Thankful Pilgrims: Psalm 84

 

Thankful Pilgrims:  Psalm 84

Introduction: Being thankful to God isn’t only for Thanksgiving! A family was gathered around the table for dinner, when the dad asked his young son if he would give thanks for the meal. The boy eyed every dish on the table and then bowed his head and prayed, “Lord, I don’t like the looks of it, but I thank you for it, and I’ll eat it anyway!” Do you ever feel that way? You are not sure what to make of circumstances in your life, you may not like the looks of it, but you choose to be thankful because you know the One who has set the table? God is good, and He does good, and He gives good things to his own. Somehow, He even causes the hard things to “work together for good” to those who love Him, to those who are the called, according to His purpose.  

       At Thanksgiving we often think back to the Pilgrims giving thanks for their first harvest in 1621. We’ve learned in our study of I Peter that “pilgrim” can refer to someone traveling in a land that is not his own, a sojourner. That is true of us, since we are called citizens of heaven (see Philippians 3:20). It can also refer to someone traveling to a cherished destination out of religious devotion. I hope our series in I Peter has made it clear that is also true of us, we’re not home yet. The best is yet to come! We are pilgrims, just passing through, looking homeward. We’ll look at a psalm for pilgrims today, that can remind us to be thankful on the journey, Ps 84.

The BIG Idea: Pilgrim, Give thanks! Until we are home, He is with us and will give us strength for the journey. We’ll consider that ideas from three perspectives:        1. God’s presence, 2. God’s provision, and 3. God’s Promise.

I. Give thanks for God’s Presence (read 1-4). His is with us always.    

     We long for home, because there our Father is present (1,2)!       The psalmist talks about the tabernacle, and the house of God, his longing for the courts of the Lord (1,2). Do you feel that way about coming together with God’s people?  It may be that the past year has stirred that longing even more in our hearts! Do you expect to meet with God and to be blessed as we join together in worship? We should be grateful for the freedom we have to meet together, in the name of Jesus, without fear. It is not so every place, and it may not always be so here. It hasn’t easy for a generation for the underground churches in China, nor is it easy in many Islamic countries. But they gather with joy, and thanksgiving, because they understand the God of all creation is in their midst.

       God was present with the first humans in Eden. It is for that, that we were created! He walked with them in the garden, He spoke to them face to face. No sin, no separation, no shame or guilt. Love. Joy. Peace. Complete trust. And then sin entered the picture, and separated humans from God. By grace, God reached down, and continued to speak, to give hope, and to promise that a day would come when humans could again walk with Him. And to that end, in the fulness of time, He sent the Son. Get this: Because of Jesus we have the promise of His presence here and now! He is with us… ALWAYS!

       Hints about the future are revealed in the “House of God” motif that runs through the Bible. Jacob was running for his life from his brother Esau when he laid his head on a rock in Genesis 28. In exhaustion he fell asleep. As he slept, he had a vision... a ladder extending to heaven… There was hope in that vision, a door to heaven, the gap between fallen humans and God was not insurmountable. Jacob called that place Bethel when he awoke, translated, “House of God.”

       As the story continued, God overcame barrenness and he preserved His people through famine. He multiplied them even in their bondage, until finally Moses led the people out of Egypt, back toward the land. The Tabernacle in the wilderness was to be the place of God’s presence in the midst of the camp. It was called the “dwelling place,” where God was present, “the tent of meeting,” a place where the priests would offer sacrifices for the people, and it was the “holy place” because of the One who sanctified it by His presence.

       It would be over 400 years before the Temple would be built in Jerusalem. It was the place where God was present, a place for offering and worship. But those sacrifices, and the building itself, only were shadows of what God would do in the fullness of time.

       In the fullness of time, He came: Jesus, Emmanuel.  John makes the connection with the “house of God” and the coming of the Messiah when he said, “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us...” (Jn 1:14). The word translated “dwelt,” is used only by John in the NT, this is the only place in his gospel (it also appears four times in Revelation).  It is the lexical root that describes the “Tabernacle” in the LXX. The final use of the word in Rev 21:3 points ahead: “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God...”   Until that day, the Church is described as God’s “temple.” Remember I Cor 3:16, “Do you not know that you are the temple…”

       Here the psalmist doesn’t merely long for God’s courts as a place he’d like to visit, he longs for God’s presence. “My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God!” (2c). We long for heaven and home because that is where our Father is!

       The nesting birds (v.3) – God cares even for the sparrows...  God’s common grace underscores the greatness of His saving grace... If God cares for even birds, how much more does the Master love us who were created in His image! “Why should I be discouraged? Why should the sorrows come? Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home... His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me!” Jesus is my portion, my friend. He us enough, and He is with us and in us if we know Him. He is present.

       N.B. vv.4,5, God’s blessing comes to those who dwell in His presence, to those who praise Him with their whole hearts! Give thanks! His eye is on the sparrow. Until we are home, He is with us and will give us strength for the journey!

II. Be thankful for Provision (read 5-8). Strength on the journey!

       God gives us the strength to live with joy on the journey. Joyful service is a key part of God’s purpose for us. With Jesus, there is joy on the journey. “Pilgrimage” here is not simply living as a ­­foreigner in a strange land – it implies a journey, movement toward “home.” If our heart is set on home, we can have joy, even in the midst of hardship, see 1 Jn 2:15, 17, ¹⁵ Do not love the world or the things in the world...  the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.  The more we love God, the more we long for His presence above all else and trust in His Word, the more we’ll avoid the entrapments and idols of this present age. None of it will last.

