Who Is This King Of Glory?

Please take your Bibles and open them up to Psalm chapter 24.

Psalms 24 · chapter mention

As I mentioned earlier, we're walking through the Psalms for the summer,

! And we're in our third year, third summer now doing this.

So we kind of take 10 at a time.

And so we're walking through this stretch in the 20s this year.

And we've come up to Psalm 24 this morning.

If you don't have a Bible of your own,

you can use the pew Bible in the seat back nearby somewhere.

And you can find this passage on page 428 of that Bible.

But I do encourage you to have a copy of God's Word open

as we walk through the text together this morning

so that we can see it with our own eyes as we hear with our ears

what the Lord would say to us from Psalm 24.

When you found it, let's stand this morning in the honor of the reading of God's Word.

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,

who does not lift up his soul to what is false

and 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.

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,

and 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.

All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching.

Lord, we praise you for your Word.

Lord, we ask now that as it is taught,

as it is preached,

Lord, that it would be profitable in our hearts,

and in our souls, and in our lives.

We pray this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

You may be seated.

How should we respond to the King of glory?

Five times in this psalm,

I hope you noticed it,

David calls the Lord the King of glory.

He is in awe of this truth that God is the King of glory.

In fact, that's one way we ought to respond.

But there is, at the same time,

there's this level of fear,

even despair.

Who can approach a God so glorious and so wonderful?

There's a bit of a paradox here in this psalm.

The good news is, on one hand,

our God is the King of glory.

No one comes close to Him.

But the bad news is,

God is the King of glory.

No one can come close to Him.

This is a tension point, isn't it?

It's a tension point.

Here in the psalm,

our God is glorious beyond all compare.

He's worthy of worship,

and yet, we cannot approach Him.

We are unworthy.

This tension lies at the heart of this psalm.

In fact, many people who are much smarter than me

agree that David wrote this psalm

in response to the entrance of the Ark of the Covenant

into the city of Jerusalem.

And if you know anything about that account,

you know that this tension of awe and fear

of God's glory, His worthiness,

and our unworthiness

runs throughout that entire story.

So let me recap it for you real quick

as we get our bearings here for our psalm.

The Ark of the Covenant,

as you probably are aware,

was the place where God

had designated His glory

would dwell in the midst of His people.

This was, in essence,

the presence of God

with His people.

Well, over the course of time,

the Philistines

defeat Israel in battle,

and they capture the Ark.

But they want the glory of God.

They want the presence of this God

there with them,

but not for long.

Because as long as this God of glory

dwelt with them,

they were afflicted by plagues.

They were made sick.

His presence was not safe for them.

God's presence was a danger to them.

So after seven months,

they sent it back.

The Ark came to Beth Shemesh.

What happened there?

Well, some of the men of Beth Shemesh

got a little bit curious,

and they wanted to take a peek,

and it says that

the Lord struck down

70 men

for looking upon

the Ark of the Lord.

In fact, some translations say

50,000 men

were struck down that day

for looking

upon the Ark of the Lord.

And so they too,

just like the Philistines,

they responded,

and they said,

Who is able to stand

before the Lord?

This holy God.

And to whom shall He

go up away from us?

And they sent Him away.

And the Ark, we're told,

came to Kiriath-Jerim,

to the house of a man

named Abinadab,

where it stayed

for the next 20 years.

We don't know exactly

what those 20 years held,

except we know

David is anointed king.

David captures

the city of Jerusalem.

And then David

sets out to bring

the Ark back

into the city,

back into the midst

of God's people.

So 2 Samuel 6

tells us,

David gathers up

30,000 men,

and he goes

to retrieve the Ark.

Now can you imagine

the excitement

of this moment?

Finally,

at long last,

the presence of God

is coming back

to dwell with His people

again.

And we're told

that everyone on the way

is singing

and dancing

and celebrating

and worshiping.

this is a moment

of awe

and worship

and praise

until

one of the oxen

stumbles.

