Gospel Reflections #1054: Anticipating to be with God

Psalm 122:1 ‘I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”’

This passage depicts pilgrims journeying to God’s temple (a place of worship) rejoicing wholeheartedly at the invitation of those around them. It was sung by people as they travelled from afar to the Temple in Jerusalem several times a year for the three major festivals.

It expresses the buoyant elation felt at the start of the journey, or at the moment along the way when a fellow traveller calls out, ‘Come now, let us finally go to the house of the Lord (the Temple).’

A key feature of this is that the joy is not merely ‘what I spontaneously thought’, but rather the joy felt ‘when others said to me’.

Herein lies the joy of a ‘community of faith (fellowship)’—where, rather than travelling alone in silence, people form groups with family and neighbours who share the same faith, encouraging one another as they journey towards the House of God.

Furthermore, it illustrates a state in which, in response to this sacred invitation from those around them, the heart is filled with positive, spontaneous joy, rather than a sense of duty or reluctance.

In the Bible, the ‘house of the Lord’ is not merely a building, but a symbol of ‘God’s presence’.

Consequently, for modern Christians, the phrase ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord’ is synonymous with an invitation to ‘come before God and offer worship’ or ‘enter into intimate fellowship with the Lord’.

In modern Christian life, this scripture teaches us the ‘right attitude of heart towards worship’.

It conveys the importance of looking up to the Lord with pure anticipation and joy—not approaching worship out of daily busyness or a sense of duty, but so that when we are invited to gather before God, we can say, ‘I was glad’.

May our Sabbaths and our fellowship with God truly serve to deepen our relationship with Him.

AUTHOR'S BIO: This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, who resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Masae is a dedicated student of the Bible with a deep passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on Gospel perspectives to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through a Christ-centered approach. We are sharing her insights here so that you, too, can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel and the love of God through Jesus Christ.