The Joy of Being In God's House
- Elijah McSwain
- 11 minutes ago
- 11 min read
8/7/2026
Elijah McSwain, Sr.
Psalm 122:1 (NKJV) “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord.”
Psalm 122 is known as a pilgrim psalm. One of the central themes of this psalm focuses on the pilgrimage that Jewish practitioners or worshipers had to make to reach the house of the Lord. King David is declared to have written this psalm as a Song of Ascents. The basis of this lyrical expression would be sung by Jewish pilgrims as they made their way to the house of the Lord. This Psalm, like many others, was to be sung as the people of God journeyed to assemble in God’s holy place to worship. David penned this psalm to express the sincerity of the believer as they came to worship God in His majesty and glory. It was a time of anticipation to magnify God by helping to prepare the minds of the people for worship as they approached God’s house. David’s composition consists of his heartfelt desire to be in the place of worship, for the purpose of worship, so that he may experience the power of worship, in respect to the joy it brings to the mind of the worshiper. No doubt the heightened anticipation for David and his fellow travelers to engage in worship gave rise to the sentiment upon their arrival that “it’s just good to be here”. Our disposition, like that of David, should display a song that ascends from our hearts to worship God.
We should be open to experiencing magnificent fellowship, communion, and the power of God as we uplift His name in the worship experience.
Every believer should recount the words of the songwriter James Moore, who wrote, “One more time, one more time, He allowed us to come together one more time.” 1 The song portrays the sacredness of worship and the precious time the gathered assembly has to spend together with God. As we analyze this passage, it will be evident that David possessed true joy, devotion, and reverence for God as he longed to enter God’s house.
The Element of Personal Devotion
David expressed a heart filled with enthusiasm and profound allegiance for the opportunity to be present in worship. The writer declared, “I was glad when they said unto me”. The pronouns “I” and “me” emphasize that worship is a personal matter. Worship was a personal encounter in which David himself set his heart on God. For after all, in 1 Samuel 13:14, we find that David was a man after God’s own heart. His heart was dialed in on God because his affections were intertwined with his panoramic view of God. He did not allow anything to detour him from assembling in the house of the Lord.
His willingness and eagerness to be in the abode of God were more desirable than being anywhere else, as well as being consumed with anything that held no eternal significance or heavenly weight.
Psalm 84:10 (ESV) reiterates this truth by its written composition: “For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.” David would not allow the things of carnality or the things of the world to take precedence over his business of making God his business. In other words, nothing would preoccupy his attention or divert him from the opportunity to show homage and reverence to God. Like David, we cannot allow the mundane and temporal things of the world to keep us from God’s house. When things derail us from coming to God’s house, we are ultimately robbed of the joy and gladness we experience in the worship assembly.
No true worshipper should allow the ball game on TV to rob them of worship. No true worshipper should allow leisurely desires to rob them of worship. No true worshipper should allow preoccupation with household duties to rob them of worship. No true worshipper should allow complacency to rob them of worship. No true worshipper should allow comfort in their lazy boy recliner to rob them of worship. No true worshipper should allow being a member of Bedside Baptist Church, which means you would rather stay in bed to watch church, to rob you of worship. Do not let your preferences rob you of a refreshing and uplifting encounter with God.
Colossians 3:1-2 (NKJV) challenges every Christian, “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” Therefore, the psalmist stated, “I was glad,” to express the joy that was bottled up inside, one of his reasons for rejoicing. Albert Barnes commented, "The language is expressive of the happiness which is felt by those who love God and his sanctuary. The heart is drawn to the house of prayer; the soul is filled with peace at the prospect of being again permitted to worship God." 2The reality of engaging the God of heaven and earth, who is personal, was an encounter that David admired. His joy was predicated on the fact that he was able to be in the presence of God and witness His glory.
Thus, David would be personally enlightened, spiritually saturated with God, and delightfully satisfied before Him.
Psalm 42:1-2 (NKJV) articulates the desire for God this way: “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” An earnest desire for God is not fulfilled until it has tasted of Him. This is the psalmist's mindset as he approached the house of the Lord. Psalm 63:1-5 (ESV) adds, “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips.” There is joy experienced in God’s sanctuary. There is familiarity with being in the place of worship as a worshipper. A desire and longing for the living God is expressed in rendering the praise and worship due to His holy name.
