I have so enjoyed reading and meditating through this Psalm.
Psa. 119:121 I have done justice and righteousness;
Do not leave me to my oppressors.
Psa. 119:122 Be surety for Your servant for good;
Do not let the proud oppress me.
This week we see David making a statement. “I have done justice and righteousness.” Is it proper for him to say this when we know that he failed many times in his life, as we all do? There is a difference between saying something to justify yourself and be self-righteous and saying something because you remember the times you did get it right.
In the Book of Isaiah and 2 Kings, we read the story of Hezekiah. King Hezekiah was a great king and had done much to turn back the heart of Israel to God after his father, King Ahaz, had let idolatry and sin run amok. He started to strengthen Israel’s military, but he also had some counselors who wanted to attack Assyria for their own gain. The Assyrians were defeated, but not without significant loss. King Hezekiah either was oblivious to his advisors’ bad decisions or chose not to see it, but things turned sour after the losses. Hezekiah fell ill, and he was then visited by the prophet Isaiah, who let Hezekiah know that he would soon die and that he needed to get his house in order. Hezekiah wept and prayed to God, asking him to let him live. The Lord heard Hezekiah’s prayer and allowed him to live 15 years longer. Listen to his prayer:
Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall and prayed to the LORD,
and said, “Remember now, O LORD, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. And the Word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying, “Go and tell Hezekiah, “Thus says the LORD, the God of David, your father: ‘I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years.
We see that God accepted Hezekiah for what he prayed. We never get it right because of our own strength but because He gives us the grace to do it right sometimes.
Psa. 119:123 My eyes fail from seeking Your salvation
And Your righteous Word.
Psa. 119:124 Deal with Your servant according to Your mercy,
And teach me Your statutes.
Just like David, even if we get it right, we never step away from God’s mercy. We never stop searching and seeking truth from His Word. David is telling us how much he pursued the Word of God. Spending time meditating on His Word gives you an understanding of God’s mercy. It’s easy to ask God to deal with you according to what you saw in His Word.
Today that applies just as much to what we believe and knows. Years ago, I was driving to a lady’s meeting in Jacksonville, FL. I left early and was praying about what I needed to share with them. The Spirit spoke to me and said: ‘Tell them that you can not expect anything less from God than what He has shown you in His Word.” That excited me.
If we know God can save us, we can not expect anything less. If we know God can heal the sick, raise the dead and fight for us, we can not expect anything less from Him. His Word gives us an understanding of what He is capable of doing. But, apart from that, He can still do abundantly above anything we can ask or even think – Eph 3:20.
Psa. 119:125 I am Your servant;
Give me understanding,
That I may know Your testimonies.
Psa. 119:126 It is time for You to act, O LORD,
For they have regarded Your law as void.
We can never ask for enough understanding. For example, it is impossible to understand God with our finite brain. So likewise, spiritual things can not be understood by the natural. The problem with religion and atheism or science is that they try to explain a Spiritual God naturally. The natural reveals God but are not God. His invisible attributes are seen and understood by the seen things – Rom 1:20.
1 Cor 2:13-14 These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them because they are spiritually discerned.
Psa. 119:127 Therefore I love Your commandments
More than gold, yes, than fine gold!
Psa. 119:128 Therefore all Your precepts concerning all things
I consider to be right;
I hate every false way.
How often do we value earthly things above spiritual things? Growing up, we had hope that one day when we make it to heaven, we would walk on the streets of gold. What about his presence, being redeemed from eternal damnation? Our best thing to hope for was gold. Really?
Ephesians 1 talks about how God has blessed us with spiritual blessings. He mentions fifteen things that are part of that blessing. But, unfortunately, none of them includes gold. Instead, David found something better than anything the world can ever offer. His commandments are better than anything earthly.
All of God’s precepts are right, justified, and holy. Therefore, all things that God gives are good.
What grabs your attention? What has your loyalty? What does it profit a man if he wins the world but loses his soul? Any Gospel that offers you stuff is nothing better than what satan offered Jesus when he tempted Him – Matt 4. We are not in this for what we can get but because of who He is.
