Over the course of some great activity packed days, I truly missed sitting at the feet of Jesus, meditating on His word and receiving thoughts to ponder on and share. I could definitely agree with the Psalmist that my heart longed to be in the courts of the Lord!
“Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere!”
Psalm 84 is a beautiful Psalm that oozes praise of God. All you have to do is read some of those statements to understand its beauty.
“How lovely is your dwelling place!My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD;Blessed are those who dwell in your house.Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere;I would rather
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Apparently, his sons made a spiritual turn-around and one part of the family became the temple doorkeepers and guardians (I Chronicles 9:17, Psalm 84:10), while another part became musicians, singers, and choristers of the temple. Psalms 84-87 and 42-49 were penned by this family. They wrote such powerful passages as, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for Thee, O God” (Ps 42:1).
What a wonderful expression that is of the excitement created by the presence of God.
These verses chronicle for us how important worship had become to these people. To the sons of Korah, the presence of God was more important than any position they could hold. They would rather be doorkeepers in God’s house than have important positions and security.
As we read this psalm today, we can surely empathise with the psalmist’s love of the temple. But is there anything more here for us? In particular, where are God’s courts today? What, to us, is like the temple for the writer of Psalm 84?
First, when we, as Christians, talk about the dwelling place of God, we learn from the New Testament that we are talking about our bodies. Paul says in First Corinthians 6 that our bodies are the ‘temples’ of the Holy Spirit who lives within
St. Albans Psalter Psalm 68 is not long, but it does have lots of detailed material to study the author’s choice of language, and the power of the images that are being conveyed to the readers through an emotional and sentimental way. The simplicity of this psalm’s gives it power, since it expresses an emotional despair in a careful shaped prayer, which comes from a human being in what seems to be a life-threatening situation. In the image and the content, the psalmist’s travels an arc of desperation to salvation, in a vivid personal plea to Christ to save him from what seems to be a swirling vortex of hopelessness that threatens to pull him under forever.
...h the Hymns were fragments of Wisdom literature, Barki nafshi or “Bless My Soul”, and were probably grouped together due to their similarities in translation. In them there is a sense of God’s longing for, and care for man; His intentional desire to be in relationship with mankind. An example of this can be found in fr. i (4Q434), “ He has been gracious to the humble by His great kindness, and has opened their eyes to see His ways, and [thei]r e[ar]s to hear His teachings. He has circumcised the foreskin of their heart, and has delivered them because of His kindness, and directed their feet towards the way.” In reading both the Hymns and Wisdom literature I could not help but wonder the extent to which the author spent studying the books of Moses to consecrate Himself and maintain a purity with what was originally required of those exiting Egypt influence.
David said his soul will “make a boast in the Lord” (v:2). David does not dwell on his experience, nor even on his deliverance, but on his Deliverer. The Lord is both the subject and the object of David's praise. Psalm reminds me of the fellowship of praise, for the most part praise can be private, However, that is not the kind of praise which psalms practice and promote. When David publicly praise God at worship, he did so purposing to promote worship on the part of the entire congregation., for the most part, those who loved God, as David did, have the right to rejoice and praise God with him. In Romans 12:15, Paul's teaching indicates that the new testament worship should be a sharing in the joys of the fellow- Christians: “rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. David therefore urges his fellow-worshipers to join with him in magnifying the Lord so that His name will be corporately exalted (v:3). In Psalm 34 speak of David's deliverance, this poor man cried and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles, and the angels encamped around those who feared Him, and rescues
The book of Psalms is one of the most useful books all throughout the Biblical text. It is not just a book of stories or law but personal praises, laments, and the deepest cries of the soul to the one true King: Yahweh. The Psalter is “the most reliable theological, pastoral, and liturgical resource given us in the biblical tradition” (pp. 1). These psalms pave a path for practical faith in the world today. Author, theologian, and teacher, Walter Brueggemann, goes into depth on the psalms of orientation, disorientation, and new orientation to discuss that through the unexpected high and low seasons of life one can turn to the Psalms for authentic conversation with God.
Psalm 89 of the Book of Psalms, advocates the message of consequentialism, foreground by man’s relationship with God, with direct lin...
This is nothing else but the abode of God and that is the gateway to heaven.’ Early the next morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head, set it up as a memorial stone and poured oil on top of it…This stone that I have set up as a memorial stone shall be God’s abode.” Genesis 28:16-18, 22. Wherever the Blessed Virgin Mary appears, the spot becomes a holy ground and therefore “God’s abode”. A chapel is then built on the spot for prayers and the worship of
Psalm 113 reads like a 1st century pep talk for those with spiritual burnout. The writer makes his case for the Lord by pointing to the many ways that God earns our praise. These nine verses of scripture are saturated with three specific reasons to praise the Lord – He is Su...
