Sunday, January 26,
2014, 10:16 a.m. – I spent some time this morning with the Lord in prayer
concerning situations that are going on in my personal life. Somewhere in the
course of this time of prayer he put the song in mind “Courageous!” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Psalm 119:1-8 (ESV).
Blessed
are those whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the Lord!
Blessed
are those who keep his testimonies,
who seek him with their whole heart,
who
also do no wrong,
but walk in his ways!
You
have commanded your precepts
to be kept diligently.
Oh
that my ways may be steadfast
in keeping your statutes!
Then
I shall not be put to shame,
having my eyes fixed on all your
commandments.
I
will praise you with an upright heart,
when I learn your righteous rules.
I
will keep your statutes;
do not utterly forsake me!
Blameless
What does it mean to be blameless? Encarta Dictionary says
that it means “not responsible for something wrong.” The MS Word Thesaurus used
such words as righteous, faultless and guiltless. Strong’s Exhaustive
Concordance translates the Hebrew word as “complete, full, perfect, undefiled,
entire, integrity, truth, upright, and/or whole. So, how can we achieve such a
state as this? In Romans 3 we read: “None
is righteous, no, not one.” And, yet it does not end there. The passage
continues:
But
now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although
the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through
faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace
as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward
as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's
righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former
sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be
just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. ~ vv. 21-26
Jesus Christ, God the Son, left his throne in heaven, came
to earth, took on human flesh, suffered as we suffer, and was tempted in like
manner as us, yet without sin. He was despised and rejected of humankind; a man
of sorrows and acquainted with grief (see Is. 53). He was crucified on a cross,
although he had done no wrong. He willingly went to the cross that he might be
our sacrificial Lamb for the sins of the entire world. When he died, our sins
died with him, and when he rose again, he conquered hell, Satan, death and sin.
He died, and he crucified our sins so that we, by faith in him, might be set
free from eternal punishment in hell (eternal separation from God) and so we
might have eternal life with God in heaven. Yet, he also died that we might be
set free from bondage to (and the control of) sin day to day, and so we might
walk in Christ’s righteousness by his grace, through faith.
So, when we accept God’s invitation to his great salvation,
which he provided freely by his grace, through faith (belief), we become
positionally righteous (blameless) in God’s sight. In other words, our sins are
no longer held against us, i.e. we are no longer bound for the gates of hell,
but rather for heaven. As well, we are now set free from the control of Satan
and sin over our lives, and we are free to walk in the Lord’s ways in his power
and strength within us. Yet, is this positional righteousness what the psalmist
is referring to? He said that blessed are those whose “way” is blameless, and
who “walk” in the law (word; way) of the Lord.
His Ways
So, is the psalmist implying that it is humanly possible to
walk perfectly and to never be at fault in anything we do? Is he even implying
that through faith in God, his Savior, that he could walk perfectly and never
ever do anything wrong? In Psalm 15, in the context of walking blamelessly he described
this walk in these terms: “he who does what is right and speaks truth in his
heart; who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor
takes up reproach against a friend...” In Psalm 19 he said: “Keep back your
servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I
shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.” Other translators
translate the word “presumptuous” as “willful” or “deliberate.” The Hebrew word
can be translated as “arrogant, insolent, and proud.” In other words, the
psalmist, it appears, does not mean to suggest he was never without fault, but
that his lifestyle (way and walk) was one that reflected integrity of heart,
truthfulness, faithfulness, uprightness, morality, etc. He was not stubborn and
rebellious, engaging in willful or deliberate sin as his way and walk in life.
Sin no longer had dominion (control; rule) over him, but his trust was in God
Almighty.
The New Testament, as well, has much to say on this subject
of walking uprightly, in purity of heart, etc. We who believe in Jesus Christ
as Lord and Savior of our lives have been crucified to the dominion (control)
of Satan, self and sin over our lives that we might walk in newness of life. Jesus
Christ condemned sin in the flesh in order that “the righteous requirement of
the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but
according to the Spirit” (Rom. 8:3-4). We are to walk properly, not in sexual
immorality, drunkenness, quarreling and jealousy. We are to walk in the way of
love toward our fellow humans. We should walk by faith and not by sight. We are
to walk in the Spirit, so that we do not gratify the desires of the flesh. We
are counseled to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been
called. We are instructed to walk as children of light and in the light; not as
unwise, but as wise; to walk in Christ; to please God; and to walk in the
truth. In fact, the grace of God teaches us “to renounce ungodliness and
worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the
present age” (See Tit. 2:12).
Seek Him
We are blessed (happy; fulfilled) when we walk in the way of
righteousness in the power and strength of the Spirit of God living within us.
Amen! And, we are at peace and satisfied in Christ when we keep his word and we
seek him with our whole heart. To seek means to pursue, follow after, and chase
after, or to practice, or to engage in the life of someone or some activity. It
involves persistence, perseverance and active pursuit with the goal of getting
to know Christ, to grow in his love, to know his will, and to follow him
wherever he leads us. We can’t seek him if we barely give him our time and/or
if we do not make it a practice of our lives to walk in his truth and to follow
in his steps – all in the power and strength of his Spirit within us, as we
cooperate fully his work. Seeking him with our whole hearts means that we pursue
him with our entire being, as a deer pants for water when he is thirsty. We
need to hunger and thirst for God and for his righteousness diligently. And, we
need to cease seeking and hungering after the things and sinful passions of
this world.
Steadfastness
The psalmist said, “Oh that my ways may be steadfast in
keeping your statutes!” Amen! Oh, that my ways may be unwavering, resolute,
persistent and faithful in keeping God’s word, abiding in his truth, walking in
his ways, and resting in his love. I pray that I would not give way to willful
sin or choose to do anything purposefully to disobey my Lord and/or to dishonor
his name. I pray that my eyes will be fixed on Jesus – on his ways and on his
word, and that I would not give way to fear. And, I pray that I would walk
daily in his love, in his righteousness, in his truth and to follow his ways
now and forevermore. Amen!
Courageous! / An
Original Work / December 24, 2013
Based off Various Scriptures
The Word of God
throughout taught.
Some people heard, but
did doubt.
Still others had faith
in Christ.
By grace He purified
them.
They turned from sin
And they obeyed
Christ.
He opened up their blinded
eyesight;
Turned them from
darkness
To the true Light;
Forgave their sin by
His might.
He strengthened them
in their faith.
He said, “Remain my
faithful.”
He called them to
obedience.
By faith, they were so
grateful.
By faith, they were to
follow Jesus;
To daily sit and
listen to Him;
To have such faith
That mountains could
move;
To love those whom He
gave them.
Be on your guard;
courageous.
Stand firm in faith.
Be thankful.
Take up the shield of
your faith;
Protect against all
evil.
Do not move from
The hope that you
have.
Your faith in Jesus
let it endure.
Hold to the truth;
Your conscience be
clear.
Endure with
perseverance.
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