What Do You Long For? (Psalm 119:174)

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Wayne Davies

“I long for your salvation, Lord, and your law gives me delight” (Psalm 119:174).

The psalmist has poured out his heart, perhaps over many years, in the writing of Psalm 119. Has any writer of Scripture told us so much about himself in one chapter as this man has?

Many things impress me about him. He has a steadfast commitment to God and his Word. He has an unwavering faith that has remained strong despite much suffering and affliction.

But perhaps what I like most about the author of Psalm 119 is his passion. His desire for God and his Word is intense.

We’ve read of his longing throughout the psalm –
My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times. (v. 20)
How I long for your precepts! (v. 40)
My soul faints with longing for your salvation. (v. 81)
I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands. (v. 131)

He longs for God’s Word, and he longs for God’s salvation. And we should not be surprised at either one. We know about the writer’s devotion to God’s truth. That has been the topic of virtually every verse. And we know about the writer’s unfortunate circumstances as an innocent victim of unwarranted and unjustified persecution at the hands of evil men (see verses 109 and 110).

So I take this longing to be a desire primarily for physical salvation. The many references to his difficult circumstances would argue strongly for this interpretation. He wants to see the light of day and expresses what any normal human being would want – he wants to live!

Another reason I take this verse to mean physical salvation is because of the immediately preceding verse, “May your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen your precepts” (Psalm 119:173). He is asking for God to help him by providing protection from his foes.

I also like his man for his humility. He longs for God’s salvation. He knows that God is in control and that only God can provide the salvation he needs.

He expresses his humility in verse 176 – “I have strayed like a lost sheep.” Even though the psalmist has proclaimed his innocence from any wrongdoing that would justify the way his enemies are treating him (see verses 78 and 86), he is the first to admit that he is still a sinner.

He has prayed for God to keep him away from deceit (v. 29), selfishness (v. 26), and worthless things (v. 37), no doubt because he has been guilty of such unrighteous behavior. He confesses, “before I was afflicted I went astray” (v. 67).

The psalmist has a biblical understanding of his own sinfulness and is transparent about it before God and his peers, for he no doubt wrote this psalm as a song to be sung by the people of God.

This is the portrait of a true believer – one who is deeply aware of his depravity before a holy God, all the while depending on his God to be gracious to him and save him. May we follow in his footsteps, all the days of our lives.

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Do We Love God or The Word of God? (Psalm 119:167)

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Wayne Davies

We love to use the word “love”, don’t we? I love football and pizza and ice cream — not to mention 1,001 other things that may or may not deserve such a high accolade.

The writer of Psalm 119 is not shy to proclaim what he loves. He loves the Word of God. And he says so — not once, but ten times in this chapter. He loves God’s commands (v. 47, 48, 127), God’s law (v. 97, 113, 163), God’s statutes (v. 119, 167), God’s promises (v. 140), and God’s precepts (v. 159).

In fact, this man not only loves God’s Word, he is determined to demonstrate that love by learning it (v. 7), obeying it (v. 8), meditating on it (v. 15), delighting in it (v. 16), longing for it (v. 20), keeping it (v. 22), choosing it (v. 30), holding fast to it (v. 31), following it (v. 33), trusting it (v. 42), putting my hope in it (v. 43), seeking it (v. 45), speaking of it (v. 46), reaching out for it (v. 48), remembering it (v. 52), giving thanks for it (v. 62), and looking for it (v. 82).

Wow! Is this man consumed with the Bible, or what?

And the verbs listed above come from just the first half of Psalm 119 (verses 1-88). There’s another 88 verses that contain similar language (verses 89-176)!

What I find intriguing is that everything this writer says about the Word can also be said about God Himself. When Jesus was asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” (Mark 12:28), what was his answer? Did he say, “Love the Bible with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength”?

No. He said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart” (Mark 12:30).

