In Psalm 15, David writes about the kind of character that is necessary to worship God acceptably.  The Psalm begins with two questions concerning who qualifies to appear before God to worship Him.

Psalm 15:1 (ESV)
¹ O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill?

The tent refers to the tabernacle, God’s appointed place to reveal His glory to Israel.  The holy hill refers to Mount Zion, upon which Jerusalem was built, sometimes referred to as the city of  David.  It was a place of worship for the Israelites.  The question is, “who is worthy to worship God acceptably?”  David gives us the answer.

The one who worships God must be holy, living a life of righteousness.  David tells us that he must walk uprightly.  The ESV uses the word blamelessly.  This does not mean sinlessly, but one against whom no legitimate accusation can be sustained.  The one who is walking uprightly is doing his best to keep the law of God.  While holy living begins with the heart, it does not end there.  It includes doing what is right (ver. 2).  John reminds us that the righteous one is a doer of righteousness, not one who just thinks or talks about it.

1 John 3:7 (ESV)
⁷  Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous.

Next, David speaks of one’s use of the tongue.  How a person uses his tongue is determined by his heart.  Jesus said, “what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart” (Matthew 15:18).  Thus, if a man’s heart is right, he will live the upright life required to successfully worship God, and this includes the use of his tongue.  He will not only speak the truth (ver. 2), he will refuse to do evil to his neighbor by slandering him (ver. 3), nor will he take up a reproach against a friend by spreading false reports (Exodus 23:1).  God loves everyone; thus, we cannot mistreat our fellowman, even by our words, and then worship God as if we have done nothing wrong.

Who and what we accept is another criterion for worthy worship.  Things that are vile to God are despised by His faithful followers (ver. 4).  The word “vile” refers to a reprobate who has been rejected by God (Strong).  If we are walking uprightly, we reject what God rejects, and, at the same time, we gravitate toward things that are pleasing to God.  Thus, the worthy worshiper who can dwell on God’s holy hill honors those who fear the Lord (ver. 4).

Finally, David refers to how one handles his finances.  The worthy worshiper is not greedy, nor covetous.  He does not cheat people in business transactions, nor treat the innocent unfairly by charging interest.  It was against the Law of Moses to treat a brother like that (Exodus 22:25).

These may seem to be random points that David makes about those who can abide in God’s tabernacle, but they all have to do with righteous living.  In any dispensation, the one whose worship will be acceptable is the one with moral integrity and personal holiness.  How do you measure up?

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.