“Blessed are those whose
ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep his
statutes and seek him with all their heart - they do no wrong but follow
his ways.”
Psalm 119:1-3
Most scholars seem
comfortable saying that David was the author of this longest Psalm in the
Psalter, for it resembles his writings in tone and content. The 176 verse Psalm is a weighty offering
filled with “prayers, praise and
professions of obedience”.1
In his commentary of the Bible, Albert Barne’s restates verse 1 for greater clarity: “Blessed are those who in the journey of life - in their religious
course - pure, sincere, uncontaminated.” 2 The way to become and remain blameless before the Lord is to know
and then do His laws and spiritual directives. Far too many believers do not take their walk with God
seriously enough. They seek the easy,
downward slope, especially when they perceive things are getting a little
difficult.
I
underlined in these first three verses four words that require us to do
something. We are to WALK according
to God’s laws. We are to KEEP His decrees. We are to SEEK His face with all our heart.
We are to FOLLOW His ways
during our journey thru life. These
action words show us that Christianity is not a bystander sport, so to speak,
but rather something to which you are either all in or all out. There should be no half-baked
Christians. As Deuteronomy 3:5 clearly
states, we are to “Love the LORD your God
with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” In
other words, with every fiber of our being!
Without
an understanding of whom God is or what He has to say to us in scripture, we
cannot possibly live a life that is pleasing to Him. We already know that our best efforts come up
woefully short against our perfect Creator/Savior. We too easily allow the busyness of each day
to place a blockade up against our spiritual maturation. It is imperative that we carve out a portion
of time each day for the One who paid off our sin debt. It is critical that we not allow the enemy to
stunt our growth. Reassess your position
with the Lord. Is He your top priority
or your last resort? Until next time,
walk with the King, and be a blessing!
1 Treasury of Scripture Knowledge; LLC
Hendrickson Publishers Marketing; May 1990.
2 Barnes Notes on Old & New Testament; Baker Books; 19th
edition; February 1, 1983.
