5 Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.
6 Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
your judgments are like the great deep;
man and beast you save, O Lord.
7 How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
9 For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light do we see light.
10 Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
and your righteousness to the upright of heart!
11 Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,
nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12 There the evildoers lie fallen;
they are thrust down, unable to rise.

1) WHAT is the “fountain of life”?
Psalm 36 opens with David lamenting about how the wicked take pleasure in their desire to bring harm to others.  Although we cannot know for certain of whom David is writing here, we know that he was pursued consistently by two aggressors – Saul and Absalom.  In both cases, David finds himself running and hiding from men who felt threatened by him (1 Samuel 18-31 and 2 Samuel 15-18).  With his physical life often in danger, David expresses in this song a longing for the greater, spiritual life that is found in God alone – true life that is marked with love, abundance, and delight (v. 7-9).  He desires the salvation that comes through a relationship with his Heavenly Father (v. 10).

2) WHY does “life” bring about worship?
Throughout the psalms that David authors, we see a man who acknowledges the pain and difficulty we must face in everyday life.  He is transparent and real about suffering that arises from our own sin and the sin of others.  Though those things bring death, David consistently turns his thoughts and words to life.  Because David recognizes and acknowledges God for who He is, and what He has done, worship becomes the natural outpouring of his heart.  Rather than focusing on the circumstances he faces (the WHAT), David fixes his gaze on the One who is in control of them all (the WHO).

3) HOW do we worship as a result of finding life?
David was known as “…a man after [God’s] own heart,” (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22) and thus provides us with a great model.  David was a gifted poet and songwriter – from his earliest days as a shepherd to his sunset years as king.  He used those gifts to write about God and his character as an expression of his worship.  He poured out his heart with sincerity and candor.  In this passage, he even provides a model for our own prayers – acknowledging God for who He is (v. 5-6), thanking Him for what He does for us (v. 7-9), and voicing our requests and needs to Him (v. 10-12).

1) WHAT is the “fountain of life”?
We have a real enemy who wants nothing more than, “…to steal and kill and destroy…” (John 10:10).  Satan wants to steal our joy that overflows from a relationship with God, to kill our love for those around us, to destroy our hope for a better future, and much more.  He works to keep us caught up in this physical life to the point that we give little to no attention to our greater spiritual existence.  Jesus, however, answers our enemy with a truth that changes everything when he says, “…I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).   Life originates with God and He gave the gift of life to Jesus to share with each of us (John 5:26).  The “fountain of life” isn’t actually a WHAT, but more importantly, a WHO.

2) WHY does “life” bring about worship?
Jesus is life.  It’s that simple.  Anything else that claims to give life is a lie.  When we acknowledge that truth, we will naturally turn to worship.  Because we know we cannot thrive without Him, we worship Him for His abundance.  Because we know we cannot provide for ourselves, we thank Him for taking care of our every need.  Because we know we cannot defend ourselves, we acknowledge His justice.  Because we know we cannot save ourselves, we confess Him as our Savior.  Because we know we need His healing, we ask Him to intervene.  Because we know we can never be good enough, we thank Him for the gift of standing in our place.  Because we know our every imperfection, we acknowledge Him as the only Holy One.  Because there is too much for us to handle on our own, we ask Jesus to do it for us.  What is the WHY of your worship today?  Spend some time thinking about how you would complete this thought:  ”Because I know…., I worship him for…” 

3) HOW do we worship as a result of finding life?
The fact that finding true life in Jesus leads us to worship is universal, but how we worship can be as varied as we are.  We all have our own passions, our own needs, and our own personal relationship with him that looks like no one else’s; therefore, the love that pours out in worship to Him looks different.  But just as David modeled for us, we should use our passions and gifts to do nothing less.  We are called to worship “with reverence and awe” (Hebrews 12:28) and “in spirit and truth” (John 4:23-24).  As long as our worship is respectful, led by the Holy Spirit, and in line with biblical truth, we have much freedom.  Worship should happen in all aspects and moments of our lives, as it is a whole-life endeavor.  How are you currently worshipping God through the outpouring of your heart and life?  Where do you need to incorporate more intentional worship into your daily life?

Don’t miss today’s other Journey Study, Finding Life!
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We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources.  Just type in the verse you’re looking at and Boom! It’s right in front of you in English and Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament), which are the original languages the Bible was written in.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Find super awesome stuff like “origin”, “definition”, and even all the different ways that single word has been translated into English! If you want to be geeky, you can even click the word and hear its original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want to get more background on a word or phrasing or passage? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus.
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