KNOWING THE TRUE GOD #31
PSALM 119
OH WHAT A PSALM!! Those who truly are in tune with God, the
true Eternal One; it is to them that this Psalm is so meaningful
and wonderful; for them this Psalm will bring joy unbounding. I
pray you are one of those saints of the Lord.
Though there is little direct words form the Lord's mouth in
first person. We can know this is His heart strings, His
character, His mind. David is, most would agree the author. It is
written in the New Testament that David was a man after God's own
heart .... and this Psalm will blow you away with the heart of
God. When you read this Psalm, and you look at the world at
large, even at professing Christianity, there should be times
that you will be as David was: "Rivers of water run down my eyes,
because they keep not thy law" (verse 136).
Just because you love the law of God, just because you love
the commandments of God, just because you believe you should do
as Christ taught, that is live not by physical bread alone, but
by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God (Matthew
4:4). Just because you love what the Lord says about the
righteous way to live, to act, to think, to do, does NOT mean you
believe or teach that salvation can be earned by your works. Such
an idea is as far from the truth as east is from west. I have
taken very careful in-depth study on grace and law. I have tried
to make it as simple for you, well so plain and simple I think a
child can read that study and understand the truth of the matter.
That study is called "Saved by Grace" and it was written to make
sure everyone would understand that no amount of commandment
keeping could save you into God's Kingdom. You will be there my
friends because of the Lord's GRACE AND MERCY extended to you.
As a child growing up in a Church of England school from
grade one to twelve, having the first half hour each school
morning, reading and studying the Bible, I came at an early age
to respect and love the commandments of God, I mean it's all over
the Bible, it's common sense. As a kid I could see that if the
whole world was obeying the Ten Commandments alone, wow .... what
a world it would be!! As I got older I also came to see very
clearly that I found myself in the apostle Paul's mind as in
Romans 7 - I was a SINNER, I fell down at times, I thought wrong
thoughts, I said the wrong things, I spoke the wrong words etc.
and etc. I had to CRY OUT to the Father for His mercy and grace
through Christ Jesus and His blood and interceding work as our
High Priest. I sure came to see in a hurry that I could never be
saved by keeping God's commandments, trying to abound more in
"good works" than in "bad works." I came to see in a hurry that I
could only be saved by God's loving grace.
I've made it plain for you in my study "Saved by Grace" on
this Website.
But with all that said, with all that truth in hand, it does
not take away as what should be your attitude towards the
commandments of the Lord, towards His statutes, precepts, and
laws.
David sure came to see that His sins, some pretty big ones
at times, would, despite his commandment keeping, put him out of
God's Kingdom IF it was not for the loving MERCY and GRACE of
God!
I believe it was BECAUSE of that, BECAUSE of the GRACE of
God that David loved to serve the Lord, to obey Him, to observe
His commandments. He also came to see that if the nations all the
world over were obeying the commandments of God, it would be a
wonderful world. No wonder then that at times he shed tears over
seeing people and societies not keeping God's law. The world is
in the mess it's in today because nations of the world will not
observe and have their basic "Government Constitution" - the LAW
OF GOD!
So do not give me this "no law" stuff or "your trying to
earn salvation" nonsense, just because I say a true Christian
should have the attitude of mind as David did here in this Psalm.
And do not give me this "Old Covenant" and "New Covenant"
theology that is floating around as truth. It is ANYTHING BUT
TRUTH!! Why a child can read in the book of Hebrews that in the
NEW COVENANT that God would make with people, He would PUT THE
LAW OF GOD INTO THEIR HEARTS, not just on stone tablets. I know
what the "no law" teachers do not like, and do not want to teach!
It is the FOURTH COMMANDMENT they hate and do not want to obey or
teach others to obey. Let's get the cards on the table, the "no
law theology teachers" would have no problem teaching the law or
commandments of God are to be obeyed IF the fourth one, had
"first day of the week" instead of "the seventh day of the week"
written there in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5.
Well it does not! And never will! So it's time to KNOW
which God you serve. As Elijah said: "How long halt you between
two opinions? If the Lord be God, FOLLOW HIM: but if Baal, then
follow him" (1 Kings 18:21).
If you are going to serve the true Lord God, then your
attitude of mind will be like what we find in Psalm 119. Are you
ready to pick up your Bible and read it?
Blessed are the undefiled (or perfect, or sincere - margin),
who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are they who keep His
testimonies, and that seek Him with the whole heart. They also do
no iniquity: they walk in His ways (verses 1-3).
This does not mean you do not sin, it means your mind-set is
focussed on wanting to obey God (see 1 John 1 and 2).
If your heart is seeking God, you will desire to not wander
from His commandments. And you study God's word so you may learn
what sin is and so desire not to sin (verses 10-11).
You say you want to be a child of the Lord, then you,
"....will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy
ways. I will delight in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word
... Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wonderous things out
of thy law. I am a stranger in the earth: hide not thy
commandments from me ... You have rebuked the proud that are
cursed, which do err from thy commandments ... Thy testimonies
also are my delight and my counsellors ... Remove from me the way
of lying (spiritual play acting): and grant me thy law graciously
... I have chosen the way of truth ... I will run the way of thy
commandments, when you shall enlarge my heart" (verses 15-32).
