Psalm 119: Focus On God's Word Pt. 93 Constancy While Sticking To The Word.

Cleaving and quickening.

Psalm 119:25  DALETH. My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word. 

There will be times in our Christian walk when the changing circumstances of this life overwhelm us, and like the Psalmist, we find our soul cleaving to the dust. 

Friends may betray us, family may shun us, our physical or mental health may suffer illness, we may suffer from any number of crisis points. 

Yet, when we are flat on our back, we can still look up to our Lord Jesus Christ. He will hear us when we cry out to Him and He will send aid. He will revive our spirit and quicken our hearts through His Word. 

Declaring and teaching.

Psalm 119:26  I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me: teach me thy statutes.

We learned that "declaring my ways" to Jehovah is connected with confessing and forsaking any sin in our lives. It is seeking to live a holy, God honoring life of transparency before Him. 

It means asking Jehovah to search our hearts and know the depths of our being, and to reveal any wicked way in us (Psalm 139:23-24). 

We can come boldly to His throne of grace to find help because Jesus Christ opened the way for us to do so (Hebrews 4:15-16). We can be confident that the Father will hear our burdens, needs and worries. 

We must ask God to teach us about His statutes so that we understand what He expects from us, and that we may strive through the power of His Spirit, to obey them.

Understanding and witnessing. 

Psalm 119:27  Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: so shall I talk of thy wondrous works. 

The Psalmist also taught us to seek God's help in order to understand the way of His precepts. This is asking the Lord to show us a plain path that we can follow as His obedient children of faith. 

This in turn, will result in believers telling other people about the wonderful working of God in their lives. 

Melting and strengthening. 

Psalm 119:28  My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word. 

There will be times when we experience deep anguish in our heart that saps our physical strength and causes our ability to focus on the task at hand to evaporate. 

God has promised to send strength to us through His majestic, inspired scriptures.

Removing and granting.  

Psalm 119:29  Remove from me the way of lying: and grant me thy law graciously. 

Here, the Psalmist is teaching us to fight against one of the most common sins that any believer may struggle with: the sin of lying. He pleads for Jehovah to remove the way of lying from his path, because the way of lying is the unholy fruit from the father of lies, the Devil. 

Instead, he shows us that we must ask our Father to give us His holy law. This is a grace act of God to show us His rule for our lives, so that we might take joy in doing what we know pleases Him, and to be on guard against all that displeases Him.

Choosing and laying. 

Psalm 119:30  I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid before me. 

We were reminded again that almost everything connected with life as a born again Christian, connects with the choices that we make. 

In contrast to his earlier petition for God to completely remove the way of lying from his path, the Psalmist now tells us to choose. What should we choose? The way of truth. 

There are many paths we can choose from as we live each day, but there is only one way of truth and that is found in God's Word, and in the Person of Jesus Christ. 

The judgments of God are part of that way of truth and laying them before us is the idea of having a copy of the Bible in front of our eyes whenever we can, so that we can read and re-read the scriptures, so that we can think about them and allow His living truth to impact our soul. 

Stuck like glue to God's Word. 

Psalm 119:31  I have stuck unto thy testimonies: O LORD, put me not to shame. 

The Psalmist is showing us how to make the right choice by choosing the way of truth, for this is the only foundation we can build upon. This is the foundation of the solid rock that Jesus taught us to build on (Matthew 7:24-25).

If we have chosen the way of truth and rejected the way of lying, then we are equipped to build righteousness and holiness into our character. 

This connects with the transforming work of the Holy Spirit with the scriptures in our hearts. It also connects to believers growing in faith and knowledge so that we progress from the milk of God's truth, to the meat or substance of it. 

The word "constancy" means our heart is fixed and our minds are resolved to persevere with steady, unshakable determination, as we continue walking in the way of truth.  Our "constancy" is fixed upon studying the scriptures and living in accord with what God says to us. 

Purity of mind and retaining truth. 

1 Timothy 3:9  Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. 

If we want to have the same "constancy" in our lives that the Psalmist did, then we must pursue holiness for this is a powerful means to achieve constancy. We are called to be a holy people, a special and unique treasure who belong to God (Leviticus 20:7; 1 Peter 1:15-16). 

