[Pastor Ralph]

Q1. (Psalm 27) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

[Ms CJ]

Q1. (Psalm 24) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

1) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"?

* David found the place out of all the riches, the fame, and the power he held over a kingdom, the one
place he could open his heart in, to worship alone in and to know that when he needed wisdom it was
in the house of the Lord. He desired to always be in His presence and he had learned that the " house
of the Lord was a safe place and that he knew that it was were he wanted to be all the days of his life.
* My mother went to be in the house of Lord yesterday morning and as she went I took her by the hand
lead her to the gates of this wonderful dwelling place and as she approached she lifted up her arm
reached out and took the hand of Jesus, the Lifter of her faith and in she went into the house of the
Lord where it is her safe place and her dwelling place for eternity and to the mansion Jesus had ready
for her. I love her very much and I will miss her very much but I know that I can look into my heart,
the place I have built that surrounds the safe place, dwelling place where Jesus lives and I can see
her there and we can still love on one another and I know that she is waiting for me now and heaven
doesn't seem to be so far away now and its as if I can see a stair case to heaven now and I know
that anytime I can go up those stairs and be in that place of my Father's house. Her children have
risen and called her Blessed!

2) What does it mean to "seek his face"?

* To inquire of, to beg, to stand in the place of holiness that we might find His will for us and to see His
face is to find favor in His sight.
* To find that place in worship where He comes to commune with us, to love on one another in a way
only a true living God can. A place where only He can touch and love us and teach us this way to love Him and to go from that place and share that love with others. He favors us and we favor others with the same face to face love His has just given to us.
* To seek His face teaches us true relationship with Him and with others. It opens our hearts in a way
that no other relationship can.
* Trust, to seek His face teaches to trust. To trust Him and to trust others.

3) How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

Ps 27:14
* Wait on the LORD; (OT:6960- look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon).

* Be of good courage, (OT:2388- aid, amend, X calker, catch, cleave, confirm, be constant, constrain, continue, be of good (take) courage (-ous, -ly), encourage (self), be established, fasten, force, fortify, make hard, harden, help, (lay) hold (fast), lean, maintain, play the man, mend, become (wax) mighty, prevail, be recovered, repair, retain, seize, be (wax) sore, strengthen (self), be stout, be (make, shew, wax) strong (-er), be sure, take (hold), be urgent, behaveself valiantly, withstand.

* And He shall strengthen your heart; (OT:553- confirm, be courageous (of good courage, stedfastly minded, strong, stronger), establish, fortify, harden, increase, prevail, strengthen (self), make strong (obstinate, speed).

*Wait, I say, on the LORD! (OT:6960- look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon).

So we must always follow David's wisdom here with these understanding displayed here and let us all
always refer back to this Psalms as David had see that one day is better in His courts than a thousand days in our own.

[Tabatha]

Q1. (Psalm 27) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

1. This verse is ( Psalm 27 : 7-8 )
By the face of the Lord, it mean an expression of devotion. To go past the veil into the holy of Holies and have a personal audience with the Lord. His heart is desiring personal intimacy with the Almighty, seeking a personal hearing before the Lord Himself. ( Philippians 3: 10 ) Paul says: " I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
When we cry out to seek the face of the Lord we are hungering for His presence, Longing for His closiness. desiring a one on one time with the Almighty. David is crying out in verse " 9 " Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior. ( 10 ) Though my father and mother forsook me, the Lord will receive me." ( 27: 9-10 ) To not have the presence of the Lord and be able to know Him face to face can be such a lonely , insecure place. When we cry out to seek His face we are wanting more of Him. When we seek His hands we are seeking His blessings. I want His face His holy presence with His arms wraped around me, holding me , protecting me. loving me, And I am going to love Him back with passion and a hungry heart.

2. Dwelling in the House of the Lord David used the word Temple to mean" the presence of the
Lord. His greatest desire was to live in God's presence each day of His life. Sadly,this is not the greatest desire of many who claim to be believers.But those who desire to live in God's presence each day will be able to enjoy that relationship forever.

