Anticipating Worship: The Joy of Arrival
Psalms 122
April 24, 2022
Tonight we return to our study of Psalms
And specifically these Songs of Ascents.
Psalms 120 – 134 is sort of the UNOFFICIAL HYMNAL of Israel for those specific times in which they traveled to Jerusalem for one of those 4 major feasts.
We certainly see them in their historical relevance and understand them from that ancient Jewish perspective.
However, at the same time we see them as songs to be sung even today by those who still love the physical gathering of the people of God.
And in a day when physical church attendance is dropping in priority
It is a breath of fresh air to us to be reminded what a blessing it is
To gather physically with the saints to worship the Lord.
We’ve already seen 2 of these Psalms
And we see A SMALL PROGRESSION emerge.
Psalms 120 showed us a Psalmist who was ready to make the journey to Jerusalem for worship.
• He lived among liars.
• He lived among people who didn’t want peace.
• He was eager to travel to Jerusalem simply as a sanctuary from evil.
And that is certainly one of the blessings of gathering with the saints.
For a brief moment we get a reprieve from the immorality and filth and deception and anger of the world and we enter a sanctuary of truth and justice.
Psalms 121 showed us the Psalmist as he stepped out his door to make the journey.
• He contemplated the rough terrain and the high hills.
• He contemplated the weather and the elements.
• He contemplated the dangers of evil men and camping at night.
• And yet he trusted that God would protect him on his journey.
And while we likely don’t fret too much the physical journey to church,
We do understand the hardships of journey to Zion.
And we rejoice in God’s grace to keep us from stumbling
As we anticipate the great eternal gathering of the saints.
So thus far we’ve seen
• Our Psalmist anticipate worship.
• Our Psalmist begin the journey.
In Psalms 122 he arrives safely in Jerusalem.
(2) “Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem”
And don’t read that verse without first remembering the prayer of Psalms 121.
Psalms 121:1-8 “I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; The LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, Nor the moon by night. The LORD will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The LORD will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.”
Psalms 122:2 indicates that all of those hopes were fulfilled.
• God did help.
• God did shade.
• God did keep.
• God did guard.
And now the Psalmist has safely arrived in the city he set out to reach.
That alone is grounds for a song of worship.
But the thrust of Psalms 122 is not the journey he has completed
But rather the joy that he has now arrived
Where his heart longed to be.
And so TONIGHT as we study this Psalm
We contemplate the joy of arriving at worship.
• What do you feel when you pull up in the parking lot?
• What do you expect when you walk in the doors?
• What is your anticipation?
• And even, how do you pray for what is about to occur?
That is what we see in our Psalmist tonight.
We’re going to break this Psalm into 2 main points
#1 THE PLACE HE LOVES
Psalms 122:1-5
This Psalm begins with a great statement that is well worth pondering.
“I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.”
Now we know that even genuine believers can fall out of habit in regard to attendance.
• Hebrews 10 makes it clear that it was “the habit of some” to skip the actual assembly of the saints.
• So it is possible that even the redeemed can be influenced by external circumstances and temptations and fall into the sinful habit of skipping the assembly.
BUT…
Neglect of worship or dread of worship
Is NOT the natural view of the believer.
Dreading worship is an anomaly, it is an aberration,
It is a consequence of a sinful influence.
Once redemption occurs the normal and natural occurrence is that
The believer will be eager to “go to the house of the LORD”
Consider the early church.
Acts 2:43-47 “Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
And of course you remember how later we read:
• That no one had any need for people were even selling their land and bringing
the proceeds in to feed this newly formed church.
And think about it for a moment.
Pentecost occurred during “The Feast of Weeks”.
That was one of those feasts where everyone was required to attend.
And while they were there, the Holy Spirit arrived
And Peter preached resulting in the salvation of 3,000 souls.
At that time there was 1 church on the entire planet.
(I suppose there’s always 1 church, but at that time there was 1 church location)
If these new believers went back home they went with no church. It’s no wonder they stayed, and it’s remarkable that the others sacrificed to allow them to stay.
We call that joy in the gathering.
They loved it.
I remember when we were preparing to go to Africa the first time in 2005 and none of us really knew anything about what to expect.
