Summer in the Palms:
Psalm 15: The Ultimate Q and A
Pastor Jefferson M. Williams
Chenoa Baptist Church
07-25-2021
Strongly Recommend?
As an adjunct professor at Moody Bible Institute, I have former students that ask me to do recommendations for them as they head off to seminary. I’ve filled out a lot of these forms and they all basically asked the same questions.
The questions focus not so much on what kind of student they were in undergrad but what kind of person they are now. There’s questions about their honesty, integrity, their ability to work with teams and under pressure. Their undergraduate GPA is important but their heart and the type of person they are more important.
The forms are trying to get at this question - is this the type of student that we want at this school and representing this institution? The last question on the form is always, “Based on what you know of this individual, would you recommend them be admitted to this program?” The choices are strongly recommend, recommend, recommend with qualifications, do not recommend. I’ve yet to say no to that question but I would if it was the truth.
If I had to write a recommendation for you to get into heaven, could I do it? Are you the kind of person that God allows to come into His presence? Is there a test that we have to take? And if so, could any of us pass it?
Background
Psalm 15 was written by David but that’s all we really know about it. It doesn’t give us any hint of a date or a circumstance that would have prompted its writing.
Some commentators believe it could have been written when David brought the ark of God back to Jerusalem, dancing in his underwear in all his might (proving he wasn’t a Baptist!) (see 2 Sam 6)
It is what is called an entrance liturgy psalm. It could very well be a kind of Q and A script that a priest would use as worshippers approached the Temple to worship.
This Psalm asks a rhetorical question (who may enter God’s presence?) and then gives eleven ethical qualifications for those who God welcomes.
Psalm 24 asks the same question and there David focuses more on the ritual than the moral:
"Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.” (Psalm 24:3-4)
[Slide] David begins Psalm 15 with the most important question in the universe - who is qualified to come into God’s presence?
Turn to Psalm 15.
Prayer.
Who can Get In?
David begins with the question:
[Slide] “Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?” (v. 1)
He begins the Psalm by addressing the covenant name of God - Yahweh. This the promise-keeping God who’s love endures forever.
David’s two questions are basically the same but with a slight twist.
First, he asked who may “dwell” in your “sacred tent?” The word “dwell” can be translated “sojourn.” This implies a temporary guest in God’s tent, the place of God’s presence among the Israelites before the temple was built.
There were no Holiday Inns at this time and to give refuge to a foreign traveler would be expected in that culture.
The second question is stronger. Who may “live” on your “holy mountain?” (See Psalm 2:6) This is more of a permanent residence than just a temporary visit.
A resident alien would have no right of residence but would be there as gracious guest of the host.
No one actually lived at the Temple, but there were priests that worked at the Temple and were allowed, at certain times, to enter into God’s presence in the “holy of holies.”
David doesn’t want to visit God’s presence every once in a while. He wants to live there permanently.
The Sons of Korah feel the same way in Psalm 84:
“How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.” (Psalm 84:1,4)
As lot of people want to try to keep as much distance between them and God as possible. David was the opposite. He wanted to be as close to God as he could be.
So the opening question is what kind of man or woman will be allowed to dwell in God’s presence?
David gives eleven qualifications in this short Psalm that tells us what type of person passes God’s entrance test.
Let’s take the test together. It’s will be good for us. For those who aren’t Christians yet, it will help you know what god requires. For those of you who are new Christians, it will help to know if we are on the right track. For us more seasoned believers, it will be a good check up for us.
Paul encourages the Corinthian Christians to examine themselves:
“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?” (2 Cor 13:5)
[Slide] The Walk Test
[Slide] “The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous…” (v.2)
The first qualification for entrance into God’s presence is personal holiness.
?In Hebrew, the word “walk” means your overall direction in life, your daily conduct.
Ethan the Ezrahite writes in Psalm 89:
“Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord.” (Psalm 89:15)
John agrees:
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. (I John 1:7)
Don’t be thrown off by the word “blameless.” This doesn’t mean sinless perfection. It means “integrity” which means to be whole, what you see is what you get, you are the same person on Monday through Saturday that you are on Sunday morning.
