Jesus: King of Glory (Psalm 24)
Jesus is King. It’s a declaration that we should have written all over our lives. And we saw this morning that Jesus declared it on Palm Sunday rather boldly as He rode the colt into Jerusalem. The Lordship of Christ was evident for all to see on that wonderful day. It’s also evident in Psalm 24.
There is an interesting link between Psalm 24 and Palm Sunday. And that’s the reason we are here tonight.
The original context of Psalm 24 is found in 2 Samuel 6:17, 11:11, and 1 Kings 1:39. It was during the celebration that King David was leaping and dancing so much that Michal, Saul’s daughter, thought that he was acting very undignified. And David pitched a tent for the Ark of the Lord (2 Samuel 6:17). The battle had been won and the people of God now had the Ark in their possession. And this Psalm was written by David with that context in mind. The king had won back the Ark of the Lord, the symbol of God’s presence with God’s people.
As a hymn this psalm became a look backward and forward. It looked back to David and forward to the Lord who would enter His temple. It became a hymn with Messianic significance. So, it ended up having a similar significance to Isaiah 40:3, “prepare the way of the Lord”.
Another interesting connection is that Psalm 24 was sung weekly in worship as a way of anticipating the coming of the Messianic King. So, on the morning that Jesus rode the colt into Jerusalem declaring His Lordship, there was a hymn sung that picture this very moment.
Read Psalm 24.
Jesus: King of Earth (Psalm 24:1-2)
The psalm begins with an unashamed proclamation of the ownership of all things to God. Everything is His. He owns it all. There is no exception to be found in all of Creation. It is all His to be disposed of however He sees fit. And the reason for this ownership is given in verse 2. He created it all. It is God who founded the world and so it is all His.
The fight over how the Earth came into existence is little more than a fight over who owns the world. When a person says that all of Creation came into being by mere chance they are making a claim that there is no being in the Universe that he has to answer to. The Christian looks around at the world and understands that chance can’t create and believes that God created the Heavens and the Earth, that He is the One that founded all things, and that He can dispose of all of His Creation however He pleases.
Now, as Christians we understand that it was God the Son who carried out the creation of the world.
“All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”—John 1:3-4 ESV
In God the Son was life itself and that He gave to all of Creation. As Christians we understand that God the Father planned the creation of the world and God the Son carried out that task. In Him was life and He gave that to the world.
God created all things. He established the world and all things in it. And because of this it is all His. God has authority over all things, even the people who believe this is not the case.
And Jesus, who is God the Son has been given authority over all things. When Jesus gave the great commission and said, “all authority has been given to me” He was serious. Everything is His. As Christians we oftentimes live timid lives, not understanding that our Lord has all authority. The leaders of this world are not head over us, Christ is. And I obey the authorities of this world because Christ says that I should and He has also given us the limits of that authority within His Word. Therefore, when Christ tells us we should not obey authority, we should not.
More and more there is going to be pressure that will come and tell you how you should order your life. What gives you the right to order your family’s life so as to honor Christ even when all the world tells you that you must do something different? It is Christ who has all authority, not them.
When all the world changes the definition of what it means to be a human, what gives you the right to teach your children otherwise? Or to actually believe otherwise yourself?
When all the world changes the definition of marriage and you stick to the Bible’s definition of marriage, one man + one woman for life, what gives you the right to do so?
We are the people of God. We know that Christ rules and reigns over all things on Earth. Let us move forward in this life knowing full well that Christ rules and reigns over all. Let us live our lives knowing that He rules and reigns over all.
Jesus: He Gives His People His Righteousness (Psalm 24:3-6)
As the psalm moves forward we see something interesting. The priests cry out and ask the question,
“Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?
And who shall stand in His holy place?”
(Psalm 24:3 ESV)
And then comes the reply from the congregation,
“He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who does not lift up his soul to what is false
And does not swear deceitfully.”
(Psalm 24:4 ESV)
There is an understanding here of the absolute holiness of God. When the priests call out and ask who it is that can go into the presence of the Lord, that is “stand in His holy place”, there is an understanding that not just anyone can do that. So who can?
The people respond that the morally pure person can do so. The person who “has clean hands and a pure heart”, the person does not trust in “what is false” and does not lie (Psalm 24:4). In order for a person to go into the presence of God they must be morally pure. God “cannot look at wrong” and is “of purer eyes than to see evil” (Habakkuk 1:13 ESV). And when Moses asked to see God’s glory, it was denied for the very act would be enough to kill Moses.
“Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” And He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The LORD.’ And ‘I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But”, He said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.” (Exodus 33:19-20 ESV)
Only the righteous can see God and live. It is only those who are completely pure that can go into the presence of God. And this poses a problem. Who then can enter into the presence of the Lord?