Many have had the sad experience of being forsaken by Father and Mother. Broken homes , differences of belief,addiction to drugs, alcohol, even psychological isolation can leave children crippled by this loss. Even as adults , the pain may linger. God can take that place in our life. fill that void, and heal that hurt. He can direct us to adults who may take the role of earthly Father and Mother for us .His Love is sufficient for all our needs.

( Lamentations 3:24 -26 ) calls us to hope in and wait for the Lord because often God uses waiting to refresh, renew, and teach us . Make good use of your waiting times by discovering what God may be trying to teach you in them. "The Land of the living" simply means " this life " David was obviously going through a trial, but he was confident that in this present life God would see Him through it as He sought the face of the Almighty. He put His hope in the Lord

[Jezemeg]

This psalm is the first piece of Scripture I 'owned' as mine and was read on the occasion of my baptism in June 2003. Vs 13 was read at the moment of baptism...'I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living'...it will always be a Psalm that I hold as a stronghold, a basis of my faith in Christ, and I have constantly relied on it in times of trouble and pain.
I believe David is meaning by his desire to 'dwell in the House of the LORD' and to 'seek HIS face' that he acknowledges that he is a mere human, and that while he will make mistakes and falter, his overriding ambition is to remain true to God's calling and not turn from Him despite any trouble that may come his way. David is remembered by God as a great King in God's image, not because he was faultless but because he acknowledged his mistakes and repented of them. This psalm is typical of David's acknowledgement of both his own limitations and of God's Majesty and Grace and the eternal Hope it contains.

[Roxanne]

[quote name='Pastor Ralph' date='Aug 18 2007, 12:46 PM' post='28540']
Q1. (Psalm 24) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?
[/quote it means to one on one time with the Lord where you share everything ..he gives you the answers. TO SEEK HIS FACE...MEANS TO LIVE BY GOD RULES NOT BY THE WORLD ,,TO BE MORE CHRISTLIKE GET CLOSER TO HIM ...WE CAN'T ACTUALLY SEE HIS FACE ..BU HE CAN SEE OURS .. AND HE CAN KNOW WE ARE LIVING BY FAITH AND IN HIS LOVE..... DAVID PROVIDES HOPE AT THE END OF THE PSALM BY .. TELLING US TO STAND STRONG IN OUR FAITH AND GIVE EVERYTHING TO GOD AND HIS WILL ,WILL BE DONE ..GOD IS ALWAYS OUR HOPE

[Cheni]

(Psalm 27) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"?

To dwell in the house of the Lord is seek Him in all things. He draws us near to Him with ever lasting kindness and loves us with His everlasting love (Jer 31:3). Therefore, to dwell in the house of the Lord is to know and to share his ever lasting love and kindness. When you do this, people notice not just you, but God who works through you.

What does it mean to "seek his face"? Seeking His face is seeking audience with the Lord, personal intimacy, a yearning with intention and God-fidence that results in fulfillment. I seek His face by withdrawing into the wilderness and praying (Luke 5:16).

How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm? David is assured of his salvation because he can see the goodness of the Lord today as he waits on the Lord, his heart is is made strong and this is the birthplace of hope in the Lord.

[MissDauntless]

As I read this psalm, (OUT LOUD, as suggested), I got a teeny bit verklempt at the end when David says,

"13I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.

This is the answer to all those times that we have thought, or had to answer to someone else, why something bad is happening. God is always working to bring out His goodness, even here in our natural lives.


14Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD." (27:13-14)

I once had a very brief class with a Rabbi´s wife, (non believer), she expressed to us that NOTHING is an error or oversight in The Bible and nothing is there by accident. I was reminded of this when I read verse 14, because twice in short succession David reminds us to Wait for the LORD. That must be very important in our journey if he said it twice!

[Patsy Laycoax]

To dwell in the house of the Lord is a metaphor for living close to God and doing His will. It is a place of safety from sin and God's enemies and rejoicing in God's presence.