I was reading some Southern Baptist literature about IMB missions in Africa. And one of the articles said, “Be aware that many of these churches are comprised of new believers and they don’t realize that worship services don’t have to last all day.”
The point is, when a person is saved,
Eagerness to attend worship is a natural occurrence.
Sort of like how a new believer will long to read the Bible – they’ll also long for the saints.
It always puzzles me when we see someone claim salvation on Sunday morning
And then not even return for Sunday night.
When a person is redeemed their desire for worship is natural.
If there is not a desire to worship with the saints in your life,
It DOESN’T necessarily indicate that you are lost,
But at the very least you are BACKSLIDDEN.
The Psalmist said, “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.”
And then we get his STATEMENT OF SATISFACTION.
(2) “Our feet are standing withing your gates, O Jerusalem,”
We’re here!
We’ve made it!
I think it’s worth mentioning at this point
THE PHYSICAL ASPECT of what is occurring.
I hear people say it, and they aren’t wrong.
Things like, “The building is not the church, the people are the church.”
Certainly that is true.
But, I understand growing to love a building or a location.
Does your house not hold memories?
Do you not have locations you fondly remember?
• For sure, if your house burned, you’d rejoice in your family getting out safely.
You’d recognize that wood and bricks aren’t the truest value.
• And yet, there would still be a sadness for that house was the gathering of
so many good memories and moments.
I don’t have a problem with people loving the church’s location
Or even the building.
It is a hallowed place.
It is an important location.
There is something wonderful about pulling up in the parking lot
And walking inside these doors.
I certainly don’t feel the same about entering the grocery store
As I feel about entering this place.
I’m ok with a delight even in the physical location.
Our Psalmist is glad.
His “feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem”
BUT LET’S CONSIDER HIS TRUEST GLADNESS.
• What are his expectations?
• Why is he so glad?
• What is he anticipating?
Well he’s going to give you 3 reasons he is so glad to worship.
These are 3 things that certainly give us joy as we gather here as well.
1) He loves the: FELLOWSHIP AND UNITY (3)
“Jerusalem, that is built as a city that is compact together.”
I DON’T THINK he’s marveling at the architecture or city plan here.
I know the disciples did that from time to time.
One Bible translation translated this verse, “Jerusalem, that is built as a city that is at unity with itself.”
The idea is tightness.
The idea is togetherness.
The idea is unity.
• This man traveled from far away to enter this city for worship.
• And as his feet landed in Jerusalem he saw people from all over the country side.
BUT GUESS WHY THEY WERE ALL HERE.
They had all traveled here for the exact same reason.
I think about when we take the youth to camp, or when I’ve gone to a pastor’s conference.
• You pull up and get out of the vehicle and you know that everyone here is here
for the exact same reason as me.
• And there’s a great unity and a fellowship in that unity.
And this is one of the reasons we love to come to a place of worship.
(You miss this when you just try to worship alone or worship online)
The church was meant to enjoy this unity.
You are aware of the foundation for this:
John 17:20-21 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; 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.”
• That wasn’t just everyone getting along.
• Jesus was talking about common spiritual life.
But that is certainly the basis for our unity.
It’s why we all get along
Paul fleshed out the idea of practical unity for us.
Ephesians 4:1-6 “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.”
This is how we come.
• “one body”
• “one Spirit”
• “one hope”
• “one Lord”
• “one faith”
• “one baptism”
• “one God and Father”
And the real joy is in knowing that this is shared by everyone here.
I was actually thinking about this as I was sitting on the stage at Jayton before preaching a funeral this past Friday.
There is an ENTIRELY DIFFERENT FEEL when sitting in church on a Sunday preparing to preach versus sitting at a funeral and preparing to preach.
For the most part, when I preach here on Sundays there is an overwhelming sense that the majority are eager to hear what is going to be said.
• You can feel the unity and its calming and encouraging to know that you are
preaching to people for the most part want to hear it.
But at a funeral that is not the feeling you get.
• There is totally different feeling as you realize that there will be many in the
room who absolutely do not want to hear a sermon.
It is that UNITY OF FELLOWSHIP that makes gathering here so great.
• We are unified in Spirit.
• We are unified in hope.
• We are unified in the Lord.
You can’t get that anywhere else in the world.
That is one of the reasons our Psalmist is so happy to be in Jerusalem
And it’s why we are happy to be here.
