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Summary
We are reminded of the profound privilege we have as believers to dwell in God’s presence through Christ, who tore the veil and granted us permanent access to the Father. Psalm 84, written by the sons of Korah — men who fell from the heights of temple ministry to the lowest positions — teaches us that true blessing is not found in titles, prominence, or tangible gifts, but in longing for God’s presence, finding strength in Him, and placing all our hope in Christ alone.
Key Lessons:
- The church is not a building or a set of rituals, but a living community of those who genuinely long to dwell in God’s presence — a longing that should move our whole heart, mind, and body.
- True strength and blessing come not from accumulating knowledge, titles, or visible results, but from having God’s Word implanted in our hearts and trusting in the gospel of Christ crucified.
- The sons of Korah, once destroyed for rebellion and entitlement, were preserved by God’s mercy — reminding us that our only hope is in Christ, who intercedes for us before the Father.
- A day in God’s courts is better than a thousand elsewhere — genuine worship is born not from obligation but from a transformed heart that delights in closeness with God.
Application: We are called to examine whether we truly cherish the privilege of communion with God through the church, moving beyond theological knowledge to genuine affection — loving the church as Christ’s body, drawing near with sincere hearts, and encouraging one another especially as times grow difficult.
Discussion Questions:
- In what areas of your life are you seeking blessing, strength, or identity from sources other than God’s presence — and what would it look like to redirect that longing toward Christ?
- The sons of Korah went from the highest privilege to the lowest position, yet wrote one of Scripture’s most beautiful worship psalms. How does humility shape the way we experience and value the church?
- Hebrews 10:19-25 calls us not to forsake assembling together. What practical steps can you take to more deeply invest in the church community rather than remaining a spectator?
Scripture Focus: Psalm 84 is the central passage, presenting three blessings: dwelling in God’s presence (vv. 1–4), finding strength in God (vv. 5–8), and placing all hope in God (vv. 9–12). Hebrews 10:19-25 grounds these longings in the finished work of Christ, whose death tore the temple veil and opened permanent access to the Father.
Outline
- Introduction
- The Sons of Korah: Context and Background
- The Church: The Sweetest Dwelling Place
- Three Longings in Psalm 84
- Longing #1: To Dwell in God’s Presence (vv. 1–4)
- Longing #2: To Find Strength in God (vv. 5–8)
- Longing #3: To Place All Hope in God (vv. 9–12)
- Call to Draw Near: Hebrews 10:19–25
- Love the Church
Introduction
What?
Wenos Diaz.
Good morning. Now in English?
It’s easier for some of you, maybe not for all of you, because today I will be preaching in my third language. It will be a challenge. My first language is Spanish, my second language is Californian English, and now I will do my best to preach in New Jersey English.
Actually, it’s always a challenge for me to preach in English. When I preach in English, it reminds me of one time when I was at the Master’s College—now the Master’s University. I was invited to share my testimony with the whole college. That was a big challenge.
I still remember everything was dark with just this spotlight on me. I spoke for about five to ten minutes sharing my testimony. When I finished and was walking to the cafeteria after chapel, this big baseball player came alongside me, put his arm around me, and said, “Wow, brother, what a blessing. It was so good what you said, how encouraging it was for everyone.”
I said, “Wow, thank you.” Then maybe twenty to thirty seconds after some silence, he said, “By the way, in what language were you speaking?”
So I hope today this message is a blessing to all of you and that at the end you know I was speaking in English. I invite you to open your Bibles to Psalm 84.
What a privilege it is for me to be here today. I love the title “Kingdom Worker.” This is the only church that calls us kingdom workers. What a privilege it is for us to be here, to share our heart, and for you to know the heart of the church in Colombia.
I have preached in Colombia and have seen how the church is building God’s church. My message today from Psalm 84, I want to share with you as an encouragement. I want you to see how your heart as a church is being echoed in Colombia, how it’s been making a wave that is extending the kingdom of God there.
I want you to be encouraged by this message and to know that in many ways this is how we see this church. What we will learn here today in this psalm is that you are always striving to honor our King and Lord. Let’s read Psalm 84 and see what the Lord has for us today.
