One Thing
By: David Petersen
Text: Psalm 27:4
"One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; 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" (KJV).
"The one thing I want from God, the thing I seek most of all, is the privilege of meditating in his Temple, living in his presence every day of my life for all eternity, delighting in his incomparable perfections and glory" (TLB).
One Thing: A Singular Focus
The expression “one thing” shows a singular focus. It expresses intense desire. This desire is properly directed: at the LORD.
This is a psalm of David. King David didn’t desire many things such as material wealth and worldly power, rather he wanted just one thing. His one desire was to be in the LORD’s presence.
One Thing To Do
Let us examine another case to illustrate this biblical notion of “one thing.” The apostle Paul referred to this type of singular focus in his letter to the Philippians:
Philippians 3:13-14
13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
KJV
The phrase “one thing I do” comes from the Greek word “hen” which literally means “one” and, in this usage, carries the idea of “one thing.” Thus Paul actually says “one thing.”
The phrase "I do" does not appear in the original Greek and is supplied by the translators for clarification. The “one thing” mentioned in this passage is concerned with action rather than with thinking or reckoning. This verse is about doing one thing.
Forgetting those things which are behind: forgetting my pre-Christian life, forgetting my failures as a Christian. Forget those things. I’m focused on one thing, and it’s not the past, which cannot be changed.
The imagery employed here is that of a footrace. Here Paul uses a metaphor of a runner leaning forward as he runs and stretches for the finish line. Paul intently pressed toward the mark with extreme determination. But what is the mark? The mark refers to the finish line in a foot race.
It is a high calling to really know him experientially and the power of his resurrection (to be as one raised from the dead) and the fellowship of his sufferings. Do you want to really know him? That’s a good goal to press towards.
Attaining unto the resurrection of the dead starts with being made conformable to his death. There can be no resurrection without a death. This is the “high calling” to which Paul refers. It is not referring to heaven. It is a victorious Christian life. We are to die to self. Then we are risen with Christ to walk in newness of life.
The one thing that Paul spoke of doing was pressing on toward the goal of knowing Christ experientially and becoming like him.
We will come back to look at the rest of Psalm 27:4, but for now let’s take a look at one person who had this type of singular focus expressed in the psalm: Mary of Bethany.
One Thing To Choose
Luke 10:38-42
38 Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
39 And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.
40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, LORD, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.
41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:
42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
KJV
It’s truly a blessing to have people who are willing and able to prepare a great table. Martha had good motives. She was busy with preparations because she wanted everything with the meal to be just right for the Lord. But the cares of this life can distract us from seeking and serving the Lord according to his word. Here was a rare and precious opportunity to sit at the Lord’s feet and hear his teaching directly from his mouth. They had the Lord Jesus under their roof shortly before his crucifixion. Martha was distracted with all the preparations. Although she had good intentions, she had her priorities wrong. The Lord said that “one thing is needful” and that Mary chose the "good part."
- The phrase “careful and troubled” in the KJV means anxious and worried or worried and upset.
- Note the contrast between Martha and Mary:
- Martha: concerned about many things.
- Mary: focused on one thing.
The Lord said that Mary actually “chose” the good part.
Notice that she actively “chose” the good part. Mary had a spiritual awareness that her sister Martha lacked. She was aware and understood the significance of what was going on in their home. In other words, she purposely “chose the good part.” She recognized the value of an opportunity to sit at the Lord’s feet and to hear his teaching directly from his lips. She made a decision, and she chose well.
I could just imagine Mary leaning over and elbowing someone sitting next to her and whispering, “Listen up, here comes the good part.” I suppose Martha might say to Mary, “Can you help me set the table please?” Mary’s response would be, “Sorry, but I don’t want to miss the good part.”
When you are sitting at the LORD’s feet to hear his teaching directly from his own lips, then “It’s all good” and it doesn’t get any better than that.
When we sit at Christ's feet and hear his word, we show a readiness to receive it, submission to its authority and entire resignation of ourselves to the guidance of that word.
The prophet Isaiah said that there was "no beauty that we should desire him" (Isaiah 53:2). But Mary beheld the beauty of the Lord as David had desired to do in Psalm 27:4. As she sat at the Lord’s feel, she also had the direct opportunity to inquire of him; just as David had longed for in the Psalm.
One Thing To Desire
In Psalm 27:4, David said, “one thing have I desired of the LORD.” This desire goes beyond a mere casual desire as we use the word today. This desire is to earnestly covet something and to plead with the LORD for it. It implies a recognition that David delighted in God above any part of the creation. What’s in your wallet? What is the one thing that you desire most? Do you hunger and thirst after righteousness? You shall be filled. Is your heart’s desire to be closer to the LORD? Is it to abide continually in his presence?
One Thing To Seek
David is not just waiting around. He did not just sit on his desire to be in the LORD’s presence. To seek means to inquire for, that is, to ask. But this seeking goes beyond mere asking. It means to insistently require something. Seeking takes the desire and makes it an active pursuit. He made it his own personal quest.
