's no real context clues that make that plain for us.
It's conjecture.
And to be honest, I think it might hinder, actually, the proper understanding of the psalm.
What we do know is that David wrote it.
That's what's plain to us, isn't it, in the superscription.
That this is a psalm of David.
And it is enough to know that David authored the psalm and that he placed it in a series of other songs that are focused on the salvation that will come to God's people through his promised king.
That's the theme of the psalms that we're in right now, isn't it?
Repeatedly, David speaks of this king.
He speaks of the salvation of this king.
He speaks of the overflow of the blessing of this salvation on the king's people.
Clearly, he's pointing us forward to the promised king, Jesus.
Now, historically, Christians have used Psalm 24 in their celebrations of the ascension of Christ.
Ascension Day, which in some liturgical circles comes 40 days after Easter every year.
And Psalm 24 would be at least a reading, if not something of an exposition or homily in those services.
I think that's actually quite appropriate, given that the emphasis in this psalm is on the king's return to glory after winning salvation for his people.
But no matter when you use it or where you use it,
the fact remains that this song is rich with gospel truth.
And we know that that gospel is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe.
Now, I'm not going to give you a bunch of headings today.
I just want to walk from beginning to end in Psalm 24.
And what I want to show you is how you can get to heaven from Psalm 24.
How you can get to the kingdom from Psalm 24.
Look with me at verses 1 and 2 again.
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof.
The world and those who dwell therein.
For he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.
Now, as David often does, we've seen this a number of times already.
He opens the song, turning our attention to the glory of God in creation, doesn't he?
This time, however, his emphasis is on the Lord's ownership of the world,
particularly the people who dwell in it.
Do you see that in the first verse?
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof.
The world is his and all who dwell in it.
The language is possessive, literally, to the Lord, the earth in its fullness.
Asserting that all existence, everything we see, everything that exists, it belongs to God.
And it serves the purpose of his will.
We might find the echo of this in the book of Revelation.
I think it's in chapter 4.
The great multitude that lift up their praise to God.
Holy are you, Lord God.
For you have created all things, and for your purpose, by your will, you have created them.
We're told it's the worship in heaven.
I think that's an echo of this truth that's here, that the Lord owns the world.
He owns all who live in the world, and for his purposes, he has made it.
He governs the world according to his sovereign will, and all people are accountable to him.
I think that's the emphasis of his ownership.
He owns us.
We are his.
Therefore, we are accountable to him.
Now, in verse 2, we find the grounds for that assertion.
Why is it that David can say in verse 1 that the earth belongs to the Lord, that he has sovereign right over it,
and that we are accountable to him as people who live in the world?
Well, he can say that on the grounds that the Lord himself is the creator of the world,
and that he is the creator of those who dwell in the world.
So that in verse 2, we find not only the lordship of God over the world,
but we find now his power, his goodness, his majesty in its creation.
He founded and established a stable and habitable place set above the levels of the seas,
and the rivers, we're told.
Why would he do that?
So that the people he has created to dwell in it could live and flourish according to his design.
Now, David is doing something with brevity that would take me an hour to do.
In just two verses, he's letting us know that we belong to the Lord,
we're accountable to him, and we are because he's our creator,
and this world that we live in is the work of his hands,
and it is stable, and it is habitable so that we might live and flourish.
That is who this God is.
That is what he has done, and we are his.
Now, there's a question, we mention this from time to time.
Why is there something rather than nothing?
It's an existential question that we all have to reckon with at some point.
And many people, people that you know, people that you love,
they do everything that they can to wrestle with this question
and to provide some kind of answer for their own existence
that doesn't require that they acknowledge a creator in the midst of it
or a God that they must be held accountable to
for the way that they exist and the way that they live.
But I contend that the only satisfactory answer to that question
is the Bible's answer,
and it's the answer that's provided for us in these two verses.
What is it that David is telling us?
You exist because God made you.
You are not an accident.
You did not evolve over millions of years just by chance
and will be here for a little while
and then you'll go off and die and that's it.
