“Who may worship in Your sanctuary, Lord? Who may enter Your presence on Your holy hill? Those who lead blameless lives and do what is right, speaking the truth from sincere hearts.” Psalms 15:1-2 NLT
Psalm 15 is a short Psalm, with just five verses. It considers the importance of who can enter the presence of God for worship. And the conclusion is in verse 2, where three qualities are deemed essential – being blameless, righteous and truthful. The Psalmist, David, takes it for granted, rightly in my opinion, that worshiping God is one of the most important things, perhaps the most important, that a person can do. And he continues in verses 3-5 to identify important qualities, both negative and positive, that help in an individual’s approach to God.
David starts by highlighting the importance of right relationships with others. He is saying that you cannot have a right relationship with God if you are not in a right relationship with those round you. So who have you fallen out with lately? Before you come into God’s presence you will have to restore that broken relationship with your neighbour. That argument with a friend.
Next David considers the importance of avoiding contact with what the NLT calls “flagrant sinners”. God’s people will reach out and help those in a hard place, because that is the essence of the Gospel, but in the process, they must be very careful to discern, and subsequently avoid, acts that will draw them into sin. As an example, being employed in a company engaged in sinful activities or practices might be unwise because inevitably you will be drawn into sin. And in the remainder of verse 4 David goes on to highlight the importance of keeping promises and honouring God’s people.
Finally, in verse 5, David concludes by mentioning the importance of being honest in financial dealings. Money is a great servant, but a terrible master, and the wrong attitude to money will stand in the way of entering into God’s presence.
A short Psalm, but so profound. Yet another Biblical nugget of gold to help us in our pilgrimage through life.
Being a Pilgrim 