To seek His face is to desire for God to hear you and to have a personal,intimate relationship with Him.

David provides hope at the end of this Psalm by telling us to wait for the Lord and expect Him to come through with an answer. PRAISE THE LORD!

[Nurice]

I was blessed to hear Pastor Ralph explain that "The verb qāwā means "to wait or look for with eager expectation." I remembered those exact words in another Psalm:

In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait in expectation.

That's Psalm 5:3 from the NIV. I'm also reminded of 2 Cor. 1:18-20 says, 'But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not "Yes" and "No." For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by me and Silas[b] and Timothy, was not "Yes" and "No," but in him it has always been "Yes." For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ.'

I went back and looked at some notes I had made on these two verses during my Bible study time several years ago, because I needed to be reminded again. The summary of what I'd written is that God's answer is always "yes," that his "yes" is always the very best, but that it may not be what we expect it to be. That waiting is not fretting while we wait, but rather resting in God's "yes." And that expectation is not jumping at everything that happens to see if it's what WE asked for or wanted, but rather calm assurance that God's "yes" (which is far better than anything we could ever dream up) will come to pass at the very best time as we wait for him.

I thought about this some more today and decided that I can wait for his "yes" because I already have it in 1 Cor. We're just living out the play now, and we'll get to that line when our Director God puts it in the script. Meanwhile I'm in his "yes" throughout the whole play anyway because he is always "yes" for us. So there's not really much for me to fret about! (Oh, the fleshly nature that pulls me so quickly from the things the Lord shows me. Lord, remind me of this when I start fretting!!)

Lois

[KelvinJC]

1) To dwell in the house of the Lord is seek Him in all things and to have complete trust in Him. David is telling us to complete pour our whole life in trusting the Lord as he is the provider and mentioned as "my light, my salvation, [and] my stronghold". David knows that if we dwell in the house of the Lord we will be able to draw closer to the Lord at all times. In the house of the Lord, it is safe and we will have peace in our heart.

2) "Seek the face" of the Lord literally means wants to have a person's earnest seeking of something or someon. The intention is to be found or acquired. David wants to seek God - his presence. He wants to be face to face with him and desires to hear from God's word. David wants to be able to draw closer to God, so that he will be able to see him face to face and have a more intimate relationship with God.

3) David has mentioned to us that we should wait for the Lord. Because he is telling us to wait with a commitment to wait expectantly until Yahweh comes through with the answer - the help that we need. Not only that, in Psalm 27 verse 14, he has mentioned "wait for the lord" twice. This increases the significance of the importance of the praise "wait for the Lord". He is giving us the hope that we should be "strong and take heart" and wait for the good news that God has for us.

[nancychua]

Q1. (Psalm 24) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

1). To dwell in the house of the Lord means living close intimacy relationship & rejoicing in God` presence . To
know and to share his ever lasting love and kindness.


2). To seek His face is desiring a personal hearing before the Lord and to have a personal intimate relationship with Him.

3). David provides hope at the end of this Psalm is to wait for the Lord and expect Him to come through with an answer. He had see that one day is better in His courts than a thousand days in our own.

[Patricia A]

Q1. (Psalm 24) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

[jasper]

This psalm of David clearly shows how much he longed to be with the Lord. In verse 4 he says, there is only one thing he desires and that is to "dwell in the house of the Lord". but he does not stop it there but goes on to say that he wants to dwell there all the days of his life. In Psalm 84:10 we read, "For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness." So David always yearned to be in the presence of the Lord and in His holy temple as much as he could be there. To "dwell in the house of the Lord" means being in the presence of God. In todays world, this means spending time with God personally and with your family and also with your church. When ever we get the time, we should long to be in God's presence .

We dwell in the house of the Lord in order to "Seek His face" . Even though we can never see God face to face, seeking to be with Him in His presence and talking to Him is what the Lord requires of us and waiting on Him to answer us according to His will in His time.

