DUNCAN/Praying for the peace of Jerusalem

If you have a Bible, please turn with me to Psalm 122. As we look at this psalm together, I want to examine two questions — Why is the psalmist glad? And why is he so concerned for Jerusalem? And then I want to follow up with a third question — What does this mean for us, believers upon whom the end of the ages have come – not old covenant believers, but new covenant believers, those who now serve the Lord in the days between the ascension and the return of Christ?

Those Gripped by God’s Grace Love to Thank and Worship Him

Well let’s first ask the question — Why is he so glad? And it’s very apparent to you in the language of this psalm. This psalmist is glad because he loves to worship God and what he has received as he ascends into Jerusalem is a call to worship. We’ve said several times as we’ve studied the psalms that every call, “come,” is itself a call of grace because what we deserve is to hear God say, “Go! Go away! Go far away! You may not come into My presence!” But when he says, “Come, let us worship and bow down,” it’s a call of grace. You see, those who are gripped by God’s grace love to thank and worship Him.

Now think with me for just a few moments. What is worship? Well, there are a lot of legitimate ways to define what worship is, but here’s one. To worship God is to declare, with our lips and our lives, with our desires and our choices, that God is our greatest treasure. And this psalmist loves the opportunity to do just that. He loves to declare with his lips and his life, with his desires and his choices, that God is his greatest treasure. And so, when he hears them say, “Let us go into the house of the Lord,” his heart is glad because he loves to worship. And this psalmist loves to express his love for, his affection for, his esteem for, his treasuring of God and therefore he is glad when they say, “Let us go into the house of the Lord!” Those who know God, those who have tasted of His goodness, those who have been redeemed by His grace, love to declare His glory and to sing His praise and to give Him worship.

Those Gripped By God’s Grace Love to Gather with the Saints for Worship

But he doesn’t just love to worship God in general; there’s a second thing here too. He loves to worship God with God’s people. And when he hears the call, “Let us go to the house of the Lord,” it is a call that is public. This is a call to corporate worship. A cheerful readiness to meet and join in public worship and a willing promptness to engage in acts of public devotion are a sign that God’s grace is at work in our hearts. It’s a mark of true Gospel godliness. Those who have been forgiven much, love much. Those who know God’s grace, love to gather with God’s people and give Him praise. Our zeal for public worship as believers ought to exceed the zeal of the worshipers of the old covenant. No Israelite ought to be able to give us a run for our money in gathering with the people of God to worship Him because we have seen the One that all the types and shadows of the Old Testament pointed to. You see, it’s a matter of joy for believers to see others who have been redeemed by God praising Him for their redemption. It encourages us. It gives us joy. There is no place we would rather be than gathered on the Lord’s Day with the Lord’s house, that is, His people, wherever we may be gathered.

Those Gripped by God’s Grace Want God’s People to Experience God’s Peace

But there’s a third thing I want you to see in this psalm and it has to do with the psalmist’s concern for Jerusalem. Why would Jerusalem have been so important to an Old Testament believer? The reason is because the kingship and the priesthood were centrally located in the temple and in the court in Jerusalem. Now what does that mean? It means that God, in Jerusalem, had drawn two pictures for His people — the picture of Christ’s kingship and the picture of His priesthood. Christ’s priesthood was pictured in the appointed worship services of the temple. His kingship was pictured in the reign of David and his descendants. And both things of course are necessary for our salvation.

Now notice how the psalmist speaks of these things. Look at verses 3 and 4. The first thing that he says is, “Jerusalem — built as a city that is bound firmly together” — so is he just admiring Jerusalem’s architecture? No. Look at what he goes on to say — “to which the tribes go up” — remember, “go up” is language for worship in the Old Testament, right? Pagans did what? They went up to high places and worshiped false gods. But God’s people went up to Jerusalem to worship Him.

Therefore, Jerusalem is important for him because the temple is there and that’s where you worship. Look at verse 5. “There thrones for judgment were set, the thrones of the house of David.” Ahh! There is the capital of the king! That’s where the king administers judgment and justice! Why is that so important? Because it prefigures Christ’s Kingship and His Priesthood, and those things are necessary for our salvation. All the friends of God have a duty to seek the union and concord of the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ. You heard that language used in the passage that we just read in verse 6. “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! ‘May they be secure who love you!’” May they get a blessing who love Jerusalem.

You can’t pray for the Church with zeal unless you love Her passionately. And no one who loves the Church passionately and loves for Her wellbeing will go unrewarded by God. They want God’s people to experience God’s total favor and so they long and they pray and they study and they strive for that peace — that shalom for the people of God. Now this psalmist is excited about worship, and he’s excited about gathering with the people of God for worship and he loves the people of God.

My friends, we ought to love to worship because of God’s grace to us — because of the joy that it gives us to see brothers and sisters in Christ redeemed by His death and resurrection giving praise and honor and glory and gratitude to Him. And it is our certain destiny if we believe Jesus and His Gospel – we will be there and our hearts will burn within us, for eternity.

The Rev. Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III  is the Chancellor/CEO of Reformed Theological Seminary and the John E. Richards Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology. He is also currently serving as President of RTS Jackson.