Psalm 15 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 15 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1O Lord, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?
Verse 2Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right, and speak the truth from their heart;
Verse 3who do not slander with their tongue, and do no evil to their friends, nor take up a reproach against their neighbors;
Verse 4in whose eyes the wicked are despised, but who honor those who fear the Lord; who stand by their oath even to their hurt;
Verse 5who do not lend money at interest, and do not take a bribe against the innocent. Those who do these things shall never be moved.
Devotion
O Lord, who may abide in your tent? Is it really only those who speak the truth, do no evil, take no reproach? This psalm is black and white. Either you are in the tent or you are not. As I read this psalm I begin to fret … wondering if I can possibly live up to these expectations … knowing that I cannot.
In this psalm I am reminded of those times in life when all seems impossible. Those days when no matter what you do, there is no way you can climb to the top of that hill. But there is grace here. If we depend on ourselves to make it into the tent, we will not. But as children of God we are in the tent, not by our own doing, but through God’s doing. And because of this, we are called to live lives worthy of being tent-dwelling people.
Prayer
God of Strength and God of Grace – Help me through this day to trust in the promise I have of living with you in your tent. And through this promise may I make decisions worthy of being a tent-dwelling person. Amen