Lowly Day 14 The Voice Of The Lord: Digging Deeper
December 26, 2024
Discover the original intent of Scripture. Make good application to our everyday lives.
Become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
Psalm 19
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun. 5 It is like a bridegroom coming from his home; it rejoices like an athlete running a course. 6 It rises from one end of the heavens and circles to their other end; nothing is hidden from its heat.
7 The instruction of the Lord is perfect, renewing one’s life; the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise. 8 The precepts of the Lord are right, making the heart glad; the command of the Lord is radiant, making the eyes light up. 9 The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the Lord are reliable and altogether righteous. 10 They are more desirable than gold— than an abundance of pure gold; and sweeter than honey dripping from a honeycomb. 11 In addition, your servant is warned by them, and in keeping them there is an abundant reward.
12 Who perceives his unintentional sins? Cleanse me from my hidden faults. 13 Moreover, keep your servant from willful sins; do not let them rule me. Then I will be blameless and cleansed from blatant rebellion. 14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.
The Original Intent
1) How does God speak to us through the heavens? (verses 1-6)
King David’s magnification of God’s character in song reminds me of a more recent exclamation of God speaking through creation in the hymn, “How Great Thou Art”. (See our connected study on Mary’s Song!) Spend a few moments reading the lyrics and considering the greatness of the Creator God.
Carl Boburg heard God through all creation whether it was a quiet bubbling brook or a thundering storm. It all made him fall on his face to worship His God.
The key to hearing God in all creation is to stop and listen.
We get too busy with our lives and seldom stop and look at the beautiful creations of God. We forget to stop long enough to hear His voice. We must discipline ourselves to stop and listen.
You might reply, “But I have my devotion each day.” However, I preach to myself here, are we reading the required passage without stopping our hearts and minds to listen for God’s voice? Are we spending time just being quiet and listening? Or are we doing all the talking? Are we eagerly giving the Holy Spirit quiet space to get a word in edge-wise?
God seldom shouts out the voices all around us. It’s our choice whether to listen carefully or not. (Hebrews 2:1-4)
He patiently waits for us to stop, look, and listen.
Let’s take the challenge to give a few minutes every morning and evening soaking in God’s creation and His Word. Listen for what He wants to tell you. Try setting a time for just five minutes where you are silent.
See what happens. I believe you will hear the voice of the Lord and want to tarry much longer than five minutes.
The Everyday Application
1) How does God speak to us through the heavens? (verses 1-6)
King David’s magnification of God’s character in song reminds me of a more recent exclamation of God speaking through creation in the hymn, “How Great Thou Art”. (See our connected study on Mary’s Song!) Spend a few moments reading the lyrics and considering the greatness of the Creator God. Carl Boburg heard God through all creation whether it was a quiet bubbling brook or a thundering storm. It all made him fall on his face to worship His God.
The key to hearing God in all creation is to stop and listen.
We get too busy with our lives and seldom stop and look at the beautiful creations of God. We forget to stop long enough to hear His voice. We must discipline ourselves to stop and listen.
You might reply, “But I have my devotion each day.”
However, I preach to myself here, are we reading the required passage without stopping our hearts and minds to listen for God’s voice? Are we spending time just being quiet and listening? Or are we doing all the talking? Are we eagerly giving the Holy Spirit quiet space to get a word in edge-wise?
God seldom shouts out the voices all around us. It’s our choice whether to listen carefully or not. (Hebrews 2:1-4)
He patiently waits for us to stop, look, and listen.
Let’s take the challenge to give a few minutes every morning and evening soaking in God’s creation and His Word. Listen for what He wants to tell you. Try setting a time for just five minutes where you are silent. See what happens. I believe you will hear the voice of the Lord and want to tarry much longer than five minutes.
The Original Intent
2) How does Scripture reflect the character of God? (verses 7-9)
All creation might have been enough for us to see and know God more deeply and fully than we can now, had it not been for the fall of man. However, in our fallen state, we need more information to help us understand God beyond Creator and Sustainer. We need the Word of God to lead us in understanding the truth of His character and His mission.
The descriptive words in Psalm 19 point us straight to God and His Holiness. The glorious character of God is described six ways in its verses: Perfect, sure, trustworthy, right, pure, and true. (Matthew Henry, commentator)
- The Scriptures show us God is perfect. There is no corruption in Him, and when we apply ourselves to studying the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit will use God’s Word to shape us into the perfect image of Christ. (Romans 8:29) God’s Word can prick our hearts and bring us back to God from our sinfulness and misery. (2 Timothy 3:17)
- The testimony of the Lord is sure. It is reliable just as God is reliable. We can fully depend on the Word of God to lead us and direct our lives. (Psalm 33:4, Joshua 21:45, 1 Corinthians 1:9)
- The precepts of the Lord are right. They fully agree with the righteousness of God, and His precepts bring us great joy when emblazoned in our hearts and lived out in our daily lives. (Romans 7:12)
- The commandment of the Lord is pure. It stands without darkness for this light, which comes from God, opens our eyes to any sin and leads us to purity. (Psalm 73:1, Psalm 24:3-4, Matthew 5:8, Psalm 51:10)
- The judgments of the Lord are true; grounded in the most sacred and unquestionable truths. Unshakeable and incorruptible; His Word endures forever and is applicable to all times and seasons. (Psalm 119:160, John 17:17-19, Proverbs 30:5-6, 2 Samuel 7:28)
The Everyday Application
2) How does Scripture reflect the character of God? (verses 7-9)
Commentators say that Psalm 119 is an expansion of Psalm 19 perhaps written by the prophet, Ezra, or King David.
I was reluctant to take on Psalm 119, and all of its 176 verses. But here’s a few interesting facts about Psalm 119.