And what about all the other verbs that are used by the psalmist to describe his devotion to Scripture? Are we not commanded elsewhere in the Bible to learn about God, to obey God, to meditate on God, to delight in God, to long for God, to choose God, to hold fast to God, to follow God, to trust God, to put our hope in God, to seek God, to speak of God, to reach out for God, to remember God, to give thanks for God, and to look for God?

It seems to me that the psalmist does not make a distinction between God and His Word. He has the same passion for Scripture that we are supposed to have for God.

If this is true, then this is huge. The psalmist’s language tells me that if I want to pursue God with unshakable faith, I do that by pursuing His Word with all my heart, soul, mind and strength. If I want to find God, I will find him in His Word. If I want to know God, I will know him through His Word. If I want to follow him and obey him, I will do that by following His Word and obeying His Word.

Isn’t this why the people of God are known as “the people of the Book”?

Isn’t this why Jesus said, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching” (John 14:23)?

I believe it is.

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Why Does the Psalmist Pray for Salvation in Psalm 119?

Posted on August 27, 2014 by Wayne Davies

We don’t know who wrote Psalm 119, but we do know much about him because he mentions his circumstances many times. In Psalm 119:153-160 he is especially concerned about his situation, for seven of the eight verses in this stanza make mention of it.

There is one word that best describes the writer’s life when he wrote this psalm: suffering. He has suffered much (v. 107), so he pleads with God to “look on my suffering” (v. 153). We also know that his suffering is the result of unjust treatment by ungodly people who are persecuting him. “Many are the foes who persecute me” (v. 157). He has many enemies, and these men are described as “wicked” (v. 155) and “faithless” (v. 158), people who “do not seek out your decrees” (v. 155) and therefore “do not obey your word” (v. 158).

Hasn’t this man painted a crystal clear picture of his life?

And so what does he do?

He prays for physical salvation.
Note the repeated prayers to be saved from this situation. He asks God to “deliver me” (v. 153) and to “redeem me” (v. 154). His favorite prayer in this stanza is offered three times – “preserve my life” (v. 154, 156, 159). Isn’t it significant that this particular prayer for physical relief is prayed nine times in this psalm (see verses 25, 37, 40, 88, 107, and 149)? Take note: it could be the most often repeated prayer in Psalm 119.

This man has reason to believe that he could be killed at any moment. He’s not sure whether he will wake up in the morning.

Overall, there are at least 20 prayers in this psalm for physical safety – as mentioned above, “preserve my life” occurs 9 times, and there are 11 other prayers that ask for physical salvation (see verses 17, 77, 94, 116, 117, 134, 146, 153, 154, 170 and 175).  Simple yet desperate prayers come from the depths of his being. Save me! Sustain me! Uphold me! Redeem me! Deliver me! Let me live!

Do you get the picture?

When I read a prayer for salvation in the Bible, I usually think of spiritual salvation. And there are many passages that lead us in that direction in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.

I think of salvation from sin and its ultimate consequences (the wrath of God, death, hell, eternal punishment in the lake of fire, etc). I also think of salvation from the power of sin in my life (overcoming greed, anger, bitterness, etc). But I rarely, if ever, think of being saved physically, because I live in the U.S. and have had a very easy life of comfort and safety in middle-class America.

But I don’t think this man is praying for salvation from hell. The plethora of verses describing his circumstances make a strong case that physical salvation is in view here.

Regardless of the outcome, he continues to trust God and obey His Word.
The psalmist makes many statements throughout this chapter regarding his faithfulness to God in the midst of these trying circumstances. “I have not forgotten your law” (v. 153). “I have not turned away from your statutes” (v. 157). “See how I love your precepts” (v. 159).

If you read the above three verses without considering his circumstances, you might say he is bragging about himself and is guilty of prideful self-sufficiency. But I don’t think that is the case. He is simply stating his case before God – he has done nothing to deserve this unfair treatment and is reminding God of that.