For the choir director, on the gittith, a psalm of the sons of Korah: “How lovely are your dwelling places, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs and even yearns for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God. The bird also has found a house, and the swallow a nest for herself where she may lay her young, even at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.
How blessed are those who dwell in your house. They are ever praising you. Selah. How blessed is the man whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring. Daily rain also covers it with blessings.
They go from strength to strength. Every one of them appears before God in Zion.
O Lord of hosts, hear my prayer. Give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah. Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of your anointed. For a day in your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the Lord God is a sun, a shield. The Lord gives grace and glory. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in you.”
Let’s pray.
Holy Father, I thank you for your word. These words written hundreds of years ago, at least 2,500 years ago, perhaps more. Lord, it’s incredible how powerful and how relevant it is to us.
Please, Lord, help us to understand and help me to deliver this message in a way that is clear, in a way that conveys the power of this truth. Speak to our hearts and bless this church as they really are an example to us of what it means to be a church that understands the kingdom and works toward advancing it on this earth. In Jesus Christ’s name, amen.
The gospels tell us that while Jesus was dying on the cross, darkness covered the whole land. The earth shook, rocks split, and tombs opened. This language indicates how apocalyptic and dark that moment was for human history. The death of Jesus Christ on the cross has had cosmic implications.
Imagine the Son of God, like a lamb, was led to the slaughter, mocked, wept over, and crucified. But the gospels also tell us that at that very moment, as we were seeing all these cosmic implications of Christ’s dying on the cross in a very supernatural way, what was happening? The veil of the temple was being torn.
The temple veil established a separation—not only physical but spiritual—a barrier between the holy place and the most holy place. Some theologians refer to the veil as the shield, which protected the priest from the righteous wrath of God. The holy of holies was the place where the ark of the covenant resided, where God spoke to his people, where the presence of God was most real for them.
Only once a year could the high priest come into that place, and he could die just like this—he could die—because that place was so holy. As we go forward into God’s revelation, we understand from Hebrews that the tearing of that veil was brought about by Christ’s death. Because of that, we can enter the most holy place. We believers have permanent access to God the Father.
Paul also in Ephesians 2 tells us that his death tore down the dividing wall of separation that once made us strangers to the covenant promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
But now we are so privileged. We have a privilege greater than the privilege the sons of Korah who wrote this psalm had at that time. We have that privilege as a church, and we know that the church is that community of those who have been called by God out of slavery to sin through faith in Jesus Christ.
We, the church, are the redeemed who possess communion with God and have a present and eternal hope.
The Church: The Sweetest Dwelling Place
We are not like the world. We are so privileged that way, way more than the sons of the old covenant, just as that veil was torn in two.
So my question this morning, and I want us to reflect on this: Do we cherish and appreciate this means of grace called the church? Do we enjoy it?
I’m not talking about the building. I’m not talking about membership. I’m not talking about the servings and offerings.
Rather, I am speaking about that genuine fellowship with the true God that results in loving the church.
Sometimes we can believe we can define the church in theological terms and we have an understanding of what it means. We can study ecclesiology, but the question is: Do we love it? Do we desire it?
Do we delight in the church?
“I am speaking about that genuine fellowship with the true God that results in loving the church.”
Three Longings in Psalm 84
That is why I have titled this message “The Church: The Sweetest Dwelling Place,” and my position is that Psalm 84, one of the most beautiful poems in the Bible, presents three longings that should prevail in your heart as a believer.
Longings that can only be fulfilled in Christ and through active participation in his church. The first longing that we are going to consider is to dwell in God’s presence. That is in verses 1-4.
The second longing is to find strength in God, verses 5-8. The third longing is to place all your hope in God, verses 9-12.
By the way, these three longings are three blessings, three gifts, three instances of happiness that we all as believers can experience. The first one, according to the words of the text in verse 4: “How blessed are those who dwell in your place.” From these three points and these blessings, I got my outline.
The second: “How blessed is the man whose strength is in you.” Those are the literal words in verse 5. And in verse 12: “How blessed is the man who trusts in you.”
How often we pray for blessings. “Lord, bless me this way, bless me that other way.” And sometimes we desire and we pray for so many blessings that we want to see them as tangible. Is that right? Because if we don’t see it, in some ways we don’t believe that God is blessing us.
