God's Great Word

A short week of posting this week because we have some family visiting from out of town. Next week I am going to begin a series called, "The Doctrines of Grace and The Regular Guy", but for now I am going to give just a few more thoughts on the Psalms. Psalm 119 is the subject for today, and what a glorious one it is. Most know it as the longest chapter in the Bible (coincidentally, my last post was on the shortest chapter in the Bible, Psalm 117). Most also know that it is mainly about the Word of God. It is also fairly common knowledge that this Psalm is an acrostic poem that follows the Hebrew alphabet. Within each section or stanza, each verse begins with the same Hebrew letter. Because I am already prone to long postings, I will not comment on the entire length of the passage, just the second portion, "Beth" (the Hebrew letter, not the female nickname for "Elizabeth").

The passage begins with a familiar question, "How can a young man keep his way pure?" This question may be familiar to you because you have heard it from this passage before. But it also may be familiar to you because it is a question that you have asked yourself in your own spiritual walk. This type of honest and relevant questioning is one of the things that I appreciate most about Scripture. Scripture is chock-full of questions that all of us ask ourselves at some point or another. At our church we just heard an excellent sermon on Psalm 73, which asks, "Why do the wicked prosper?" What Christian hasn't struggled with this question? Indeed the Bible doesn't even shy away from the most difficult of questions. In the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul asks 85 questions, many of them about some of the most challenging theological issues that all Christians face. In the marvelous providence of God, He has included these questions in Scripture so that we know where to turn when we are exasperated by them. I point this out here because I think that it is a natural temptation to read a question like, "How can a young man keep his way pure?", and see the answer that immediately follows ("By guarding it according to your word"), and imagine the author to be a young man that has always kept his way pure. I think that is a mistake. I don't think that we should imagine a young man that has always kept his way pure, but a young man like us (37 is still young, isn't it?) that has repeatedly struggled with this question in the face of temptation. It is possibly a young man that has exerted much effort in the pursuit of purity (see v. 10), yet has also experienced the sinful cravings of a wandering heart. In exasperation he wonders, "How can a young man keep his way pure?!?" (italics and extra punctuation mine). And in sweet inspiration the Holy Spirit brings the answer, "By guarding it according to your word." It is an "a-ha" moment brought about by struggle and grace. So powerful is the word that it can even overcome the sin-chained heart with grace.

The next verse also shows the tension in that struggle. "With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!" This is almost a variation of Augustine's famous prayer, "Command what thou wilt, and grant what thou commandest", that became so offensive to Pelagius. Though it is not entirely the same, it does show the insufficiency of human effort. The Psalmist is essentially saying, "I am trying my hardest, but even that isn't enough. Don't let my sinful heart stray!" Isn't that the way it is? We can white-knuckle our way through our Christian walk with great effort and determination only to find our sinful hearts leading us consistently astray. It is not enough to only seek God with all of our effort; we must thrust ourselves upon His grace to carry us.

Lastly, I would point out the wonderful ways that we can appropriate Scripture in our lives, and the importance of it.

• Desiring to know God's word - "I have stored up your word in my heart" (v. 11)
• Humbly seeking to learn it - "teach me your statutes!" (v. 12)
• Boldly proclaming God's word - "With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth." (v. 13)
• Delighting in the Word - "In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches." (v. 14) "I will delight in your statutes;" (v. 16)
• Meditating on it - "I will meditate on your precepts..." (v. 15)
• Focusing on it - "...and fix my eyes on your ways." (v. 15)
• Remembering the Word - "I will not forget your word." (v. 16)

Remember, Scripture is Sufficient for all of your life. Appropriate it! That's all for now.

Soli Deo Gloria