OBEDIENCE IS THE PATH TO BLESSING!

WE MUST WEIGH OUR LIVES ACCORDING TO THE WORD

Psalm 119:1-8

Blessed are those whose way is blameless,

who walk in the law of the LORD!

Blessed are those who keep his testimonies,

who seek him with their whole heart,

who also do no wrong,

but walk in his ways!

You have commanded your precepts

to be kept diligently.

Oh that my ways may be steadfast

in keeping your statutes!

Then I shall not be put to shame,

having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.

I will praise you with an upright heart,

when I learn your righteous rules.

I will keep your statutes;

do not utterly forsake me!

There is no way for a person to be blameless without knowing the law of the LORD. It is interesting that as we read this psalm, one of the recurring descriptions of the Word of God is going to be “law”.

Law really leaves no open door to personal opinion or to personal preference. The law is a standard by which behavior is measured. In the Bible, the standard is even higher than civil law, as it measures thoughts, intentions, and desires.

‘Law’ is a word that makes man cringe; our rebellious hearts do not want to be restricted by someone else’s rules. Today, even in churches, much emphasis is given to liberty, while rules and laws are often disdained as unspiritual.

Our relationship with God is dependent on the degree to which we know and apply God’s laws in our daily lives. Jesus had no other standard by which to measure who was really His friend.

John 15:14

        You are my friends if you do what I command you.

The words of this psalm show us clearly that our devotion to following the statues cannot be half-hearted. The whole heart needs to be dedicated to this task. In fact, half-hearted dedication will set us up for continued failure.

Lack of complete devotion always leads to disobedience and sin. There is no sin that does not bring consequences in our lives. Sin will always bring regret.

When the writer begins with “blessed”, it is both an invitation and a warning. So many times, lack of obedience to the laws of God is the result of our misguided thinking that there is pleasure apart from obedience.

James 1:14-15

        But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

We should weigh our goals much more carefully. Do we desire to be blessed or do we desire death? We can choose the path, but not the consequences!

 Following God’s law cannot be done without resolve. The psalmist tells us that he is diligently seeking after the precepts found in the Scriptures. Our flesh is bent in the wrong direction, so careful attention has to be given to our walk.

We need all the tools we find in Scriptures. Are you nurturing your soul with the Word of God? Are you in a godly local church where the Word of God is taught clearly, where the preaching is not story telling and personal opinions or experiences? Are you active in discipling and being discipled?

Our personal study of the Word of God and our serving, active involvement in our local church are very often an indicator of our true walk in submission to the Word of God.

When the psalmist says; “Oh, that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!” He is exhorting himself to be committed. We so easily avoid this degree of obedience. When we do, then our ways are not steadfast and we drift away.

The writer reminds us that when we sin there is shame, we are not upright, we are not blameless. We are so far from being in a state of blessing!

There cannot be true worship when we are not following God’s laws. It is interesting to observe how often we believe the lie that there can be communion with God, while entertaining sin in our lives.

The writer reminds us that the righteous rules need to be learned. We need to be continuous learners of God’s instructions.

We would all say that we want to love God and follow Him, but we must remember that it cannot be done apart from careful submission and obedience to the Word of God. We have it at our disposal, and we must study it and apply it to our lives.

I am so grateful for the gift of forgiveness and the grace of repentance. God does not abandon us, but continues to invite us into an intimate relationship with Him.

May our resolve be clear and determined to obey the Word of God!