And that is very common to us. Which is even more evident in Psalm 83, which is the previous chapter before Psalm 84. What an observation!
In Psalm 83, the previous chapter before Psalm 84, there is a psalm of Asaph that says like this: “Oh God, do not remain quiet. Do not be silent, and oh God, do not be still.”
How many times we feel as if God is not there anymore. We pray, we pray, we pray, and it’s like he is not listening to us. We want to see blessings. We want to see God working in our lives, but we don’t see where he is at.
But what? God is never far away from us. He’s always there for us, with us, and even within us. The ones that sometimes get away is us, precisely because we don’t know, we don’t have an understanding of what it means to be blessed, of what it means to long, to desire, to enjoy the fellowship we have.
And that is why some theologians say that in God’s sovereignty in the canon, Psalm 84 is right after Psalm 83. It’s like this is the answer. If you are feeling like God is not there, let’s find the answer in Psalm 84.
“God is never far away from us. He’s always there for us, with us, and even within us.”
But before we start with this psalm, as we start considering this psalm, let’s read the title. It says, “For the choir director, a psalm of the sons of Korah on the gittith.” The gittith was perhaps a musical instrument. Most people reckon that there are different opinions about what it could be, but most people think that it’s an instrument.
And then it also says that it’s for the choir director. So it’s a worship song, something that we should be rejoicing in.
The Sons of Korah: Context and Background
We should be celebrating this notion that we are learning today. It’s not just theology. It’s not just knowledge, but it’s something that should delight, should bring emotion to our hearts.
And then it says a psalm of the sons of Korah. As we read about the sons of Korah, I learned that the first time they are mentioned is in Exodus 6. There we learn that the sons of Korah were relatives of Aaron and Moses, as close as second cousins of them.
Sometimes familiarity brings entitlement, as we will see in a minute. And then the next time they appear is in Numbers 4. We learn that as Moses was setting up and establishing the temple, he gave Korah and his brothers the charge of handling the most holy things. He gave them the warning that the mishandling of what is holy would cause their death.
Right there in Numbers 4, he said you are going to have this responsibility, which was the most privileged responsibility he was assigning as he was establishing the temple. Then they appear in Numbers 16, and in Numbers 16 we learned a few things about them.
The first one is that despite them having the privilege of handling the most holy things, what did they do? They rebelled against Moses and Aaron with 250 people and the leadership at that time. They rebelled against Moses and Aaron.
In short, they felt so entitled. It wasn’t enough. Even Moses says, “Hey, is it not enough what you have?” No, for them it wasn’t enough. They wanted more and more and more. Maybe entitlement, maybe position, maybe titles, maybe to be recognized.
And they were redefining God’s commandments and God’s instructions. And that is why we see so many religions today—over 4,000—because everyone wants to run the church in their own way. But we don’t get close to the word of God. Just plain as you preach it here, verse by verse, what is the Lord teaching us, not what we are understanding, not what we are feeling about, but just word by word. The Lord is very strict in his commandments.
The second thing that Numbers 16 tells us is that God destroyed them. The words of Moses are so strong that it says the earth swallowed them, ate them, devoured them just like this. That is really significant. Even the words that Moses used to describe how angry God was with them.
And then as we continue reading the Old Testament, we see something that is so hard for me to understand. It says that the sons of Korah were eaten. But guess what? The sons of Korah wrote this psalm. And if they were eaten by the earth, devoured, swallowed, how could they write this?
And in Psalm 26:10-11, it says that somehow God kept a remnant. God was so merciful. And that is the only reason why you and I are here—because the Lord has been so good to us, so kind, so gracious.
God saved a remnant. And in 1 Chronicles 6, that name, that family, comes again. Listen, about 500 years later after this event of Numbers 16 that I just mentioned, David allows them the privilege to some of them to play the instruments and just be part of the choir serving the Lord.
They appear then in 1 Chronicles 9, and in a very clear way they are assigned the duties of the door. So they are the guard keepers, doorkeepers, gatekeepers. They were the ones who were taking care of all the work—cleaning, organizing things.
So you can see the wisdom of that psalm in that understanding. Imagine the ones who had been at the top, the top, the top in the temple serving, ministering the very presence of God. Now they are in the lowest position.