We have much to learn from the writer of Psalm 119, don’t we? There are Christians throughout the world facing unjust treatment from those who are violently opposed to Christianity. Certainly this man’s perseverance in the midst of persecution is an example for the persecuted church.

But what about those of us who may never face this type of persecution? We, too, face trials of many kinds. Physical illness, long painful deaths and tragic accidents are likely to rear their ugly heads in every Christian home. Jesus said that sun and rain are given to believers and non-believers alike (Matthew 5:45); likewise calamity is given to all. It comes in many forms and in varying degrees, but no one is exempt from suffering, especially the Christian. James reminds us that trials are not a matter of “if” but “when” (see James 1:2 and note the word “whenever”).

The psalmist has unwavering faith in the sovereignty of God.
This is one of the most amazing sentences in Psalm 119 – “in faithfulness you have afflicted me” (v. 75b). Hasn’t he told us that wicked men are responsible for his suffering? Then how can he say, “God has afflicted me”? How can this be?

There is a paradox here that is found throughout Scripture – the unresolved tension between God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility. We are held accountable for everything we say, do and think. And in the end, everything happens as God intended it to happen. This side of heaven, our pea-sized brains will struggle greatly to grasp the wonder of this tension. But it is there and I think we would do well to embrace the mystery.

I am the first to admit that this is a difficult teaching to understand. And it can be even harder to accept. But it is what Scripture says. The psalmist has come to grips with it and stands with other saints in believing that God is ultimately in control of everything, even though we will be held accountable for our actions on Judgment Day.

By faith, Joseph embraced the mystery of this paradox. After being sold into slavery by his brothers, years later he tells them, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20).

By faith, Job embraced the mystery of this paradox. After hearing that his 10 children were killed in a natural disaster, he says, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised” (Job 1:21). And after being afflicted with boils by the devil, he asks his wife, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” (Job 2:10).

And by faith, the writer of Psalm 119 embraced the mystery of this paradox.

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What Does It Mean To Obey The Word? (Psalm 119:145)

Posted on August 23, 2014 by Wayne Davies

“I call with all my heart; answer me, Lord, and I will obey your decrees.” So prays the psalmist in Psalm 119:145.

Psalm 119, the longest chapter in the Bible, is all about the Bible. The writer tells us many things about the Word – what it is, what God wants to do for us through it, and most importantly, what our response should be to it.

Here’s an exercise I encourage you to do today. Read through Psalm 119 and look for the many different ways the psalmist describes his response to the Word. He answers the question, “How should I respond to the Word?” with the following: walk in it, consider it, learn it, live according to it, meditate on it, delight in it, long for it, understand it, choose it, set my heart on it, hold fast to it, trust in it, put my hope in it, seek it, speak of it, love it, remember it, give thanks for it, and believe in it.

And that’s just the first half of the psalm!

There is one particular response that appears more than any other: obey it. Arguably the most prominent theme in Psalm 119 is obedience to the Word of God. The psalmist mentions it at least 25 times – on average, at least once in every stanza.

Such a dominant theme begs the question, “What does it mean to obey the Word?”

The word “obey”, as found in the New International Version, can also be translated “keep”, which is usually how the English Standard Version (ESV) renders it. It’s a word that has several related meanings, including:

Take care of. In Genesis 2:15, God put Adam in the garden of Eden “to work it and keep it” (ESV).

Watch over and guard. In Genesis 3:24, after God drove Adam and Eve out of the garden, he put angels and a sword to “guard (or keep) the way to the tree of life” (ESV).

Preserve and protect. In Numbers 6:24, God told Moses that Aaron should use the following words when speaking to the people, “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you”.

Observe and perform. In Exodus 12:24-25, on the night of the Exodus from Egypt, Moses told the Jews that God expects them to “observe/obey” (ESV/NIV) and “keep/observe” (ESV/NIV) the Passover celebration when they come into the promised land.

