“Deal with Your servant according to Your love and teach me Your decrees.” -Psalm 119:124

This is the second time the psalmist refers to himself as “Your servant”. He is petitioning for the Lord to take up arms on his behalf since he belongs to His service. A master looks out for the well-being of his servants. He makes sure interlopers do not come onto his property to harm or kidnap what does not belong to them. Like a shepherd who fiercely protects his flock from ravenous wolves, so the Father will mercifully take care of His children. We are not only servants, but adopted family in the Kingdom of God. How much more will a father love his son or daughter over a hired hand? How much more will he protect them? God will surely act according to His love for us. If we believe the Lord is perfectly just, perfectly good and perfectly loving, then we can trust Him with our days and obey His commands, as this is our duty and the will of God.

He is also faithful to teach His children. This too is a mercy. Only God bestows instruction, which keeps us from boasting about any spiritual wisdom we have attained. It is a gift from the Lord. The apostle Paul writes, “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Corinthians 4:7). What a helpful reminder for saints to remain humble in the spiritual graces we have been given. It is because of the Lord’s mercy that we receive anything from Him, not because of our own merit. 

 The wise man then seeks more wisdom, realizing there is so much he doesn’t know. It is interesting to observe how wisdom and humility intersect to produce a teachable heart. Wisdom is willing to be taught, hungry for truth, sincerely seeking God’s best, instead of looking out for his own interest. The psalmist goes to the Source of all knowledge, asking for God’s grace to teach him more. He is in the best posture to receive spiritual nourishment: a teachable, humble spirit, dependent on God. This the Lord does not despise.

It is a general principle that God grows His children in grace of the knowledge of Him through trials. Here we run to God, cling to Christ, finding comfort and guidance from the Holy Spirit. Our faith is refined in the crosses we bear because as we look to Jesus, we realize we aren’t carrying these burdens alone. Jesus says, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28). Our spiritual vision is sharpened when we look to Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith. We can freely approach the Throne of Grace, asking Him to watch over us according to His love and teach us according to His wisdom. Go to Him today and ask, for He will freely give.

Grace upon grace,

April

‘Have Faith in God’ hymn

“Ensure Your servant’s well-being; let not the arrogant oppress me.” -Psalm 119:122

This verse is a prayer of petition, carried over in thought from the previous verse. It is the first of three times in this octave the psalmist will refer to himself as “Your servant”. It is the second time he has mentioned his oppressors (v. 121). The psalmist feels the pressure closing in on all sides, so he looks for deliverance in the Lord. His plea is for God to not forget him during this trial. How does the Caretaker of our souls tend to our well-being? Physically, He provides for us and can keep us from harm. Spiritually, He waters the garden of every redeemed heart by pulling up weeds of sin, fear and doubt. God then plants His love, peace and trust in us. It isn’t a passive supernatural act. Since we are co-heirs with Christ we are also co-laborers with Him, beginning with spiritual discipline in ourselves. We are called to lives of holiness as part of our sanctification. Elisabeth Elliot observed,

“The Holy Spirit does not do all the controlling for us. He requires us to act. He helps us, but He expects us to co-operate […] If we begin each day by an acknowledgement of our dependence on Him, and our intention to obey Him, He will certainly help us. The Holy Spirit, who is the source of our life, then directs the course. Every discipline imposed in that course is for one purpose: to bring us to our full glory, and to make us part of the permanent that cannot die.”

We are partakers of God’s grace toward us through the spiritual disciplines of reading and meditating on His Word, prayer, fellowship with believers, and placing ourselves under the authority of doctrinally sound preaching and teaching. God is then faithful to reap a harvest of righteousness in us, as we are being sanctified. This is God’s way to ensure our well-being, and deliver us from evil. The promises of God are deeply rooted, never to be turned over by the wicked affairs of men. His plans “stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations” (Psalm 33:11), which include yesterday, today and tomorrow until Jesus comes back. In Christ we stand on solid ground. Our arrogant oppressors have no firm footing to speak of.

Grace upon grace,

April

Growing deeper: Psalm 2; Matthew 10:28; 2 Corinthians 4:8-18

‘My Hope is Built on Nothing Less’ hymn

“I have done what is righteous and just; do not leave me to my oppressors. Ensure Your servant’s well-being; let not the arrogant oppress me. My eyes fail, looking for Your salvation, looking for Your righteous promise. Deal with Your servant according to Your love and teach me Your decrees. I am Your servant; give me discernment that I may understand Your statutes. It is time for You to act, O LORD; Your law is being broken. 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.” -Psalm 119:121-128 Ayin

Look at how many times the psalmist refers to himself as God’s servant. In between his pleas, the writer reminds himself of where his allegiance lies. He cannot be anything but for the Truth. This makes him a prime target for the enemy. Will the Lord protect him? Did He come to the writer’s rescue? The short answer is ‘Yes’. Our Father snatches His children from the enemy’s grasp through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus. The believer’s soul is never in danger because the ransom has been paid, those in Christ are free.