Maybe even they were marked with a stain in them because they were the descendants of that which were almost cursed. So we need to read this with much insight this day. I imagine they were writing this with so much wisdom, with so much insight. Wow, look what happened to us. Look where we are at now. What is really important in life?
The sons of Korah put out their hearts in this song in a very special way. For as we all know, this is a poem. Poems are written from the heart and help us remember and treasure what should be special.
So this psalm expresses the kind of worship we ought to experience. Worship that is not performed out of obligation, an assignment they had. No, now they see it not as a mere ritual or a sporadic habit of entitlement, but rather worship that delights and rejoices in the Lord’s presence—a worship born out of the transformation of the soul and heart, and one that places both heart and mind upon the altar of God.
So let’s start developing the outline.
“The only reason you and I are here is because the Lord has been so good to us, so kind, so gracious.”
“Worship that delights and rejoices in the Lord’s presence — a worship born out of the transformation of the soul and heart.”
Longing #1: To Dwell in God’s Presence (vv. 1–4)
The first point is the longing to dwell in God’s presence, verses 1 to 4. “How lovely are your dwelling places.” This is an exclamation of emotion, of joy, pleasant surprise, admiration. “How lovely” is literally “how beloved are” your dwelling places.
Again, the sons of Korah have an understanding of what the temple was, of what it meant, even the wrath of God.
And yet they say, “How lovely are your dwelling places, the place, the dwelling of the eternal God.” And they call him, “Oh Lord of hosts,” which is beautiful because that title combines two kinds of titles into one. “Oh Lord Yahweh,” the God of the covenant, the personal God, and “of hosts,” that is the God of all humanity, the God of the world, the all-sovereign, all-powerful God.
And then verse 2 says, “My soul longs.” The word “nephesh” is my whole being, my person, everything I am.
And then he says that longing. That word implies a desire, a yearning, a sense of being overwhelmed, growing faint, anguishing.
Notice how redundant they are. The sons of Korah, when they say, “My soul longs for the courts of the Lord,” and then he says, “and even yearned”—that’s a redundance. The word “yearned” emphasizes the toll taken by his intense desire.
It highlights how their soul was consumed, perishing, languishing with a longing. You see this repeating in God’s dwelling. And what are they desiring?
Are they desiring activities? Are they desiring blessings? Are they desiring ministries, preeminence in the service of God, selfish desiring of personal needs or requiring special spiritual care?
Because that is unfortunately how many churches are longing: “Help me, help me, help me, help me. Give me, give me, give me. Promote me, promote me, promote me.”
No, they are not asking for those things. They are not desiring those things.
What they were desiring was the courts of the Lord. The courts obviously are that inner part of the temple, perhaps the most holy places.
They didn’t want to be mere spectators. They didn’t want to remain outside. Rather, they wanted to be as close as possible to the presence of God.
They didn’t want to be superficial. That is their prayer. That is their desire. That is their longing. That is their yearning.
And it says that the courts of the Lord—obviously the courts are that kind of physical part of the temple, God’s dwelling places—but notice something very important: they don’t say “the courts of the temple.” They say “the courts of the Lord.” That makes this a very personal longing. They are not longing for an outside external place, but they are asking for the courts of the Lord. It’s a personal relationship. It’s not about a building.
“They are not longing for an outside external place but asking for the courts of the Lord — a personal relationship.”
The Desire of the Whole Person
It’s not about a specific ministry that fulfills my needs but an intimate relationship with the Lord. And then it says my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God. To the Hebrew mind, the heart is the seed of the will, the intellect, the emotions, and the affections.
That is how we have to desire. That is how we have to yearn for the presence of the Lord, for that communion. Again, that is only possible through Christ Jesus as we are part of the church, his body.
Jesus said in Mark 12:30, “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” And then he says, “My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.” In that section, what is the thing that sometimes we can say that we love or we want but not with our heart? Is that right?
I can say I work but I don’t do it with my heart. I serve but I don’t serve with my heart. That’s the truth many times.
So he’s reminding us to do it with your heart. But also notice “and my flesh” because sometimes we want to say, “Oh I will help you. Oh I want to be part of missions. Oh I want to help in the church.” Yes, with genuine heart. Is that right? But are we taking any action?
