1/7/2012 10:16:35 AM
SPIRITIUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus: Part 2 of Psalm 19
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Psalm 19:7-14
Message of the verses: “7 ¶ The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul; The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether. 10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. 11 Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward. 12 Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. 13 Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, And I shall be acquitted of great transgression. 14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.”
The Word Before Us—God the Instructor (vv. 7-11).
As mentioned before David used the name Elohim for God when he was talking about the universe that God created, but now when David begins to write about the God of the Word he uses His covenant name Jehovah. The God of creation is also the God of personal revelation to His people.
When we look at the revelation of God in creation it is wonderful, however it is limited when it comes to manifesting the attributes of God and also His purposes for His creation. We have to see that in His Word. It was the Word of God that caused the creation to come into existence but we know that the creation has been changed by sin. “19 For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now (Romans 8:19-22).”
The Word of God was entrusted to the nation of Israel, for we know that the entire Bible was written by those who are from the children of Israel. “3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, 5 whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen (Romans 9:3-5).”
In his introduction to this section Dr. Wiersbe writes the following: “David recorded six different names for God’s Word, six attributes of the Word, and six ministries of the Word in the lives of those who receive it and obey it.”
Law of the Lord (v. 7a): “7 ¶ The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul.”
It is interesting that the word translated “law” is the Hebrew word torah and that word means instruction, direction, and teaching. We see that this main section we are in is named “God the Instructor,” and this is from Dr. Wiersbe’s outline on Psalm 19. We know that languages change thus making it necessary for different translations of the Bible to be made, but the Word of God does not change. The Word of God is inerrant in its original autograph.
Paul writes these words to Timothy, “16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2Ti. 3:16-17) The writer to the Hebrews writes these word about the Word of God, “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) Peter writes this about the Word of God, “for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.” (1Pe. 1:23) The 119th Psalm is the longest chapter in all of Scripture and if memory serves me correct there are 176 verses divided by thirteen verses in a section each beginning with a letter in the Hebrew alphabet and there are only three verses that do not have some form of a name for the Word of God. We see in the following verses from this psalm that the word of God sustains life (119:25, 37, 40, 88, 107, 149, 156, and 159).
Testimony of the Lord (v. 7b): “The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.”
Dr. Wiersbe writes in this section the following, “The Ten Commandments were know by this name (Testimony) (Ex. 25:21), and they are the basis for God’s law. But all of the Scriptures are God’s witness to us of who He is, what He has said and done, and what He wants us to be and to do. The witness God bears of Himself in the written Word is sure and reliable.”
The verses here speak of the greatest of the commandments as spoken of by the Lord Jesus Christ: 34 ¶ But when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered themselves together. 35 One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" 37 And He said to him, "’YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ 38 "This is the great and foremost commandment. 39 "The second is like it, ’YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ 40 "On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:34-40) Out of these two verses flows the explanation of the Ten Commandments and out of the rest of the Law flows the explanation of the Ten Commandments. We see in the two commandments that Jesus quoted, which are the greatest that we are to love the Lord and we are to love our neighbor. Now remember that Jesus explained who are neighbor is in the parable of the Good Samaritan. Now look at the cross and we will see that we have a vertical piece and a horizontal piece that makes up the cross. This is a picture of these two commandments, the vertical (loving the Lord) the horizontal (loving your neighbor).
Statues of the Lord (v. 8a): “8 The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;.”
These are God’s detail for the practical matters of everyday life. When we look at the OT we see some of the Laws that God gave them were about practical everyday things, what they were to eat, and what they were to wear, and how they are to keep themselves clean. We must remember that one of the reasons for the Jews having these laws was so that they would distinct from the nations around them so that these nations would wonder why they were this way and then ask them why, which would give them an opportunity to share with them about the One True God.
God laid down certain basic laws and commandments, and the statutes applied them to specific situations. We see in the NT that nine of the Ten Commandments are repeated for believers today. In our nations today there are laws passed that are a burden to us but God’s laws and commandments bring us joy. We will see more about this when looking at the 119th Psalm later on.
Commandment of the Lord (v. 8b): “The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.”
15 ¶ "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; 16 in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the LORD your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it. 17 "But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. 19 "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, 20 by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.’” (Deu. 30:15-20) We see in this section of Scripture that the commandments (that which is appointed) and how we respond to them is a matter of life and death. This is as true today as when this was written around 1500 B.C.
Psalm 19:8b says that the commandments of the Lord are pure, and they enlighten the eyes. The commandments that the Lord gives to us will help us live a pure life before the Lord, and His commandments will open our eyes to see the wonderful truths that are in God’s law so that the life we live will bring glory to the Lord. Dr. Wiersbe writes “We are strangers on this earth, and the Word of God is the road map to guide us (Ps. 119:19). Like a traveler on the highway, if we deliberately make a wrong turn, we go on a detour and fail to reach our destination.”
Fear the Lord (v. 9a): “The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever.”
Dr. Wiersbe points out that this is an unusual word of the Word of God, and yet this reminds us that we cannot learn the Word of God unless we show reverence and respect for the God of the Word. “Pr 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” I think that a person has to have a fear of God before he can come to salvation through Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross. Once we come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord our fear of Him is reverence, like it is suppose to be of a child with a parent.
Judgments of the Lord (v. 9b): “The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether.”
This word translated “judgments” is a word that can mean the decision of a judge; it can mean ordinances or verdicts. We can see in the OT that the way that the Lord judged the nations and on peoples and also the rewards that He gave to these nations and peoples will help us to understand what it is that pleases the Lord. Dr. Wiersbe writes, “Believers today are not under the Old Testament law, but how those laws were applied helps us understand the righteousness of God and our need for His grace.
“The way we treat the Bible is the way we treat the Lord, so it isn’t difficult to determine if we are rightly related to God. Do we desire His Word because it’s precious to us (v.12), even more than wealth (v.10) or tasty food (119:103) (1Pe. 2:2)? Do we find satisfaction in ‘feeding on’ God’s Word? (Matthew 4:4) Would we skip a meal to spend time meditation on the Scriptures? Dow we attend church dinners but not church Bible studies? Furthermore, do we accept the warning of the Word and act upon them? To know the warning and not heed it is sin (James 4:17). Do we enjoy the blessings of the Lord because we’ve obeyed His will? To have an appetite for God’s Word is a mark of a healthy Christian whose priorities are straight. The Lord has went the Holy Spirit to teach us His Word, and if we walk in the Spirit, we will learn and live the truth (John 14:26; 16:12-15; 1Cor. 2:9-10; 1John 2:20-29).
11 Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward.” I believe that David is saying in this verse that we will not only be rewarded in this life by keeping the Word of God, but also in the next life. There is nothing wrong with desiring rewards to be given to us at the Judgment Seat of Christ, for having that desire means that we desire to do the work that God has given us to do and has determined that word for us to do in eternity past: “10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them (Eph. 2:10).
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I want to make sure that the Word of God is something that I desire to understand and apply to my life so that I can do the works that the Lord has called me to do each day of my life.
My Steps of Faith for Today:
1. Stay in the Word each day.
2. Continue to have the Word of God affect my life.
3. Continue to learn contentment.
1/7/2012 12:22:13 PM
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