Ps.84:10 – 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.
David really catches us by surprise as he ends Psalm 84. You have to remember exactly who wrote this psalm to get the full impact; this is David, King of Israel. David shocks us at multiple levels, first he is a worshipper. The natural expectation we would have is someone with this kind of power would demand adulation of himself, but not David. There is a humility in his words which can only be explained by the fact that David experienced greatness in the presence of the Lord, greatness demands humility because it brings us in touch with our frailty, that’s what worship does, it brings us into touch with who He is. Secondly, he sees that being a servant in God’s house is greater than any position we can rise to in this life. David was a warrior, an unsurpassed song writer, and the King of Israel, a powerful nation in his day. Yet David recognized that none of those things could compare with the simplicity of just serving the Lord and His people in His house. Here is how Spurgeon describes this verse.
“Of course the psalmist means a thousand days spent elsewhere. Under the most favorable circumstances in which earth’s pleasures can be enjoyed, they are not comparable by so much as one in a thousand to the delights of the service of God. To feel his love, to rejoice in the person of the anointed Savior, to survey the promises and feel the power of the Holy Ghost in applying precious truth to the soul, is a joy which worldlings (worldly people) cannot understand, but which true believers are ravished with. Even a glimpse at the love of God is better than ages spent in the pleasures of sense. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. The lowest station in connection with the Lord’s house is better than the highest position among the godless. Only to wait at his threshold and peep within, so as to see Jesus, is bliss. To bear burdens and open doors for the Lord is more honour than to reign among the wicked. Every man has his choice, and this is ours. God’s worst is better than the devil’s best.”
So what could bring someone to this place in their life? There is only one explanation, seeing God’s glory residing in His house brings a shift in every part of our lives. We see that this, knowing Him and making Mim known, is why we were born. This is our purpose and passion and this is the place we are content. One day in His house is better than any opportunity you could have in this world.