This last meaning, to observe and perform, is the most common meaning of the word “obey”, and the one we usually think of first when we encounter either “obey” or “keep” in the Bible. “Love the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, and his commands always” (Deuteronomy 11:1).

But please note that to obey/keep the Word involves much more than external behavior or adherence to the Ten Commandments. Certainly this is a critical component, and without it, there is no obedience. But to get the full scope of what God means by “obey”, let’s not overlook these other aspects – we are to not only “do” the Word, but also take care of it, watch over it, guard it, preserve it, and protect it.

Who is sufficient for such a task? Only by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit can we live up to these expectations.

Furthermore, Psalm 119 gives us much to think about with regard to how we obey the Bible. The end result of obedience is external behavior. But Christ-honoring obedience begins in the heart and must be the outward manifestation of genuine love for God.

We obey the Word because we love the Word. “I obey your statues, for I love them greatly” (Psalm 119:167). And we love the Word because we love God. If our motive for obedience is anything else, then our obedience displeases God and becomes an act of sinful hypocrisy. Note the word order in Deuteronomy 11:1, quoted above. It is no accident that “love” preceeds “keep”.

Do you see the fine line between obedience and sin? I can do what looks like an act of obedience, yet if my motive is not love for God, have I really obeyed God?

And so we must examine ourselves daily in this regard, and may this be our prayer, “Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law and obey it with all my heart” (Psalm 119:34).

Obedience must be with the heart and from the heart.  I take that to mean, at a minimum, that I obey God because I have a sincere desire to please him. I obey him because I truly want to obey him. And this obedience is the expression of a thankful heart. Because he has done so much for me, I want to live in a way that brings much praise, honor and glory to him.

Is this the cry of your heart? May it be so.

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A Psalmist’s Obsession: The Righteousness of God in Psalm 119

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Wayne Davies

One of the easiest ways to understand a portion of Scripture is to look for repeated words. When the writer refers to something several times within a few verses, he’s trying to emphasize that topic. We do that every day in our own conversations, right?

So when we come to Psalm 119:137-144, we see that one particular word is mentioned five or six times (depending on the translation you use). The word is “righteous” and/or “righteousness”.

The psalmist wants us to know that God and His Word are righteous.

God is righteous.
This is stated in verse 137 in a most straightforward manner. “You are righteous, Lord”. God by nature is righteous, which means he is perfectly just in both character and conduct. He always does the right thing. And He has always been righteous, which is the point of verse 143 – “Your righteousness is everlasting” (NIV), which the ESV translates as “Your righteousness is righteous forever”.

God’s Word is righteous.
The Word of God is righteous because it originates from the One who is righteous. “The statutes you have laid down are righteous” (v. 138). And just as God is eternally righteous, the same can be said about God’s Word – “Your statutes are always righteous” (v. 144).

The relationship between God and His Word is seen throughout Psalm 119, not to mention the rest of Scripture. Many attributes of God are also used to describe the Word of God.

What I find most intriguing is that in Psalm 119 righteousness is mentioned more often than any other attribute of God and His Word – 13 times. The writer was consumed with thoughts about God’s righteousness and he comes back to this characteristic over and over again. Take a few minutes and read the following verses to see what I mean: 7, 62, 75, 106, 123, 128, 137, 138, 142, 144, 160, 164, and 172.

The writer has a comprehensive view of God and mentions many of God’s attributes throughout the psalm – God and/or His Word are described as wonderful, delightful, gracious, truthful, loving, good, trustworthy, precious, eternal, sweet – on and on we could go.

But why is righteousness foremost in the psalmist’s mind? Certainly his circumstances could be the reason. He was being unfairly persecuted by wicked men  — “the arrogant mock me unmercifully” (v. 51); “the wicked bind me with ropes” (v. 61); “the arrogant have smeared me with lies” (v. 69); “the arrogant dig pits to trap me” (v. 85); “many are the foes who persecute me” (v. 157).

