"SO SHALL
I KEEP YOUR LAW CONTINUALLY"
(Psalm 119:44-47)
Most Bible students know that the longest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 119.
The subject matter of this psalm, which many scholars believe was written by
David, is the word of God. Nearly every verse in the psalm uses some synonym
for God's word. The psalm is divided into sections of eight verses apiece, and
each section has one of the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet at its
heading. In verse 44 the psalmist says, "So shall I keep Your law continually,
forever and ever." This should be our aim in life too. But how do we go
about it? In the next three verses, the psalmist tells us what he plans to do
in keeping God's law. And when we do the same things, we shall keep His law
continually as well.
I Seek Your Precepts
"And I will walk at liberty, for I seek Your precepts" (verse 45).
To walk at liberty is to be free from all sin that would hinder us from keeping
God's law (Romans 6:17-18). This liberty is not a license to do anything we
want (Galatians 5:1-13). Rather it is the freedom to do and be what God wants.
Thus, we can have this liberty only when we seek God's precepts. All people
are seeking for something. It may be pleasure, happiness, satisfaction, power,
fame, fortune, or whatever. Some find what they are seeking, some do not, and
some who find what they are seeking learn that it really was not what they wanted
after all. Jesus promises that there is something which we can seek and find,
and it will always be what we really need (Matthew 7:7-11). So, what we really
need to seek is God's precepts. The word "precept" means "a direction
meant as a rule of action or conduct." When one makes a recipe, he need
to follow the directions. In life, God has certain directions for us to follow.
"You came down also on Mount Sinai, and spoke with them from heaven, and
gave them just ordinances and true laws, good statutes and commandments"
(Nehemiah 9:14). Just as God did for Israel in the Old Testament, He has done
for us in the New Testament, and the only way that we can keep His law is to
seek His precepts so that we can walk at
liberty.
I Will Speak of Your Testimonies
"I will speak of Your testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed"
(verse 46). Keeping God's law involves not only our actions in seeking His precepts
but also our speech in declaring His testimonies before others. To do this,
we must first make sure that our speech is not characterized by things which
God hates (Ephesians 4:29). Rather, we should use speech that will help, build
up, and encourage others (Colossians 4:6). Specifically, the psalmist said that
he would speak God's testimonies before kings. David, if he be the author, certainly
had communications with the various kings of the nations round about Israel
and may have used them to talk about God.
We may not necessarily have the opportunity to speak before kings, but one way
that we can always use our speech to help, build up, and encourage others is
by telling them the good news of salvation in Christ (Acts 8:4, 1 Peter 3:15).
The psalmist also says that he would not be ashamed. This may mean that he would
not have anything to be ashamed about, but it may also mean that he was resolved
not to feel ashamed
(Romans 1:16, 2 Timothy 1:8). When people say that they believe something but
never talk about it, it is almost as if they are ashamed of it, and they can
often be more easily persuaded to turn away from it. But if we really believe
strongly enough in God's testimonies to speak them before others, we are much
more likely to keep God's law continually.
I Will Delight Myself in Your Commandments
"And I will delight myself in Your commandments, which I love" (verse
47). We have seen that keeping God's law continually requires our actions in
seeking His precepts, and our speech in declaring His testimonies. Now we find
that it also requires our very minds, our thinking, our attitude of heart in
delighting in His commandments. Often, the character of a person's life is determined
by what he delights in (Psalm 1:1-2). Therefore, we should always delight in
God's commandments because they are important. Jesus said, "If you love
Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). And the beloved apostle wrote,
"For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments
are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3).
Sometimes people will say that there is more to following God than just keeping
commandments, and that is true. But the simple fact is that if we do not keep
God's commandments, we do not love Him and we are not right in His sight. Yet,
it is not enough just to keep His commandments. We need to love them. "Oh,
how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day" (Psalm 119:97). The
truth is that we usually do that in which we delight, which we love. So when
we truly delight in God's commandments and love them, then we will keep His
law continually.
Conclusion
Therefore, if it is our desire to keep God's law continually, these are some
things that we need to do to help us achieve our goal. We must seek God's precepts
in all our actions. We must speak of His testimonies. And we must delight ourselves
in His commandments. Please do not misunderstand. The Bible does not teach that
these things will always be easy. They will take dedication, effort, and commitment.
But the Bible does teach that if we follow the prescription found in these verses,
we shall be able to keep God's law continually. And God has surely promised
to help us do so.
By Wayne S. Walker via
The Defender Volume 47; November 27, 2005; Number 48
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