Psalm 119: Focus On God's Word Pt. 75 Learning God's House Rules

Psalm 119:25,26  DALETH. My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word. 26)  I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me: teach me thy statutes. 

Psalm 119:25 teaches us about persevering through afflictions and turning our hearts to the LORD God, who will hear our cries and do good work in our hearts. 

Psalm 119:26 has taught us about what it means to live transparently before God so that we may declare our ways to Him. 

Sometimes, we may confess our sins in order to receive forgiveness. Other times we may share what is happening to us and seek His aid. Or, we may tell God our plans and seek His guidance for our path. 

Then, we learned the glorious truth that God hears the prayers of all believers who are "in Christ." This is a wonderful truth for each believer to fully dwell on. 

God who is Creator and Sustainer of all life and who holds the entire universe together with the word of His power, hears the prayers of frail people like us.

Now, we come to the last part of this verse to learn what the Psalmist is telling us when he writes "teach me thy statutes." 

First, the Psalmist speaks of his past actions of faithfulness toward God, that result in his declaring all his ways to God.

Second, he speaks of his present state of confidence in God, knowing that He will hear his prayers.

Third, his only request is to be taught the statutes of God. His petition indicates the unchangeable nature of God, who is never wearied by giving good things to His children, nor does His strength to act on our behalf ever decay. 

God is a giving God. He will give eternal life to those who turn to Jesus Christ with repentant faith, seeking forgiveness for their sins. He will give us a brand new life in Christ. 

He will give us deliverance by plucking us out of the Devil's dark domain and will securely put us into the kingdom of God, so that we can walk in newness of life (Colossians 1:12-14). 

He will give us a fresh start each time that we stumble in our walk and fail Him. Confession of sin and forsaking it leads to forgiveness and restoration. 

Hear and heed what God says to us. 

Psalm 85:8  I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly. 

Requesting God to teach us His statutes means that like the Psalmist, we must have hearts ready to hear from Him. We must have minds ready to learn from Him. We must have the Holy Spirit to open our eyes as He teaches us the Divine statutes. 

Notice the order in Psalm 85. We listen to God. He speaks peace to each believer in Christ. But He teaches us so that we do not turn again to sin. 

The Lord's prayer says first "Forgive us our sin" which is followed by "Lead us not into temptation." A main thrust of the Psalmist is showing us that we must be hearers and doers of the word. We must hear and heed what God says to us. 

Seeking to have God teach him His statutes demonstrates the sincere heart of the Psalmist. He did not want to sin and he already told us that our way can be cleansed by taking heed to His word.

Thus, he desires the LORD to teach him and instruct him in the statutes. The word "teach" means to be given training in God's truth, to have your will exercised by submitting to His truth. 

"Statutes" are the boundaries God sets for our moral conduct. Some have called the statutes "God's house rules." 

When our children go to visit a friend in their home, their friend's parents may have house rules, things they are not allowed to do, like jumping on furniture. Thus our child must learn and obey the house rules in order to visit their friend.

Proverbs 8:29 When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:

Jehovah set a boundary for all of the seas. He enforces it with the Word of His power because it pleases Him and it is good for us that the oceans do not overflow the land. As He set a boundary for the sea and decreed that it shall not pass over it, so His statutes define moral boundaries that we must learn and obey. 

Ask God to show His ways and teach us His paths.

Psalm 25:4,5  Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. 5) Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day. 

King David wrote many of the Psalms and in Psalm 25, he prays for Jehovah to show him His ways, so that he might strive to live a life that honored God. 

He wanted Jehovah to lead him as he studied the holy scriptures. He wanted to be taught so that he knew how to live and please his God. 

King David wanted to know God’s way, to be taught His path, and to be led into His truth. He could not discern His way unless God showed it to him. David could not learn the righteous path unless God teach it to him.

David could not walk in God’s truth unless God lead him; therefore he adds, “Lead me in thy truth, and teach me;” 

This is the same truth that the Psalmist is teaching us in our text. 

Ask the Lord for clear direction and a plain path. 

Psalm 27:11  Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies. 

Again, David cried out for Jehovah to teach him and that He would guide him in a righteous path that he could plainly see. His enemies were waiting to cause David's downfall, but His hope was in the Lord. 

We must ask the Lord to align our hearts with His Word. 

Psalm 86:11,12  Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name. 12)  I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore. 

Once more, King David cried out to Jehovah. He needed God to teach him His holy way and then he resolved to walk in His truth. His heart struggled with seeking to follow God at the same time his enemies were relentlessly pursuing him.

Avoid doublemindedness.

James 1:8  A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

This is a most important prayer. A divided heart is a great curse. James warned us that a double minded man is unstable in all his ways.  Why? Because his mind is vacillating and filled with uncertainty, clouded with doubt. 

Scattered affections are a miserable plague for believers. Jesus told us we cannot love God and the world at the same time. When the heart is not at unity with itself, the work God appoints for us cannot go on. Indecision of mind and division of affections will mar any work. 

The heart must be one, that the work may be one. If this unity of our will with God’s is lacking then all is wrong. This is a prayer for God’s blessing which should flow the mouth of every Christian.

Thus, to have his heart united means to have it brought into alignment with God's Word. 

Thoughts to Ponder...

May we be sincere seekers of God's help.

May we ask Him to teach us His house rules so that we can live our lives for His honor and glory.

May we ask the LORD to purge out any doublemindedness from us, so that He can pull our heart into alignment with His will. 

May we learn to ask the LORD for clear direction and a discernible path to follow, that helps us live for His glory. 

These are prayer requests we all should be bringing to the Lord. He will honor these kinds of prayer petitions.

I pray that Christ will work in us, as we study about His glorious Word, and that He will conform us to His image, so that we might walk in newness of life.

Bob