(A meditation on Psalm 84:9-12)
9 Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed!
10 For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!
The psalmists here add a third blessing in this psalm. This blessing is the blessing of trusting in the Lord. Verse 9 opens with a prayer that God would see. “Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed!” The Anointed is none other than the Son of David, the king, the Messiah.
The sons of Korah declare that the Lord's anointed is their shield. Of course we sing this psalm and we say that the Anointed, the Son of David, is our Lord Jesus the Christ. He is the Good King who is our Shield and Protector until the end.
So we pray, “O God, when you look upon your people, do not look at our sins. Do not look at us! Rather, look on our shield look on the face of your Anointed!”
As we walk on this pilgrimage, as we pass through the Valley of Tears, we ask that our God would look upon the face of the Lord Jesus Christ. Because it is that face that we adore! It is that face that we behold with unveiled faces as we look into the word of God, and see Jesus exalted at God's right hand.
“For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.” One day with God is better than three years anywhere else. Do you believe that?
What we do in public corporate worship is designed to be a reminder of this. We hear God's voice speaking in his word. We see Jesus as He reveals Himself in the breaking of the bread. We share in the joy of the Holy Spirit as we sing the praises of the living God. We come to the heavenly Mount Zion, the New Jerusalem, and we gather with all the saints from all ages, and we hear the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ proclaimed.
“A day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere! I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” I'd rather be a servant, a doorkeeper, someone who has to stay by the door and be ready for unexpected guests, than being a master in the tents of wickedness.
You see, there is no menial task in the house of the LORD. Everything we do before God is glorious. To serve Christ is no small thing. If your hearts are tuned to worship God, it doesn't matter whether you're a doorkeeper or a teacher in the house of God. Each one is important!
In verse 11, we can see clearly that the one who comes to worship the living God comes with the expectation that God will bestow favor and honor. We come to worship with eager anticipation that our loving Father will speak to us, that our beloved Lord Jesus will feed us, and that we will be filled with His Holy Spirit.
We need to believe that the Triune God fulfills what He promises and bestows favor and honor upon His people. And He does this by His Word and Spirit.
He gives all good things to those who walk uprightly. Jesus reflects on this when He says that the Father will give the Spirit to those who ask. As you go or drive to church on Sunday morning, do you ask God to give good things to His people?
Finally, the psalmists say, “O Lord of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!” This verse fits beautifully with what our Lord Jesus said about the Psalms that speak of Him, because Jesus is the blessed man who trusted in the Lord of hosts. He is the one who sang this Psalm throughout his life, throughout His pilgrimage on earth. He longed for the courts of the living God! He knew that a day in the heavenly courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.
And because Jesus is the blessed man, therefore God looks upon the face of His Anointed, and grants His favor and honor to those who trust in Jesus.
As you come to worship, come with longing! Come with joy because you know that here you will meet with the living God. Here you will gain strength in His courts so that you might journey from strength to strength, until the day that you appear before him in Zion.
You see, life’s true purpose, its fullest joy, its deepest satisfaction is found in communion and worship with God together with His people. It is in serving the Lord in complete dependence and delight in Him and in trusting His gracious provision and protection.
You need to understand that this God whom you worship is everything to you. He has supplied your deepest needs and desires. So who would not want to be with God and commune and worship with Him? He is God our blessedness. He is our delight!
To those of you who have been in the church since you were a little child, I'm sure it breaks your heart every time you can't be in the house of the Lord and to be with His people to worship Him. I'm sure that by the grace of God, you will never get tired of serving Him in His house.
I tell you there’s no place I’d rather be on the face of this earth than in the assembly of God’s people, worshiping God, gathered to praise His holy Name Lord’s Day after Lord’s Day.
The saints and servants of God delights being in the house of the Lord. So did these temple servants and doorkeepers, the sons of Korah. They loved to be in the house of the Lord for there their trust in God is nurtured and strengthened. And no good thing will he withhold from those who walk in wholehearted devotion to Him. How blessed is the man who trust in the goodness of God!
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