Kingdom Passion (3)

One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple. Psalm 27.4

A man after God’s heart
David enjoyed a special relationship with God. He was not a perfect man, by any means, but few before or after him ever sought the Lord with such diligence and consistency.

Indeed, God Himself described David as a man after God’s own heart, just the kind of man in whose company the Lord was sure to take delight (1 Sam. 13.14; Acts 13.22). Just the kind of man, too, from whom we might expect to learn something about what matters most in being a follower of God.

In our text we find David exclaiming about “one thing” which he would ask of the Lord, one thing that, above all other things, was of most importance to him. Perhaps in David’s request we might gain more insight into the true nature of pure and undefiled religion?

To linger with the Lord
Notice the “one thing” David desired: He wanted to linger in the presence of the Lord, in His very house, to be there continually, so that he might gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and reflect on the experience of thus knowing the Lord so intimately, profoundly, and personally.

Now David was a busy man, with many responsibilities. He had many enemies as well. We might suppose that the “one thing” David would have sought from the Lord would relate to his ability to keep his affairs in order and secure, or to govern wisely and without fear of enemies.

Undoubtedly all these things pressed on David continually, day after day. Moreover, David had children to raise, armies to feed, and disputes to settle among His people. He would have needed much in the way of wisdom and wealth in order to fulfill all these pressing duties.

Yet above any and all of these things David sought “one thing” from the Lord: To be in His presence. To see, with the eye of the heart, the spiritual and moral beauty of the Lord, to contemplate long and deeply the glory of God, and to experience the secure and transforming presence of the Lord without interruption.

Knowing the Lord
Is David simply giving us another perspective on what God through Moses had commanded His people on the plains of Moab? Is David also insisting that the “one thing” that matters, above all other things in life, the one thing about which to be most passionate, is to know the Lord, to be intimate with Him, to see and participate in Him, to fill one’s mind and heart with the presence and pleasure of the Lord, and to carry that presence, that relationship into every other detail and duty of one’s life?

This is indeed what David intends.

Such dwelling with, gazing upon, and meditating on the beauty of the Lord also involves two other verbs, as David notes – “seeking” the face of the Lord, and “waiting” on the goodness of the Lord (Ps. 27.8, 13, 14). If we would “see” the Lord in all his beauty, and enjoy the pleasure that comes in His presence, we must devote ourselves to seeking His face and waiting on Him. This means turning to prayer, searching the Word of God, and communing with Him as He makes Himself known through His many works (Ps. 19).

David’s “one thing” is exactly in line with what God requires of all His people; His way of attaining to that one thing is not an alternative to fearing, loving, and obeying God, but simply one more avenue – seeking, learning, meditating, and waiting – by which they who know the Lord may enter more deeply and more continuously into the knowledge of God, into the very real and palpable, passionate experience of God and His glory.

Next steps: What does it mean to “seek” the Lord? Or to “wait” on Him? Ask a pastor or church leader to help you understand these questions.

T. M. Moore

Additional Resources

This week’s study, Kingdom Passion, is the third of an eight-part series on The Kingdom Turn, and is available as a free download. T. M. has written two books to complement this eight-part series. You can order The Kingship of Jesus by clicking here, and The Gospel of the Kingdom by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.