The Joy of Corporate Worship
In this psalm, David publicized the fact that he was joyful to worship with other believers. His words made a resounding assertion that he was glad “when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord.” Charles Spurgeon acknowledged, “David was glad for his own sake: he loved the invitation to the holy place, he delighted in being called to go to worship in company, and, moreover, he rejoiced that good people thought enough of him to extend their invitation to him. David’s heart was in the worship of God, and he was delighted when he found others inviting him to go where his desires had already gone: it helps the ardour of the most ardent to hear others inviting them to a holy duty.” 3David knew the delight he would have in worshipping with others among the community of faith. David understood that worshipping with fellow believers is an essential component of godly living and community.
I am sure David recognized that he could read the law of God by himself. He could pray by himself. He could even sing by himself. But he could not fellowship by himself. It is a pleasant atmosphere when the community of faith lifts their voice as one in prayer, song, worship, and praise. There is a great sense of joy, gladness, purpose, commonality, and fellowship when spiritual unity is exhibited in God’s house.
Our Christian life was fashioned to be joined together in the presence of other believers. Spiritual isolation is not an option for God's people. The outworking of corporate fellowship and worship helps us to be encouraged and to gain strength. This is accomplished as we witness and testify to one another about the majesty, splendor, and power of God. David saw this worship gathering as a time to come together on common ground with the same objective in mind and to be on one accord as they corporately exalted God. His attitude reflected the biblical principle in Psalm 133:1 (NKJV), which declares, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!” One writer acclaimed, “Psalms 133 reflects Israel’s capacity to appreciate the common joys of life and to attribute them to the well-ordered generosity of Yahweh.” [Note: Brueggemann, p. 48.]” 4
In our day in time, when the church comes together, we strengthen our family bond. We acknowledge the lordship, sovereignty, supremacy, divinity, character, and nature of God. We express gratitude for His generosity and the blessings He bestows upon us. These reasons and more reveal why it is vital for us to fellowship together corporately. A church that does not fellowship together lacks unity and is ultimately on the verge of disintegration. I am not sure where I have heard this quote, but it has been said that “A church that lacks unity is like a family that never shares a meal to get to know one another. We would call that a dysfunctional family.” 5Therefore, every saint should desire to mirror and resemble the early church in the book of Acts. The early church engaged in fellowship. They worshipped together. They learned together. They were discipled together, and they shared all things in common.
For us, God should be at the core of everything we do collectively as well. He should be the object of worship and the subject of worship. He should be the focus, the focal point, the center of our attention, and the means to the end of our fellowship and devotion.
The coming together of brothers and sisters in the Lord is a joyous observance for people of faith. We assemble at the same place for the same purpose, to bless God by giving Him what He rightfully deserves: our worship and praise. In turn, we experience the uplifting of the Spirit that flows from heart to heart and from breast to breast. We learn the riches of God’s word. Our lives are built on the pillar of truth. As we discover who God is through the revelation of His Word, we are shaped, molded, and spiritually formed by its truth. It is a shared experience for God’s people. During the corporate assembly, every believer should come with anticipation to grow in faith and in the knowledge of God. It is good for God’s people to assemble regularly as a united body to worship the one true and living God. Worship should be our lifestyle, both individually and corporately. Corporate worship with other believers should be the overflow of what has transpired privately.
The joy of being in God’s house unites every follower of God in harmonizing the same sentiment of a sweet aroma of praise from the fruit of our lips. Praise should be fitting for the upright in heart (cf. Psalm 33:1). Therefore, worship and praise should collectively resonate from our lips. Hebrews 13:15 (NKJV) affirms, “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.” With the proper perspective in view as a corporate unit, attendees at the worship service will live out Psalm 95:1-6 and Psalm 34:1-3. Psalm 95:1-6 (NKJV) echoes, “Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the LORD is the great God, And the great King above all gods. In His hand are the deep places of the earth; The heights of the hills are His also. The sea is His, for He made it; And His hands formed the dry land. Oh come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.” Psalm 34:1-3 (NKJV) proclaims, “I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.”