“THAT will I seek after…” The emphasis is on “that,” that one thing. The main thing we want to bring out about seeking the LORD here is that our search for him should be exclusive. Every other endeavor is secondary by comparison. Seeking the LORD should come before seeking riches, power, happiness, love or anything else this world has to offer. That is because without a close walk with the LORD everything else in our lives will fail.
There is a time to wait on the LORD but that is after we have been diligent in seeking his face. After we have sought him and besought him, then the scripture says that we are to wait patiently for strength and guidance from the LORD.
“But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it” (Romans 8:25).
The best time to seek the LORD is now. Isaiah told the people of Judah to “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near” (Isaiah 55:6). If the people of Judah would not repent and turn to the LORD, a time was coming when the LORD would not make himself available to rescue them from their enemies. A time of judgment was coming unless the people sought the LORD and turned to him.
A similar spiritual principle applies in our lives as Christians. We should seek the LORD in order to come closer to him and appreciate his beauty. Having a full knowledge of the LORD will inspire us to walk closely with him. This will change our hearts and cause us to want to serve him out of love. A day of judgment is coming on all those who are out of fellowship with him. In that day, the LORD will hide his face and he will not be found by those who disregarded him (see Deuteronomy 31:17-18).
"Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day. Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us?" (Deuteronomy 31:17, KJV).
Again, it is written in 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
Remember that salvation is not what David is seeking here. He already knew the LORD when he wrote Psalm 27. What he is seeking is a closer walk with the LORD: to be in his presence continually, to see him in all his beautiful perfection, and glory and to know him fully.
This is not designed to be an exhaustive study of the idea of seeking the LORD. The main application for us regarding the seeking in Psalm 27:4 is:
- We should be active, not passive in drawing nearer to the LORD.
- Seeking the LORD should be our own personal quest above all other seeking. Every other quest in life is secondary to this.
- Seek him now. Don’t wait until you are trouble to seek the LORD. However, better late than never.
That I May Dwell In The House Of The Lord
David stated that the desired outcome that he sought was “that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life.”
The word “dwell” means to “abide, inhabit, settle or remain.” It never means “to visit.” In the literal sense, not even the priests dwelt permanently in the sanctuary.
David is not saying that he wanted to be a priest or live in the temple complex. Despite the fact that there was no temple yet during David’s lifetime, the temple was not a condominium. There is no scriptural evidence to support the idea that priests actually lived in the temple. However, the priests did minister there. But it was a place where they went to work, not a place where they lived. There were side rooms on the temple, but the Bible is not clear on what their purpose was. The rooms seem to be primarily storage rooms and treasuries.
Neither was there a New Testament church at this time, so he is not referring to abiding in one. The Christian life was designed to be a group experience. And it’s good to be in a local New Testament church, but that is not the desire that David expressed here.
Instead, the desire that he expresses is figurative and has an eternal viewpoint.
Psalms 11:4 and 23:6 show that the term “the house of the Lord” is sometimes used in the scriptures to refer to heaven.
“The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD's throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men” (Psalm 11:4, KJV).
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever” (Psalm 23:6, KJV).
“For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Hebrews 9:24, KJV).
Neither is David saying that he wanted to die and go to heaven. His desire is to dwell in the presence of the Lord in both this life and in the life to come.
What follows as the result of "dwelling in the house of the Lord" is figurative (Psalm 27:5) - "In the time of trouble ... He shall hide me ... in the secret of His tabernacle;" “He shall set me upon a rock.” Did the LORD literally pick David up and set him upon a rock? No! That language is figurative for the protection of the LORD. David did not go and literally hide in the tabernacle when Saul was chasing him and trying to kill him. When he says “he shall hide me in his tabernacle and he shall set me on a rock,” he is using figurative language to express the safety and protection that he received from the Lord. Therefore the preceding thought of dwelling in the house of the Lord is figurative as well.
It means to continually abide in his presence. It is the opposite of what Adam and Eve did after the fall as we see in the third chapter of the Book of Genesis.
Genesis 3:8-10
8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
KJV
Whereas Adam and Eve “hid themselves from the presence of the LORD,” David on the other hand is actively seeking to abide continually in the presence of the LORD. The difference in desires is driven by spiritual condition. Adam was afraid because he was naked. He had sinned and had in that very day died spiritually as God had prophesied. David was a sinner just like Adam, but he had experienced a new spiritual birth. In other words, David was saved. Later the LORD made coats of skins and covered Adam and Eve which represents their own redemption.
So dwelling in the house of the Lord expresses the hope <earnest expectation> of salvation. The house of the Lord is figurative language that refers to dwelling in the direct presence of the LORD. It refers to having direct and continuous communication with him.
One of the benefits of abiding in the house of the LORD is being hidden in a secret place of safety or sanctuary as mentioned in verse 5.
One Thing To Behold
The word “To” in the second half of verse 4 is a transition from “what” to “how.” It shows purpose. It tells why David wanted to dwell in the house of the Lord.
- Behold: to gaze upon.
- David was not in it for the fringe benefits:
- For David, it wasn’t to eat of the sacrifices, to hear the wonderful praise music, or to play on the church basketball team.
