Psalm 119: Focus On God's Word Pt. 106 Love And Serve God First!

Psalm 119:33  HE. Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end. 

Praying for God to teach and instruct us from His Word must become our daily habit. We are not to gain knowledge just to add to the material stored in our minds. Rather, we must commit to following the ways of Jehovah until He calls us home to heaven.

Praying for understanding with a commitment to live a holy life. 

Psalm 119:34  Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. 

This text is similar to the preceding one, in that the Psalmist makes a prayer request of God followed by a commitment to obey Him. In promising to obey God, the Psalmist expressed a commitment of exactness and sincerity for his obedience. 

The Psalmist is showing us that we need God's help to understand and keep His law. We need His help to know our way through this life, by comprehending what God permits and what He forbids. 

Saved by God's grace to do good works God ordained for us. 

Ephesians 2:8-10  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9)  Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10)  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

All believers should be filled with much hope and gratitude to Jesus Christ, for saving us, giving us spiritual life, a new destination, and new way of life. 

We are saved by grace and faith and this is all the work of God on our behalf, so that no man can glory by saying "I deserve to be in the kingdom of God." 

Our best efforts are still very impure before God.

Isaiah 64:6  But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness's are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

We are not saved by our works. In fact, the prophet Isaiah tells us that the very best we can do in the flesh is like disgustingly dirty rags. 

Jesus Christ, the Son of God did all the work necessary to grant eternal life to all who believe in Him with repentant faith. We can add nothing to the perfect, saving work of Christ on the cross.  

Jesus imputes His own righteousness to each born again believer, so that we are robed in purity and righteousness as we stand before our heavenly Father. 

This truth connects with the believer's justification and sanctification, both practically and positionally. 

But God has good works for all believers to participate in as long as we have life and breath. 

God ordained or planned out good works for us to do, that glorify Him and honor our Lord Jesus Christ. We are to walk in them, or make them a major part of our life's pattern. 

Thus, the Psalmist is teaching us that with the life changing gift of salvation comes great duties toward God that should be cheerfully and eagerly fulfilled by each Christian. 

Love God above all else, and then love our neighbor. 

Matthew 22:36-40  Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37)  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38)  This is the first and great commandment. 39)  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40)  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. 

All of this truth means that we must love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. The whole law can be distilled to loving God and loving our fellow man. 

All of the New Testament imperatives at the most basic level, are teachings that tell us how to love God and man. 

Jesus taught us to seek His kingdom first each day. 

Matthew 6:33,34  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34)  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. 

Sometimes we forget that we only have this very moment in time. As believers, we especially want to be conscious of the brevity of time and taking advantage of each day that God grants us life. 

Will we serve and love Him most of all? Or, will we serve and love ourselves first?

Many of us can become preoccupied with planning out the next few years of our lives, but we truly only have this day, this moment in time. This is why Paul tells us to redeem the time wisely (Ephesians 5:15-16).

May we all make a concerted effort to center our daily activities around seeking the kingdom of God first. 

Don't make your plans without consulting God first. 

Luke 12:16-21  And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 17)  And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 18)  And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19)  And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 20)  But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 21)  So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

Jesus gave us a very practical illustration proving why it is foolish to make long term plans instead of daily choosing to live for the glory of God.

The man in this parable enjoyed a superabundant harvest, so much so that he ran out of storage capacity. What he did next is what some of us might do. 

He made long term plans without consulting God first. Thus, he resolved to build larger barns to store his grains and fruits. Then, he thought he would live a life of ease and living for himself.

We must remember that we really only have this moment, this day. 

Psalm 39:4  LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am.

God spoke to this man and reminded him that He held each life in His omnipotent hands, and that He determines how long our days are on the earth. 

King David prayed that Jehovah would help him to understand the brief span of his time on this earth, and his human frailty, so that He might fully trust God with his life. 

Our lives are like a vapor, a morning fog that dissipates when the sun fills the sky (James 4:14). Therefore, we have no better way to live, than to get up each morning praising God for another day to love and serve Him first. 

This is the same truth the Psalmist wants us to understand. 

Thoughts to Ponder...

This lesson yields some very simple truths that we should reflect upon. 

First, we must realize that we are dependent upon God for everything in this life and the next.

We must come to grips with the fact that God gave us this life and that He knows the number of our days. 

Second, we must count it the greatest blessing that God has ordained good works for us to complete.

Third, we must not forge ahead working on our own agenda and living for ourselves. We are to live by loving and serving God first, and then our neighbors. 

We are to live by seeking His kingdom first and His will for our lives. 

Lord, please help us all to live for you instead of for self. Help us to seek your kingdom first when we wake up each morning. 

Help us to seek teaching and instruction from You, so that we can understand and rejoice in the spiritual duties You have for us.

Help us to be grateful people with happy hearts who love and serve You the most.

Bob