Many are in great need and in need in areas of which they may be totally unaware.
Psalm 119 begins with ‘blessing’. – How can we be blessed and how can we share these blessings with others?
This longer psalm speaks of the sufficient word of God. It is a masterpiece of design as it reveals the beauty and blessings of God’s Word.
It has an unmistakable theme, the Word of God, and presents the dynamic supernatural power of the Word of God, the sufficiency of the Word of God, and how the Word enables us to grow and handle life’s afflictions.
The Psalms are Hebrew poetry: poetry deals with feelings, rather than information. In our Bible, and in our faith, we require both sentiments and didactic content. Poetry can take one to that area of wonder, that helps us to worship. The Psalms is the Jewish Praise Book.
As a rule, when God speaks in prose, He is communicating His thoughts from His mind to the mind of the reader, but when God speaks in poetry, He is communicating His heart to the heart of the reader.
The supernatural effect in the life of the believer flows from the Word of God.
Everything we need to live our Christian lives, to glorify God and honor Jesus Christ, is found in this book. The Bible directs us towards the ways of God and can govern our life at every point.
This is very unusual writing: every verse in each of these 22 sections begins with the same letter. Verses 1 to 8 begin with ‘Alef’.
Verse 1 – Blessed are those who walk according to the law of the Lord. This is not always easy, it is never easy. It is something we wrestle with throughout our Christian lives, but there is authority in this opening verse.
The first verse establishes the theme, and what follows develops this glorious theme, this goal that God sets before us.
If people who first came to faith in Jesus Christ were presented with these goals and objectives, what a difference it could make. Perhaps fewer would fall by the wayside, wander and disappear.
Here we have in a different form of words what Jesus said: seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these other things will come later.
Verse 2: Blessed are those who keep His statutes or testimonies, and seek Him with all their hearts. There is repetition here, emphasizing and underlining, making sure we get the message. “The lesson has not been taught until the student learns.” God knows that children need to be told things over and over again, and then reminded.
In these verses we read – walk – seek – keep – consider – obey – learn.
These are words of motivation and inspiration that help us to be disciples. The blessing is a consequence of obedience as well as a mark of grace.
Verse 3 – They do nothing wrong – they walk in His ways. Once again, it’s not easy, but it’s not complicated either. Walking is simply taking one step at a time in a way that we don’t fall down or lose our way, but progress.
Verse 4 – You have established precepts that must be fully obeyed – which emphasizes precision and detail. The writer realized that what GOD has said – He meant. This is a serious Book, not to be taken lightly.
We must not be selective in what we will obey and what we will ignore. God does not give us that option.
We don’t have a choice, maybe that’s something else that people who come to believe in Jesus need to be told early on. It may not be as welcome or as popular, but it is necessary. We discover the ways of God gradually. There’s no point in fast traveling if you’re on the wrong track!
Our governments today are determined to make laws, new laws, more laws, different laws. The problem is keeping them.
GOD says – Keep what I have given you – ten very simple words.
Verse 5 – Here we are beginning to read from PURE PRAYER. We go up and down. We want to obey God and yet we know we are not obeying God: so much honesty and openness. Paul discovered that, he writes about it in Romans chapter 7. It’s the experience of every disciple of Jesus Christ.
Sin will do everything it can to prevent and keep us from obeying Jesus and His Word.
‘Statutes’ has the root meaning of ‘to be engraved’ – ‘chiseled in stone’ – permanent, and never changes.
Verse 6 – We can read part of the Bible and see where we have fallen short of what God expects – this is the experience of all of us.
We need to know that, not so that we can continue to be disobedient, but so that we can examine our ways, our words, our lives, and correct and adjust, and bring things in line with God’s holy word.
Sin brings shame, and Jesus can deal with sin and all the consequences of sin. ‘Commandments’ conveys that sense of the absolute sovereignty of the Word of God.
Scripture has the right to ordain and command us.
Verse 7: The psalmist wishes to praise God, pouring out his worship with an upright heart, pleasing to God who has called him.
There is nothing cold, clinical, dry and formal about all this. It’s really inspiring and uplifting and sometimes even exciting.
From Prayer to Praise is not a long journey.
Verse 8 – I will obey. God, I’ve made a decision. The hardest part for some is getting used to making that decision.
What kind of life do I want to live? This Psalm will help us.
This is rarely an emotional matter, it is usually a calm resolution, a choice, but an important choice, a significant decision.
“I will praise” – is followed by – “I will save”!
Don’t abandon me completely, what a request, what a prayer, he is aware of the possibility, and there is almost a tremor at the thought.
Your success will not depend solely on your determination, but on your dependence, your dependence on GOD.
The words of Jesus encourage and sustain us as we travel the path of discipleship: “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
“Lord God, let me take some time today to worship you, not just to read the Bible and pray, but to worship you, and to praise and thank you for all the blessings you give me through Jesus Christ. And as I worship, I listen when I take time and make time to pray for others, interceding for those in dire straits, Lord God, I adore you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” Amen.