“I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord’” (Psalm 122:1).
This is a familiar verse to many of us (and for good reason). In this psalm, David described the attitude that God’s people should have toward worship – particularly the opportunities to assemble for worship. The psalmist described going to Jerusalem and worshiping in the temple (“the house of the Lord”). The parallel for us today is in our gathering with the church as we assemble for worship.
This psalm is a “Song of Ascents” – part of a collection of fifteen psalms (120-134) which are generally recognized as songs that would be sung by those ascending the road to Jerusalem to worship. This would happen at least three times a year (Deuteronomy 16:16) – at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths. This psalm began with an exclamation of joy over the mere mention of the journey to the place where the people of God would be gathered to worship Him.
Today, worship is not something that is confined to Jerusalem (John 4:21); it can be done anywhere. Yet wherever we gather to worship, we need to have the same attitude expressed by the psalmist.Continue Reading