When faced with such unjust treatment, what does a person want more than anything? Justice! This man longs for God to rescue him from his predicament because God is righteous and he promises to make everything right, eventually and ultimately.

Of course, many people have been treated unfairly and have never seen justice in their lifetime. That may have been the case for the writer of Psalm 119. We don’t know who wrote this psalm, nor do we know the outcome of his situation.

But we do know that the Bible speaks of a day when all wrongs will be made right. On Judgment Day, righteousness will prevail.

Perhaps you have been the victim of injustice. If not, it is likely that some day you will know the frustration and despair that we read about in this psalm. Many Christians throughout the world are experiencing such treatment. “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12).

The psalmist provides an example of faithfulness in the midst of much tribulation. When enduring a season of injustice, may we be able to say, “Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands give me delight” (Psalm 119:143).

Isn’t this how Jesus Christ responded to his unjust treatment? Let us “consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:3).

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Jesus Is Coming Back Tomorrow (Book Review)

Posted on August 21, 2014 by Wayne Davies

Don’t you love when someone tells you his/her reason for doing something? For example, before you read a book, do you ever wonder why the author wrote it? What was his motive? Some authors tell you their purpose, some don’t.

Wes Ireton has written a book entitled “Jesus Is Coming Back Tomorrow”. And I’m pleased to tell you that he makes his reason for writing very clear: “If I am writing this book for one reason, that reason would be the same as Peter had in writing to the New Testament Christians – a reminder.”

He quotes 2 Peter 3:1 — “Dear friends, this is now the second letter I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder.” Peter then spends of the rest of chapter 3 telling his readers about the return of Jesus Christ.

This book was written to be a reminder that Jesus Christ is coming back, for Jesus promised his disciples that one day “men will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory” (Mark 13:26).

The author states: “My prayer is that this book would serve as a reminder to all of us who have forgotten, or grown numb to the reality that Jesus will return. This book is for all who have become sidetracked in life, and for those who have become busy doing frivolous and temporal things. Jesus is coming back, and I want to remind you, as well as myself, of what we are supposed to be living for, as his followers.”

I like this book for several reasons. The first is that Wes communicates his message in a most compelling and straightforward manner. You know exactly what he is trying to say; he comes through loud and clear. He tells you why he wrote this book, and he tells you in no uncertain terms. And that’s the way Wes writes throughout the entire book. Nothing wishy-washy here.

If you are unable to understand what this author is saying, you’re either asleep at the wheel or brain dead.

The second reason I like this book is because the author sincerely believes what he is writing. Wes weaves his life story throughout the book, and so you get to know him – his many life experiences, the mistakes he’s made and the lessons he’s learned. He’s transparent and is the first to admit that he needs to heed the message of his own book just as much as you and I do.

Wes was raised in a Christian environment but wandered away from Christ in high school and college, as many young people do. But then he realized the folly of his ways and has committed his life to Jesus in a powerful way, and that commitment to Christ also comes through in this book loud and clear.

Wes doesn’t write as a theologian, although this book is packed with good evangelical theology.  Wes doesn’t write as a Bible scholar, although this book explains a plethora of biblical truths in an easily understandable manner.

Wes writes first and foremost as a dedicated, sold-out Christ follower, and he’s on a mission to persuade as many people as possible to join him on the difficult yet worthwhile path of discipleship.

This leads me to the third reason I like this book – it’s written with passion.  Yes, every page is filled with solid Bible teaching, but the author communicates the truth of Scripture with an intensity that I found captivating.

On every page of this book, the author puts into practice Ephesians 4:15, “speaking the truth in love”. He tells it like it is, and he tells it that way because he knows that is what is best for us.

The fourth reason I like this book is because it communicates a message that is desperately needed in the church today. It seems to me that easy-believism has infiltrated evangelical churches across the land. I believe that many Bible-believing Christians have watered down the gospel and have focused too much on the benefits of Christianity and not enough on the cost of discipleship.

