Storming the Doors with Gifts for God

Sermon Text for Nov. 5: Psalm 24

The feeling was absolutely amazing. My body was tingling, the hair on the back of my neck stood up and I couldn’t help myself. I was swept away by a crowd of thousands singing, “Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise him all creatures here below. Praise him above ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.”

As we sang our praises, time lost all meaning. I was surprised when I discovered that we sang for about twenty minutes. People were standing on tables, dancing in the aisles, hugging each other and crying in joy and gratitude. The General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America had just ratified the plan for reunion with the southern branch of the Church and we had become one. God had done a wondrous thing which only a few years before seemed impossible. With God’s help the northern and southern branches of the Presbyterian Church made a “miracle happen together.”

Moments like these are as rare in the church as they are in other parts of our life. But every once in a while something happens that carries us away, at least momentarily. Many of us probably got carried away the last time the Broncos won the Super Bowl.

The faithful Republican or Democrat might get carried away at the quadrennial political conventions. I watch both conventions every four years and excitement builds as state delegations declare how many votes are to go to each candidate. Finally one candidate is declared the party’s nominee, and the whole convention explodes in applause, cheers, clapping, laughing, and dancing in the aisles.

If you understand melting into a crowd and being swept away by joy then you understand the emotional context of our Psalm.

Psalm 24 is what Bible scholars call a Psalm of ascent. It was sung as the faithful ascended the hill toward the temple in Jerusalem. It begins with a simple affirmation of faith: “The earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, the world and those who live in it." God owns the world and everything in it, including the people. This simple truth challenges us in the core of our being. We like to think that we belong to ourselves and what we have is ours. But the Psalmist declares “the earth is the Lord’s”, even that piece of ground to which we hold title belongs to God. Moreover, those who live on the earth also belong to God. We are not our own. If we are faithful we cannot do with ourselves and our possessions what we want.

The Jews who lived very close to the land took this truth for granted. They worked very hard to survive, but in the final analysis God’s help was essential for life. They got it: “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. Even the people who live there belong to God.”

That is why after the harvest thousands of believers marched through the streets of Jerusalem carrying gifts. They moved relentlessly up the hill toward the temple where they would join others who gathered outside the gates. As they marched they sang to one another antiphonally, "The earth is the Lord's ... And everything in it." The earth is the Lord's ... And everything in it!" Then the words changed. A cantor started the next line "Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? Who shall stand in his holy place?" And another cantor helped the crowd answer singing, "Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false."

As they sing back and forth the excitement builds, and individuals are lost in the chanting of the crowds. Individual personalities merged so that the thousands became one. They have come to the Temple to make offerings and sacrifices to God and they are quite literally moving as one body to storm the gates. It is a drama that was played out year after year, generation after generation. Inside the Temple gates the priests are waiting until the excitement outside has peaked before they open the gates and let the people in.

Outside, the crowd grows impatient, "Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up O ancient doors!" It's a fancy way of saying open the doors so we can come in. Open up that "the King of Glory might come in," sings one group while the other sings back, "Who is the King of Glory? The Lord of hosts he is the King of Glory."

The crowd has come to the temple with their gifts for the King of Glory. They have come with their first fruits, the best of their flocks and herds. They believe that one day as they storm the gates of the temple, the Messiah will enter with them. The gifts that they have brought will demonstrate their love, gratitude and devotion to the King.

Year after year they re-enacted this drama in faith, demanding the privilege of giving gifts to God. The grain in their baskets, and the animals that they drove ahead of them were proof of God's generosity. And they wanted to be generous with God.

I have the fantasy that on November 19th, on “Let’s Make a Miracle Happen” Sunday, you will literally storm the gates of the church bringing your best gifts to God. I imagine you quivering with energy and joy, singing, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow" as families offer their pledges for God's work in the coming year.

Copyright © 2006 by Dwight R. Blackstock