1) It’s exactly in the middle of the Bible.
2) It is the longest chapter in the Bible.
3) In Hebrew, it was written as an acrostic poem making it a great tool for memorization.
4) Much of it was written in the form of a prayer.
5) As a bonus, Gracefully Truthful committed an entire Journey Theme to its depths in Worship XI!
The weightiness of the chapter should give us pause to consider its importance. When I decided to study the chapter for myself, I found the Scriptures to be truly alive and active! (Hebrews 4:12)
My time studying Psalm 119 marked the beginning of a love for God’s Word I never thought possible. It came just prior to a very difficult time in my life and turned out to be my anchor in the time of storms.
God’s Word is like that for all who draw near in humble, eager exploration!
The Original Intent
3) What is the value of God’s Word? (verses 10-11)
King David maintained that God’s Word was more valuable than gold. (verse 10) Indeed, he emphasized this truth by stating again, “…than an abundance of pure gold and sweeter than honey.” (emphasis mine) In all of Scripture, we never find David searching for gold or riches in his life. However, most often, we find him searching for more of God.
God’s Word describes David as a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22); whereas, his son, Solomon, who also loved God, is referred to as the richest man on earth.
David even found God’s Word to be of greater value than food itself describing it as sweeter than honey and pleasant to eat. The prophet Ezekiel also valued God’s Word more than food itself. “Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart”. (Jeremiah 15:16)
Jesus stated that we cannot serve both money and God. (Matthew 6:23) He also said it is very hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven because he becomes distracted by his riches. (Matthew 19:23-24)
Treasuring God’s Word over riches, however, protects us from falling into sin.
Psalm 119:11-16 added this value, “I have treasured your word in my heart so that I may not sin against you.” The Apostle Paul confirmed it again in writing to Timothy, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable […]”. (2 Timothy 3:16)
These are just a few of our spiritual fathers that confirm to us how truly valuable the Scriptures are for us. They are, indeed, better for us than thousands of gold and silver pieces. (Psalm 119:72)
The Everyday Application
3) What is the value of God’s Word? (verses 10-11)
Oh, don’t we strive to ride the fence between affluence and godliness? It’s easy to forget that God’s instruction is better than gold and silver.
We teach our children they should choose a profession that makes lots of money. And we forget God’s will for them might include community service or the ministry because those professions don’t offer great riches. Many work toward large bank accounts rather than hearts full of God’s Word.
Consider the practice of storing God’s Word in our hearts through memorization. It seems for many, we have lost the discipline of memorizing Scripture in favor of internet searches.
The Word of God is a light for our path. My husband attached a motion-detecting light to my cane so that when I rise in the night, I can find my way. It remains dark until I get up in the night, but as soon as I touch it, it illuminates, much like the Holy Spirit. The Scripture lights our way back to God. (John 5:39) But how can He light our way when we haven’t stored His Word within us?
The Scriptures stand ready for us in our need. Consider John Piper’s seven ways the Scripture provides value to us:
1) It awakens and sustains our faith. (Romans 10:17)
2) Through hearing His Word, God gives us the Holy Spirit. (Colossians 3:16)
3) The Word of God creates and sustains life. (1 Peter 1:23-25)
4) It gives us hope. (Romans 15:4)
5) It leads us to freedom. (John 8:32, John 17:17)
6) It enables us to defeat the enemy. (1 John 2:14)
7) It is the source of full and everlasting life. (Psalm 1:2-3)
“The Word of God that we hold in our hands has infinite value.” (John Piper, Desiring God)
The Original Intent
4) How can we reflect God’s character? (verse 14)
King David finished this poem with a beautiful, humble prayer,
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation
of my heart be acceptable to you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
(verse 14)
David understood that surrendering his heart and mouth to God would make his life reflect the character of God. He knew that godliness wasn’t a matter of his actions, but also a matter of speech and thought.
He didn’t proclaim his innocence before God, for that was impossible. He gave his thoughts and words over to Him as a sacrifice. This is much like the apostle Paul urged the Romans to “present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship.” (Romans 12:1)
Our lives are transformed by the renewing of our minds that only the Holy Spirit through the Word of God can do. Then, and only then, can we stand before God acceptable in His sight.
The Everyday Application
4) How can we reflect God’s character? (verse 14)
David Guzik states, “The thinking of our age says that our body must tell the will what to do; but the Bible says that our will must bring the body as a living sacrifice to God. The body is a wonderful servant, but a terrible master. Keeping it at God’s altar as a living sacrifice keeps the body where it should be.” (David Guzik, Enduring Word, Blue Letter Bible)
Paul explained to the Romans (Romans 12:1-4) how to present our lives as an acceptable offering to God in four steps:
- Remember the rich mercies of God to you. Oh, the unfathomable mercies of God! Thinking about His mercy flourishes a desire in our hearts to be pleasing to Him.
- Decide to yield yourself to God. It’s not so hard to accept the wonderful gift of God’s mercy, but there is a second step involved. Place Jesus on the throne of your life. Let Him be in the driver’s seat, making all the decisions and directing your life as He wills.
- Resist conforming to the ways of the world. Satan loves to tempt us with all sorts of worldly things. Resist Him.
- Focus on God’s Word and fellowship with Him. This must take top priority in our lives over work, family, bank accounts, sports, education. These are all good things, but they must take second place in our lives.
When you are doing these things in submission to the Spirit and daily counsel in the Scripture, the Holy Spirit will transform your life. Before you know it, you will be reflecting God’s character without even realizing it!
Is there a better Christmas gift or New Year’s resolution than becoming more like our blessed Christ?! Give yourself over in full to Him more every day!
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