There’s another reason he loves that place so much.
2) He loves the: FRUIT OF REDEMPTION (4)
“To which the tribes go up, even the tribes of the LORD – an ordinance for Israel – To give thanks to the name of the LORD.”
Look at the Individual Elements of the things he notices.
• He sees DIVERSITY – “the tribes”
• He sees REDEMPTION – “tribes of the LORD”
• He sees OBEDIENCE – “an ordinance for Israel”
• He sees GRATITUDE – “To give thanks”
What does that mean?
Here you have people from different backgrounds and different cultures.
• They are from different geographic regions.
• They speak different languages.
• They like different foods.
• They look different.
And yet, the one thing they have in common is that
They have all been redeemed by the LORD.
THEY ARE HIS TRIBES.
And they are here because He commanded them to come
• This is a congregation of people who obey the Lord.
• This is a gathering of people who prioritize worship.
And they eagerly come to give thanks to the God who has redeemed them.
• This is a people of gratitude.
• They aren’t here to grumble.
THESE PEOPLE (despite their differences)
ALL ACT LIKE SAVED PEOPLE.
THE CHURCH IS UNIQUE LIKE THAT
This is the joy that many of you have felt on THE MISSION FIELD.
• You walk into a church building on the other side of the world.
• They sing a song in a language you don’t know.
• Every word you speak has to be interpreted.
• They dress differently…
• They eat different food…
• They look different…
AND YET YOU RICHLY FELLOWSHIP WITH THEM – WHY?
Because they have been saved by the same God who saved you,
And they love Him too.
It’s the only thing you have in common and that is more than enough.
Galatians 3:28-29 “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.”
We might say “neither African nor American, neither Asian nor Hispanic”
And this of course is a foretaste of heaven.
Revelation 7:9-12 “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”
What a great joy!
We are all unique, but we share this common bond of redemption.
AND EVEN BEYOND THAT
We actually enjoy the diversity of our own personal differences,
Because even our differences are uniquely designed
For the edification of the body.
• Paul reminded us that not everyone is an eye or a foot or a hand.
• The Holy Spirit uses each of us differently, but always for the same end goal
which is the edification of the body.
AND THAT IS A TRUE JOY IN GATHERING TOGETHER.
What the Psalmist recognizes as he looks over the diverse crowds
Is that they all share the common bond of redemption.
No matter where they came from or what their particular interests are,
They are all here in obedience to the Lord to give thanks to Him!
That makes church a wonderful place to be.
Why would you want to be any place else?
There’s a third thing he loves.
3) FORESHADOW OF JUSTICE (5)
“For there thrones were set for judgment, The thrones of the house of David.”
This of course doesn’t just reference the temple, but all of Jerusalem.
He recognizes David’s throne.
And it is a throne of justice.
• It of course was a foreshadow of the coming Messiah who would reign on David’s throne.
Isaiah 11:1-5 “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.”
THAT KING IS COMING.
• Currently it was David’s throne and the Messiah was not yet here.
• But you did have all Israel gathered together in submission to that throne.
• And it was a picture of a coming promise that one day the true King would arrive and he would rule from that throne in justice over the whole world.
And this is something we love about the gathering of the saints today.
When we gather in this building
• We certainly want to obey Scripture and submit to the governing authorities,
• We certainly want to honor the king as Scripture teaches.
But at our core the reality remains that we serve 1 King.
We serve Jesus Christ.
We are citizens of a heavenly kingdom.
We bow the knee to heaven’s king.
• We aren’t ruled by earthly powers…
• We aren’t ruled by logic…
• We aren’t governed by majority…
THE CHURCH IS NOT A DEMOCRACY!
IT IS A THEOCRACY.
Christ is head!
Christ is King!
Christ is Lord!
We bow to Him, we follow Him, we serve Him.
What He says goes.
And what you see currently in the church
Is a picture of what it will one day be like on the whole earth.
It is a foretaste of glory divine.
It is a foretaste of Christ’s millennial reign!
And it is one of the things we love about being here.
SO PICTURE NOW OUR PSALMIST ENTERING JERUSALEM.
His feet walked through the gates and joy fills his soul.
• He is among those who are redeemed.
• He is among those who are here for the same reason he is.
