This morning, we continue our study of Psalms 120-134, the "songs of ascents". Another name for them might be "songs for the road", or "songs for the journey". In ancient Israel, they were sung by travelers making their way to Jerusalem for the annual feasts of Pentecost, and Tabernacles and Passover. Three times a year, all observant Jews would make the pilgrimage to the capital city for these great religious festivals. Jerusalem was the highest point in the land of Palestine, and so as they journeyed, they were literally "ascending," thus the name "songs of ascents". And they were also ascending spiritually, as they joined together in song and prepared their hearts to worship the Lord.
One can almost imagine the scene as it was played out in towns and villages all over Israel: a few dozen people, setting off together early in the morning. Just a handful of families; some of the women carrying infants on their backs; the men leading donkeys loaded down with provisions; the very young and the very old riding in carts. As they begin walking, there’s the usual chatter -- talk about children, the weather, the crops. Then after a while, someone begins to sing, and one by one, the others join in. A few miles down the road, they meet up with a group from the next village, more sons and daughters of Abraham, traveling to the same destination. Their convoy grows larger; their singing louder and more exuberant. As the miles pass by, more and more groups come alongside them, walking and talking and singing, until at last, as they come into view of the city, they see every road, in every direction, filled, thronged with pilgrims, all converging on Jerusalem. And then they hear the voices -- thousands of voices -- all singing, all raised together in praise and worship to God. It must have been absolutely thrilling.
Today, we’re looking at Psalm 122, and the very first verse captures some of the excitement, the anticipation, of someone preparing for such a journey. "I rejoiced with those who said to me, ’Let us go to the house of the Lord.’" (Psalm 122:1) Now, the Law of Moses required that every adult male make this journey three times a year. It was not optional. Everyone had to go, whether they wanted to or not. And yet, there is no hint of reluctance here, no indication that the author is setting out grudgingly, or against his will. He’s not being compelled; he’s not doing this merely out of a sense of duty or religious obligation. On the contrary, his heart is filled with gladness. He’s looking forward to the journey with great enthusiasm. He’s not dreading the long hours on the road; he’s not lamenting the fact that he can’t stay home and relax; but instead, everything within him is rejoicing. If I were to describe his feelings in one word, it would be, "Yahoo!".
Let me pause for a moment and ask you a question: Is that how you feel? Is that how you feel on Sunday morning when the alarm goes off and you realize what day it is? Is that how you feel on Saturday night when you think about the activities of the next day? If not, it can be. God’s intention, and his desire, is that each one of us have this same attitude toward worship; that it be something we look forward to with eager anticipation.
Now, as we try to understand the author’s reason for rejoicing, we know it couldn’t have been that he was anticipating the pleasures of traveling. In those days, there were no planes, or trains, or automobiles; no interstate highways; no Holiday Inn’s with clean sheets and hot showers at the end of the day. No Wendy’s or McDonald’s. Just mile after mile of hot, dusty, dirt roads. And then, once you reached Jerusalem, there would be huge, noisy, dangerous crowds to contend with; thieves, robbers, pickpockets. For parents of small children, the place must have been a nightmare, always watching to make sure they didn’t run off, or get stepped on by a donkey, or run over by a cart. [In fact, that’s exactly what happened to Jesus. In Luke’s gospel, we read that when he was twelve years old, his family went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover. When they all left, Jesus stayed behind. It took his parents a full day to realize that he wasn’t traveling with their party, and then three more days of searching to finally locate him, sitting in the Temple, debating with the teachers.] And on top of all that, there was the expense of making such a trip; the lost productivity, then cost of purchasing animals for sacrifices, the money for food and lodging. Certainly he could have thought of dozens of reasons not to go. So can we. But the reasons for going are really only one. To meet with God. To stand in the presence of the Lord, singing praises to his name. To join together with the people of God as they worship him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. To reaffirm our identity as one of the faithful, one of those who belong to God, and believe in Him, and trust in Him. And to offer up to God once again, not just our offerings and sacrifices, but ourselves, utterly and completely. That’s why the Psalmist rejoiced at the thought of going up to worship. And it’s ours, as well.