This book speaks to this issue of cheap grace directly. Like John the Baptist, Wes is a prophet crying in the wilderness, exhorting us to “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near”. John the Baptist was preparing people for the first coming of Christ. If you read this book and take its message to heart, God will speak to you though Wes Ireton and prepare you for the second coming of Christ.

The subtitle of this book is “Living Life Eternally Minded”.  And that’s a great sub-title.  In fact, I would say that this subtitle is just as accurate in describing the book’s content as the main title.

Do you want to live this life caught up in the wonder of God’s holiness and majesty, delighted to be part of His people so you can declare the praises of Him who rescued you from the kingdom of darkness and brought you into the kingdom of His Son? Then this book is for you.

Are you eager to deny yourself in order to find ultimate satisfaction in Jesus alone? Then this book is for you.

And if you want to spend the rest of your life devoted to the humbling task of being a disciple that makes disciples, then this book is for you.

To get your copy, head over to www.follow-ology.com

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How To Be Amazed By Psalm 119

Posted on August 20, 2014 by Wayne Davies

Psalm 119 is a fascinating portion of Scripture for at least two reasons. First and most obviously, it is fascinating simply because it is in the Bible and so comes from the very mind and mouth of God. That is reason enough.

It is also fascinating from a literary standpoint. It is the longest chapter in the Bible (176 verses) and is divided into 22 stanzas, each 8 verses long. And every verse of each stanza begins with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

Most modern translations reflect this structure of 22 verses of 8 verses. You’ll note the names of the 22 Hebrew letters immediately before verses 1, 9, 17, and so on.

So when we come to stanza 17, which begins with verse 129, it amazes me that even though we don’t see this in English, all 8 verses (129 – 136) begin with the 17th letter of the Hebrew alphabet, “pe”.

Could you write 8 sentences about the Bible that all begin with the 17th letter of the English alphabet? In case you’re wondering, that would be the letter “Q”. I’m having trouble just coming up with 8 words that begin with “Q”, let alone 8 sentences.

I started reading verses 129 – 136, wondering how I could take these verses and rewrite them in my own words, but starting each sentence with a word that begins with “Q”.  Take a look at these – the first sentence is from the real Bible (NIV); the second sentence (in italics) is my “Q” sentence. Sometimes I was able to create a paraphrase of the actual Bible verse; other times, I went in a different direction.

Your statutes are wonderful; therefore I obey them.  (v. 129)
Quite amazing is your word, O Lord; you give us so many good reasons to follow you.

The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple. (v.130)
Quality teaching comes from your mouth; may your Spirit enlighten me whenever I read your law.

Redeem me from human oppression, that I may obey your precepts. (v. 134)
Quicken my heart as I meditate on your truth; please empower me to obey your commands.

Make your face shine on your servant and teach me your decrees. (v. 135)
Quiet my mind as I ponder your laws; remove all distractions so I can sit at your feet and learn your ways.

I came up with four “Q” words that seemed to fit four of the verses in Psalm 119:129-136. And then I started realizing how difficult this is – coming up with 8 words for each letter of the alphabet, and then writing a sentence about the Bible that began with that word – this is no easy task!

Why not do this yourself? Go ahead and give it a try! And you are welcome to send me an email with your writings.

One final suggestion – perhaps it would be easier if your sentences begin with a letter other than “Q”, so feel free to tackle this exercise with one of the other stanzas in Psalm 119.

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Is There A Place For Hatred In The Christian Life? (Psalm 119:28)

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Wayne Davies

In Psalm 119:127-28 we learn much about the man who wrote the longest chapter in the Bible. He was a man of great passion – he loved the good and hated what is evil. “Because I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold, and because I consider all your precepts right, I hate every wrong path.”

He loved God’s Word more than all the money in the world. The psalmist likes to make a comparison between his attitude toward the Word and his attitude toward wealth. “The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold” (Psalm 119:72).