No.
We may have genuine hearts and good desires, but then the baseball game or the football game comes and we say, “Sorry, I really wanted to go but I can’t.”
No. Look at the heart of these men. They say that my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God. Again, they are realizing that their service, their worship, their being part of this community that was so close to God wasn’t just something academic, wasn’t something just theological, but it was something so personal because they are saying to the living God. It wasn’t just a mere religion, but a personal relationship.
Notice the emotion with which they are singing this—so much joy, so much exclamation to the living God.
“Their service, their worship wasn’t just something academic or theological, but something so personal — to the living God.”
The Sparrow and the Swallow: Even the Lowly Find a Home
And perhaps that is why so much joy is because they had already known the despair of life. They have already known the emptiness of the world, of being far away from God.
Psalm 42:1-3 is another psalm written by the sons of Korah. There they say: “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for you, oh God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night while they say to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?’”
Well, their God was there in the very presence that they had access to, the very presence that he had already manifested to them. Sometimes the soul that is depressed, the soul that is sad—I’m not saying that we cannot experience that, we are humans—but I want to say what I believe this tells us: the true joy can only be found in the presence of God as we come alongside and desire and long for Christ, as we give ourselves to Jesus. And then we see that joy.
Then verse three, let’s continue. It says: “The bird also has found a house, and the swallow for herself.” This is very interesting because in Hebrew these are two different words. In Spanish and other versions, also in English like the ESV, the word used here in the NASB and the ESV is translated as the sparrow.
Those were the cheapest birds. They are the birds that we see all the time. The sparrow. And it says that the bird has also found a house. These are perhaps the birds that Matthew 10:29-31 tells us about. Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet even the sparrow, the cheapest bird that we find so many times dead, has found a house.”
Even sometimes when we feel like we don’t have value, no one loves us, no one cares for us, we can have a place in the house of God.
And then it says the swallow, which is another kind of bird here in English. It says that it has found a nest for herself. The swallow is a kind of bird that is always traveling. It’s one of the only birds, if not the only bird, that feeds itself from insects. It’s always flying from one place to another.
That reminds us that even when you have been trying and trying to find purpose in your life, when you have been going all around, almost like a gypsy from place to place, you can find a house. You can find a nest for yourself.
Luke 5:32 reminds us: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
It is that presence, it is that yearning to be there with God, which brings not only value to our lives but also contentment and permanence. And then he says, “Even your altars, oh Lord of hosts.” Is it not beautiful? Is it not incredible that the God who is so transcendent?
First Kings 8:27-29 says: “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you. How much less this house which I have built?” And yet these little, priceless birds—so cheap, so little—and yet these birds are so hard to catch because they are always moving. They have found a place, a rest in the house of the Lord. That’s incredible.
“Even when we feel like we don’t have value, no one loves us, no one cares — we can have a place in the house of God.”
What a picture. So lovely. Maybe here you have seen birds outside. How many of us have stopped and said, “Wow, maybe that bird is more privileged than me because he has the chance to be in the house of the Lord”?
Now I want to make a clarification. My home is in my house. That’s my home. What I’m trying to tell you is we cannot think of this just as the physical place, but yes, the physical place and the community are comparable. It’s not just to be here at 5:00 a.m. every day. No, that is not what this is. It’s just being part of this family, this community.
And then it says, “Oh Lord of hosts,” again combining those two concepts of the personal God and the God of all creation. And then look: “My king and my God.”
Yes, we believe in lordship salvation. We believe that he is the kingdom of God. We believe that he is our Lord, our Savior, the one who is sovereign, the one to whom we have to serve. Now look how beautiful. Before they were looking to Aaron and Moses. Now who are they looking at? Their king. Their king and my God.
“How blessed are those who dwell in your house. They are ever praising.” Again, they close this section realizing that blessing, that joy they have, that privilege they have. It’s talking in the plural. It’s for all of us. It’s not just the pastors. It’s not just those who went to seminary. It’s not those who know theology. It’s not those who dwell in a title, but it’s all of us forever praising you.
That should be our response. That should be our understanding of the relationship we have with God, that privilege. And then he says, “Selah, meditate.” So maybe the question is: Are you content to be a spectator, a visitor, or are you someone who really wants to have a personal relationship with Christ? Are you someone who has really understood that privilege, that grace we have?
