"Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation" — Psalm 24:3-5
The opening clause of our text defines our position before God. "Who shall ascend… " implies, correctly, that we are in a position of inferiority. The greatest distance in the world is the distance by which the sinner is separated from our Holy God. Vain man, in his pride may deem himself exalted, and that he may be in the eyes of his peers, but not so in the eyes of God. Created in the image of God, assigned to be the competent custodian of His garden, he became an outcast when he elected to worship the creature more than the Creator.
No matter where we may be in the social, political or economic scale of things, we are at rock bottom in our relationship to "the hill of the Lord," and he is a wise man who will ask David's question, "Who shall ascend… ?" For those sincerely concerned with spiritual matters, our passion will be to "ascend." There will be an initial desire to reach the top, and wherever we are in our spiritual journey, we will aspire to rise higher— to draw "nearer, my God , to thee."
There is, of course, but One whose aspirations and accomplishments have lifted Him on high. Risen from the dead, Christ alone has "… ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things [Eph. 4:10]," "for He alone is worthy."
That leads to the reiteration of the question, "Who… shall ascend into the hill of the Lord, and who shall stand in his holy place?" The answer defines the prerequisite. In a word, it demands holiness. "He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity nor sworn deceitfully." Well, then does the apostle James cry, "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded [James 4:8]." But where? and How? Beloved, the waters of purification, for you and me, flow down only from the smitten Rock of Ages. There is ascendancy only for those who have recognized their impotence and called upon the Lord Jesus Christ for washing from all their sins. That is the spiritual aspect of this great truth. God's grace alone can make us fit for the kingdom of God.
But the query has practical significance, too. Those who aspire to ascend into the hill of the Lord would do so not only in some as yet unseen future, but also in the "today" of their experience. And the foundation of practical holiness is the same as that for the establishment of our initial holiness before the Lord. "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him [Col. 2:6]." How does one receive Him? By faith. How, then, does one walk in Him, that is, in practical holiness, in fellowship with the King of glory? By faith! And note, the call is to both inward and outward purity. The heart and the hands are both to be involved. There is a superficial morality that may suffice to fool the watching world that we are men of character and principle, but "the Lord looketh on the heart." It is the righteousness that flows from within, all of grace, that will deliver us from the pursuit of emptiness and a deceitful tongue. "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God [Matt. 5:8]."
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"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting [Psalm 139:23-24]."
For God's glory and our good,
"Pastor" Frasier
The opening clause of our text defines our position before God. "Who shall ascend… " implies, correctly, that we are in a position of inferiority. The greatest distance in the world is the distance by which the sinner is separated from our Holy God. Vain man, in his pride may deem himself exalted, and that he may be in the eyes of his peers, but not so in the eyes of God. Created in the image of God, assigned to be the competent custodian of His garden, he became an outcast when he elected to worship the creature more than the Creator.
No matter where we may be in the social, political or economic scale of things, we are at rock bottom in our relationship to "the hill of the Lord," and he is a wise man who will ask David's question, "Who shall ascend… ?" For those sincerely concerned with spiritual matters, our passion will be to "ascend." There will be an initial desire to reach the top, and wherever we are in our spiritual journey, we will aspire to rise higher— to draw "nearer, my God , to thee."
There is, of course, but One whose aspirations and accomplishments have lifted Him on high. Risen from the dead, Christ alone has "… ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things [Eph. 4:10]," "for He alone is worthy."
That leads to the reiteration of the question, "Who… shall ascend into the hill of the Lord, and who shall stand in his holy place?" The answer defines the prerequisite. In a word, it demands holiness. "He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity nor sworn deceitfully." Well, then does the apostle James cry, "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded [James 4:8]." But where? and How? Beloved, the waters of purification, for you and me, flow down only from the smitten Rock of Ages. There is ascendancy only for those who have recognized their impotence and called upon the Lord Jesus Christ for washing from all their sins. That is the spiritual aspect of this great truth. God's grace alone can make us fit for the kingdom of God.
But the query has practical significance, too. Those who aspire to ascend into the hill of the Lord would do so not only in some as yet unseen future, but also in the "today" of their experience. And the foundation of practical holiness is the same as that for the establishment of our initial holiness before the Lord. "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him [Col. 2:6]." How does one receive Him? By faith. How, then, does one walk in Him, that is, in practical holiness, in fellowship with the King of glory? By faith! And note, the call is to both inward and outward purity. The heart and the hands are both to be involved. There is a superficial morality that may suffice to fool the watching world that we are men of character and principle, but "the Lord looketh on the heart." It is the righteousness that flows from within, all of grace, that will deliver us from the pursuit of emptiness and a deceitful tongue. "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God [Matt. 5:8]."
************
"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting [Psalm 139:23-24]."
For God's glory and our good,
"Pastor" Frasier
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