One of Abinadab's sons,

Uzzah,

puts out his hand

to help

and he lays his hand

on top of the Ark

of the Lord

and instantly

the Lord strikes him down.

Again,

we've moved very quickly

from awe,

great awe,

now to great fear.

Who can stand

before the Lord?

So King David

changes his mind

and he sends the Ark

away to the house

of Obed-Edom

and for three months

it was there

in his home,

but over those three months

guess what happens

to Obed-Edom?

As the Ark

is there in his home,

Obed-Edom

and all his household

is blessed.

that same

presence of the Lord,

that same glorious

presence that

afflicted the Philistines,

that struck down

the men of Kiriath-Jerim,

excuse me,

of Beth-Shemesh,

that same glorious

presence of the Lord

that struck down

Uzzah

was a source

of blessing

for the house

of Obed-Edom.

So David sees this

and once again

David changes plans.

He says,

I want that blessing.

We need that blessing.

The people of God

need the blessing

of the presence

of God with them

and so we are

trying again.

So they go out again

and they finally

at long last

retrieve the Ark

and once again

we're told

on the way

into the city

they rejoice,

they worship,

they sacrifice

an ox

and a fattened animal.

David danced

before the Lord

with all his might

because the Lord,

the King of Glory

was coming

to be

with his people.

It's in response

to this

great moment

that the Lord,

that David

writes

Psalm 24.

How should we respond

to the King of Glory?

Three ways.

First,

first we see

his glory

is reason

for all.

We see this

in verses

1 and 2.

David begins

by standing

in awe

of the Lord

because he

is the King

of Glory

no one

comes close

to him.

He has

no equal.

In fact,

the Philistines

when they captured

the Ark

you know what

they did?

They brought it

into the house

of their God

Dagon.

Now this is

one of the funniest

stories in all

the Bible to me.

I love this story.

They brought it

into Dagon's house.

They set it

right beside

their idol.

They went to sleep.

They woke up

the next morning

and what happened?

Dagon,

their God,

had fallen

face first

in front of

the Ark

of the Lord.

So what do they do?

They pick their God up.

They dust him off.

Are you okay?

They set him back up

on the mantle.

They go throughout

their day.

They go to sleep again.

They wake up

the next morning

and what do they find?

Once again,

Dagon,

their God,

has fallen

face first

in front of

the Ark

of the Lord,

in front of

the presence

of God.

Except this time,

his head

has been cut off.

His arms

have been cut off.

It's just his torso

there,

face first,

lying prostrate

in front of the Lord.

What's the message?

The one true

God of the Bible

has no equal.

The one

Lord of heaven

and earth

is God

Almighty

and he has

no equal.

The Lord

doesn't just rule

over one part

of creation.

He rules

and reigns

over all

of creation.

Why?

Because he

is the creator

of it all.

The earth

is the Lord's

and the fullness

thereof.

The world

and all those

who dwell therein.

Why?

For he founded it

upon the seas

and established it

upon the rivers.

this is a

sweeping,

universal,

all-encompassing

claim

of the complete

and total

rule

of the Lord

over all things.

David says

all things

belong to God.

The earth

is the Lord's.

David,

of course,

as king,

he knew what it was like

to rule over

a territory.

He was a king

who had

a realm.

He had a domain

of his authority.

But here he

thinks about the Lord

and he stands in awe.

This is the king

of glory

who owns

all things.

All the earth

is his territory.

All the earth

is his realm.

All the earth

is under his authority.

All the earth

is his domain.

It is all

his.

The Himalayan mountains

belong to him.

The Pacific Ocean

belongs to him.

The Gobi Desert

belongs to him.

He owns the cattle

on a thousand hills

and he owns all the hills

for that matter.

And he says

not just this

but everything

within the earth

and all of the fullness

thereof.

He owns all the sheep

on the hillside.

He owns every fish

in the sea.

every grain of sand

in the desert.

