Requirements for Worship?

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Scripture: Psalm 15:1-5 (NIV)

1 Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?

Who may live on your holy mountain?

2 The one whose walk is blameless,

who does what is righteous,

who speaks the truth from their heart;

3 whose tongue utters no slander,

who does no wrong to a neighbor,

and casts no slur on others;

4 who despises a vile person

but honors those who fear the Lord;

who keeps an oath even when it hurts,

and does not change their mind;

5 who lends money to the poor without interest;

who does not accept a bribe against the innocent.

Whoever does these things

will never be shaken.

 

Devotion:

            This short psalm may have originally been part of the liturgy used in worship at the tabernacle and later the temple. Parts of this psalm show up in the writing of the prophet Isaiah (Is. 33:14-17) indicating that these words were well known in Israel early in their time as a nation. This psalm describes the kind of person who God would look favorably upon when worshipping in the sanctuary of the Lord. Those who did not meet the requirements stated here would be kept outside until they amended their lives to meet this standard.

            The first verse is the question asked of the worshipers as they sought entrance to the tabernacle. The question was not meant to indicate that those who asked it were required to live in the tent of meeting. Only those who met these requirements would be allowed to worship. It is not thought that any persons actually resided in the tabernacle during the time of its use in Jerusalem prior to the building of the temple. Let us now consider the qualifications for entry into worship.

            God’s requirements for entry into worship were simple and straightforward. The blameless, righteous, and the truth teller start off the list. Those who had a purity in their conduct before God and man were welcomed into the tent of meeting. Then we encounter three types of people who may not come. The slanderer, the one who treats his neighbor badly, and the one who casts slurs upon anyone. Likewise, one who hates evil in another person yet honors those who fear the lord.

            The psalm closes with an assurance that those who live in ways described above would be secure in the Lord. What about today? What are the requirements for entry into worship in the local church? Jesus himself gives us the definitive answer in John 4:23-24. 23” But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” God has always sought ones such as these to worship Him. Let us pray that we may be found to be worshipping God in this way. Amen.

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