Let me go a little deeper and talk for just a minute about the root cause of his joy, and ours. When God calls someone to Himself; when He implants faith and repentance in their soul; when He opens their eyes to the truth, and opens their heart to receive Christ; He changes them. An immediate transformation occurs, which is called regeneration, or the new birth. They become a different kind of person. They don’t just act differently, they are different. There’s a change in their essential being.
"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God." -- John 1:12-13
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" -- 2 Corinthians 5:17
"Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation." -- Galatians 6:15
Regeneration involves, first, a change in spiritual ability. Before conversion, we were slaves to sin, unable to do anything other than sin, but regeneration gives us the ability to obey God. Second, it involves a change in spiritual understanding. Our eyes are opened. Paul writes, "The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:14). And third, regeneration involves a fundamental change in orientation toward God, and toward the things of God. Before, we were enemies of God; doing everything we could to either avoid Him or rebel against Him, but now we love Him and want to please Him. Our motives and desires change; our values change; the things we’re attracted to or repelled by change, the things we enjoy doing change. We experience what the theologian Jonathan Edwards called a change of "affections".
I say all that to explain what is going on in verse one of Psalm 122. This man rejoices at the prospect of going to the place of worship. It’s not a drudgery, not just a religious duty; it’s a pleasure and a privilege. And yet we know that for many, many people, this attitude is incomprehensible. They take no pleasure in worship; it bores them. They avoid church whenever possible, and if social expectations or family pressure makes it necessary for them to attend, their primary goal is just to make it through the service without falling asleep. They may enjoy the music; they may listen to the sermon, if the preacher tells enough jokes and stories. But fundamentally, they’d rather be somewhere else, doing something else. Reading the New York Times; sleeping in; watching the weekend news shows; playing golf; eating Sunday brunch, puttering in the garden. They have no taste or relish for spiritual things; they have no zeal for worship; their hearts just aren’t in it. Their bodies may be there, but their thoughts are elsewhere. In other words, they are acting in complete conformity with their essential nature. What Jesus said of the Pharisees is true of them: "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." (Matthew 15:8) The worship of God just doesn’t resonate with them; it doesn’t strike a responsive chord. They are spiritually tone-deaf.
If that describes you or someone you know, then what’s needed, fundamentally, isn’t a better preacher or more inspiring music. All the scolding, and shaming, and cajoling, and pleading in the world are not going to make much difference. What’s needed is a new heart, a new birth. And only God can give that. As Jesus said when he was talking to Nicodemus,
". . . I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!" Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." -- John 3:3-8
So in order to understand what this Psalm is talking about; in order to experience the joy and excitement of worshiping God, you must be born again.
This past week, I’ve been watching the Olympics on TV. Now, most of the events I find at least moderately interesting. But then you have "curling," the favorite sport of insomniacs. Apparently, this sport is huge in Canada. They have curling leagues all over the country. They follow curling like we follow NFL football. They are very passionate about curling (or as passionate as Canadians get). But when you watch it on TV, it’s just shuffleboard on ice. With brooms. And the announcers are talking about things like a "skip" and a "hog line". I can watch it for about two minutes before I start falling asleep. My theory is that you have to be born Canadian to get this sport. There must be a "curling" gene in the Canadian DNA which makes this interesting to them. Or maybe they just need to get out more. At any rate, my attitude toward curling is the same as an unregenerate person’s attitude toward worship. He just doesn’t get it. And he can’t.
But what about those of us who have trusted in Christ? Do we always have a great enthusiasm for worship? I wish we did. But you and I know that although we now have the capacity for worship, our enjoyment of it tends to wax and wane. There are some days when worship is pure joy, when we can’t wait to get to church, when everything inside us is bursting with praise, when all we want to do is meet with God and with God’s people. But there are other days when it takes all of our willpower just to get here, days when we have very little relish for worship. And there are some days when we don’t make it here at all. So what do we do? How do we stir up our desire to worship God?