As our best foods and spices are kept in clean, sealed containers to protect them from any contaminants, so we must hold the mystery of our faith in a pure conscience. This is why John tells us to be alert so that we do not loose any of the precious spiritual work that takes place in our heart (1 John 1:8).

Why should the Psalmist declare that he has stuck to the testimonies of God with tenacious adherence? Because when a righteous man turns away from pursuing holiness and commits sin, his righteousness will not be remembered, but his sin will be (Ezekiel 18:24).

The Bible is full of examples. King David did well in all things except regarding his sins with Bathsheba and Uriah. King Solomon started off very well until he took many strange wives who turned his heart from Jehovah. Then, the united kingdom of Israel began a period of decline and depravity. 

The Psalmist's faithfulness before God. 

Psalm 119:31  I have stuck unto thy testimonies: O LORD, put me not to shame. 

This text has two parts in it. First is a profession of faithfulness by the Psalmist, followed by a prayer that God would reward his faith rather than causing him to experience shame in front of his enemies. 

See that those who will make spiritual progress must first make cleaving to the scriptures a most serious and deliberate choice. The Psalmist first said "I have chosen the way of truth."  

The way of  godliness is the way of truth. The principles of godliness are principles of eternal truth, and it is the only true way to happiness. 

We must choose to walk in this way of godliness because this is the very best life we can live on earth.   It is the safe and good way. Let us choose the way of truth for our way which we will walk in, though it be narrow.

The word "stuck" means to cling tightly to, stay close by, to stick with it or to be totally joined together. It would be appropriate to say "stuck together" as if permanently bonded by industrial strength adhesive. 

Seek constancy in our spiritual progress. 

1 Peter 2:2,3  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 3)  If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 

Why use such a word in regard to how precious the scriptures should be to each of us? Peter illustrates this truth for us.

All newborn babes need the rich and good nourishment from their mother's milk. In like manner a new Christian needs the milk of God's word, the beginning things that lead to spiritual growth. 

The more that we experience the sweetness of our Lord Jesus Christ as revealed in the scriptures, then we will crave more of Christ and be "stuck" to the testimonies of Christ in our Bible. 

The more we know Him, the sweeter Jesus is to our soul. Heaven seems nearer to our heart and we taste the graciousness of God. 

Constancy in our walk brings heaven closer. 

Romans 13:11  And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

Paul gave us a sense of heavenly sweetness, as each day passes drawing us one day closer to being in the presence of Jesus Christ. Our salvation is nearer and nearer, as we stick to the Word of truth. 

Those who are not "stuck to thy testimonies" may eventually cast of their first faith (1 Timothy 5:12) or be guilty of leaving their first love (Revelation 2:4). 

How do we cast off our first faith or leave Christ, our first love? By becoming lazy in our pursuit of the way of truth, the way of holiness and the ways of God. 

For example, King Jehoshaphat started off well in following hard after Jehovah and walking in His ways. God blessed him in many different ways. 

However, he chose to enter into an alliance with wicked King Ahab and God called him to account for this. Jehoshaphat then redoubled his efforts to follow God and instituted religious reforms in Judah. 

God blessed the king again, but the end of his reign is marked by another alliance with a wicked king and God chastened Jehoshaphat (See 2 Chronicles 17-21).

Thoughts to Ponder...

The principles of "constancy" is what the Psalmist is leading us to embrace. Apostasy remains a real possibility for those who do not seek "constancy" in their daily walk with the Lord. 

Believers who make sticking to the scriptures their choice and rule, are most likely to adhere to it faithfully. 

May we be those who can say “I have stuck to thy testimonies with unchanged affection and an unshaken resolution. I stuck to them at all times, through all trials. I have chosen the way of truth and rejected the way of lying.”

Hebrews 6:4-6  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 5)  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6)  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 

This text contains a warning to those who make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, and who for a time, taste the heavenly gift and were even partakers of the Holy Ghost. They tasted the good word of God. 

But, if they fall away, or stop pursuing constancy in their spiritual lives, then it is worse for them in the end. Spiritual laziness and slothfulness will lead to indifference toward the things of God. No repentance will be available to apostates who deny the faith and reject the truth.