In verses 127 and 128, his love for God’s Word and God’s righteousness are the basis for his hatred of sin.

Love for the right will inevitably produce hatred for the wrong. They are two sides of the same coin. The New Testament teaches this concept clearly in Romans 12:9, where Paul writes, “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good”.

Perhaps you’ve not thought of the Christian life in these terms before, but we are instructed to both love and hate.  We are instructed to love God and people, as Jesus indicated when asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?” (Mark 12:28-31). His answer, in a word, was “love” – love for God and love for our neighbor.

And we are also instructed to hate – not people, of course, but sin. And first and foremost, we should be cultivating a hatred of our own sin. Isn’t this why Paul said in Romans 8:13, “if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live”?

How do we hate our sin? By putting it to death! So, we could say that the Christian life is characterized by such an intense hatred of one’s own sin that we will be engaged in a war against our sin (the misdeeds of the body), and this is a battle to the death. We take no prisoners. Our sin is the enemy, and we kill the enemy.

Yes, Christianity is one violent religion. We are commanded to hate and to kill – not people, but our own sin. This has been the passion of believers for centuries. It was the passion of the man who wrote Psalm 119. It was the passion of the apostle Paul. And it was something that even Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount. “If your right hand causes you to sin, cut if off and throw it away” (Matthew 5:30).

My Christian friend, what sin are you amputating today? By the Spirit and for the glory of King Jesus, may God empower us to demonstrate our love for Him by hating and killing our own sin.

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Is Fear of God Still Necessary? (Psalm 119:120)

Posted on August 17, 2014 by Wayne Davies

Psalm 119:120 says, “My flesh trembles in fear of you; I stand in awe of your laws.”

We don’t know who wrote Psalm 119. I sure wish we did. Certainly David is a likely candidate, for the writer of this psalm faced much unjust persecution, and other than Jesus, there is no other person in the Bible who faced as much unfair treatment as David, and that is precisely the way the author of this psalm was treated.

We also know much about the writer’s attitude toward God and His Word. He loved God and the Word of God with great passion and devotion. Furthermore, as we read in Psalm 119:120, he had much fear of both God and the Word of God.

Unfortunately, we don’t hear much about the fear of God these days. When was the last time you heard someone say “My flesh trembles in fear of God” or “I stand in awe of the Bible”?

Yet the Bible has much to say about the fear of God. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10). I take these verses to mean that if we don’t fear God, we are just plain stupid, spiritually speaking. Without the fear of God, we are metaphysically challenged, spiritual illiterates.

So this begs the question, “What does it mean to fear God?” One good definition of “fear” is reverence, respect, and awe.  The idea of awe is certainly a good place to start when defining fear. As indicated in Psalm 119:120, “in fear” and “in awe” are parallel expressions (in the New International Version).

But there’s more to fear than reverence, respect and awe. Please note that the psalmist says that he trembles in fear of God. We must be careful not to exclude from fear the idea of being afraid, for this is how the English Standard Version translates the second half of the Psalm 119:20 – “I am afraid of your judgments”.

You may be wondering, “But why should I be afraid of God? He loves me and has forgiven all my sins and has promised to save me from hell and bring me to heaven some day.”

And that is true. God loves us more than we can even imagine. But that doesn’t mean we should not still be afraid of Him. The psalmist was – we cannot dismiss the plain meaning of the text here – he trembled before God.

This isn’t the only way the psalmist related to God. He was quite aware of God’s love, grace, compassion and mercy. He writes about the goodness of God throughout Psalm 119 (see verses 41, 64, 68, 76, 77, 88, 124, 132, 149). But he also trembles.

What I’m saying here is that even for the forgiven Christian, there is a place for fear and trembling. It’s not all there is to the Christian life. There’s more – oh so much more!