[Slide] On Tuesday night, The Milwaukee Bucks won the NBA Championship by beating the Phoenix Suns behind 50 and 14 by Giannis Antetokounmpo. After game, the Suns head coach, Monty Williams surprised the Bucks locker room by asking and saying:
“I don’t want to take away from. I just wanted to come and congratulate you guys as a man, because you guys deserve it. And I’m thankful for the experience. You guys made me a better coach. You made us a better team. Congratulations.”
Twitter erupted and many people said that they had never seen a coach do that before. He was called a “class act” and a word that came up again and again was “integrity.”
Noah was called “blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.” (Gen 6:9)
And Job:
“In the land of Uz there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright; he feared God and shunned evil…”
If you remember our study from Psalm 19, David writes;
“Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression.” (Psalm 19:13)
The second phrase is similar - who does, or who works, what is righteous.
Remember that, on this side of the cross, we don’t work for our salvation, we work out our salvation:
“…continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” (Phil 2:12-13)
We are saved by faith alone but faith alone doesn’t save. James drives the point home:
“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2:14-17)
What doing what is righteous look like? The prophet Micah’s words speak loudly to us in our culture;
“He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:8)
Jesus summed up the entire law by saying that we must “Love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul, and all our mind, and all our strength.” (Mark 12:30).
How are you doing on the walk test? Because what comes next is even harder - the talk test.
[Slide] The Talk Test
[Slide] “…who speaks the truth from their heart; whose tongue utters no slander.” (v2b-3a)
Our attitudes lead to actions, in particular, the way we use our words.
In a recent survey, people were asked who have you lied to lately. 86% said parents. 75% said friends. Many of those questioned said that they had called in sick when they weren’t actually sick.
Diogenes, the Greek philosopher, spent his entire life studying, thinking about, and searching for honest people. In the end, he concluded there were no honest people to be found.
The person that God accepts speaks the truth from their heart, not just their lips. This is not just what is correct but what is sure and trustworthy.
Jesus, quoting Isaiah, said this about the Pharisees:
“‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (Matt 15:8)
They were hypocrites, whitewashed tombs that looked good on the outside but was full of death on the inside.
A man or woman after God’s own heart is honest at the very core of their being.
While the first part of the couplet is positive, the second half is negative.
My mother-in-law told me for years, “Words are Spirit. Use them wisely.”
At our pool outreach, there were three teenager boys in the pool trying to flirt with the lifeguard. One of them said that something was “retarded.” She sat straight up in her chair and told him in a very stern voice to not say that again. He said, “What are you going to do, kick me out over a word?”
I called him to the side of the pool and told him, in no uncertain terms that she absolutely could kick him out of the pool over that word and I didn’t want to him him say it again.
Later, we had a talk about why that word is so offense and he agreed that he didn’t want to make people who are special feel bad. He later came over and eat a whole bunch of hotdogs.
Words matter.
This person does not slander others. The word slander means to spy things out or spread things around. It can be translated as backbiting. In fact, the devil is called a “slanderer.”
I heard of a lady who went to doctor because she as bitten by a rabid dog a month before. The doctor told her that it was too late to save her. She took out a legal pad and started furiously scribbling. The doctor asked if she was writing her will. She said, “Nope, writing the names of people I’m going to bite!”
Pastor James Montgomery Boice wrote this concerning slander and gossip:
“I think more damage has been done to the church by gossip, criticism, and slander than by any other sin. So I say don’t do it. Bite your tongue before you criticize another Christian.”
James agrees:
"All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. (James 3:7-10)
Charles Simeon, a pastor in the early 19th century, laid down some rules that I think are still very relevant today, especially in the realm of social media:
To hear as little as possible what is to the prejudice of others.
To believe nothing of the kind until I am absolutely force to it.
Never to drink into the spirit of one who circulates an ill report.
Always to moderate, as far as I can, the unkindness which is expressed toward others.
Always to believe that if the other side were heard, a very different account would be given of the matter.
Paul gave the Ephesian believers a grid that they could look to concerning their words:
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” (Eph 4:29)
Could you pass this test? Or would your words convict you?
[Slide] The Relationship Test
[Slide] “…who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others…” (v. 3b-c)
Now the test moves from our talk to our relationships. Specifically, our neighbors and our friends.
