Psalm 19:1-6 ESV
The heavens declare
the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out
speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech,
nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out
through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a
tent for the sun,
which comes out like a bridegroom leaving
his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course
with joy.
Its rising is from the
end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.
Whenever I read this passage of scripture, I immediately
connect it with the writings of Paul in the book of Romans where he states that
what can be known about God is made plain by God to all humankind through God’s
created works.
For his invisible
attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly
perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been
made. So they are without excuse. Rom. 1:20
So, no one can claim that they are unaware of God or that
they have no knowledge of him. In fact, I have been amazed at what lengths some
who call themselves atheists will go to try to prove that God does not exist.
They will even say such things as “I don’t need God,” or “I don’t need Jesus’
salvation.” Why fight so hard against what does not exist?
Yet, it isn’t just the existence of God which the heavens
declare and which his created works reveal. It is the glory of God, his eternal
power, and his divine nature which are revealed through his created works. So, through
the things he has made, we are able to see his holiness, his righteousness, his
grace, his mercy, but also his justice, and the power he has to carry it out.
Thus, for those of us who have not only the knowledge of God
through his created works, but who also have had the scriptures taught to us,
some of us since childhood, we are definitely without excuse if we refuse to
give God the honor and obedience he so deserves, and if we choose to go our own
way, instead, i.e. the way of sinful practices of the lusts of the flesh.
Psalm 19:7-11 ESV
The law of the Lord is
perfect,
reviving the soul;
the testimony of the
Lord is sure,
making wise the simple;
the precepts of the
Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the
Lord is pure,
enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord
is clean,
enduring forever;
the rules of the Lord
are true,
and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are
they than gold,
even much fine gold;
sweeter also than
honey
and drippings of the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them is
your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
Some people have this false notion that now that we are
under grace, we don’t have to obey God’s commands. While it is true that we, as
Christians, are not bound by all the Old Covenant laws the Jews had to follow,
we have never been freed from having to obey God’s moral laws. All of those,
with the exception of honoring the Sabbath Day, are repeated over and over
again for us in the New Testament, under the New Covenant.
And, they are not merely suggestions or recommendations to
us as to how we should live, but they are still commands we must obey. We don’t
have to obey them perfectly, i.e. we are not required to have sinless
perfection, but we are required to walk (in lifestyle) according to the Spirit
and no longer according to the flesh if we want to be saved from our sins and
have eternal life with God (Lu. 9:23-25; Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Gal.
5:19-24).
It is obedience to God’s commands which revives our souls,
and which makes us wise, and which rejoices our hearts, and which enlightens
our spiritual eyes. Yet, this is not about following a set of rules or trying
to be good. This is about total surrender to Jesus Christ, submitting to his
Lordship over our lives, letting his Spirit rule in our hearts, and following
him wherever he leads us, doing whatever he commands us to do.
This, too, is about walking in the fear of the Lord, which
has to do with showing God honor, value, respect, adoration and obedience as a
matter of course, as our daily practice. Again, it doesn’t mean we will never
sin, but that sin is no longer our master, and Jesus Christ is the ruler of our
hearts.
So, rather than shunning God’s rules for godly living, i.e.
his moral laws, we are to uphold them, and they are to be how we live, our
habits, our practices. And, it should be the desire of our hearts to want to
obey them rather than finding work arounds or copouts or excuses for why we can’t
walk in obedience to the Lord.
And, even for believers in Jesus Christ, the scriptures,
i.e. God’s instructions to us, serve not only to encourage and strengthen us,
but also to rebuke, to correct and to warn us against falling away. They warn
us against complacency, and against apathy, and against false teachings which
would lead us astray. And, they warn against pride and selfishness and
self-sufficiency, too, and they teach us dependence on our Lord Jesus Christ.
And, in keeping the Lord’s commands, i.e. his moral laws and
his instructions to us, his church, there is great reward. We have peace of mind
and of heart, we have assurance we are walking in the right way, we have joy in
our spirits, and the fruit of the Spirit, and God’s Spirit then works through
us to encourage others in their walks of faith, too.
Psalm 19:12-14 ESV
Who can discern his
errors?
Declare me innocent from hidden faults.
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.
Let the words of my
mouth and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable in your sight,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
When we are willfully and knowingly sinning against God, in
open rebellion against his commands, and especially if we make this our
practice, our regular habit, and to even do so premeditatedly, we are quite
able to discern our errors. For, we know going into the sin that what we are doing
is wrong, and that we are refusing the Spirit’s voice, and we are closing our
minds, our hearts and our eyes to God’s commands he has given us to follow.
But, there are times when we slip up in a given moment when
we don’t realize what we are doing until the Holy Spirit convicts us or prompts
us to let us know we have to stop doing what we are doing, and we have to
listen to his voice and obey him.
An example of this might be that we are talking with people
and we are sharing with them things going on in our lives, and so we begin to
say something about another person, which is ok, but then it begins to go a
direction that is not ok. And, then the Holy Spirit prompts us that we don’t
want to go there. At this point we can choose to obey, or we can continue, but
continuing would then be making the choice to disobey.
Another example is that our minds are always at work. At
least most of us are continually thinking about something. And, sometimes Satan
will introduce negative thoughts into our minds, or he will whisper lies about
something or someone, and we may start thinking about the thought that is in
our minds, and then the Holy Spirit prompts us again, and says “Don’t go there.”
And, then we have to stop, or else we are willfully sinning.
The problem that is often presented with this idea of “hidden
faults,” though, is that so many people claim they did not know, when they did
know. If you are a seasoned Christian, especially, and if you have taught the
scriptures, or you have known the scriptures a really long time, especially, if
this is a sin with which you “struggle” on a consistent basis, then you know
going into it what you are doing, or else you know that you are tempting fate
when you don’t put up the necessary road blocks to keep you from going there.
So, if we want the Lord to keep us from presumptuous (taking liberties) sins, then we have to cooperate
with him. He doesn’t just zap us and instantly we no longer willfully,
knowingly sin against him. We have to make the choice to listen to him and to
obey him, to say “No!” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live
self-controlled, upright and godly lives, in the power of God, while we wait
for his return (Tit. 2:11-14).
Jesus already made that way of escape out from underneath
temptation. His blood, shed on a cross, put our sin to death with him so that
we, in his power, can now die daily to sin and self and live to him and to his
righteousness. So, we are without excuse if we continue in willful rebellion
against his commands and then if we claim he just hasn’t delivered us yet. The
deliverance is already there. We just have to apply it to our lives by choosing
to obey our Lord, in his power, rather than to obey our flesh (See: Lu. 9:23-25;
Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).
Have
Thine Own Way, Lord
Words
by Adelaide A. Pollard, 1907
Music
by George C. Stebbins, 1907
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine
own way!
Thou art the potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine
own way!
Search me and try me, Master, today!
Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just
now,
As in Thy presence humbly I bow.
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine
own way!
Wounded and weary, help me I pray!
Power, all power, surely is Thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!
Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine
own way!
Hold o'er my being absolute sway.
Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me!
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