"One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple."
{Psalm 27:4} (NIV)
A person could say, “Come on John. The LORD dwelt in the tabernacle in the same way that the Holy Spirit dwells within us in this age of grace. You can’t say that David’s desire to meet God there is a parallel to a Christian desiring to go to church.” Actually, the key to my approach to this verse is found in the statement: to gaze on the beauty of the LORD. This is not just poetry, it is TRUTH. David did gaze on the beauty of the LORD, and so do all people who worship God.
The beauty of the LORD was described by Him as He passed by Moses on Mount Sinai. The beauty of the LORD is His character and specifically how He deals with humans. The beauty of the Lord Jesus was not in His appearance (Isa 53:2) but in how He acted towards those around Him. Therefore we don’t gaze at the LORD as we would gaze at a beautiful sunset; we gaze at the LORD as we deliberately focus our attention on His character, and on how He deals with sinful humans (us).
Friend, this type of gazing is why God’s people have always been told to assemble. The Israelites were commanded to appear at the temple, a minimum of 3 times a year (Ex 23:17). Christians are encouraged to “not give up meeting together” (Heb 10:25), but to keep assembling especially as we get close to the Day. A synonym for this type of gazing is corporate worship. A local church is the only place that designs group activities for the purpose of focusing our attention on the beauty of the LORD. We can see the LORD in the sunset, in little children, at the beach, in the fireplace and in our fishing boat. But it is hard to gaze on His beauty when we are alone, we need each other to help us. A person who seeks the LORD and desires to gaze on His beauty, can’t get enough of church, for it is in the assembly that our gaze is focused on the LORD!
"Oh Lord, You're Beautiful", Keith Green, via YouTube
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