We are very privileged because for them it was just a desire, a longing. For us it is a privilege. John 17:21 says: “That they may all be one, even as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you sent me.”
The gospel, the kingdom is advancing, and that is evident in just the privilege we have to be part of his house, being with him.
“The gospel and the kingdom are advancing, and that is evident in the privilege we have to be part of his house.”
Longing #2: To Find Strength in God (vv. 5–8)
Second point: the longing to find strength in God. Verses 5 to 8, “How blessed is the man whose strength is in you.” Notice that now it is singular. Before it was plural, now it becomes more personal.
How blessed is the man? How blessed is the man? This is again a privilege that is personal. Though everyone is called, you can enjoy that privilege.
And then he says, “In whose heart are the highways to Zion.”
The Word in the Heart, Not Just the Head
This is very important because how many times we can have so much knowledge of this book. We can have so much knowledge of this book.
But the point is not how much of this book, but how much of this book is in your heart?
How much of this book is in your heart?
And that’s what this is saying. In whose heart are the ways to Zion? James 1:21-22 says, “Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness in humility, receive the word implanted.” That is the word that has shaped your character, the word that has become an essential part of you as a person which is able to save your souls.
But prove yourselves doers of the word and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
So they were desiring to find that strength in God and the first thing they realized is that they need to have that word in their hearts.
“The point is not how much of this book you know, but how much of this book is in your heart.”
How easy it is for us and it has been a struggle for us in Colombia. So many people and I’m not here to talk about religions. I’m here to talk about the word but we see how we have so many Catholics and so many charismatics are like give me, give me, give me, give me, give me the pill, solve my problem, solve my problem, help me and they think that the solution just comes by doing works or praying more or shouting more. God, we confess blessing from you. No, the change, the dwelling of God in our hearts and that strength starts with us having the word of the Lord in our lives.
Through the Valley of Baka: Strength Through Hardship
Then it says verse six, passing through the valley of Baka, they make it a spring.
The commentaries are not sure what this valley of Baka is.
Some people think that it’s a desert part of Jerusalem, that area where some trees grew—balsam trees—but basically the point of the sons of Korah is that even when there are difficult situations, look how much joy they had.
They are shouting. They are praising the living God. They call him their king.
Yet they realize that even through the hard times they went through, after being there at the top, now they are here. Now they are there at the bottom, but they rejoice independently of the circumstances. They have found a spring, an oasis, and that is what Psalm 84:6 says: “He will be like a tree firmly planted by the streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither. Daily rain also covers it with blessings.”
Some versions say “with pools,” but the point they are trying to make is that they see blessing. They see blessing in the midst of their difficult situations. And that reminds me of James 5:7-8.
Therefore, be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it until he gets daily and late rains. You too, be patient. Strengthen your hearts. That’s what this verse is talking about. For the coming of the Lord is near.
“Be patient. Strengthen your hearts. For the coming of the Lord is near.”
But sometimes we fix our eyes upon what we can see today. “Lord, please bless me today. Help me today. I’m discouraged. They don’t love me. They don’t care.” No, the Lord loves you. The Lord cares for you. The Lord is blessing you. But maybe what is happening is that we are not going to the right place to find that blessing.
And that blessing is there in desiring, enjoying again that privilege we have through Christ and through the church to be in his presence. Also, to find our strength—as verse seven says—”from strength to strength.” That word in Hebrew is also translated as “power from power to power.” Strength or power, basically the same.
And it takes me to think: What is strength? What is power? What is vitality? We all want to be more powerful by acquiring more knowledge, by better health perhaps, by titles.
But for Paul in Romans 1:16, he says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” That power we can only find it in what? In the gospel, as we understand that Christ died for our sins, that he paid for your eternal life.
That is so good, so kind, so gracious, how much he has given us.
As Jerry Bridges said—and I’m paraphrasing this quote—in the cross is the only place where we can find absolute security, confidence, understanding of the love of God for us.
It is only in the cross where we can find that absolute proof of God’s love for us. And we can find that only through Christ. And we can enjoy it only as we are part of the church. So we can experience that love, that joy.