I could suggest several things to do, such as preparing for Sunday worship the night before, or getting up a little earlier on Sunday morning to pray and read the Bible, so that you don’t have to hurry, hurry, hurry to get here on time, and then arrive all flustered and distracted. I might suggest that you put aside a few minutes every day for private worship, so that what we’re doing on Sunday is just an extension of what you’ve been doing all week. And of course, it’s always important to ask God to work in our hearts, to pray that he rekindle our zeal for spiritual things. When we sense our heart growing cold, we should pray as David prayed in Psalm 51,
"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. . . Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me." -- Psalm 51:10, 12
But from Psalm 122, there’s something else I would like to suggest. What did it say? "I rejoiced with those who said to me, ’Let us go to the house of the Lord.’" Not just, "I’m going," as if our example were sufficient, nor even "you should go," as if we only needed exhortation, but "Let’s go together." We need to encourage one another to attend church. We need to stop looking at Sunday worship as something we do as individuals, and start looking at it as something we all do together.
So when someone is missing, we don’t just say, "Gee, I wonder where they are today," and then go on about our business, but instead we call them. "Everything OK? Just wanted to let you know we missed you today in church." And please, don’t leave it up to the pastor to call. Often I do, but people tend to see that as just a part of my job than as a heartfelt expression of concern. Or worse, they interpret my call as a rebuke: "Where were you on Sunday? Explain yourself!" But when you call, they think, "hey, somebody really cares about me!" See what I mean? What does Paul say?
"Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." -- Hebrews 10:24-25
One of the responsibilities God has given each of us, as part of a local body of believers, is that of encouraging one another; praying for one another; helping one another to stay strong spiritually. Notice I said "pray," not "pry". If someone refuses our help, if they don’t want to talk about what’s going on in their life, then in most cases, we need to leave them alone. We should respect one another’s right to choose how open and forthcoming we want to be. But we do need to show genuine care and concern for one another. And that includes encouraging one another to attend worship. Nobody should be able to miss church more than once or twice in a row without someone, or several someones, calling to see how they’re doing. Maybe they’re discouraged, and they someone to talk to. Maybe they’ve been ill, and could use some help with meals or housework. Maybe they’re questioning their faith. Or maybe they’ve just been out of town. But call, and say those words that caused the Psalmist to rejoice, "Let us go to the house of the Lord."
The same goes for inviting people to church. First of all, just do it. In polls, large percentages of people say that they would attend church if someone they knew invited them. So if you know people who don’t go to church, ask them. If not, then meet some new people. Second, invite them to come with you. Offer to pick them up. Suggest that you go out for breakfast first, and then come to church. It’s much less intimidating for them to visit a new church if they can go with someone who "knows the ropes," someone who belongs there, someone who can interpret to them what’s going on.
Brothers and sisters, we need the church because we need each other. We need the church because we need God’s grace and power, and the church is the primary channel by which we receive them. So if you’re hurting; if you’re angry, or depressed, or afraid, or confused, or discouraged, or bitter -- if you sense that your interest in spiritual things is waning, your devotion to Christ weakening, your love for God diminishing -- then don’t just check out. Don’t stay home and read the paper. Come to church. Even if that feels like that last thing you want to do. Come to church. Worship God by faith, together with God’s people, even when the feeling isn’t there. Keep seeking after God. And in time, you’ll feel your joy, and pleasure, and relish for the things of God returning.
In closing, listen to these familiar words of Christ:
"Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." – John 15:4-5
This passage is usually understood as referring to our individual relationship with Christ. I have to be constantly drawing on his life, just as a branch has to be constantly drawing nourishment from the vine for its life. And that’s true. But it’s not the whole picture:
"The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. . . Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it." – 1 Corinthians 12:12, 27
In order to have spiritual life and power, you must abide in Christ. You must remain in Him; you must continue in fellowship with Him. But the church is the body of Christ. The church is the visible, physical presence of Jesus Christ in the world. So in order to be in close fellowship with Christ; you need to be in close fellowship with the church. Let’s encourage one another to do that. And let’s rejoice in the great privilege we have of worshiping the Lord together.
(For an .rtf file of this and other sermons, see www.journeychurchonline.org/messages.htm)