       Even in the hard times we can find refreshment and life in His presence (6). The Valley of Baca was a place of tears and weeping. Some sources believe it refers to an arid valley the pilgrims would pass through on their way to the pilgrim Feasts in Jerusalem. We live in a fallen world, and all the consequences of the fall – “thorns and thistles,” evil, sin, sickness, and death – surround us every day. Many times we are reminded that we are passing through the Valley of Baca. My heart breaks when I think of the sickness and suffering, the violence and the evil that so many experience and struggle with. This life can be a “Vale of tears,” but we can make a well, we can uncover a spring of living water, even in the midst of suffering.  Jesus said it in Jn 16:20, “…you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.”

       He was speaking in the context of His impending passion, and the pain that would bring to His disciples, and the resurrection, which would bring unspeakable joy. It seems to me, as He was preparing them to live in this fallen world without His physical presence, He was also speaking about the tribulation through which His disciples would pass, and the assurance that one day they would overcome (Jn 16:33). The idea is not unique to the NT. Read Ps 30:5, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning!” That promise gives hope, and it gives us reason to be thankful, even if we are passing through a valley. Max Lucado said,

“You will get through this.  It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. In the meantime, don’t be foolish or naïve. But don’t despair either. With God’s help, you will get through this.”    

       Though we pass through valleys, God strengthens and matures us on the way (7)! That is part of the “good” that God will do during our times of trial. That is no guarantee that we will always experience healing or justice or prosperity in this life. We may when it serves God’s purpose and brings Him the greatest glory. But the future He has in store for us is a sure thing, and it is better than we could possibly imagine. As Paul said, “The suffering of this present age is not worthy to be compared to the glory that will be revealed in us...” (Rom 8:18).

We have the privilege of praying to the Lord of all creation (8).  The psalmist looks up, in the midst of his crisis he cries out to Yahweh, the Divine Warrior, the King of Creation who knows us and defends us and promises to keep us. God is our strength. We can do all things through Him who strengthens us. So give thanks! Until we are home, He is with us and will give us strength for the journey.

III.  Be grateful for God’s Promise: We are secure in Him (read 9-12)!

       We stand before God not naked and afraid, with our sin and guilt exposed, but clothed in the righteousness of Jesus. Clean. Forgiven! He is our mediator, He is our shield, our righteousness. “Oh God, behold our shield! Look on the face of your anointed!” (Ps 84:9). We come boldly into his presence because of His amazing grace.  We are His. The world loses its attractiveness the more we look at Jesus. It’s all passing away. Home is where we are going, it is what we have been longing for all of our lives, even though we didn’t know it. Just standing at the door of God’s house is better than living in mansions for the few years of our pilgrimage.

       He is our shield (v. 9,11). The metaphor is obvious, he protects us when we are under attack. He fends off the fiery darts of the Evil One. The psalmist could reflect on those moments when he experienced the protection of God. Think about the image of Satan, as a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. He is a powerful creature. He is an expert on our vulnerabilities. But greater is He that is in us, than he that is in the world!

       He is a sun (11). Light exposes what is hidden in darkness, in the context it would seem to be for our benefit, so that we can see what is sin, what we need to repent of. He is also a lamp to our feet, a light to our path. He shows the way. The Israelites were led by the pillar of fire in the wilderness. He still leads his people.

       Look upon the face of your anointed (messiah)! When God looks at us, what does He see?  In terms of our righteousness, if we have trusted in Christ, He sees Jesus. Not that we are righteous practically. Rather, the righteousness of Christ has been reckoned to our account. He took our sin, we received His righteousness. We are justified, not guilty, just as if we had never sinned. Because that is true we can find joy on the journey!

What is God saying to me in this passage?  Give thanks for His presence, He is with us always, Give thanks for His provision, He will give us strength for the journey, Give thanks for His promise, we are securely in the grip of His grace. Sometimes, we might look around at all the dishes on the table and feel like, “I don’t like the looks of this!” But think of the love of the One who set the table. We have reason to be grateful: He is present with us, He gives us strength for the journey, and He will keep us, we are secure in His arms if we know Him. Give thanks! Until we are home in His presence, He is with us and will give us what we need to live as pilgrims in a fallen world.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage?  Holidays can be a time of celebration, but they can also be a time when people struggle with loneliness and regrets. You might look at this psalm and think, “I am in the valley, that is for sure!” Notice that the psalmist is not a slave of his circumstances. He doesn’t just look for an oasis, but rather even in the Valley of Baca, he makes a well.  He starts digging, in faith, knowing that he’ll find water.

       Remember Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4? She came out to a well in the heat of the day, probably because of her reputation, in order to avoid confrontations. It was a divine appointment. Jesus turned the discussion about water into a discussion about quenching the deepest longing of her soul. He will do the same for you. He knows us, our circumstances, our need, and we can trust Him to meet us at the point of our need.

       Whatever you are facing, if you know Him, you are not alone. Will you trust Him? “Blessed are all who put their trust in Him...”  We can be thankful regardless of our circumstances because we are His. Thankfulness should be our heart attitude, not something we express once a year on a third Thursday in November. If you know Him, if you have experienced His grace and mercy, you have reason to be thankful!    Think about that, AMEN.