It’s easy to read the Bible and overlook the incredible claims it makes.
Take this verse, from the Apostle Peter:
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3).
What a statement! What hope this gives us! God has provided all the power we need to experience a godly life by knowing him.
And God has chosen to impart this knowledge through the Bible. The written Word of God, along with the illuminating and empowering ministry of the Spirit of God, is sufficient to teach us everything we need to know to do everything for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).
In Psalm 19:7-11 David uses several adjectives to describe the adequacy of Scripture to meet all our spiritual needs.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are sure,
and all of them are righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.
11 By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
The Word is perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, eternal, sure, and righteous. And as such, when believed and obeyed, it can accomplish the following: revive the soul, make wise the simple, give joy to the heart, give light to the eyes, and provide a great reward in both this life and the next.
Let’s unpack the meaning of these verses by looking at other Scriptures that collaborate with the teaching of Psalm 19.
- The Word revives the soul (v. 7)
To revive means to restore, refresh, convert or transform. The Bible contains the message we need to be transformed into Christlikeness! This is why Paul told Timothy that the Scriptures “are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15). This is why Peter wrote that “you have been born again . . . through the enduring word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). So, the Word of God has the power to transform a life through salvation and the second birth.
- The Word makes wise the simple (v. 7)
To make wise means to become skilled in the art of godly living, the ability to make right choices for the glory of God. Psalm 119:98-100 is a compelling description of this: “Your commands make me wiser than my enemies . . . I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes. I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts.”
- The Word gives joy to the heart (v. 8)
Again, Psalm 119 says it so well: “I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. . . . I delight in your decrees (Psalm 119:14, 16). “Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart” (Psalm 119:111).
- The Word gives light to the eyes (v. 8)
The Scripture provides the light so desperately needed in our ever-increasing world of darkness. Solomon wrote: “For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light” (Proverbs 6:23). The psalmist conveys the same truth: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path” (Psalm 119:105).
- The Word promises great reward to the one who obeys it (v. 11)
Blessing will come to the man whose “delight is in the law of the LORD,” and for the person who meditates on the law day and night — “whatever he does prospers” (Psalm 1:1-3). James reiterates this concept so clearly: “But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:25-26).
The Bible is not just another good book. It claims to be the authoritative, inspired, inerrant, and all-powerful Word of God, and as such, our passion should be to read it diligently and study it prayerfully, asking the Spirit of God to illuminate our understanding of it and enable our obedience to it.
These five benefits are available to every believer: revival of soul . . . godly wisdom . . . a joyful heart . . . spiritual enlightenment . . . a great reward. Through his Word, God is eager to bless you with all of them, today and forever.
NOTE: The above comments are an excerpt from my book, How to Pray Like David: A Bible Study on Psalms 1-41, available on Amazon in Kindle and paperback.
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