King

Lift up your heads, O gates,
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!
– Psalm 24:7

If you have played chess, you know that the game revolves around the king. Other pieces are important, and tend to get the bulk of our attention. But it is the king that determines the game. It is the only piece that cannot be captured. A player’s ultimate goal is to subdue the opponent’s king. That may not be chess terminology, but it is an accurate description of how the game works. Winning requires eliminating the power of the opposing king.

Ranks of imperial or military authority may differ throughout history from one region to the next. For the psalmist, there is no rank above the king, and therefore he deserves the greatest honor. This is why the psalm calls for a grand entrance when the king comes to town. Picture a large city gate like the Golden Gate of Jerusalem. Though the gate has been walled in, you can still see how large it is. If the king were coming to town, this would be the gate through which he should enter. It is large and majestic, conveying the grand welcome due a person of highest honor. The largest crowds could gather to celebrate the king’s arrival. The entranceway would be made wide, providing a full-scale welcome.

Who is this king the psalmist has in mind? No one less than the Lord of hosts, the Creator of all things. On his robe and on his thigh, his name is written: “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (Revelation 19:16). He is worthy of all honor and glory. He is worthy of praise and worship.

Lift up your heads, O gates,
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in!

Read those words aloud. Read them a second time—with passion and energy. Try singing the words (you’ll have to find your own tune). Do the words move your spirit? Energize you? Do they move you to become open to the Lord? This is where the psalmist wants to lead us. In response to the first six verses of the psalm, the writer essentially says, “Okay folks, let’s open wide so the King can enter.”

Open wide so the King can enter. THE King! Is that the spirit I bring to worship on Sunday morning? Is that the attitude I have when I read scripture? Is that the posture of my heart in prayer? Sadly, not always, and that is fairly generous. I wonder how much more powerful my worship experience would be, my reading or my prayer time would be, if I would orient my spirit toward the King in full abandon. Is not the King worthy of heart-gates that are fully open? The psalmist would say “yes.” I suspect he is right.

Enter, O Lord, my King. The gates of my heart are open wide to you.