That's not true of you.
You exist because God made you.
Your purpose in existence is the one that he,
as your creator, has assigned to you.
Namely, that you would reflect his glory,
that you would know him personally,
that you would flourish in the world that he has created.
For your good.
And because you are his creation,
you are accountable to him as creator.
Now, when we consider the psalm as a whole,
these opening verses seem almost out of place, don't they?
We just read the whole thing together.
Now that you go back and reflect,
there's amazing truth in the first two verses,
but how is it that they actually fit with the rest of the psalm?
Seems a bit scattered, doesn't it?
Why did David put them here?
How do they fit with the rest of the psalm?
Well, for one, it prepares us,
just to give you a hint here,
it prepares us for this amazing payoff at the end of the psalm.
But you have to wait before we get to that.
What it also does,
this emphasis on man's accountability to God by virtue of creation,
is it anticipates a crucial question that is asked in verse 3.
So set your eyes on verse 3.
Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
This God who has created all things,
who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The hill of the Lord, the holy place,
they refer to God's exalted place above his creation,
that he is higher than us.
He exalted above us as Lord.
It's the throne from which he governs the world
and issues his divine judgments.
In Psalm 2, perhaps you'll remember,
God's holy hill is where he has placed his anointed king
who executes justice against his enemies.
In Psalm 15, God's holy hill is where God is,
and it's where David longs to dwell and to dwell with God.
The Israelites, depending on which point in history
they may have been singing this song,
might have first thought of the tabernacle,
or the temple,
which was the place of God's presence on earth.
But notice what David is asking.
If the hill of the Lord is where God is,
if it's where he rules his creation,
if it's where he issues divine judgments,
if it's the place of his presence,
the question is,
who can get there?
Who can be there?
Who can enjoy that place with the Lord?
The only way for man to get to God
is to ascend.
That's what it says.
Who shall ascend?
Underscoring the Lord's place above his creatures.
To ascend is often used in the Old Testament
to speak of going up to God in worship.
But then there's another thing in the second part of the verse.
To stand.
To stand after ascending
means to stand in judgment,
proving worthy
to remain in God's presence.
That's the question.
The questions posed are about
who qualifies
to go into God's presence
safely.
Who can survive
his judgment?
Who can enjoy
his presence?
Who can worship him
on his holy hill?
We might say it this way.
Who can go to heaven?
Who can enter
the kingdom?
Who is it
that God will
accept?
And the answer is in verse 4.
Set your eyes on it.
He
who has clean hands
and a pure heart
who does not lift his soul
to what is false
and does not swear
deceitfully.
Let's break this apart.
What does he mean?
Well,
to have clean hands
is to be innocent
of wrong action.
You've heard the phrase
caught red-handed,
right?
To have a pure heart
is to be innocent
of a corrupt nature.
That is,
to be pure of soul
in the inner man.
If clean hands
is the external
action,
a pure heart
is the inner man
that no one else sees.
What's actually true
of you
that no one else
may know
is true of you.
Your nature.
Not lifting up
one's soul
to what is false
means to be innocent
of false worship
is the idea there.
And then,
of course,
not swearing falsely
is to be innocent
of deceit
deceit
and hypocrisy
the way that we live.
That's pretty high standard,
isn't it?
Clean hands,
pure heart,
does not swear falsely,
does not lift himself up
in false worship.
Now,
here's the thing
about these categories.
They're not relative.
They're absolute.
In the psalm,
they are.
David does not mean
to say
that the one
who is allowed
to enjoy
the presence of God
who will stand
in the judgment
is the one
whose hands
are clean
relative
to the dirtiness
of someone else's.
That's not
what he's saying.
He is not saying
that the one
who will be accepted
by God
is the one
who is pure
in heart
relative
to the impurity
of someone else's heart
or that has been
faithful in worship
relative
to the unfaithfulness
of someone else's worship
or has lived
a life of honesty
and truthfulness
and genuineness
in relation
to someone else
who has not done so.