“The cross is the only place where we can find absolute security, confidence, and understanding of the love of God for us.”
Longing #3: To Place All Hope in God (vv. 9–12)
Verse eight, it says, “Oh Lord of hosts, hear my prayer. Give ear, oh God of Jacob.” Now they come again with a humble position, not demanding as they demanded to Aaron and Moses, but they are just begging, praying to God. Let’s meditate on that.
Where are we finding our identity? Where are we finding our strength? And even our children—where are we facilitating them this knowledge? “Hey, be powerful. Go to the baseball games. Be a great soccer player.” Now that is the passion, to be a good soccer player.
No, we can only find it in Jesus Christ. My third point: behold our shield, oh God.
Christ Our Shield: God Sees Us Through Him
As I told you at the beginning, lots of theologians have said that this veil was like a shield that would protect the priest and anyone who would get close to the holy place of death. That was the shield.
So now they are seeing God himself, and that is way more true for us because on this side of the cross we understand that Christ died for us, that he is our shield. John MacArthur said something similar. Let me see if I can recall that quote.
When Jesus Christ died, he saw us through Christ. He saw us through Christ. When Christ died on the cross, he saw us through him. Now he sees us and he sees Christ. Can you see how beautiful that is?
Now when he sees us, he sees Christ. And when that Christ was on the cross, he saw Christ and he saw us. Is that not beautiful?
“When Christ died on the cross, God saw us through him. Now when he sees us, he sees Christ.”
So that is his goodness. Behold our shield, O God. And look upon the face of your anointed.
Who is the anointed? Some theologians believe that it was David. Some, even when I was part of the charismatic church because that’s my background, they think that is me because I’m the anointed. God bless me. But who is the anointed?
Jesus Christ. The word there in Hebrew is Messiah. He is the anointed.
So today we can come on this side of the cross with the progressive revelation we have. Please see Christ who died. That’s the quote of John MacArthur I just mentioned, and I paraphrase: “Cry, God, Father. Please, I deserve the wrath that you poured upon the sons of Korah, but would you please see Christ, see your anointed on the cross. God, look at Christ and saw you. Now he looks at you and sees Christ.”
Hebrews 7:24 says, “But Jesus, on the other hand, because he continues forever, holds his priesthood permanently. Therefore he is able to save forever those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.”
Verse 10: “For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.”
One Day in His Courts
James Montgomery Boyce in his commentary on Psalms calls the sons of Korah, the ones who wrote this psalm, as the janitors—the ones that were cleaning the temple, the toilets, and they were doing this practical work. And look, they preferred to be one day, one day cleaning the toilet in the house of the Lord rather than being a thousand days elsewhere.
Why? Because they learned that it was the proximity, the closeness, the intimacy they had with that presence which gave value and gave protection to them rather than the titles, the knowledge, the intellectual knowledge that sometimes we pretend to find for the Lord. God is a sun and a shield.
“They preferred one day cleaning the temple to a thousand days elsewhere — because proximity to God’s presence gave value and protection.”
I already mentioned that the Lord gives grace and glory.
It’s just from the Lord. We cannot find our identity in any part different than God. We can only place our hope in God. We can only understand that the grace, the mercy, the favor, even in some ways the praise can come from who?
The Lord Gives Grace and Glory
From God. But sometimes we find we look for men’s approval instead of understanding that it is only about God and being with him and enjoying that fellowship. The Lord gives grace and glory. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.
In the words of James 1:16-17, “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” So my encouragement as we read these words is God has the best for you.
Don’t see yourself as a second-class citizen in this church or in your own personal relationship with God. Yes, you are there.
Yes, you are there because Christ died for you on the cross. Christ has broken that veil and you have the privilege. Imagine the same privilege that the best theologian in this world has. We have to read this psalm in that context and with understanding that these men were the highest relatives of Moses and Aaron. They were handling the most holy things, and now they are down here perhaps cleaning toilets, working all night long in the temple, waiting to open the gates.
“God has the best for you. Don’t see yourself as a second-class citizen in your personal relationship with God.”
Even on the Sabbath they had to work, do something, at least be there. Yet they enjoy this privilege. It applies to all of us. How blessed is the man who trusts in you.
