In Christ Alone (Psalm 15:1)

“Oh Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill?”
– Psalm 15:1

Now those are good questions. Who in the world could dwell on God’s holy hill? The holy God of the universe who is perfect in all his ways, completely right, totally holy and just. He hates that which is sinful. So who can dwell with him? What person could dwell with him and what you see in the verses right after this is you see a picture of someone who walks blamelessly, who does what is right, who speaks truth in his heart, doesn’t slander with his tongue, doesn’t do evil to his neighbor. Doesn’t take up a reproach against his friend, who is honored by people, who honors those who fear God, who at cost to himself, looks out for others and never takes a bribe against the innocent or takes advantage of someone else.

Only through Jesus Christ can we be welcomed into the presence of God. In Him, we have communion with God.

So it gives this list of things that are required to be in the presence of God and the reality is by the end of it, you think, “Okay, I don’t do all those things. Not perfectly.” That’s the reality of Psalm 15:1, none of us do, but there is one who does, and his name is Jesus. Jesus walked blamelessly, completely blamelessly, did what is right, every single moment of his life. Spoke truth in his heart. Did not slander with his tongue. Never did evil to his neighbor, and on and on and on throughout the rest of the chapter.

Jesus Makes Communication With God Possible

So the only way, the only way for us to pray in a minute, the only way for us to sojourn in the tent of God, to dwell on his holy hill, to walk with God, to enjoy a relationship with God, the only way that is possible is through Jesus, through his sinless life and his substitutionary death on a cross for our sins and then his victorious resurrection from the grave. Jesus alone makes dwelling on God’s holy hill possible.

When we place in him, then we are invited to God’s holy hill. We are invited to sojourn in his tent. That is an awesome thought and that then leads us,  to want to live the way the rest of Psalm 15 plays out. We want to walk blamelessly, we want to do what’s right, we want to speak truth in our heart, we don’t want to slander our neighbor with our tongue. We want to honor our neighbor. However, we don’t want to take advantage of them, all of these things that we see in Psalm 15. Not things we could do to earn the favor of God, but things we do because we have been granted in Christ the favor of God.

Psalm 15:1 Praises God For Allowing Us To Be With Him

Oh, God we praise you. We praise you for allowing us the privilege right now of sojourning in your tent. I am so awed right now even as I say that, just overwhelmed in a fresh way. Oh God, for this privilege of sojourning in your tent, dwelling on your holy hill, being with you right now. So God, we don’t deserve this and we praise you, Lord Jesus, for making this possible. We praise you for your blamelessness, for your righteousness, for your perfection, your sinless perfection and so by faith in you, even as we pray just a moment in Jesus’ name, in your name.

We pray because we know this prayer is only possible through you because of you and so we thank you for this privilege and then we pray. Oh God, help us then. Help us to live like this. Help us to live like we are dwelling on your holy hill. And help us to live like we are sojourning in your tent, in communion with you. So may your life in us overflow into our lives today. God, may be it so. Help us to sojourn in your tent, dwell on your holy hill as we walk through our days in a way that brings great glory and honor to your name. In Jesus’ name we enjoy this privilege and we pray. Amen.