That's not what
David is saying.
This is not relativism.
It can't be.
It's absolute categories here.
Relativism, then,
is an express lane
to eternal hell.
It is a doctrine
of demons
that deceives
countless souls
into thinking
that God
will accept them
because they aren't
as bad
as someone else's.
And somewhere
along the way,
we started using
the most wicked people
we can think of
as the measurement
or the standard
by which to judge
our own goodness.
Now, here's what I mean.
Hitler is everyone's favorite,
right?
Perhaps you've had
somebody,
an unbeliever,
or maybe even
a professing Christian
who has made
a statement like this
to you.
Well, I think
someone like Hitler
deserves to go to hell.
Look at all that he did,
but I don't deserve
to go to hell.
I'm not as bad
as he is.
As long as I'm not
as wicked as
someone like Hitler,
God will reward me
for being a good person.
Surely,
I'm a good person
in God's eyes.
Look at all these
other people
who are so much
worse than me.
We take the most
wicked people
we can think of
and we let them
be the standard
by which we judge
our own goodness.
That is the opposite
of what the Bible does.
That's why I say
this idea of relativism,
it is a doctrine
of demons,
it is a deceit.
Don't fall for it.
Make sure your friends
and family
aren't falling for it.
The Bible does
the exact opposite.
The standard
for our goodness
is never the wicked.
The standard
for our goodness
is always
the most righteous.
Matthew 5, 20,
Jesus says,
I tell you,
unless your righteousness
exceeds that
of the scribes
and Pharisees,
you will never
enter the kingdom
of heaven.
Now,
the people that Jesus
is addressing there,
when they think
scribes and Pharisees,
they think these are
the holiest people around.
Nobody knows the law
and observes the law
like they do.
And Jesus is saying,
unless you can beat them
in self-righteousness,
you're not going to make it.
Later on in the same chapter,
Jesus takes it even further.
He says,
therefore,
you must be perfect
according to what standard?
As your heavenly Father
is perfect,
he says.
Well,
that's a completely
different standard now.
What is Jesus
training us to do?
To judge our goodness,
not on the basis
of the wicked people
in our lives,
but to judge
our goodness
on the basis
of the righteous one.
Peter does it
in 1 Peter 1,
15 and 16.
As he who called you
is holy,
you also be holy
in all your conduct.
Since it is written,
you shall be holy
for I am holy.
The standard
for goodness
and righteousness
according to the Bible
and the way that God
teaches us
and speaks to us
is never the wicked.
It is always
the righteous.
So what then,
when we come back
to Psalm 24,
what then qualifies
an individual
to dwell with God
according to David?
Moral perfection.
The only way
you get to heaven
is through
moral perfection.
The only way
you stand
on the holy hill
of God
in that judgment
is moral perfection.
The Lord is so holy,
a consuming fire
according to the writer
of Hebrews.
that no speck
of unrighteousness
can enter his presence
without being consumed.
What is David
giving us here?
He's giving us
a big God theology.
A mighty God.
A holy God.
A God who will not
tolerate sin.
Who cannot tolerate sin.
Even the most minute
of sins
according to our judgments.
He will consume.
Now,
it's worth noting
that David uses
the singular
he
at this point.
Notice it
in verse 4.
Who shall ascend?
He
who has clean hands
and a pure heart
and so on.
Well,
that could just be
a simple reference
to a type
of person.
that anyone
who is able
to maintain
this type
of moral perfection
will be able
to ascend the hill
and there's a sense
in which that's true
but I don't think
that's what David
is communicating.
I don't think he's
talking about a type
of person.
I think he's talking
about a particular
person
and that will become
abundantly clear
here in just a moment.
Now,
we know that David's
not talking about himself.
We know that's true.
David readily admitted
that he didn't have
clean hands.
That he didn't have
a pure heart.
I don't know of a time
where he engaged
in false worship
except while we might
define false worship
as just the idols
of our hearts
but he certainly
was dishonest.
He certainly
was hypocritical
in some places.
Right?
