Jesus' Ascension - Pt. 4

The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in his holy place? 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. He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation. (Psalm 24:1-4 ESV).

 

Continuing our journey through understanding the significance of the Ascension of Jesus we come to this brief reference by David in the Psalms. Our reading today is a wonderful reflection of the conundrum we face in thinking about approaching the presence and person of God. There have been many answers designed through the millennia to offer the answer to that question. Some have offered various religious rituals and rites, while others emphasize the goodness of our behavior as the answer. None of those are the way into God’s presence.

 

A casual reading of David’s psalm might lead us to mistakenly believe he is telling us to do these things. It almost seems as if he is saying that the one who may ascend to God and stand before him must achieve the state of “clean hands and a pure heart.” We might be able to say that we have come close because of our religious practices or our behavioral choices and actions.

 

There are many examples in our common experience that speak to the truth that “close is not close enough.”  Even if you could achieve nearly perfect status in some of the common things in our life, it would still be an utter disaster. A 0.1% failure rate could have a major impact on airline safety. Can you imagine being alright with “almost landing safely?” Or how about having drinking water that is “nearly pure?” I do not want to face God with the retort of “I was almost perfect.” A really good effort is not good enough. God looks for perfection (cf. Matthew 5:48).

 

Though we are made to be near God, none of us has the truly clean hands and pure heart required to approach him. But God has provided One who can: Jesus, the “King of glory.” He has triumphed mightily over the forces of sin and death, and he has opened the way to heaven for us. Please recognize that Jesus has proven Himself worthy to go ahead of us and be the one who gives us clean hands and pure hearts by His work and sacrifice on our behalf. He has already ascended to the throne and is drawing us to be with Him!