Our neighbors are anyone in our sphere of influence. Jesus said we must love our “neighbor as we love ourselves.” (Luke 10:27)
The Psalmist also says that this person “cast no slurs on others [friends].” To cast a slur literally means “to strip.” It is the stripping of one’s dignity through gossip and slander.
The one that is acceptable in God’s sight is a loyal friend to all, whether it be someone in their neighborhood, school, or one of their best friends.
How are you doing in this area? Would you pass this test?
[Slide] The Role Model Test
[Slide] who despises a vile person but honors those who fear the Lord;
David moves from the relationships with people in our lives to those we look up to - our role models.
A person that can approach God “despises a vile person.” The word “vile” means “rejected by God.” It’s a word picture of the the dross that comes from the furnace. It’s worthless and is discarded.
Now wait. I thought we were supposed to love everyone, even our enemies? (See Matt 5)
Yes, but we are expected to love what God loves and hate what God hates.
“Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.” (Psalm 97:10)
We are not to be jealous of the wicked when they prosper. In Psalm 73, Asaph recalls looking longingly at the lives of the wicked. He envied their easy life and as confused by their success.
"When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord; you will despise them as fantasies.” (Psalm 73:16-20)
When I was a teenager, I wanted to be like Mike, Michael Jeffrey Jordan that is. I had pictures of him on my wall, my brother and I both wanted the shoes, and I broke Maxine’s papasan jumping up and down cheering for the Bulls.
But what we didn’t know then was that we know now is that Michael was an unfaithful husband, a pathological gambler, and a narcissistic bully to his teammates and others.
Yes, he achieved incredible success but he is not the kind of person that we should be honoring.
[I would highly recommend reading any of Tim Tebow’s books!]
We should honor those that “fear the Lord.” Instead of falling victim to our culture’s propensity of worshiping people that are terrible in real life, we can honor those who love and serve and sacrifice for the kingdom.
Just this week, we got an email from our friends in a foreign country who just had an addition to their family. But it wasn’t just a baby!
Our friend S has a best friend in that country and he contacted him this week to say that his older brother is now, as they carefully put it, “a follower of the One that brings life and hope.”
It’s hard enough being new parents but try doing it in another culture. And still they are committed to the Gospel being spread in places were it is hard.
Those are the kind of people we should honor.
Charles Spurgeon wrote:
“We must be as honest in paying respect as in paying our bills. Honor to whom honor is due. We have no right to hand over what is their due to vile persons who happen to be in high places.”
Are you praying for our missionaries? We only have four - The Ucherek’s in Mexico, The K’s here in Chenoa with their outreach into India, the D’s, and the Hope Pregnancy Center in Pontiac. Could I encourage you to pray for them, send them an email or note, and let’s honor these servants?
How are you doing on this test? Have you given your eyes and heart to anything or anyone God would consider vile this week?
[Slide] The Personal Commitment Test
[Slide] “who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind;”
David continues into the area of personal integrity. This person let’s their yes be yes and their no be no (see Matthew 5:37)
I heard a really amazing story this week about Jim Voss. He was a criminal mastermind who committed his life to Christ and became an evangelist.
He was asked to preach at a small church in California and was excited to go until another call came in asking him to preach a large crusade in Boston. It would have been a lot more exposure and more opportunity to share the Gospel.
He decided that he had made a commitment to that little church in California and his word was his word so he told the Boston crusade organizers no.
The next week, FBI agents broke down his door and arrested him for a huge bank robbery in Boston. It seemed that the agency didn’t believe that he was actually born again and changed and had been monitoring him.
When the bank robbery happened in Boston, they knew it had to be him because they heard he had been asked to preach in Boston.
He was able to calmly tell them that he had been in California at a little church that past weekend and their were plenty of witnesses.
Is your word good? How about when you tell someone that you will pray for them? Do you forget? That’s why I try to pray for them right then.
How about when you volunteer to serve? Are you faithful until something else comes along?
Do you honor your promises? Christian psychologist Lewis Smedes writes,
“Promise keeping is a powerful means of grace in a time when people hardly depend on each other to remember and live by their word.”
That’s why I’m so thankful for the examples of marriages in our church family that have lasted 40, 50, 60, and even 70 years. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter just celebrated 75 years of keeping their word to each other.