David's not talking
about himself here.
Who's he talking about?
There's only one possibility.
David writes here
of this future
Messiah King
promised by God
in his covenant
with David.
Only Jesus
meets the qualifications
of moral perfection
required to stand
in God's presence.
He alone
is worthy
to ascend
the hill
of the Lord.
And in verse 5
we find
the king's reward
for this righteousness.
Set your eyes
on that.
Verse 5.
He that is
this righteous one
from verse 4.
He will receive
blessing
from the Lord
whereas everyone else
who stands before the Lord
will receive judgment,
condemnation.
Oh, not this one.
He will receive
blessing from the Lord
and righteousness
from the God
of his salvation.
Because of his
perfect righteousness
the king will receive
blessing from the Lord
and that blessing
is the declaration
of his righteousness
from the God
of his salvation.
Now we talked about this
last week in Lakeside Connect.
What is this?
Justification.
This is the
formal
declaration
of righteousness.
The Lord,
the creator
looks at his king
and says
righteous
vindication.
But notice
who it is
that vindicates
the king.
Notice what David says.
He receives
righteousness,
the declaration
of righteousness,
justification
from the God
of what?
His salvation.
Well, that introduces
an important question,
doesn't it?
How is it
that the righteous one
needs salvation?
Just the fact
that the God
of salvation
is the term
that's used
requires that
there must be
something from
which he must
be saved.
But how is it
that the righteous one,
the only one
worthy to ascend
the hill of the Lord,
how is it possible
that he needs
salvation?
And if he is
truly righteous,
why does he
need to be
vindicated
or declared
righteous?
Wouldn't we
already know?
As I've said
over the last
few weeks,
there's some
things that David
didn't know
for sure.
There are
mysteries
that are revealed
in the New
Testament gospel,
is it there?
But there are
some things
that David
did know.
David knew
that the glory
of the Messiah
King would
come through
suffering.
And that in
his suffering,
God would
openly deliver
and vindicate
his future
King.
This is the
mystery of the
gospel declared
in the Psalm,
revealed in the
person and work
of Jesus Christ.
We just read it
a moment ago,
again,
in Isaiah 53.
What is it that
verse 4 says?
We read it just a
moment ago.
Surely he has
borne our griefs
and carried our
sorrows.
Well, how did
we perceive that?
How did humans
looking on at
this sacrifice
perceive what
was happening?
We esteemed
him stricken,
smitten by God
and afflicted.
When we look
on the Christ,
when humans
looked on the
Christ,
they said,
this is the
judgment of God
for his sin.
And what is it
that Isaiah
then turns around
and clarifies for
us?
Oh, but he
was pierced
for our
transgressions.
This is giving
us a picture.
It's pointing us
forward to the
crucifixion and
the death of the
Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus, the
righteous one,
of Psalm 24,
suffered death
for the sins of
mankind.
And how was he
vindicated?
Through resurrection.
We look at the
crucifixion.
Humans, that is
sinful humans,
look at the
crucifixion and
say,
he's being
judged by God
for his sin.
And then three
days later,
God raises him
from the dead
with a megaphone
that says,
righteous,
righteous.
It's justification.
Salvation
through his
suffering.
And why did
he suffer?
Not for his
sins.
But he made
an atonement
for sinners.
Which brings us
to verse 6.
Such is the
generation of
those who
seek him,
who seek the
face of the
God of Jacob.
And then David
gives us this
liturgical note,
Selah.
He just says,
just stop for just
a second,
just think about
that.
Just think about
it, he says.
So let's think
about it.
The blessing
of the one
in verse 5.
Here in verse 6
becomes the
blessing
of the many.
Such
is the
generation,
a group.
This is not
speaking of
millennials
or boomers,
whatever you
may be,
or Gen Z
or whatever.
It's not that
kind of generation.
It's speaking of
a group of
people, right?
A group of
people.
This blessing,
this declaration
of righteousness
and justification,
taken and given
rightly to the
righteous one,
is now shared
by a group of
people,
a generation of
people.
