Good morning to you my precious family
Psalm 119 verses 9 -11 says “’How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to Your word. I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from Your commands. I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.”
The Bible is the greatest book ever written. It tells us how the world began, how it will end, and its complete history. It tells us about life and death. It tells us of God’s love. It explains what sin is and why we need a Saviour.
The greatest chapter of the Bible dealing with God’s word is Psalm 119. The 176 verses are divided into twenty-two groups of eight verses each. The first group of eight begin with the Hebrew letter Aleph. The next eight verses begin with the Hebrew letter Beth. This pattern continues throughout the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. God’s Word is the focal point.
Although this is written about a young man, it is applicable to everyone.
God's Word is a great delight to each believer; obedience to that Word brings great joy and peace.
When the Psalmist says he has hidden the word of God in his heart, he is not saying it is somewhere in there so that no one will be able to see it. He is saying that he has spent much time in studying the word and now it is deep within him and secure in his mind. This happened because he had determined to study and know the word. He wanted to live for God and realized he must know the word to be able to do this so he spent time in study and meditation.
He did not study just for the academics of it but with a desire to become more like God and to live a life of purity. He had an open heart and mind to learn what pleased God and what did not. He knew that God is God and he was just a small part of His creation here on earth.
If we are to live for God, we must have the same attitude and put the same effort into studying and to know His will. It is possible to know many facts from the Bible without really knowing what it is saying or how to apply it in our lives.
The writer starts with an attitude of respect for the authority of God, his attitude was to learn from God – not tell God how he wanted to live.
When the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, we are commanded to repent, and to continue to walk with God. We will not wander away from God if we are seeking God with our whole heart.
We need to memorize God’s word. If we hide God’s word in our hearts, we will be much less prone to commit sin. When we do, we will be immediately convicted of our sins.
We need to ask God to teach us as we study His Word. God will illumine us when we are willing to learn.
Observe what the Psalmist does. He declares, rejoices, meditates, and delights in God’s word.
The way to have a pure life is to keep it according to God’s Word. We must seek Him with all of our hearts as only He can keep from us disobedience. Treasuring His Word in our heart keeps us from sinning against Him. We need Him to teach us His Word. His Words must be on our lips. We must rejoice in His Words more than in any riches, luxury, comfort, fame or power that this world possesses.
My challenge to myself and you is to spend time in the Word; read it every day. If you are able to, memorize verses or portions of the Word. Man may remove the Bible from us, but whatever we have hidden in our heart will always be there. We live in an age where it is so easy to forget God; most people around us do not even believe in God. His Word should be on our mind day and night, and we must make it our aim to follow it.
How about everyone doing the E100 day reading plan during lockdown. Let me know and I can get a copy to you.
Take great joy and comfort in His Word my friends, and never forget it.
Let us pray
Father God, I pray that You will help me/us to remain faithful to Your Word through regular reading of the Bible and Scripture memorization. Give me a fresh, new desire to read the Bible and apply it’s teaching to my life. Help me to imitate the Lord Jesus as I respond to the problems and trials of this modern world. May Your Word become alive to me again. Please Holy Spirit lead me as I walk this path and learn Your ways. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Much love from Maurice and Margaret