How are you doing? Would you pass this test? Do you always keep your promises, even when it would bring hurt?
[Slide] The Financial Integrity Test
Next David steps into an area fraught with danger - our finances.
[Slide] “who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.”
Israelites could charge Gentiles and foreigners interest but not each other. The picture is of a fellow Israelite would comes to you for help because their crops have failed and they have no money.
The person that God accepts would never take advantage of someone like that. They would be generous and giving to help meet their need.
They also aren’t taken in by powerful people. Not matter what bribe is offered, it cannot be worth their integrity. In fact, in Deuteronomy, the one who takes a bribe is actually said to be “cursed.”
[Maybe we should make future governors of Illinois memorize this verse]
One study that I read this week, asked people what they would do for 10 million dollars. 25% would abandon their families. 23% would work as a prostitute for a week. 7% would kill a stranger.
Money makes a fantastic servant but a terrible idol.
Isaiah makes this case as well:
“Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?” Those who walk righteously and speak what is right, who reject gain from extortion and keep their hands from accepting bribes…” (Is 33:14-15)
Many years ago, Maxine’s stepdad started his own business. It struggled and they ended up in financial difficulty and came close to losing their car and the house. They went to a financial counselor and she looked at everything and said that the first thing that had to go was their tithe. Then they would file bankruptcy to get out of paying the other bills.
They left her office, added up all their debt, took ten percent, and gave it away. They continued to tithe generously and made a commitment to honor their creditors. They eventually payed everything off and didn’t lose the car or the house.
[Slide] Unshakable
[Slide] Whoever does these things will never be shaken.
This type of person will be on solid ground with God.
Told the parable of two types of builders:
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7:4-27)
Psalm 15 describes a person who is welcome into the presence of God and whose lives will be secure:
"Surely the righteous will never be shaken; they will be remembered forever.” (Psalm 112:6)
Application
1. Before we look at the last verse, let me ask you a question. How do you prepare for corporate worship?
This Psalm was probably an entrance test of sorts to help people understand what was required of them to enter into the presence of God.
One of things that is important to know about our church is that I don’t care at all what you wear. I care about your heart.
While we didn’t have an entrance tests to attend worship this morning, there are things that you can do to prepare your heart for corporate worship.
I asked on Facebook how people prepare for corporate worship on Sunday mornings. Here are a few of the things they said:
I try to quiet my heart and mind and make sure my focus is on God.
Focus on Jesus. Be quiet and wait. Journal.
What seems to help me is to seek out others as I enter or in the isles or in the pews perhaps just to shake a hand or say "Hi, how are you" , but to let them know that someone notices and cares for them. You'd think that might help them (and maybe it does), however, I believe it helps me more that anyone else.
A young mother said, “I generally try to make sure my people are wearing clean clothes... and the ones over 3 at least have shoes with them..”
I listen to worship music or turn on KLove on the way to church. ?
[Slide] Pastor Geoffrey Kirkland gives some pointers about how to prepare your heart for corporate worship:
A. Pray
For God’s glory to be put on display. For the pastor to preach God’s Word with God’s power.
For the other believers to come hungry and desiring to grow in our love for Jesus.
For unbelievers to hear the Gospel clearly and that God would penetrate their hearts and lead them to repentance.
for himself, that he “would focus on Christ, put off all distractions, shun a wandering mind, be pierced to the heart, be comforted, convicted, conformed, and captivated by Christ and by His Word.”
B. Read
read the passage ahead of time. I always send out the Scriptures that I’ll be preaching on next week in our Monday Morning Update email. If you are not on this email, please let me know.
Study the passage, (Psalm 20 for next week), chew on it, meditate on it. Pick a verse and put it on an index card and carrying it with you.
Dustin Benge gives us some ways to be a better sermon listener:
1. Pray for the Spirit's illumination.
2. Expect to hear from God.
3. Know the context of the passage.
4. Resolve to obey its words.
5. Take good notes.
6. Turn off distractions.
7. Read the Bible regularly.
C. Repent
To prepare, a child of God should examine his heart and repent of all known sin. He should kneel and beg God to expose the sins of his heart and life so that he can grow in his Christlikeness. Repenting of all known sin before the sermon can allow the child of God to hear the Word of God with fullness of joy and with eagerness knowing that God is glorified with purity.
