THE PSALM OF ASCENSION

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,  (Ephesians 2:4-6 NKJV)

The 24th Psalm is apparently in two parts, and yet there is one theme, the ascent of the holy soul and the triumphant Savior into the presence of God. For us, the ascension of our Lord precedes our own; but in the days of the Psalmist that order was reversed.

Our Lord's Ascension. In an outburst of poetry, kindled by the divine Spirit, the Psalmist anticipates the coming of the King of Glory to the doors of the eternal city, that ideal city which through the ages has called out to the hearts of saints and patriots, and which in Revelation 21 is seen descending to our earth. It was as though the doors of the unseen barred His entrance. They had opened to God, but never before to "God manifest in the flesh." It was a new thing that He should take our nature with Him into the unseen and eternal world.

The soul's ascension (Psalm 24:3-6). In Christ we have ascended and are seated at God's right hand. No change in your emotions, not even the being overtaken by a fault can alter that. But we have to make our calling sure. What is ours in the divine purpose must be claimed and appropriated as a living, obedient daily experience. There are certain qualities of character which are requisite to those who should be accounted worthy to stand before the Son of Man, not hereafter only, but here, now, and always (Luke 21:36).

We must have clean hands. The money that we earn must be clean money. If we are writers, artists, mechanics, professional or commercial men or women, we must never produce anything which would defile the imagination or heart. We must have a pure heart. In Isaiah 33: 14-17, which is a parallel passage, the Holy Spirit is compared to a devouring fire, in the presence of which no evil thing can live. Let us ask Him to possess us, and to cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by His inspiration. We must not lift up our soul to vanity, i.e., we must not allow ourselves to be inflated with the applause or rewards of the world. Many sell their souls for these, and only at the end of life awaken to discover how worthless they are. We must not swear deceitfully, i.e., we must be absolutely transparent and sincere, for only the true can stand in the presence of the King of truth.

PRAYER

May we live as those who have been raised with Christ, and who are seated with Him.  In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.

God's Daily Promise

Promise #142:
I open prison doors and set captives free.

Isaiah 61:1 (WEB)
The Spirit of the Lord Yahweh is on me;
because Yahweh has anointed me to preach good news to the humble.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,