This is the attitude of the true HUMBLE and REPENTANT child
of God.
This is what true understanding is: "Give me understanding,
and I shall keep thy law; yes, I shall observe it with my whole
heart. Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein
do I delight ... Turn away my eyes from beholding vanity ..."
(verses 34-37).
It is vanity when you believe you can deliberately as a way
of life, break any commandment of God, and still be His child,
and enter His Kingdom with such an attitude.
You want to see how law and grace and salvation go together
hand in hand? Here it is: "Let thy mercies come also unto me, O
Lord, even thy salvation, according to thy word. So shall I have
wherewith to answer him that reproaches me: for I trust in thy
word. And take not thy word of truth utterly out of my mouth; for
I have hoped in thy judgments. So shall I keep thy law
continually for ever and ever. And I will walk at liberty: for I
seek thy precepts. I will speak of thy testimonies also before
kings, and will not be ashamed. And I will delight myself in thy
commandments, which I have loved. My hands also will I lift up
unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in
thy statutes ..." (verses 41-48).
In a nut-shell, that is being saved by grace - see my full
study on the matter called "Saved by Grace."
What about those individuals who make grace an excuse for
"no law"? David replies to them: "The proud have had me greatly
in derision; yet have I not declined from thy law ... Horror has
taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law ...
I have remembered thy name, O Lord, in the night, and have kept
thy law" (verses 51,53,55).
Did you notice the Bible definition of "the wicked"? It's
pretty simple. Those who do not have their mind set to want to
obey the law of God - they are "the wicked." And the wicked who
will not repent of their wickedness, will one day be no more,
they will be gone forever - for the wages of sin (a wicked mind-
set) is death (Romans 6:23).
Here is true repentance: "I thought on my ways, and turned
my feet unto thy commandments. I made haste, and delayed not to
keep thy commandments. The bands of the wicked have robbed me
(i.e. turning grace into "no law" rob people of truth), but I
have not forgotten thy law ... I am a companion of all them that
fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts" (verses 59-64).
Here's more correct attitude for the child of God: "Teach me
good judgment and knowledge: for I have believed thy commandments
... The proud have forged a lie against me (i.e. saying things
like, "People are trying to earn salvation by commandment
keeping"), but I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart.
Their heart is as fat as grease (i.e. their speech is super
spiritual sounding, full of spiritual sounding words - but a
slippy slope to deception and destruction - see how Jesus put it
in Matthew 23), but I delight in thy law ... The law of thy mouth
is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver (i.e. the
acclaim and physical money that can come from people that "grease
up" to others - telling others what they desire to hear).
True understanding is: "Thy hands have made me and fashioned
me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments ...
Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law
is my delight" (verses 73,77).
It is not grace OR law, it is grace AND law - make sure you
have studied my study "Saved by Grace."
Are you persecuted (many different ways) for obeying the
commandments of the Lord? David was, and he answered: "All thy
commandments are faithfulness (margin): they persecute me
wrongly; help me" (verse 86).
The apostle Peter was inspired to write: "But let none of
you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evil doer, or
as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a
Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on
this behalf ... Wherefore let them that suffer according to the
WILL of God, commit the keeping of their souls to Him in WELL
doing, as unto a faithful Creator" (1 Peter 4:15-19).
If you are persecuted for serving the WILL of God, for
keeping His commandments, do not be ashamed and pretty well
expect it, as Jesus said, "If they have persecuted me, they will
persecute you" (John 15:20) and "Blessed are you, when men shall
revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil
against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad:
for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the
prophets which were before you" (Matthew 5:11,12).
There's nothing new under the sun. Many people today,
including some who call themselves by the name of Christ, do not
like Christians who keep the commandments of God, or they want to
accuse them of "strange doctrines." The strange idea is really
with them and their teachers, who hold that the law of God is
"done away with" because of the grace of God.
There can be something in life such as art, music,
sculpture, a skill, a dance, a sporting activity, that people can
say is perfection, as perfect as perfect can be, but God's
commandments are exceedingly broad (verse 96). Jesus showed the
broadness of them in the famous so-called "sermon on the mount" -
Matthew chapters 5,6,7.
Can you say with David: "O how love I thy law! It is my
meditation all the day" (verse 97).
Indeed it is broad perfection, and wherever you are,
whatever your doing, be it at play or at work, walking the dog,
driving the car, going for groceries, shopping for this or that,
talking to friends or relatives, co-workers or the neighbor, all
should be done keeping in mind the law of the Lord.
Oh then there is the truth of what the law, commandments,
precepts, testimonies, word of the Lord gives you: "You through
your commandments have made me wiser than my enemies ... I have
more understanding than all my teachers: for your testimonies are
my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, because I
keep your precepts ... How sweet are your words unto my taste,
yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth. Through your precepts I get
understanding: therefore I hate every false way. Your word is a
lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path" (verses 98-105).
Yes, even if relatively young of age, the word and
commandments of the Lord can give wisdom and understanding that
even the teachers and ancient of age do not have.
.......................
To be continued
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