- His desire was to “behold the beauty of the Lord.”
Beauty: Hebrew - no`am from OT:5276; agreeableness, i.e. delight, suitableness, splendor or grace: KJV - beauty, pleasant (-ness).
To behold the beauty of the Lord does not merely refer to beholding a physical sight. Remember that God is a spirit. We can see God in the form of Jesus. “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father” (John 14:9).
Isaiah said that there is no beauty that we should desire him. Isaiah saw the Lord high and lifted up and sitting on his throne, and that was a magnificent sight to behold indeed. It made Isaiah, who was probably the most righteous man in Judah, aware of his own sinfulness.
But it is not physical appearance that makes the LORD something beautiful to behold. Moses had a similar attitude to David’s when he asked the LORD “Show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18). But the LORD’s response was. “No one can see my face and live” (Exodus 33:20). “But I will hide you in the cleft of the rock and will pass by. And you can see my back side” (Exodus 33:22). Sinful man cannot behold the LORD directly. We see his beauty in his goodness toward us.
To behold the beauty of the LORD is a metaphor for contemplating and appreciating the sweet attractiveness and delightful loveliness of the LORD. It is to bask in the glow of his loving-kindness, mercy, grace, truth, faithfulness and righteousness.
1 Peter 2:2-3
2 As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
3 If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious <good, kind>.
KJV
The Lord is an acquired taste. No one can fully appreciate his beauty while in an unsaved, sinful condition. Only by becoming saved and experiencing the new birth can we drink the sincere milk of the word and grow in the Lord. Then we will know and appreciate the beauty, goodness, kindness and graciousness of the Lord.
One Thing To Consider
- Inquire: KJV
- Seek him: NIV
- Meditate: NASB
- Consider: AMP
The word “inquire” literally means to plough in the Hebrew, or (generally) break forth, i.e., (figuratively) to seek out, inspect, admire, care for, consider: The idea is to break new ground through knowledge.
This shows David’s love for learning the things of God. To know the things of God is to know God himself. It is to meditate upon his holiness, grace, mercy, loving-kindness, protection, and care for us.
What a privilege it is to be able to inquire of the Lord. Lost people don’t have the privilege of intimately inquiring of the Lord to this degree. They can ask questions like “God, why is this happening to me?” and “What must I do to be saved?” To inquire as David describes here means to ponder and pray about the deep things of God, his will, his eternal purpose, and the mysteries of Christ that he has made freely available to all in his written word: The Holy Bible. It is to seek God’s will in our lives. You have to get close to God, in his house to inquire of him this way. Sinful man does not know his ways as Isaiah described in his prophetic book.
Isaiah 55:8-9
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
KJV
We have a lot to ponder and will never graduate from learning about Jesus. Even in eternity, God will continue to reveal the beauty and wonders of Christ to us, as Paul said to the church at Ephesus.
Ephessians 2:6-7
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
KJV
One Thing To Know
In the ninth chapter of the gospel of John, Jesus healed a man who was born blind. The Pharisees (a Jewish religious sect) were upset with this because Jesus had healed him on the Sabbath Day. They summoned the man who had been healed in order to get him to testify against Jesus.
John 9:24-25
24 Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.
25 He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.
KJV
If you do not know Jesus Christ as Lord and savior, then you are spiritually blind. Just as he healed the man born blind of his physical blindness, Jesus can heal you of your spiritual blindness. He will do this when you trust in him and his finished work on the cross as the sole basis for your eternal salvation. You can no more heal yourself than the blind man could have healed himself. Only the Lord can give you your spiritual sight. And the good news is that he has already paid the price and offers you your sight as a free gift. If you receive the gift of eternal life you will be able to say along with the man who was healed “one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.”
For more information on how to be saved, please see the article entitled “What Must I Do To Be Saved?”
Conclusion
Christianity is not about a set of rules: do this, don’t do that. Instead, it is about a singular focus on the things of the LORD to which all else is secondary. We are to “love the LORD our God with all our heart, all our soul, and all our mind.” That is the first commandment. Nothing else in our lives will be right if we do not put the Lord first.
A Christian is also driven by a desire to be close to the LORD, to dwell in his presence, and to know him intimately as their heavenly Father. It means knowing the Lord Jesus Christ experientially and the power of his resurrection through a new spiritual birth. We have communion with him through prayer, good works, and the study of his word. His spirit within us bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God.
Being a Christian means appreciating the beauty of LORD and seeing the value of his divine attributes and mighty works. It is to bask in the glow of his splendor and to delight in his magnificence.
A Christian is one who chooses “the good part” by sitting at the LORD’s feet continually learning more and more about his wonders for all eternity. We have the privilege of meditating upon His eternal purpose and our role in His will. The Christian recognizes that His ways are so much higher than ours and seeks to follow His teachings diligently. He freely gives us eternal life when we trust in the finished work of his Son, Jesus Christ on the cross. We then serve him out of love and gratitude and not in order to go to heaven or to comply with a set of rules.