By: Stephanie B. Blake
In every reading of Psalm 119, I am captivated by it - discovering a new theme, another revelation of God and more depth of understanding of the heart of the man who wrote it. Although the psalmist may have been David, many say the author cannot be known for certain. One thing we do know for sure. This man was led by God to write down the desire of his heart - to love God by learning, heeding and keeping His commandments.
Knowing God's way is the way of truth (Psalm 119:30), this psalmist states that God has revealed Himself through His words, statutes, commandments (law), precepts and testimonies. Determined to live according to God's plan for his life, he pays attention to what He says.
The same should be true for us today. We cannot separate the love of holy God and His commandments. As sinful men, we come short of completely obeying God's law. Jesus Christ, The Way, the Truth and the Life, fulfilled God's law for us, paid the price for our sin on His cross, and offered us eternal life as His love gift. What He asks from us is our heart.
Verse 2: The psalmist begins his prayer with "You have commanded us to keep Your precepts diligently." From then on until the end of the psalm, his prayer is very personal using pronouns "I", "You", and "my", pledging to God the commitment of his heart, reflected in the following verses.
7: Holy God desires our praise - for His love, for His grace expressed through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ and for His righteousness.
10: Even with a commitment to seek and to serve God, the psalmist knows there will always be a temptation to focus on something other than God and His will.
11: Perhaps the most well known verse in this psalm, the secret to staying in God's will is to stay close to Him (or as Jesus put it "abide in Him"), to listen to Him, to know His word intimately.
32: The longer a believer serves and obeys God, the larger the capacity for loving Him becomes.
34: This is not a plea for understanding as the world defines it, but as God does. As Solomon put it in Proverbs 9:10: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
36: Sinful human nature can lead one to covet the things of the world. The psalmist wants to love what is lasting - the things of God.
58: We do not deserve God's favor, but He promises it to those who truly love Him.
69: C. H. Spurgeon said: "We cannot keep in the heart that which we have not heartily embraced by the affections." When our affections are set on God, the darts of the wicked fall short of their goal.
80: Sin originates in the heart. The psalmist did not want to look back on his life and regret falling short of God's best for Him. Each of us should have the same goal.
111: God's involvement in our lives is cause for rejoicing. In his song The Longer I Serve Him, Bill Gaither puts it this way, "The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows."
112: In verse 64, the author says, Lord, the earth is filled with your faithful love; teach me Your statutes (HCSB). God has no obligation to anyone except Himself, but even so, He shows His love to us by His faithfulness to His promises. We owe God everything and are obligated to show Him our love by trusting and obeying Him.
145: The psalmist's decision has been made. He will remain faithful to the God who was faithful to him.
161-162: The inevitable persecution that Christians encounter cannot be compared to the awesome treasure of knowing God.
To those disciples who were true believers - saved by trusting Christ alone for their salvation, Jesus said, If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love (John 15:10).
Stephanie B. Blake is an international Bible teacher, serving the Lord through Xtend Ministries International. To download free Bible studies or devotionals for personal or group study, or to find out more about her ministry and other writing, please visit http://www.onefocusministries.com
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