D. Anticipate
Do you come to gather with a holy anticipation that God is going to doing something in our midst?
Long to meet with God! Expect to hear from God! Hunger for more of Him. Come with the oven warmed so that when the bread is put into it, it is ready to cook. Anticipate and expect great things when we gather for corporate worship.
E. Implement
Take notes and write down one or two specific ways that you will live out the sermon this next week.
Pray ahead of time to be alert to how you need to change. Then rise from your knees and go to the sermon. Then, when the sermon is over , return to your knees in prayer and asking for God’s help and depending on God’s Spirit to graciously enable you to submit to God’s Word so that you would glorify him in doing of His Word.
2. Would you pass the test?
Are you blameless in all your ways?
Do you always do what is right?
Do you always speak the truth?
Have you ever uttered any slander?
Have you always treated you neighbor with love and respect?
Have you ever been disloyal to a friend?
Have you ever given praise to a vile person?
Have you always honored the ones that fear the Lord?
Have you kept every promises?
Is your word good 100% of the time?
Have you been 100% honest at all times in your finical dealings?
If you can answer yes to all these requirements, you are welcome to step right into the presence of God!
Raise your hand if you made a 100 on the test. Anyone? Bueler? Yeah, I didn’t pass either.
Pastor and writer Paul Tripp says that this Psalm is designed to crush us. It shows how terrible far we are from God’s standard.
Even on our best days, we are not anywhere near passing this test. You see, we aren’t really found in Psalm 15. We are more Psalm 14 kind of people;
“The fool says in his heart - “There is no God.” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good. The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” (Psalm 14:1-3)
Our hearts are desperately wicked.
We need someone who is willing to take the test for us, in our place, and then ace it, and then apply their grade to our paper.
Who could that be? This is where we find Jesus in Psalm 15. There is a blameless man who always does right. He never uttered anything false and never used his words to hurt others. He was a loyal friend ever those who betrayed Him. He despised the vileness of the world and honored those who honored His Father. He kept every promise, especially when it was hard and cost Him his life.
Only Jesus is able to walk freely into God’s Presence. And if we have placed our faith and trust for the forgiveness of our sins in Jesus, then we are in Christ. And if we are in Christ, then listen to these verses from Hebrews:
“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.” (Hebrews 10:19-22)
The writer of of Hebrews also writes that we can “approach the throne of grace with confidence.” (Hebrews 4:16)
Only the righteous can come before God:
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (I Cor 5:21)
Through Jesus, we have full access to God’s Presence, anytime, anywhere.
Christian singer and writer Michael Card’s father was a doctor who would come home from a long shift and lock himself in his study. Michael would draw pictures and slide them under the door, desperately trying to connect with his dad to no avail:
“Desperate stubby fingers pushing pictures neath the door
And longing to be listened to, by the man that I adored.
Inside someone who needed me just as much as I did him
Still unable to unlock the door that stayed closed inside of him.”
When John F. Kennedy was in the White House he had a rule - John John and Caroline could come in the Oval Office at anytime, no matter who was in there or what was going on.
Why? Because they were his children! ?
But before we sing and celebrate, there one more application I need to make.
3. Because we are in Christ, and the Holy Spirit dwells in us, we are able to live up to this standard.
David lived before the cross and God dealt with his people through blessing and cursing based on obedience.
We live on the other side of the cross, and we know that God accepts us based on the obedience of Jesus Christ.
Our salvation is the root of our faith but that root always produces fruit. The Holy Spirit, through the process of sanctification, will produce the kind of fruit that David writes about in Psalm 15.
Commentator Derek Kidner writes:
“These qualities describes those God creates in a man and not those He finds in them.”
We don’t do it to get God to love us more. He will not love us more or less. We do it out of gratitude for His love for us.
Charles Spurgeon wrote:
“If I could live a thousand lives, I would live them all for Christ. That would still be all too little return for His great love for me!”
One pastor broke down the psalm into a prayer that I will end with:
Lord hear my prayer before your heavenly throne.
Help me to be honest in all I say and do.
Keep me from lying, even to myself.
Give me a sincere love for others.
Help me to control my tongue.
Remove greed and materialism from my heart.
Help me to stand on the solid rock and not be moved.
