My Heart, His Dwelling Place

For the LORD has chosen Zion;
he has desired it for his dwelling place:
“This is my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless her provisions;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
Her priests I will clothe with salvation,
and her saints will shout for joy.
There I will make a horn to sprout for David;
I have prepared a lamp for my anointed.
His enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on him his crown will shine.” (Psalm 132:13-18, ESV)
Psalm 132 is clearly about David’s desire to move the tabernacle to Jerusalem. When David became king, the tabernacle (and by extension the Ark of the Covenant) was in Shiloh. It took two years for David to make Jerusalem the capital of Israel and move the ark there.

However, the Psalmist is also clear that God had chosen Jerusalem (Zion) before David brought the ark there. David was simply doing what God had already ordained. So how is this Psalm applied to you and me today?

This morning, in my time with the Lord, this is what I did. I do not think I’m off base with this. The reality is, if you belong to Jesus, it is because God chose you. He called you and redeemed you. This is not a treatise on predestination and election. Books have been written to tackle the profundity of the passages on both election and the free will of men and women. I believe both.

But read this passage like this:

For the LORD has chosen me;
he has desired me for his dwelling place:

Then God speaks…
“You are my resting place forever;
here I will dwell, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless you;
I will satisfy you with bread.
You I will clothe with salvation,
and you will shout for joy.
There I will make a horn to sprout for you;
I have prepared a lamp for you,
Your enemies I will clothe with shame,
but on you my crown will shine.”

In the New Testament, our hearts become Christ’s home. He no longer dwells in the temple, but we become the temple. What if we truly believed this! Lived out of it! Appropriated this into our lives!

Is your heart His resting place? Has it occurred to you that, if you are born again, He has desired to dwell in you. He longs to satisfy you. He longs to clothe your naked sinfulness with his salvation. Your enemies (the world, Satan and your sinful nature) he will clothe with shame.

We are, of all people, most blessed. Dwell on this today.