Praise of His Glory

"Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, and I will praise the LORD. ²⁰ This is the gate of the LORD, through which the righteous shall enter. ²¹ I will praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation."

Psalm 118:19-21

The psalmist asked God to open the gates of righteousness so he could go through them with praise.  All who attempted to become righteous by attempts to keep the Law of Moses ended in failure without any assurance of salvation.  Even before the Law was given the life of Abraham demonstrated plainly righteousness comes by faith in God alone.  The Gospel of Jesus provides righteousness to all who trust in Jesus Christ who is the Door by faith through whom Jew and Gentile alike must enter the kingdom of God.  If we want to receive salvation, we must enter in by faith in Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  To these souls by grace God imputes salvation, and all praise to Him.

There is a persistent fallacy that man must work to purify himself or become righteous by effort to be accepted by God.  Because all have sinned and have no power to cleanse or forgive ourselves from sin the only way we can be declared righteous is to have this status imputed to us by God.  It is on the basis of Christ's substitutionary, atoning sacrifice on Calvary which enables sinners who place their faith in Jesus to be deemed righteous.  Jesus is the divine answer to man's fervent prayers for salvation and righteousness we cannot obtain by any other way.

For mankind the gate of righteousness was more impassable than the entrance to the Holy of Holies in the temple for the unsanctified or the sealed Golden Gate today.  Praise the LORD Jesus who addressed the church in Philadelphia and said in Revelation 3:7, "These things says He who is holy, He who is true, "He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens..."  Jesus is the Door and He also has the keys!  The gate of righteousness for people is wide open today through faith in Jesus for all who willingly enter.  A day will come when God will shut this Door for entry, even as God shut Noah, his family and the animals in the ark before the great flood recorded in Genesis.  God shut Noah in and He shut every other living thing out.  If we will have abundant life now and eternal life, now is the time to enter into righteousness through the Door God has opened wide to all who believe.

Having received forgiveness, righteousness and so great a salvation, it is fitting praise would be on the lips of God's redeemed.  The psalmist said he would praise the LORD because "...You have answered me, and have become my salvation."  Having believed the word of truth we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit as proof of our future redemption "...unto the praise of His glory" (Eph. 1:13-14).  Instead of complaints and criticisms our hearts ought to pour forth praise unto God for the glorious things He has done.  How privileged we are to be blessed and no longer cursed!  With our mouths may we make known God's faithfulness to all generations as the praise of His glory rises to His everlasting throne.