Beth


Psalm 119:9-16

9How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.
10With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!
11I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. 
12Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes!
13With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth.
14In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches.
15I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways.
16I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

One of the markers of the Christian faith is that it is always a call to action. As soon as I type those words I bump into my own understanding of God as the primary “actor” in the faith. He is the One who tells us to be still and watch Him work. But as I read these 8 verses this morning I am made aware of His call upon me to act as well.

At the beginning of this stanza the rhetorical question is asked: How can a person keep their way pure? And of course, the answer is to live according to the Word. But then that advice is followed up by precise ways to accomplish that command. An examination of the verbs helps us see all the ways we can live according to the Word for first you must know the Word.

There are no less than eight verbs used to illuminate our side of the equation.
  • Guard (my ways which are prone to sin)
  • Seek God (which will be a recurring theme throughout this long psalm)
  • Stored up the Word (memorize!)
  • Declare the Word (You can only declare what you know – think about it.)
  • Meditate (focus, focus, focus)
  • Fix my eyes (Look away from the sin, seek God instead)
  • Not forget (As we are so prone to do)
  • Delight (And there is delight – DELIGHT. Think about how huge that word is. What brings you delight? My immediate answer is my grandchildren. Apply those feelings to reading, learning, applying God’s Word – Delightful!
Two requests are made of God in the work of living as He commands; teach me and let me not wander. The power to accomplish any of our own actions begins and ends in God. First His Spirit must teach me what He wants me to know and then He must keep my feet, so prone to wander, on His path. These eight verse contain hope and strength. They make me want to carry God’s Word in my pocket and dwell on it all day long!

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