PSALM 24 BEGINS with the reminder that "the earth is the Lord's;" he created it, he sustains it, he saves it, and he is the earth's owner. He is also the Creator of all who live on the earth. We depend on the Lord of heaven and earth because we live in his world.

The gates and the "everlasting doors" the writer of this psalm is referring to are both the entrance to the temple on Mt. Zion and the spiritual gates to God's heavenly kingdom. The gates are opened in recognition that the king of the earth has arrived.

Although this imagery is of a city and its gates, we can personalize this. Are there gates or entrances in your life that you joyfully open to let in the King of Glory? Is there a gate you have locked that the Lord is asking you to open for him? (Mays 119, 122).

What a great reminder on this Christmas Day that the earth is the Lord's! Let each of us open the gates of our hearts to let him come in.