• He is among those who serve heaven’s king.
It is enough to make one wish
We could gather in this place and never leave.
THIS IS THE PLACE HE LOVES.
And we love this place.
• It’s more than bricks and lumber. (though we love that too)
• It is a place where the redeemed gather.
• It is a place where we come for the same purpose.
• It is a place where we get a taste of what is coming some day.
How could you not be glad when they say to you, “Let us go to the house of the LORD”?
We love this place!
The Place He Loves
#2 THE PRAYER HE SOLICITS
Psalms 122:6-9
Solicits may not actually be a strong enough word.
It reads more like a command.
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:”
First of all you recognize that the word “peace”
Dominates these final 4 verses.
There is a reason for that.
The Hebrew word for “peace” is SHALOM
Which runs very closely to the word Jerusalem.
Jerusalem was to be the city of peace.
Remember when the writer of Hebrews spoke about Melchizedek
Hebrews 7:1-2 “For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace.”
“Salem” there is “peace”
That is true for the church as well.
This ought to be a place of peace.
Remember back in Psalms 120
This is why the Psalmist wanted to come so bad.
Psalms 120:6-7 “Too long has my soul had its dwelling With those who hate peace. I am for peace, but when I speak, They are for war.”
This place should be a place of peace.
And the Psalmist TELLS YOU TO PRAY to that end.
“May they prosper who love you. May peace be within your walls, And prosperity within your palaces.”
Do you want a prayer to pray for the church?
THERE IT IS.
• Pray for God to bless those who love the church.
• Pray that peace will abound within the walls of this church.
• Pray that prosperity will be here.
Now, someone might balk at that initially and say, “That sounds a little bit like the prosperity gospel.”
No, this guy isn’t hoping that serving the church will make him rich,
He’s praying that the church will prosper and be a place of peace.
WHY?
Well, there’s 2 reasons.
(8) “For the sake of my brothers and my friends, I will now say, “May peace be within you.”
He prays for peace and prosperity for the church
Because a prospering peaceful church benefits his brothers and friends.
We certainly don’t put our hope in temporal things,
And we certainly steer away from the love of money.
However, we still understand that when the church does well and walks in peace that it is a blessing to those who worship there.
• How many youth have enjoyed going to camp because of the prosperity of the
church?
• Where do things like DiscipleNow come from?
• It is a blessing to have air conditioning and a church van and padded pews
• And food to serve on Wednesday nights, etc.
We are grateful for God’s provision and blessing and prosperity
Which He pours upon His church and we even pray for it.
IT BENEFITS THE SAINTS.
But there’s another reason he prays for the church’s peace and prosperity.
(9) “For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your good.”
He wants Jerusalem to prosper
Because it DIRECTLY effects the house of worship.
And thus it INDIRECTLY attributes to the glory of God.
We pray for the church to prosper to the glory of God.
We pray for the church to be at peace to the glory of God.
• We certainly understand that the church has always thrived through persecution, and should it come we would not fear.
• Yet, when called to pray, we pray for peace;
We certainly don’t desire a church that does not dwell in peace.
Paul rebuked the Corinthians several times for the divisions among them.
We pray for peace.
2 Corinthians 13:11 “Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.”
We pray for the prosperity of the church to the glory of God.
• What a blessing to be able to send money to others
• We think of the Philippians giving to help the Jerusalem saints
• As one put it: “We are blessed to be a blessing, with enough to give enough”
We plead with God to make His church dwell in peace and prosperity.
It is a blessing to have such a place where we can freely and openly proclaim the gospel and worship God in song.
We thank God for blessings like instruments and people who can play them, for air conditioning and lights and things of that nature.
BUT WHEN YOU CONTEMPLATE IT ALL
What do we learn here?
Namely that the gathering of the redeemed is a place of joy!
I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD”
• It is a joy to the soul to be afforded the privilege of attending this place.
• It is a joy to the soul to gather with the redeemed.
• We pray that it is a gathering that makes other people glad as well.
• We pray that it is a gathering that glorifies God and makes Him glad.
And we pray that it remains that way.
We pray for the peace and prosperity of this place.
For this place represents far more to us than just a building.
This is the building where we worship God.
May it always be pure joy just to walk through the doors!
Psalms 100 “Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth. Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing. Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations.”