So my encouragement for you in closing is this: if you don’t know Christ, if you don’t have a personal relationship with him, you are totally exposed to the wrath of God because you are not on this side of the veil. You are not in that holy presence that is a shield where you can enjoy that presence.
There are perhaps some of you who are discouraged or have friends and relatives who are not there anymore, not part of the church. They are far. They are out there in the world.
Let’s encourage one another. Let’s encourage one another.
Call to Draw Near: Hebrews 10:19–25
Even in Hebrews 10:19-25, we read it, but I’m going to read it. I have a few minutes left. Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, this is a good summary of all the message I just preached, by a new and living way which he inaugurated for us through the veil that is his flesh. That’s what I was talking about.
And since we have a great priest over the house of God, again, someone who God the Father is seeing as he sees you, let us draw near with a sincere heart. Let us draw near to him. Here it does not say just serve, just do more, just give more, ask for more. No, just enjoy that because it’s a privilege. Faith, faith, faith, faith.
Having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope.
I just saw a book there about the end times, the future hope we have. It’s not about this world. We get discouraged with what is going on in this country and in the entire world. What a hope we should have. The worse things are getting, the more excited we should get.
“The worse things are getting, the more excited we should get — because of the eternal hope we have.”
For he who promises is faithful. Imagine the sons of Korah were eaten, swallowed by the earth, and then we find them there. Isn’t God good? Isn’t God compassionate?
Not forsaking. This is exhortation. And again, I shouldn’t be preaching this message to you because you are here. Not forsaking our assembly together, as is the habit of some, encouraging one another. And all the more as you see the day approaching, that is that eternal hope I said in my point three of the outline.
So you may possess a theological understanding of the church. We can master the doctrines of ecclesiology, but at the end of the day it’s a matter of affections. It’s a matter of our priorities. It’s a matter of what we truly love, where our heart is at.
Love the Church
And we need to love the church. That has been a message I have been preaching for the last four or five years in Colombia.
I have preached two things in Colombia. The gospel, because it’s not understood. And the church—people in Colombia don’t understand the church. They think the church is a Catholic building in the center of every town, or the church is where they experience blessings.
We don’t understand what the church is.
Christ told Paul, “Why are you persecuting me?” Paul didn’t know he was persecuting Jesus. But yes, he was. Because the church is Christ.
“It’s a matter of affections. It’s a matter of our priorities. It’s a matter of what we truly love and where our heart is.”
I want to finish with this quote as an encouragement for us to apply what we read in Scripture today, Hebrews 10:19-25.
This quote has been very misunderstood by the Catholic church, but I hope you have the understanding to take it in the right context. St. Cyprian of Carthage stated in the second century that he cannot have God as a father who does not have the church as mother. He was emphasizing that the church is essential for salvation.
He also compared it to Noah’s ark, saying if anyone could be saved while outside Noah’s ark, then what could also be safe while outside the church. This highlights that unity with the church is necessary for spiritual survival.
That is my heart, and that is what we are doing in Colombia. We are planting a church so that people may grow in the knowledge of Christ and into salvation.
Let’s pray with thanksgiving. As I see this church, I see your faithfulness, your love for the world, the eternal hope we have. I see it in a book I think written by Pastor Joe. That’s your heart—the heart of the church.
Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, what a precious church this is. I know that this church resembles what I just preached: a church that desires to dwell in your courts, in your presence, who loves you. A church that wants to find strength in you, growing in your word so that it is implanted in their hearts.
A church that is placing all hope in Christ Jesus, even as times are getting difficult. Yet I know that this is a process and we all are in different places of this walk with you.
So I pray for this church again with thanksgiving, but also asking that the Holy Spirit may speak to our hearts and may give us a fresh, new commitment to you. One that is not born out of duty. One that is not born out of academic or theological understanding, but one that is born out of our hearts as manifested by our commitment with our mind, body, soul, and strength to love you, to wait, Lord, for your coming, to rejoice, to encourage one another in love and grace.
We know that you died for our sins and that you are interceding for us, that you are giving us that joy. Lord, we should shout thank you. Thank you for this church who shines as a light in this darkness. Lord, please strengthen this church for your glory. Amen and amen.
Amen. Please stand as we