Well, the answer is supplied for us in Verse 5.
The person who trusts in the Lord “will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of His salvation.” (Psalm 24:5 ESV) There is an admission by the people who are to respond in this psalm that our own personal righteousness can never be enough. As we have seen over and over in the Book of 1 John, God’s people are transformed and follow after Him, but our own personal righteousness would never be enough. We need something more. We need the righteousness of another. Those who trust in the Lord have clean hands and a pure heart, but that is just not enough.
Those who trust in the Lord receive “righteousness from the God of his salvation” (Psalm 24:5b ESV) And this is the good news. God the Son came to Earth and accomplished salvation for us. And He gives to us righteousness.
“For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV)
God the Son took upon Himself my sin and my shame even though He was without sin. And He paid for that on the cross. And He gave to me His righteousness. I am credited with His righteousness. I receive “righteousness from the God” of my salvation (Psalm 24:5 ESV). I am forgiven of my sin and counted righteous in Christ. What good news! And David says that this characterizes the people of God.
You can do a lot of good in this life but it will never be enough to ascend the hill of the Lord. You can give a lot of your time and effort and it will not be enough to stand in His holy place. You can tell the truth and not deceive people all your life but it wills till not be enough to stand before our Holy God. You need the salvation found only in Christ. No one can stand before God on their own, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23 ESV)
Christian, your sins are forgiven in Christ and you have been given Christ’s righteousness. You can go to God in prayer. You are of the generation that can seek God’s face and one day when we stand before God we will not be destroyed because of the finished work of Christ on our behalf. He has paid for our sins. He has given us His righteousness. And now I can boldly go to the throne of God.
We also see that character matters. The Christian’s life will be marked by purity. He is who can go. The person who lives like a wretch but claims to be right with God likely does not have the righteousness of Christ nor their sins forgiven. As we have seen in the Book of 1 John, the person is likely not a believer and needs to trust in Jesus.
Jesus: The Warrior King Enters Heaven (Psalm 24:7-10)
One can imagine the original context of this psalm. It’s the ark’s procession into the temple that is being imagined. At the time of its writing this the Ark was in a tent, but had been won back in battle. There would come a day when the Ark would be brought to the temple with a great procession.
You see, the Ark symbolized God’s presence with His people. And David won the mighty victory that enabled the Ark to be put back in its rightful place. The gates open and the presence of the Lord was enabled to go into the temple.
And here is Christ. He rides into Jerusalem on a Donkey only days from the great battle that would win His victory over sin, death, and Satan. He had already withstood temptation in the wilderness in a battle with Satan. He had already lived a perfect life, fulfilling all righteousness. And soon He would submit Himself completely to this battle in the Garden of Eden as He sweat drops of blood and said, “not my will, but Yours, be done” to God the Father (Luke 22:42 ESV). He would die on a cross and pay the full punishment for sin for all who would believe and rise from the dead three days later. And this would deliver the victory over sin, death, and Satan.
Jesus won the victory and He ascends to His throne in Heaven. He cried out,
“Lift up your heads, O gates!
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in.”
(Psalm 24:7 ESV)
A cry is heard from behind the gates that says,
“Who is this King of glory?”
(Psalm 24:7 ESV)
And then comes the answer,
“The LORD, strong and mighty,
The LORD, mighty in battle!
Lift up your heads, O gates!
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in.”
(Psalm 24:8-9 ESV)
God the Son came to Earth and accomplished the victory. He defeated sin, death, and Satan. And He returns “strong and mighty” and “mighty in battle”.
And then the question comes,
“Who is this King of glory?”
And our victorious Lord answers the question,
“The LORD of hosts,
He is the King of glory!”
(Psalm 24:10b ESV)
This King of glory is God Himself. He is God the Son who took on human flesh and won the victory. He is the King of glory! And He is now seated at the right hand of the Father having conquered sin, death, and Satan.
Jesus is God the Son, the great warrior King who fought and won the victory over sin, death, and Satan. If you will turn from ruling your own life and trust Him then you will find Him a wonderful Savior and be with Him where He has gone before.
Christian, we worship the Lord who has won the victory. Like the crowds on Palm Sunday we come shouting “Hosanna!” for He has brought to us salvation. He has given us redemption. And we can glory in the fact that we are the people of the conquering Lord. Praise God!
Conclusion
Jesus is King. He is Lord over all. And He has won the victory over sin, death, and Satan. And we come in worship and praise of the Lord who conquered His foe and has given us eternal life. What a wonderful thing to think on this Palm Sunday! Let us worship and praise Christ, the King of glory, strong and mighty, mighty in battle for He has won for us life eternal.
R. Dwain Minor