Yet the dogs of Satan and Lucifer himself would love nothing more than to silence God’s children. If our souls cannot be claimed for the prince of the air, then the devil seeks to devour Christian pilgrims through paralysis of fear, hopeless doubt, loneliness, vainglory, material distractions and persecution, to name a few. In our flesh we even give Satan a helping hand. It is possible to destroy ourselves in sin without external afflictions. But God is faithful. Not only does He keep His Beloved and fight for us, the Lord our Shepherd is sure to teach His sheep. The Spirit teaches God’s thoughts, ways and commands through the written Word. This is how He rescues us from our enemies, our sin and godless world views, by faithfully instructing His children. Jehovah El Emeth, the LORD God of truth, does not forsake His own. This is our encouragement. We are not left floundering on our own, fending for ourselves. God rescues and then equips those He dearly loves. The psalmist’s prayer is answered ultimately in the Greatest Rescue Plan. God our Father bought each redeemed sinner with the blood of His own Son, Jesus Christ. Those He saves are His delight.

Grace upon grace,

April

Growing deeper: John 10:1-18; Ephesians 2:1-10; 6:10-18

‘Before the Throne of God Above’ hymn

“All the wicked of the earth You discard like dross; therefore I love Your statutes.” -Psalm 119:119

This verse follows in thought from the previous concerning the wicked. Just as God’s love is great toward His own, it remains true of His great wrath toward the unrepentant. The psalmist is sure of the coming judgment on the wicked, which causes him to cherish God’s promises and commands even more. Evil will not last forever since God has won the war. This is the good news which lightens the heart of every Christian. God will destroy the wicked. They will depart from His sight and be no more in His Presence or ours if we are in Christ Jesus. Trouble lasts for a night but joy comes with the morning. Amid the burning heat of your trials, you are being refined. Yet the imitators, deceivers and revilers are melted away like the dross they are.

John Gill, a pastor who preached in the same church as Charles Spurgeon one hundred years earlier, commented on this passage. He regarded those who made a show of being like silver and gold as nothing more than reprobate silver, rejected by God as a cheap imitation. For even Satan masquerades as an angel of light and his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). The Lord’s commands therefore serve as a means of preserving the believer. When we follow God’s ways in sincere and pure devotion we are kept safe, secure from destroying ourselves in sin, safeguarded from false teaching, discerning toward hypocrites and the vain things of this world.

Grace upon grace,

April

“You reject all who stray from Your decrees, for their deceitfulness is in vain.” -Psalm 119:118

Nominal Christians will not have a share in the Kingdom of God. This group of cultural Christians is to be most pitied. Growing up in the Bible Belt, it is common to see compartmentalized Christianity. It is a place where Sundays are for church and every other day of the week is for living how we see fit. To have one foot in worship and one foot in sin is no worship at all.

Elisabeth Elliot once remarked how her parents were “Seven days a week Christians”, meaning the Lord was their life. His will commanded their everyday. To hear and taste the sweetness of God, to move in the circles of saints and remain unregenerate is tragic. Their lives are in vain. Like Judas, there are tares among the wheat and they will be rejected by God. He cannot stand outward pietism, merely going through the motions to look good for the praise of men. Vain glory is not God glorifying.

This verse serves as a profitable warning for true saints as well, to not remain stagnant, but vigilant, in pursuing God, otherwise we too might become self-deceived. God’s grace is a precious gift not meant to be neglected, abused or taken for granted. Embrace the grace which you receive by faith, and “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose” (Philippians 2:12b-13).

Let each saint not give way to ideas of a works based salvation, but faithfully bear fruit as a result of the seed of faith planted and watered in your soul. Practically speaking, persevering as a believer looks like habitual time reading and meditating on God’s Word. It is finding a church home to regularly attend where Scripture is not diminished but upheld as the authoritative words of God. Prayer is like talking with a friend throughout the day. Christians reverence God and take His commands seriously. Christianity isn’t a game, something to entertain us or to make us feel good about ourselves one day a week. It is an all or nothing devotion to the Prince of Peace. Abide in Jesus and your life will not be in vain.

Grace upon grace,

April

Growing deeper: Hebrews 6

“Uphold me, and I will be delivered; I will always have regard for Your decrees.” -Psalm 119:117

Like the previous verse, this is another plea for help. The psalmist cries out for more of the Lord’s grace to carry him through all of life’s ups and downs. If his faith must be tried, the writer asks God to refine it in the flames. God keeps His children close to Him even when we are not aware of it. This is the beauty of how our Father operates. It isn’t based on our performance or small faith whether the Lord decides to extend compassion or not. His ocean of mercy is deep and wide. The psalmist prays this knowing God will deliver him. Because his hope is rooted in God, the outcome for spiritual protection is certain. The true believer perseveres (sometimes it feels like plodding) because God will always uphold him through whatever circumstances he will face.