As I walked up the street toward the front of Grace Cathedral, I was in awe at the size and ornateness of this cathedral. It was tall and wide and looked very much like the churches we had been studying in class in the prior weeks. As I got closer and closer I began to make out The Ghiberti Doors, also known as the gates of paradise. These are the main cathedral doors made out of bronze, and are replicas of the originals which stood centuries ago at the east entrance to the Baptistry of Florence Cathedral (the Duomo) Italy. I approached and spent about fifteen minutes, just examining all the different engraved scenes within the ten sections in the two doors. After I had finished looking at the Ghiberti Doors, I entered through one of the side doors, since you are not able to use the Ghiberti Doors, because they weight too much. Before I stepped inside the cathedral, I pulled out my text analysis and read over it, so that when I entered I could examine whether or not this cathedral exuded the same sacredness as the cathedral in the text analysis. I feel this Cathedral really does exude not entirely the purity of heaven, but does seem to somewhat separate you from the outer world, as Abbot Suger spoke of. Also, it brings in some of the surrounding beauty from St. Denis, such as the sapphire and stained glass, as well as the gold plating.
Today’s culture is one where people like to do as little work as possible. Even when it comes to reading our own scripture, The Holy Words of God, a lot of people like to look up one verse and reference it to something without knowing what the rest of the passage says. Psalms 109 is no exception, it is one the more widely misused passages as of late. A popular verse from Psalms 109 is verse 8 which reads “Let his days be few; and let another take his office”, this is seen in reference to our current president, but what people fail to realize is what else David is actually praying. This paper is going to go through Psalms 109 and unpack it verse by verse to show the true meaning of what David was praying and to give us a new look at how to pray.
The idea that heaven is an actual place is regarded as many as the natural state of heaven, however within Christianity there are different views about the when and how of heaven. There are three views, heaven is an actual place you go to with a body. Heaven is a spiritual sate where you are disembodied and finally heaven is happening now, it is present. I will argue that if heaven does exist its most coherent existence would be as an actual place. The idea presented that heaven as a place that is happening now is the idea that we are already under God's Kingly rule, so we therefore are already in heaven because 'heaven' is a state in which God will rule, and if we are already following is rule it must be now.
In Psalm 8, the place of human beings is emerged clearer than in Genesis. Humans are given
Although the Book of Psalms mostly focuses on “worship, praise, and dependence” (Vang and Carter 204), the first chapter opens with an important wisdom warning that there are two paths of life available that people can choose from. One path leads to righteousness and blessing from God, and the other path foolishly leads to wickedness, curse, and destruction from God. Psalm 1 provides insight that there are two ultimate destinies in life, and only one path leads to blessing and eternal benefits with God. The purpose of this paper is to explain what Psalm 1 is teaching about blessing.
When I was a child I used to be frightened of entering such a place for it seemed so imposing and somewhat dangerous, especially when music was being played. One day, in order to keep a promise I had made, I saw myself forced to enter. It took me quite a while to get the courage to pass through the old oak door, but the moment I stepped in, I realized just how enchanting and breathtaking this building could be. Its fantastic architecture and exquisite frescoes reflect perfectly the unity between this earth and the unseen kingdom of angels in such a manner that one cannot say where one ends and the other begins. The way in which the church was built is also the vivid testimony of a medieval period. Although it is a place that can sometimes be cold and ask for respect it is where prayers are answered and magic is done. An overwhelming feeling of inner harmony takes over you once you enter and God seems much closer. Darkness and light are welded perfectly together creating Redemption’s house. The tower allows you to see the entire town from the smallest river to the biggest building site, offering you its mightiness.
Pearl gates, marble stairs and a throne of gold, or an inner area in the hidden depths of our own soul? Which can describe the true kingdom of God, a real physical world or a place that is only seen in ones hearts. Some would say it to be a place above man, built by God to be a home for peoples' souls after death. Others might say that it is no more than a place inside us that can only be reached through the right decisions and acts of kindness.
The greatest place ever seen in heaven or on earth is the Kingdom of God. God has given us a divine invitation to dwell in His Kingdom. Do we have a full understanding of what this means for us? Gaining understanding would be one of the wisest decisions we have ever made.