He owns all

in all South Carolina

and all the mosquitoes

that fly within.

He owns every blade

of grass.

Every speck

of pollen.

It is all

his.

Of course

that includes

all of the people

of the earth.

Every single

individual person

belongs to God

the king

by right.

we belong

to him.

He has

owner's rights.

Creator's rights

over every single

individual

on the planet.

You know

one of the worst

lies that

people believe

that we've been fed

is that we are

independent

autonomous

self-sufficient

creatures.

We do what we want.

We are a law

unto ourselves.

We don't belong

to anybody

but us.

That's a lie.

We belong

to God

the king

by right.

And as king

he reigns

and he rules

over all things.

Not a single

thought.

Not a single

action.

Not a single

inclination

of the will

or of the heart

exists

outside

of his

sovereign

rule.

Our God

reigns over

times of joy.

the new birth

of children

into a family.

Laughter

and conversation

with friends.

A meal

in the fellowship

hall with your

church family.

And our God

reigns over

time of tragedy

and death.

Our God

reigns over

war.

He reigns

over bombings

in Iran

and in Israel.

He reigns

over the

slaughter of

Christians

in difficult

places.

You realize

that for

God

to be

God

that means

he reigns

sovereign

over

all.

All the

earth

is his

domain

and nothing

happens

in his

domain

apart

from his

sovereign

will.

That's what

it means

to be

God.

Abraham

Kuyper

rightly

says

there is

not a

square

inch

in the

whole

domain

of our

human

existence

over

which

Christ

who

is

sovereign

over

all

does

not

cry

mine.

Amen.

