Qualified to ‘Tabernacle’ with God | Northlands Church

Qualified to ‘Tabernacle’ with God

| Kim van der Riet

Qualified to ‘Tabernacle’ with God

by: Kim van der Riet

Psalms 15 and 24 are similar - they provide a list of 'qualifications' to abide in God's presence. Through our understanding of grace, we now understand that these Psalms are prophetic and only one person was qualified by these lists - Jesus Christ. The good news is that in grace, we inherit these attributes in God and are fully qualified to stand in the Father's presence - just as Jesus is.

LORD, who may abide in Your tabernacle?
Who may dwell in Your holy hill? Psalm 15:1

I used to look at Psalms 15 and 24 as a qualifying list of things to do in order to be in God’s favor; to be qualified to enter into His presence. When I could say “That’s me” for each one, I could finally talk to God… or my prayers would at least be heard and considered. This view of these Psalms a world where I have to earn the right to gain access to God by good behavior and the things that I do.

I have now come to understand that these Psalms were not intended for me as a list of things to do; rather they are prophetic. They look forward to the only person who was capable of doing all this – Jesus Christ. As the only living person who was sinless (Heb 4:15), only He is able to say yes to every item on these lists. Only He has earned the right to abide in Your tabernacle, to dwell in Your holy hill.

The gift of His grace, however, means that because I have chosen Jesus to be my Lord and Savior, I have inherited all these attributes without having to earn them. Through Jesus, I also can abide in His tabernacle, and without shame or blemish, I also can “stand in His holy place”.

From a place of humility (“God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” - James 4:6) I can “tabernacle” with God, abiding in His presence just as He intended from the beginning of time.

Prayer

I am incapable of laying claim to any of the attributes David wrote of in Psalms 15 and 24. However, Lord, I know that by the grace of Your Son, Jesus Christ, I have indeed inherited all of these, and that I am fully qualified to ‘tabernacle’ with You, to stand blameless and holy in your presence and to enjoy You as a beloved son. Thank you, Lord, for all Your Son Jesus has done on my behalf to make this possible. Amen.

© 2024 Northlands Church and Kim van der Riet. Permission to share so long as credit is given.