I wrote a reflection on this psalm on 12th December 2024. As I recover from a stroke induced break, (Thanks for your many answered prayers) I return to this Bible Journal.
Today, is Palm Sunday. We rehearse Jesus’ “triumphal” entry into Jerusalem, and I just listened again to Psalm 24 in the context of this year’s Lent Encounter. So, let’s take another look at what may help any of us enter the Kingdom of God. Notice I didn’t say what entitles us to do so, for it is only grace that secures us a place- God’s grace.
Do I, do we have “Clean Hands”? Hands do work. Clean hands do good work. Hands were made to do God’s work. Do we DO what is right, using our hands to serve God as we do what’s right for ourselves and serve God’s other people (s)? What have we been busy doing that does not align with God’s purposes? Or maybe it’s what we have not done. Yes, we can be serious about seeking pardon for what we have done as well as “what we have failed to do”. Omission is so easy. That’s where most time wasting goes. Omission is often the seat of poor stewardship. We can’t be bothered. It’s stressful to do our part to correct our mistakes, let alone the injustices of others. And if the truth be told, we often can’t. But we shouldn’t give the impression that because our power is limited, we suck up to whatever just to save our skins.
Our attitude to injustice matters. After all, it wouldn’t be fair to our forbears who struggled to simply give up the fight in acquiescence and do absolutely nothing to help the situation of those to come after us. Protest is costly but in our daily life we can make quiet yet propound statements that send signals about what change is required. And maybe, just maybe, we have been sent to make the change. Who knows? Your prophetic action might start the journey to turn over stones that get stuck and cause many to stumble in the way of their or others’ emancipation.
Or do we have pure hearts? That’s where it starts really. Intentions – good and bad, start there. Jesus was on target when he noted) in Matthew 15:19) that this is the starting point for ideas form which corruption derives. Our motives matter. As the ancient Chinese proverb suggests, when one has set one’s heart on doing right, the will wins over actions. So having a pure heart makes the undoable possible. No doubt, Jesus’ purity of heart led him to enter Jerusalem in what we refer to as the “triumphal “entry when he knew full well that the cost of disturbing the status quo was his death on the cross. But even then, how else would the liberation of so many others happen? How would those after (and even before) him, find the means to enter the Kingdom (Kin-dom) of God?
Having a pure heart is not an easy journey. But it’s best for me and for you, and for those after us. Our collective future depends on this.
Create in me a clean heart O God. Amen