Psalm 132

1 Lord, remember David and all that he suffered.
2 He made a solemn promise to the Lord. He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel,
3 “I will not go home; I will not let myself rest.
4 I will not let my eyes sleep nor close my eyelids in slumber
5 until I find a place to build a house for the Lord, a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel.”
6 We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah; then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar. 7 Let us go to the sanctuary of the Lord; let us worship at the footstool of his throne.
8 Arise, O Lord, and enter your resting place, along with the Ark, the symbol of your power.
9 May your priests be clothed in godliness; may your loyal servants sing for joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David, do not reject the king you have anointed.
11 The Lord swore an oath to David with a promise he will never take back:
“I will place one of your descendants on your throne.
12 If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant and the laws that I teach them,
then your royal line will continue forever and ever.”
13 For the Lord has chosen Jerusalem; he has desired it for his home.
14 “This is my resting place forever,” he said. “I will live here, for this is the home I desired.
15 I will bless this city and make it prosperous; I will satisfy its poor with food.
16 I will clothe its priests with godliness; its faithful servants will sing for joy.
17 Here I will increase the power of David; my anointed one will be a light for my people.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame, but he will be a glorious king.
When God placed his Holy Spirit into us [based on our profession of faith in Christ] he made us priests. We now have direct access to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob...without the assistance of another human. We became become royalty, with special promises and privileges. Life was good...

Then, somewhere along the way we notice the special quality of our lives slipping. We don't have the assurance and confidence we once had, so we begin to look for solutions. Mostly we look in all the wrong places.

Our Psalmist looked around at his beloved Israel and was alarmed at the state of deterioration. He took his appeal straight to God and based his appeal entirely on God's own words. The Israel Covenant [Deut. 29:1-29] [30:1-10] is a covenant between God and the Children of Israel... based in great part...upon God's love for His servant David. And the Psalmist reminds us of the promise: God says “This is my resting place forever, I will live here, for this is the home I desired. I will bless this city and make it prosperous; I will satisfy its poor with food. I will clothe its priests with godliness; its faithful servants will sing for joy. Here I will increase the power of David; my anointed one will be a light for my people. I will clothe his enemies with shame, but he will be a glorious king.”
As people of faith, we covet God's presence in our lives. We desire His blessings. We hope for prosperity. We pray for godly leaders who can guide us in righteousness. We appeal for victory over our enemies...all things that God promised to do. But, of course, there is a catch.

Just one catch...God's promise was conditional upon Israel's repentance, return to God, and obedience to the Mosaic law. "If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant and the laws that I teach them, then your royal line will continue forever and ever.”

Repentance and obedience are pesky things. They are like mosquitoes that buzz around our face and annoy us. We swat at them and try to get them to leave. It's human nature to do the same thing with God's demands. Why? Because repentance and obedience run contrary to our human nature. That is why God placed His Spirit within us...so we could take on a new nature that found great delight in repentance and obedience.

But...occasionally that newness wears off and we are back to running our own show, and the trouble begins. God promises to put our lives back in order...on His terms.

Repentance is "agreeing with God". Obedience is self-explanatory. Very uncomplicated, but entirely necessary for God's blessings.

Live boldly out there today...