Jesus is the
only one who
qualifies to
ascend the
hill of the
Lord and to
stand in his
holy place.
But because he
died in the
place of sinners,
a whole generation
of people are
now able to
ascend the
hill of the
Lord with
him.
He took our
penalty so
that we can
receive his
blessing.
2 Corinthians
5.21,
for our
sake he was
made to be
sin who knew
no sin so
that in him
we might become
the righteousness
of God.
Now Jesus
rightly ascends
the hill of
the Lord based
on his perfect
righteousness.
But we don't
have that
righteousness.
How is it
possible that
we might ascend
the hill of
the Lord with
Jesus the
righteous one?
Well it tells
us in verse
6, such is the
generation of
those not
who are able
to be
righteous as
he is
righteous, such
as the
generation of
those who
seek him, who
seek the face
of the God of
Jacob.
What is this?
It's justification
by faith.
Jesus the
righteous one
truly is able
to ascend.
And then he
imputes that
righteousness onto
us so that we
can ascend not
because of our
righteousness but
because of his
and because our
faith in his
own righteousness.
It's amazing.
That's what it
means to seek
him and to
seek the face
of God.
It is salvation
by faith alone.
Just as Jesus
is declared
righteous by God
the Father, so
are those who
seek him.
His righteousness
is applied to
the account of
all who trust
in him by
faith.
So what
leaves us
discouraged in
verse 3 and
4 to
acknowledge that
there is no
righteousness that
we can bring,
that standing
before the Lord
on our own,
all we have is
judgment and
hell.
We're now
lifted up in
verse 6.
Because of the
righteous one,
we have been
blessed.
Romans 3,
we are
justified, we
are declared
righteous by
his grace as
a gift.
Through the
redemption that
is in Christ
Jesus, through
this salvation
that he has
won, whom
God put forward
as a propitiation
by his blood, a
full satisfaction
of God's wrath
against sin.
And how do we
receive that?
Paul says to
be received by
faith.
Nothing else.
It's not faith,
as the church
of Rome would
say, faith,
plus your
baptism, plus
the Eucharist,
plus the
sacraments, plus
a little bit of
time in purgatory,
plus all the
things that will
gradually purify
you until you
are truly
righteous.
No, it's not
that.
It's faith
alone.
Trust Christ.
It's him
alone.
Romans 4,
righteousness
will be counted
to us who
believe in him,
who raised from
the dead,
Jesus our
Lord, who was
delivered up for
our trespasses,
and was raised
for our
justification.
Now that brings
us to the last
part of the
psalm, verses
7 to 10.
Lift up your
heads, O gates.
Be lifted up, O
ancient doors,
that the king of
glory may come
in.
Who is this king
of glory?
The Lord,
strong and
mighty.
The Lord,
mighty in battle.
And then it's
repeated for
dramatic effect.
Lift up your
heads, O gates,
and lift them
up, O ancient
doors, that the
king of glory
may come in.
Who is this
king of glory?
And here's the
change.
The Lord of
hosts.
He is the
king of glory.
And we come to
the final movement
and we think,
wow, this
doesn't,
what is this?
Shouldn't this
just be a
psalm on its
own?
No, it fits
perfect.
It's just the
image changes
somewhat.
In this
final movement,
David turns
the focus to
the king of
glory, the
righteous one,
from the middle
of the psalm.
The image
here is
again the
hill of the
Lord.
The righteous
one, now
called the king
of glory,
stands before
the gates of
God's holy
place, of the
kingdom, of
heaven, of
his throne.
And with
him are all
those whom
he has
redeemed in
the battle
against death
and hell.
And the
king commands,
summons, for
the gates to
be opened.
Open the
gates so
that the
king and
his people
may come
in.
And then
the doorkeepers
respond like
good doorkeepers.
King of glory,
who is this
king of glory?
Oh, and then
comes an
astounding
answer.
The Lord,
strong and
mighty.
The Lord,
mighty in
battle.
The Lord of
hosts.
