Who May Abide In Your Tent, O Lord?

Who May Abide In Your Tent, O Lord?

Psalm 15:1-5 "O Lord, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill? Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from their heart; who do not slander with their tongue, and do no evil to their friends, nor take up a reproach against their neighbors; in whose eyes the wicked are despised, but who honors those who fear the Lord; who stand by their oath even to their hurt; who do not lend money at interest, and do not take a bribe against the innocent. Those who do these things shall never be moved.”

This verse resonates with me as it directly addresses the question of how to stay in God's favor. I appreciate the clear instructions, as they allow me to ensure I am following them correctly. The Psalmist's inquiry to the Lord about who can abide in His tent sets the stage for the list of actions we can take to secure an invitation to the holy hill. Let’s explore these requirements to abide in the Lord’s tent.

First, there are those who walk blamelessly, do what is right, and speak the truth from their hearts. Is this you? Are you walking blamelessly? No, me neither. We all mess up, and we all sin. But when we do mess up and sin, are we going to confession? Are we turning back to the Lord and asking Him to forgive us, or are we just living in that sin? Are we taking that sin on as our identity and getting comfortable with it? If we want to be invited into the Lord’s tent we need to do our best to walk blamelessly and to do what is right. This means going to the Lord, confessing, and repenting so you can be reconciled with Him.

This first point also states that we must speak the truth from our hearts. How often are we doing that? How often are you speaking the truth from your heart? I know I get stuck at times. I want to speak the truth, but I get nervous, and I don’t say what I am thinking. I let peer pressure get to me at times and I don’t say the thing I really want to say. I even get sucked into gossiping at times. That is not speaking from the heart. When I just looked up what it means to speak from your heart, it said to speak from your soul. It is said to really know what the message you are saying means for you and for the person with whom you are talking. Are we stopping to think before we talk? Not thinking before we speak can get us into some real trouble, and we end up hurting people even when that isn’t our intention.

Second, the verse mentions those “who do not slander with their tongue, and do no evil to their friends, nor take up a reproach against their neighbors.” This can be a tough one. I have talked before about how devastating gossip can be. Our words have the power to make someone's day or ruin someone’s life. Our words are very powerful. We need to make sure we are using our words for good, to build people up, and not for slander or harm. I would hope it would be easy not to do evil to our friends. I mean, they are our friends, after all. However, sometimes the enemy can get in and spread seeds of discontentment and division. He can tell us things that are not true that make us lash out at our friends. I see if often with my oldest son and his friends. We need to be on the lookout for this and correct it as soon as we realize it.

The second point also points out that we shouldn’t take up a reproach against our neighbor. This one was a bit unclear to me. I looked it up; one place said it means to gossip, another place said it means disgrace, and another place said to say or show that you are disappointed, upset, or angry because they have done something wrong. I think what helped me understand this one the most was looking at synonyms for the word reproach. Those are blame, censure, condemnation, disapproval, and rebuke. Does this give you a better picture of the meaning of the word reproach? If we are following the commandment to love our neighbor, then we won’t have to worry about reproaching them, as none of those synonyms match up with love. They are more the opposite of love.

Third, those who are despised in the eyes of the wicked, but who honor those who fear the Lord. Those who stand by their oath even to their hurt. It is no secret to Christians that they may be despised for their beliefs. It seems like in the world today, it is perfectly acceptable to be anything you want to be, except Christian. If you believe in Christ, you are automatically in the wrong. You are automatically labeled as unaccepting of others and unloving. It is a really crazy time we live in right now. Jesus was despised in his day, so why should we be any different? Why should we suffer less than our Lord and Savior?

It also says, but those who honor those who fear the Lord. It’s ok if the world despises us, but we must not despise each other. We must not let our differences get in the way of loving and respecting our fellow Christians. There is only one Jesus. The same Jesus all Christians love. The same Jesus that died on the cross for ALL of our sins. Yours and mine alike. Let’s honor each other, even if we don’t have the exact same beliefs, because we all fear the Lord, and we all know that Jesus is our Lord and Savior!!

The third point also says those who stand by their oath even to their hurt. This one is a big one because I have seen the devastation it leaves when we don’t do this. Sometimes we can be tempted to lie about something because we don’t want to get in trouble. I remember a parent once lied to a child about what really happened because they didn’t want the child to get mad at them. However, that just taught the child that if I don’t want to get in trouble, it is ok to lie. Sometimes, we mess up, but it is just as important in these times to keep our oath. It is important to keep our promise even if it means we lose out in some way.

Fourth, the verse says those who do not lend money at interest and do not take a bribe against the innocent. If you are helping someone out, they don’t charge them interest on what you are letting them borrow. They are in need; they are struggling, and you are doing a kind thing for them. It is not a problem to ask them to repay you, but do not add anything extra on to what they owe. If you give someone $50, ask them to repay you $50. The last thing this verse talks about is taking a bribe against the innocent. If you know someone didn’t do it, don’t be bribed into lying about it. Bribes don’t just mean money, either. Someone could try to bribe you with objects, with power, with respect, with a job position. Whatever it is, it is a trick from the enemy, don’t fall for it. Don’t lie about the innocent.

The last line of this whole section says, “Those who do these things shall never be moved.”  This means that if you do these things, you will never be moved from your faith. No matter what the circumstances are, your faith won’t be shaken. You won’t be removed from the sight of the Lord. You are in His presence, and you will remain there. Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless each person listening to this episode. Lord, we ask you to help us do each one of the things you are calling us to in these verses. Lord, we ask you to help us not do the things you ask us not to do. We want to be drawn closer to you, Lord; please help us. We love you so much and we want to abide in your tent and live on your holy hill. We ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’s holy name, Amen!

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I look forward to meeting with you again tomorrow to bring you another witness. I hope to see some of you on live mentoring tonight. It is not too late to join. I will place a link in the show notes. Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do I! Have a blessed day!

Today’s Word from the Lord was received in December 2023 by a member of my Catholic Charismatic Prayer Group. If you have any questions about the prayer group or about these words, please email [email protected]. Today’s Word from the Lord is, “My children, I am your God. Release all your cares, your anxieties, your sorrow, your pain to me. The more that you release all that bothers you, that is when my peace enters deeply within you. I am the Lord, and I keep telling you that I love you. I love you, and I want the best for you, my children.”

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