‘the journey’ is most definitely coming to an end with the pilgrims anticipating their arrival in the holy city. The final three psalms in the ‘songs of ascents’ are filled with thoughts about Jerusalem, its temple, worship, fellowship and all that this will mean to the ongoing life of faith for the people of God once they return to their own communities.
There’s a wonderful walk that starts behind the Stirlingshire town of Callendar. Beginning at the Bracklinn Falls it climbs up through a forest and eventually loops back round the car park where the walk began. What I most enjoyed about this walk was the moment that the path broke out of the forest and the magnificent vista of the surrounding hills came into view.
Some parts of our pilgrimage are absorbed in the details of the journey, attending to the daily disciplines of Christian life. We press on but everything seems rather ordinary and routine. At other moments the sweep of God’s plan fills our horizon and we are captivated by his sovereignty, grace and goodness.
That big picture view of our walk with God comes into view in Psalm 132. It places the pilgrims in the far larger story of God’s covenant with his people.
As they travel the pilgrims recount…
David’s commitment to God, and…
The Lord’s covenant with David.
➡️ Verses 1-10 of the song outline David’s commitment to the Lord.
He promised to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and to build a dwelling for the Lord (2 Samuel 7:1-17).
David was motivated by a concern for the glory and honour of God. His desire was that the Lord would have his rightful place among his people. He wanted the Lord to be near them.
What about you today?
How does David’s example challenge you?
What comes close to the kernel of your heart’s desire?
There is, to my mind, a wonderful complimentary passage in Isaiah 26 that mirrors David commitment to the Lord and should inspire us. Isaiah says,
“Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws,
we wait for you;
your name and renown
are the desire of our hearts” (verse 8).
The Message paraphrase of this verse captures it well -
“We’re content to linger in the path sign-posted with your decisions.
Who you are and what you’ve done are all we’ll ever want.”
May those words be true of this generation of God’s people.
➡️ In verses 11-18 we are introduced the Lord’s covenant with David.
God promised that a descendent of David would bring God's presence into this world in a way David would not have been able to imagine (2 Samuel 7:11-16). Jesus, great David’s greater Son, has come and he has brought the presence of God into our lives - making us his dwelling (1 Peter 2:4-10).
As we reflect on this ancient psalm (the longest in the "songs of ascents") from our vantage point in Jesus we know that we can draw near to God at any time and in any place. This is ultimately because of his work on the cross (Ephesians 2:13) and the gift of the Holy Spirit in our hearts (Romans 8:16).
(picture - near Sheildaig)
Song choice - King of Kings (Hillsong Worship)
'the journey' playlist - https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1r5rMcrNlmUMQqHyIBfCmg?si=YtwsF-OuT9-160jOeH26gQ&pi=iHT32HMRSleMD
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