David provides hope in verse 14 where he says we must wait on the Lord. In Isaiah 40:31 we read that they that wait upon the lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they sahll run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint. Can you see the sequence, first we fly, then we run and then we walk and all these times we will never fall. That's the blessedness of a man who waits on the Lord. If we become impatient and start doing things our way, we fail to perfect God's will in our lives, So dear brothers and sisters in Christ, lets learn to wait on the Lord.

[Elwood C O'Dell]

As I read and think about this psalm I gain a sense of how much David really desired to realize and know the presence of the Father in his life. David seems to have a burning desire to have a time of deep, personal, intimate, vibrant fellowship with his God in every area of his life. His hope for this lies in the fact that David knows that if he waits patiently upon the LORD, He will answer the longing of David's heart, and there will be a time of sweet fellowship with the Divine.

[masika]

Q1. (Psalm 27) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?
David knew that God offers Good protection since He is a Perfect Shepherd even if the enemy surrounds us. So we should always be in the presence of God where we will get good protection and the enemy will not get us.
This should be our Prayer all Brethren, there is no other good place than staying in the Presence of God forever AMEM AND AMEN.
David gives hope at the end to wait on God’s timing. God is worth waiting for. We should hope in and wait for the Lord because often God uses times of waiting to refresh, renew, and teach us. Let us make good use of our waiting times by discovering what God May be trying to teach us in them.

[Jen]

What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to"seek His face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

When you love someone you desire to dwell with them. You are not happy apart from that person. You yearn for them. David more than anything desired the ark of the covenant to be in Jerusalem because that was God's meeting place with His people. The mercy seat was there and through that he had access to God. We now have access to the throne through Jesus. Even now we are seated in the heavenlies because of the mercy we obtained through the death of Jesus on the cross for our sins. May His name be praised forever!!!

We seek His face through prayer, reading and meditating on His Word, being with fellow believers in corporate worship, and in private devotion.

Wait on the Lord!!** Those who wait on the Lord will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

God Bless!
Jen
Numbers 6:24-26

[scabral]

Q1. (Psalm 24) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?

1.Dwelling in the house of the Lord means to be close to the Lord at all times by abiding or residing with God : being in communion with Him in prayer & the reading of His Word & basking in His presence.

2.To ''seek His face '' means to seek,desire & yearn for His presence.This has to be conscious, moment by moment intimacy with God. As we begin to enjoy the love relationship with our Lord & crave to be with Him, we'll be able to seek Him. This has been David's experience.

3.David encourages us to cling to the Lord & ''wait'' for Him to act .We are not to give up but to hold on to our faith till our last breath!This is only possible when we learn to dwell in His presence & seek His face & enjoy intimacy with Him.This will result in our persevering faith in God & will give us courage & boldness.

[JustJeff]

(Psalm 27) To seek His face and to be in His presence is to desire the presence of Adonai in your life, to feel Yahweh with you at all times.
All things happen in El Shaddai's time, not ours. Though things seem hopeless they are totally in Adonai Tzavot's hands so, be strong and of good courage and learn patience.

[Stan]

Q1. (Psalm 24) What does it mean that David desires to "dwell in the house of the Lord"? What does it mean to "seek his face"? How does David provide hope at the end of this Psalm?


He desires to be where his God is, to be in His presence and to be able to know Him as his God and be able to communicate with Him face to face.

To seek His face is the same to me it is just another way of wanting to be in the presence of God and enjoy the communing with God and the worshipping of the Lord.


by the verses;13I am still confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.
14Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD." (27:13-14)
He is sure that in time he will be able to be with his God and also to be in the land of the living, he is sure that he will go to a place where he will be with those who have gone on before him. He is sure that all he is require to do is wait for the Lords timimg and he will take him to be there where He wants to be with his fathers.

[lulu 1931]

question 1 David wants to be close to God at all times, both in his innerself and his outer ways.
question 2 He wants to come face to face with God and have a personal responce from God.
Question 3 He knows from his own past that God will bring about his own perfect will in his own perfect time: remembering this he tells his people to wait for the Lord,put hope in the Lord, and don't give up the faith in him