I imagine

King David

looking out

the window

of his

palace

looking out

at his

kingdom

in his

city

they called

it the

city of

David

looking over

his

people

all the

things that

are under

his rule

with a

crown

on his

head

leading

his

people

and

saying

you know

what

none

of this

is mine

all of

this

belongs

by right

to the

king

of glory

now church

when we

realize

that

that God

is the

rightful

owner

of all

the sovereign

ruler

of all

it ought

to lead

us to

recognize

that ultimately

nothing

really

belongs

to us

not

ultimately

sure we

have

stuff

but

it's not

ultimately

our

stuff

we have

plans

for our

life

ultimately

it's not

our

life

we have

people that

we love

children

spouses

we have

goals

ambitions

we have

jobs

we have

money

we have

possessions

we have

a home

but none

of it

ultimately

belongs

to us

all of

it

by right

belongs

to the

one

who is

the

king

Paul

David

Tripp

says

if you

believe

in God

you don't

live

with an

ownership

mentality

as if

your life

and your

things

belong

to you

and you

can use

them

however

you

want

no

you

have

to

live

with

a

stewardship

mentality

this

belongs

to

God

and

how

does

God

intend

for me

to use

what he

has

made

everything

belongs

to

God

listen

to

this

human

ownership

is a

delusion

your time

your money

your home

your family

your life

your breath

your past

your present

your future

God

the Lord

is the

owner

the creator

the ruler

of it

all

when we

stop and

consider that

you know

what

that

ought

to

lead

us

to

do

to

stand

in

awe

of our

sovereign

God

amen

how often

do we sing

oh Lord

my God

when I

in awesome

wonder

consider all

the works

thy hands

have made

I see

the stars

I hear

the rolling

thunder

thy power

throughout

the universe

displayed

then sings

my soul

my savior

God

to thee

how great

thou art

how great

thou art

do you realize

how great

our God

is

are you in

awe

of how great

our God

is

David is

but we see

second

he recognizes

that this

great glory

also poses

a great

problem

for sinners

like us

second

response

God's

glory

is also

a reason

for sinners

to fear

as David

considers

this basic

truth

that the

Lord

reigns

that he's

God

that he

reigns

and rules

over everyone

and everything

he brings up

an important

question

here in

verse 3

how can

anyone

come

into the

presence

of a

God

like this

who shall

ascend

the hill

of the

Lord

who

shall

stand

in his

holy

place

this is

the

question

isn't

it

God

is

so

great

and so

glorious

and so

worthy

of worship

and so

righteous

who

can come

into his

presence

now we

get this

on a

human

level

even

within

the

horizontal

level

I

cannot

just

walk

into

the

white

house

whenever

I

want

and go

through

the

doors

and go

down

the

hall

and go

find

the

president

and sit

on the

couch

and start

talking

anytime

I

want

why

because

I

don't

have

that

level

of

clearance

I

would

be

shot

before

I

stepped

foot

on

the

lawn

of course

some

people

do

have

the

clearance

not

me

some

people

do

but

God

is

infinitely

more

powerful

infinitely

more

glorious

infinitely

more

important

infinitely

more

righteous

than

any

human

president

or

leader

what

level

of

clearance

would

it

take

for

someone

like

us

to

stroll

up

into

the

presence

of

almighty

God

and not

be

struck

down

like

Uzzah

or the

Philistines

or

destroyed

like the

men of

Beth

Shemesh

that's

the

question

David's

wrestling

with

here

who

can

ascend

the

hill

David

gives

this

image

of

a

man

making

his

way

up

the

hill

to

meet

with

the

Lord

climbing

up

striving

making

his

way

up

to

be

in

the

presence

of

God

you

might

think

of

the

temple

that

was

literally

up

upon

a

hill

sitting

atop

Mount

Zion

and

the

ark

there

within

the

holy

place

who

can

come

into

the

holy

of

holies

and

meet

and

stand

in

the

!