But we must not forget that the loving God who saved us from hell is also the One who sits on a throne, ruling over all, sustaining all. We stand in awe of him because he is awesome. To simply ponder his power and majesty and glory should cause some measure of trembling before him.

This is how believers responded when confronted with the presence of God. From Isaiah and Ezekiel in the Old Testament to Peter and John in the New Testament, when God chose to reveal himself, people fell down and trembled.

Yes, this is a paradox. In the presence of God, we respond to Him with a holy combination of fear and joy – “Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling” (Psalm 2:11).

It is likely that you know what it means to rejoice. Do you also know what it means to tremble? I pray that you do. If not, could it be that you have an unbalanced view of God and need to focus more on his holiness, righteousness, justice and wrath?

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What Happens To You When You Read The Bible? (Psalm 119:111)

Posted on August 16, 2014 by Wayne Davies

I’d like you to think about what happens to you when you read the Bible. What words would you use to describe this experience, most of the time? Think about it for a few minutes and jot down your thoughts.  I’ll wait right here while you do that 🙂

Did you write down your answer? Great!

Now let’s see how the writer of Psalm 119 describes his time in the Word.

“Your statutes . . . are the joy of my heart” (Psalm 119:111). “I rejoice in your promise like one who finds great spoil” (Psalm 119:162). “I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches” (Psalm 119:14). The psalmist finds much joy in God’s word. He rejoices in the Word, and he rejoices in obeying the Word.

How about you? When you read and obey the Bible, do you experience joy in your heart? Does God give you joy because you spend time with him while meditating on his truth?

Finding joy in God is a prominent theme throughout Scripture, especially the Psalms. Have you ever done a word study on “joy”? After you finish this article, I urge you to get out your concordance or head over to BibleGateway.com and look up all the verses in that Psalms containing the words “joy”, “rejoice”, “rejoices”, and “rejoicing”.  It will be time well spent, I assure you!

In Psalm 119, there is another word the writer uses often to describe his relationship to Scripture, a word that is similar to “joy” and “rejoice”. It is “delight”.

“I delight in your law” (Psalm 119:70) is a statement he makes three times (see v. 16 and v. 47). And “Your law is my delight” (Psalm 119:77) is an expression found six times (see v. 24, 35, 92, 143, and 174). (I also encourage you to do a word study on “delight” and “delights” in the Psalms.)

When was the last time you said, in reference to anything, “That was a delight!” or “That was a joy!”  It might have been a delicious meal or a long walk or a sunny 72-degree day with low humidity. As I think about my life, I realize how often I am blessed with a joyful or delightful experience, yet I rarely use those particular words to tell others about it, including when I give thanks to God for it.

So I’m writing this to encourage us to expand our “praise vocabulary”. When God showers his grace upon us, which he does daily in 1,001 different ways, why not tell him and others, “Thank you, Jesus; that was so delightful and brought much joy to my heart!”

Reality check: when we spend time in the Word, if we rarely come away from the Book with much joy and delight, isn’t something amiss?

When you do that word study about “joy” and “delight” in the Psalms, note the frequency of phrases such as “rejoice in God” and “delight in God” (or phrases similar to that). For the Christian, we should find our ultimate joy and delight in God. Not in his gifts, but in him. The difference between the two is semantically subtle yet experientially huge.

And for the writer of Psalm 119, finding joy and delight in Scripture was synonymous with finding joy and delight in God. Throughout the psalm, he describes the Word with adjectives and phrases that are applicable to God – words like eternal and righteous and true and good.

The psalmist can say that the Word is his source of joy and delight (and life, strength, freedom, wisdom, light, peace, hope, and salvation) because God is the source of all these blessings, and the Word is the means by which God makes known the riches of his grace and the all-satisfying wonder of his presence.

For the Christian who knows the bliss of delighting in God, the relationship between the living Word and the written Word becomes intimately intertwined. And the result is a life of joy that exceeds all expectations and prepares us for eternity.

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