He is the
king of glory.
Here, the
king of glory
is identified
as Yahweh
himself.
The Lord
himself.
Now, where
else have
we seen
Yahweh
in the
psalm
at the
beginning.
Verses
one and
two.
To
Yahweh,
the earth
and its
fullness.
The Lord
who created
everything
and to
whom all
people are
accountable.
He is
the king
of glory
who fights
our battle,
who ascends
the hill
of the
Lord with
all of
his people
in tow.
He summons
the gates
to open
so that
all who
are with
him may
enter into
his kingdom
and enjoy
his eternal
blessing.
Now, here's
the payoff.
If the
Lord himself
is the
king of
glory,
whom we
said in
the middle
of the
psalm,
must
absolutely
refer to
the person
of Jesus
Christ.
If that
is who
the Lord
is, if
that is
who the
king of
glory is,
if he
is the
one who
ascends,
then he
must first
have
descended
from his
exalted
place as
creator,
which is
established
in verses
one and
two.
He cannot
ascend the
hill unless
he has
first descended
from that
hill.
And where
do we
find that?
In the
incarnation of
the Lord
Jesus Christ.
Jesus
himself
affirms
this in
John
chapter 3
verse 13.
No one
has ascended
into heaven
except he
who has
descended from
heaven, the
son of
man.
What is
this teaching
us?
What is
David teaching
us?
This
Messiah
king, this
savior, this
king of
glory is
the Lord
himself.
Jesus is
not just a
man who
is superior
to all
other men.
That's not
who Jesus
is.
He is the
king of
glory.
He is the
eternal God
who became
man to
fulfill
Psalm 24.
For us to
be saved,
so that we
can ascend
the hill
and stand
in the
judgment.
The only
way that's
possible is
if the
Lord himself
were to
descend to
us and
take on
human flesh
and fulfill
the law that
we have all
broken and
pay the
penalty of
our sin
through his
death and
then be
vindicated by
rising from
the dead and
ascending back
to his throne to
guarantee our
entrance to his
kingdom.
That is the
only way that
we could ever
stand before
God.
It's the
only way that
any of us
will ever be
accepted by
God.
Not on the
basis of our
righteousness but
on the sole
basis of the
righteousness of
the Lord
himself, the
king of glory,
Jesus Christ,
the righteous
one.
And by faith
we enter into
his glory.
He has done
for us what
we could not
do for ourselves
and he has
done it out of
his measureless
love.
He did not do
it because he
had to do it.
Why would he
do this?
Why would he
do this?
There's only one
answer.
Love.
God shows his
love toward us in
that while we are
yet sinners,
Christ dies for
us.
God so loved the
world that he
gave his only
begotten son.
And whosoever
believes in him
will not perish
and have everlasting
life.
In this is the
love of God.
Not that we have
loved him but that
he has loved us
and has sent his
only son to be the
propitiation for
our sins.
That's what John
says.
Love.
Love is why he's
done it.
And he invites us
into this love.
He invites you
into this love
by faith.
To try to do it
with anything
except faith
is an insult
to the king of
glory.
To try to think
or insist
that I will follow
Jesus but I will be
truly accepted
if I get all these
other things right
and if I get
baptized
and if I do the
stuff
and if I live
a pretty good
life
is to spit
in the face
of the Savior
who descended
from the throne
and was crucified
on a cross
to provide a
sufficient
and final
offering
for your guilt
and to insist
that it's anything
but stepping
into that love
by faith
is a mockery
of what he has
done.
And yet
he says
come
this is for you
believe my gospel
turn from your sin
he's opened the gates
he's flung them
wide open
for all
who will repent
and believe
which leaves us
with only one
question to ask
will you believe
we leave everything
else
stop trying
to do all
the stuff
just
follow
him
leave it all
behind
and trust
his gospel
trust his
righteousness
as sufficient
and enter
his kingdom
by faith
and by faith
alone
only those
who do that
will be able
to stand
on the hill
of the Lord
on the hill
of the Lord