It reminds me of the time Paul cried out in a similar way when he suffered multiple hardships. In his second letter to the church in Corinth, Paul writes of his trials thus far and how God had delivered him over and over. He writes,

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, Who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He will deliver us. On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us.” (2 Corinthians 1:8-10)

I like how Paul’s faith declares God’s continued deliverance. The Christian life is not a free pass in exemption from suffering and temptations. When one becomes a believer, we sign up for more affliction, pain, misunderstanding and rejection (John 15:18-25). We taste of Christ’s sufferings temporarily on earth as we will taste of His glory one day in Heaven forever. The bitter becomes sweet in light of God’s promises.

Like Paul and the psalmist, we can confidently petition for the Lord to be near us in our own distresses.  Nothing is hidden from His sight, but especially a saint in distress. He hems us in, carrying His children in grace. God the Father is sure to uphold His children to the very end, teaching us to trust Him through His written Word.

Grace upon grace,

April

Growing deeper: Psalm 23; Psalm 139:1-10; Isaiah 40:27-31; 43:1-7; Lamentations 3:19-26

“Sustain me according to Your promise, and I will live; do not let my hopes be dashed.” -Psalm 119:116

The psalmist knows he cannot fight his enemies alone, nor can he pursue God without the Lord sustaining him. Here are two very different outcomes- with God at the helm, his faith is preserved. Without God’s grace and mercy, all hopes are dashed to the rocks, like a ship without a captain to guide through safe passages amid a sea of turmoil. The writer is asking for God’s grace to persevere when life gets hard. This is why he cries out for the Lord to remember His promises toward him. This kind of prayer also serves to help the one in need recall God’s promises to them. Because the Lord never forgets His promises, the outcome of this plea is for the Christian to anchor their trials in what we know to be true of God. 

Jesus promised a life abundant for believers. What is life abundant for the Christian? We still have sorrows and trials on earth, some of them quite significant. What distinguishes a full life for the believer? What truly sustains us when we grow weary in life? First it is helpful to remember Who dwells in us and with us. Christ Immanuel makes His home in the heart of every Christian. God promises to never forsake His own. His Spirit guides, teaches, convicts, and encourages us. We are the rich ones no matter what our bank account says. The peace of sins forgiven once and for all, the joy of being deeply loved, and the compassion demonstrated by God toward helpless sinners is experiencing life abundant. The best part is the gifts in Christ will last forever. If you are in Christ then God is pleased with you because He has said how He is well pleased with His own Son (Matthew 3:16-17). You are beloved because Jesus is beloved by the Father. Jesus exchanged our filthy garments for His robe of righteousness. Now when God looks at you, He sees His own Son. What grace!

The next time your past sins accuse you as one condemned, when you feel unloved, without purpose, or your burdens seem too heavy, pray this verse back to the Lord. Ask Him to help you remember His promises toward you. God never forgets, but how much more does it please Him when we speak back His own will and thoughts toward us. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus encourages His followers to pray to the Father. For He truly hears, cares, and receives our pleas, confessions, adorations, and thanksgivings as a sweet aroma before His Throne. Pray for God to sustain you and He is sure to do it. Your spirit was never more protected and cared for in the Strong Arms of the Everlasting Father.

Grace upon grace,

April

Growing deeper: Matthew 6:9-13; 7:7-11; John 17; Romans 8:1-4; 2 Corinthians 3:17-18; Revelation 5:6-8

“Away from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commands of my God!” -Psalm 119:115

This verse has two contrasting actions- ‘away’ and ‘keep’. The objects in which the psalmist is referring to are worth observing. The writer desires to separate himself from sin and wickedness. This is why he wants distance from corrupted characters who could potentially influence him, or continue his own suffering through persecution. What a helpful verse to remind fellow Christians who to surround ourselves with. What kind of company we keep is important to the Lord, so it should be an area of interest to us as well. 

Paul wrote in his letter to the Corinthians, “Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). He was addressing an issue in which some were disputing the resurrection of the dead, which would imply that Jesus did not resurrect. On this vital truth the house of faith stands or falls. So Paul went on to say the people we spend a lot of time with will influence our thinking, for good or bad. This doesn’t mean we refrain from relationships with unbelievers. The Gospels are full of stories in which Jesus ate with sinners, healed the unclean and showed compassion to the “worst of the worst”. It is a beautiful reminder of what we all once were in our sin (Ephesians 2:1-10). Yet the intimate fellowship Jesus chose consisted of 3 men. Though they too were sinners, Peter, James and John served the Lord. They were Christians and simply loved Jesus. 

The writer of Psalm 119 desires holiness, to be set apart for God’s use. Therefore he seeks to remember and obey God’s Word alone. The Lord establishes him in grace by awakening the desire to be holy and then fight for it, as the world, his flesh, and the devil seek to destroy this pilgrim’s light. What a gracious reminder that as we follow our Father, the company we keep on earth can influence our worldview as well. Like Eve in the Garden, who chose to entertain the serpent’s seed of doubt, “Did God really say…?” and then acted on the lies told to her.  Let us learn from her example and instead persevere like the psalmist, boldly declaring to be set apart from evil which corrupts our fellowship with the Lord. Choose good friends wisely. Let them be an encouragement to you and not a detour in your faith. 

Grace upon grace,

April

Growing deeper: Psalm 1