Lift up your heads, O gates, That the King of Glory may come in!

Psalm 24 (NASB) from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

The King of Glory Entering Zion.

A Psalm of David.

24 The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains,
The world, and those who dwell in it.
² For He has founded it upon the seas
And established it upon the rivers.
³ Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord?
And who may stand in His holy place?
⁴ He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood
And has not sworn deceitfully.
⁵ He shall receive a blessing from the Lord
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
⁶  This is the generation of those who seek Him,
Who seek Your face—even Jacob. Selah.

⁷ Lift up your heads, O gates,
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!
⁸ Who is the King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.
⁹ Lift up your heads, O gates,
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!
¹⁰ Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
He is the King of glory. Selah.

The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, The world, and those who dwell in it. We are part of that all, we are part of those who dwell in the earth. We are the Lord’s. David asks the questions:

³ Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? If we belong to God, if we are His what is necessary for us to be able to come into His presence? What is required that we might stand in the holy presence of God?

  David answers for us: ⁴ He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood And has not sworn deceitfully. ⁵ He shall receive a blessing from the Lord
And righteousness from the God of his salvation. The truth is:  Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins. (Ecclesiastes 7:20) We obtain our righteousness only through Christ. Our hands are only made clean through Christ. if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.(1 John 1:7)  "The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? (Jeremiah 17:9) Yet through Christ we are transformed, our hearts are made pure.

We are called to abide and to dwell in the presence of God. Hebrews 4:16 says: Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. David writes: ⁷ Lift up your heads, O gates, And be lifted up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in!  God desires to come and dwell with us and in us. Jesus says: "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.…(John 14:16-17) and  "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; 23I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.(John 17:22-23)

Here is the thing though, as much as God desires to abide with and in us and He has made the way for us to abide and dwell with Him, He will never force Himself on us. Even though we are His, He invites us into a relationship with Him. Jesus says: 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. (Revelation 3:20)

David says: ⁹ Lift up your heads, O gates, And lift them up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in! ¹⁰ Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts,  He is the King of glory. Selah.

Selah means think about it. Jesus stands at the door and knocks. He will not force His way into your heart or your life. He waits patiently, He continues to knock. In Luke 21:25-28,  Jesus talks of the day of His return. He says:

 “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶ men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷ Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

Lift up your head, open wide the gates, the redeemer stands at the door and knocks. Open wide that the King of Glory may come in.

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Spirit, thank You that You have made the way, You have paid the way that I might come and dwell and abide in the presence and holiness of God. I am amazed and overwhelmed that You the God of creation, the King of Glory would be willing and desire to dwell in me. I open to You. Come in and possess every part of me.   Amen.

Here is a link to a passionate song, "Gates" by Amber Brooks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rz_NItb7mY