There is inner contentment and satisfaction when the people of God gather in the assembly of worship.
The Person of Worship
David ultimately showed his gratitude for being able to enter the court of worship. Why? Because it belonged to the Lord. It was the house of the Lord. The house David entered was no ordinary house. It was not some commonplace, a place to be taken for granted. He realized that it was a holy place consumed with the habitation of the Lord. It was God’s tabernacle, where worshippers treasured and cherished His presence.
The house of the Lord was where believers sought communion, spiritual union, closeness, and intimacy with God. David understood the presence of the One who inhabited the house.
David sensed in his day that the Lord of the house possessed a divine nature. He was holy in all His ways. He was unblemished by sin. He was righteous in all His affairs. He was just to the just and just to the unjust. He was the self-existing One, eternal in the heavens. The One who always is because He always was, and the One who forever will be.
David is glad to enter God’s house, as the journey to the tabernacle was made a set number of times each year in association with feasts. Scholars attest that “The pilgrimages were held only three times during the year—at the great feasts of Passover, Firstfruits, and Booths. These feasts held special redemptive-historical significance, for they commemorated God’s goodness in the exodus and the conquest and in his continual care throughout the history of Israel (cf. Dt 16:16). As the psalmist looks at Jerusalem and stands within her gates (v.2), he rejoices. His rejoicing overflows into praise, his praise into hope, and his hope into a prayer for the prosperity of God’s kingship on earth, through which his people are blessed with his presence (vv.3-9).” 6
David did not take it for granted that he would miss the opportunity to be marked present in God’s house. He was eager to experience the Person of worship.
David’s usage of calling God “Lord” entails that he is using, as theologians declare, the most common name of God found in the Bible. Lord renders the name Yahweh or Jehovah. What David ascribes to God is a name of exaltation, a name to be remembered throughout every era and every generation. The name of God, to which our local assemblies are dedicated, is a name that reflects the character of the One in whom we consecrate this house of worship. When we gather in God’s house, it is because we desire to witness the glory of the God who is the Lord of heaven and earth. We desire to witness the power of the Creator of all things, the Sustainer of all things, the Giver of life, the One who atoned for our sins, and the One who rose again.
Parishioners gather at the house of the Lord because it is a place of the revelation of truth. By being enlightened by the truth, we see the glory of God as depicted in the teaching of Scripture. Attendees are exposed to the truths of His divinity, purpose, standards, rightness, goodness, and the ultimate sacrifice He made to atone for our sins. We are informed of the death of Jesus to redeem us from the depravity of wickedness and separation from God. That is why it’s just good to be in God’s house to learn of Him. That’s why we love the place where God can be experienced personally and collectively.
Psalm 26:8 (ESV) proclaims, “O LORD, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells.” Psalm 27:4 (NKJV) decrees, “One thing I have desired of the LORD, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the LORD All the days of my life, To behold the beauty of the LORD, And to inquire in His temple.” Psalm 84:4 (NKJV) affirms, “Blessed are those who dwell in Your house; They will still be praising You.”
Let us delight in viewing worship as a privilege for encountering God. Let us value the opportunity to gather in worship. Let us come before God to draw near to Him. Let us approach His house with reverence, homage, honor, praise, and worship.
Notes
Barnes, Albert. “Commentary on Psalms 122:1”. “Barnes’ Notes on the Whole Bible”. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bnb/psalms-122.html. 1870.
Spurgeon, C. H. n.d. The Treasury of David: Psalms 120-150. Vol. 6. London; Edinburgh; New York: Marshall Brothers.
Constable, Thomas. DD. “Commentary on Psalms 133:1”. “Dr. Constable’s Expository Notes”. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/dcc/psalms-133.html. 2012.
Unknown source
VanGemeren, W., Longman, T. and Garland, D. (2017) Psalms. [edition unavailable]. Zondervan Academic. Available at: https://www.perlego.com/book/560264 (Accessed: 7 August 2026).