living

God

or

you

might

think

of

Moses

you

know

the

story

of

Moses

coming

up

Mount

Sinai

climbing

up

the

mountain

to

meet

with

the

Lord

and

speak

with

him

face

to

face

to

receive

the

word

one

person

out

of

all

the

nation

anybody

else

you

remember

unless

they

die

they

may

not

touch

that

hill

might

even

think

of

the

garden

of

Eden

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 28 · chapter mention

chapter

28

interestingly

enough

calls

Eden

the

God

isn't

that

interesting

it

was

on

this

high

hill

that

the

Lord

walked

with

Adam

and

Eve

and

it

was

from

this

high

hill

that

they

fell

quite

literally

when

they

sinned

against

him

and

were

cast

down

from

the

mountaintop

into

the

pit

of

death

who

can

climb

back

up

that

hill

who

can

make

their

way

back

into

the

presence

of

God

look

there

to

verses

4-6

David

gives

some

qualifications

here

he says

the one

who can

come into

the presence

of God

must have

clean hands

and a

pure

heart

he must

have clean

hands

he doesn't

put his hands

to do evil

or to do

harm

he is

ceremonially

clean

and pure

he's totally

obedient

to the

law of

God

but of course

clean hands

alone

aren't

enough

he says

he must

also

have

a

pure

heart

don't

you

remember

how

Jesus

condemned

the

Pharisees

for their

external

righteousness

when the

inside

was corrupt

what did

he say

he said

you're like

whitewashed

tombs

they're

beautiful

on the

outside

so clean

they sparkle

you

you walk

by

and you

say

man

that

looks

great

but what's

inside

death

and decay

it is not

enough

to be

good

moral

people

buttoned

up

not as

bad

as the

next

guy

those

who are

more

concerned

with

looking

like a

Christian

than

actually

knowing

Christ

cannot

ascend

the hill

clean

hands

and a

pure

heart

another

qualification

he must

not lift

up his

soul

to what

is

false

and if

we wonder

what that

means

we just

look down

a few

verses

to chapter

25

verse 1

we'll see

this Lord

willing

next week

that tells

us what

this means

to you

oh Lord

I lift

up my

soul

oh my

God

in you

I

trust

this is

an expression

of trust

faith

this man

who can

ascend

to the hill

he doesn't

put his

trust

in anything

false

there is

no

dagon

in his

heart

no

idols

he's

not led

astray

by lies

rather

he

trusts

fully

in the

Lord

God

and his

promises

so

those

who

trust

in

idols

do

not

qualify

those

who

put more

stock

in Fox

News

than they

do

in the

word

of

God

do

not

qualify

pure

hands

pure

heart

pure

soul

one more

qualification

here

he says

pure

speech

he does

not

swear

deceitfully

he is

totally

pure

of speech

he speaks

the truth

at all

times

his yes

is his

yes

his no

is his

no

he is a

man of

perfect

blameless

integrity

that kind

of person

verse 5

will receive

blessing

from the

Lord

and righteousness

from the

God

of his

salvation

I have

some bad

news

for you

I promise

I'll follow

it up

with good

news

the bad

news

is

and I

hope you

realize this

already

you

don't

qualify

I don't

qualify

and not a

single

person

in this

room

in this

town

in this

world

qualifies

none

of us

by right

can climb

up this

hill

maybe you've

had the

experience

of

applying

for a

new job

and you

you find

a dream

job

man

it's

perfect

paid

vacation

time

that salary

is like

10 times

what you're

making

now

you can

work from

home

which really

means you

don't

work much

at all

you can

do whatever

you want

this is the

perfect

job

and you

go to

apply

and then

you look

at the

list of

required

qualifications

and you

look at

your resume

you realize

I have

no shot

I'm not

qualified

if we're

honest

when we

look at

this list

of qualifications

that David

gives

and then we

look at

the resume

of our

life

we would

be honest

and say

that none

of us

are qualified

for any

of us

to come

into the

presence

of this

great

and glorious

king

we must

be

perfect

do you

realize

that

to come

into the

presence

of a

holy

god

to ascend

this hill

and stand

in his

holy place

and not be

completely

obliterated

you must

be

100%

completely

perfect

only

perfect

people

are

welcomed

into the

presence

of god

only

perfect

people

who are

pure in

heart

pure in

hands

pure in

speech

pure in

faith

raise your

hand if

that's you

i think we

know this

deep down

and yet

our default

answer to

david's

question

who can

stand

in the

holy place

of god

is

well

probably

me

probably

me

i've

worked

hard

i've

done a

lot of

good

things

in my

life

i'm

a

good

person

i'm

not

as

bad

as

that

guy

i'd

do

my

best

surely

god

wouldn't

turn

me

away

we

think

about

it

like

climbing

mount

everest

who

can

climb

mount

everest

and

make

it

to

the

top

well

plenty

of

people

have

done

it

so

sure

some

have

died

on

the

way

who

can

do

it

well

someone

who's

strong

someone

who's

capable

someone

who has

endurance

somebody

with a

strong

heart

can

do

it

somebody

who has

perseverance

can do

it

somebody

who's

trained

for it

they

can

do

it

somebody

who's

fearless

they

can

make it

to the

top

of

mount

everest

so

who can

who can

get to

god

by default

we say

well somebody

strong

can do

it

somebody

moral

can do

it

somebody

who's

tried

their best

can do

it

someone

with a

good

heart

can

do

it

sure

my

neighbor

doesn't

claim

to be

a

Christian

but

they

are

just

so

kind

they

have

such

a

good

heart

surely

god

will

accept

them

right

surely

god

won't

turn

them

away

right

we need

to hear

the answer

again

and we

need

to let

it

sit

the bible

says

unless

you

are

perfect

you

cannot

climb

this

hill

don't

have

the

clearance

you

don't

meet

the

qualifications

neither

do

I

that's

the

bad

news

here's

the

good

news

god

has

made

a

way

for

imperfect

people

like

us

to

be

made

righteous

you

hear

that

god

by

his

grace

has

made

a

way

for

disqualified

people

to

be

qualified

for

unworthy

people

to

be

deemed

worthy

what is

it

look to

verse 6

such

is the

generation

of those

who seek

him

who seek

the face

of the

god

of

jacob

those

who seek

his