2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Readers,
This morning we will look at the spiritual meaning of the tenth Hebrew letter, yod, as it is revealed in PS 119: 73-80. This passage speaks of the justice of God’s law (teachings) and of His position as our Creator. From this we can glean insights through the word. “You created me, and You keep me safe; give me understanding, so that I may learn Your laws. Those who have reverence for You will be glad when they see me, because I trust in Your promise. I know that Your judgments are righteous, Lord, and that You punished me because You are faithful. Let Your constant love comfort me, as You have promised me, Your servant. Have mercy on me, and I will live because I take pleasure in Your law. May the proud be ashamed for falsely accusing me; as for me, I will meditate on Your instructions. May those who have reverence for You come to me-all those who know you commands. May I Perfectly obey Your commandments and be spared the shame of defeat.”
When I read the book of Revelation carefully enough to teach a class on it, it was very evident that God makes a decision and then assigns a well-organized staff of others to carry it out. This is certainly made clear in the decision to create the earth, animals, and mankind at a pre-creation council in heaven as outlined in AC 2: 23 & 4: 27-28, COL 1: 15-20, & 1 PET 1: 20-21. While none of that had been revealed to our Psalmist, he certainly understood the relationship between God, his Creator, and himself and others as the created ones. I have to believe that the Holy Spirit imparted this information to him, even if he didn’t have the Spirit’s constant presence as we who are blessed to be indwelt with Him do. In RO 1: 18-20 makes it clear why people who have not come to faith yet have no excuse for rejecting God. “God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all the sin and evil of the people whose evil ways prevent the truth from being known. God punishes them, because can be known about God is plain to them, for God Himself made it plain. Ever since God created the world, His invisible qualities, both His eternal power and His divine nature, have been clearly seen; they are perceived in the things that God has made. So those people have no excuse at all!” If that passage seems to lack compassion or is shocking, it must be understood that mankind was born with a God-consciousness and the ability to perceive what God created. That means they have no excuse to suppress the truth of that and reject God. Our faithful Psalmist concludes correctly that our Creator should indeed also be our Teacher.
Verse 74 which speaks of the Psalmist’s belief that others of faith will welcome him because of his trust in God, is a feeling anyone of faith in a congregation like mine experiences. Frankly, it’s one of the greatest joys of my life to be welcomed by other believers who are equally enthusiastic about sharing their faith. The kind of love and emotional support that we experience is a welcome comfort from the buffeting and stresses of the world in which we find ourselves. The fulfillment which we experience when something we do or say brings another closer to God is wonderful. That does not mean that we should only reach out to those who have already expressed their faith. But, it does mean that we can experience God by obeying Him, and that our Psalmist understood that.
God’s judgments are righteous as the Psalmist notes in verse 75. What this means is his understanding that God is not the source of our suffering, illnesses, and affliction, but He might allow them to run their course to bring us closer to perfection. God knows we have lessons to learn that are best learned by our having to work our way through some kind of difficulties. It is never God’s agenda to bring about our ruin. This is made clear in JER 29: 11-13, “I [God] alone know the plans I have for you, plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the future you hope for. Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will answer you. You will seek Me, and you will find Me because you will seek Me with all your heart.”
When the Psalmist pleads in (76) with God to let His constant love comfort him, he knows were grace is to be found. HE 4: 15-16, “Our High Priest is not One Who cannot feel sympathy for our weaknesses. On the contrary, we have a High Priest Who was tempted in every way that we are, but did not sin. Let us be brave, then, and approach God’s throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it.” As I said above, it is my belief that people of faith in the OT had interaction with the Holy Spirit without knowing it that came to them intermittently at God’s will. While our Psalmist had no idea who Jesus Christ is, he certainly had insights from God’s word. In (78), he wishes the proud will be ashamed for falsely accusing him, and he will meditate on God’s instructions. That statement demonstrates a remarkable spiritual maturity, because he is praying that God will allow this sin to work itself out, producing a lesson for the sinner that might bring the sinner to faith. Here is an example of what Christ teaches about praying for (even loving) your enemies. A fleshly person wants to see his enemies ruined; a Godly one wants to pray for their salvation. [see MT 5: 44-45].
When you have real faith, you want to seek out the company of those who share that faith. That is normal, but should not be done to the exclusion of others who might potentially come to faith. Our Psalmist prays for others of faith to want to come to him in (79). That is partly for their company, but it is also because he knows we learn from each other about God and encourage each other in our faith. That is one reason among others why God put us together in congregations. Verse 80 demonstrates that the way to be spared of the shame of defeat is to perfectly obey God’s commands. The word, perfectly, is key here. The Psalmist wants us to understand that we can’t rationalize, add to, subtract from, or alter God’s commands to make them more convenient or palatable. They must be carried out as God meant them to be. That demonstrates we trust God enough to know that His way is best.
PRAYER: O Lord, we gain insight from Your teachings not available from any other source. If only our faith was as brilliant and strong as the Psalmist’s, our lives would be so blessed! You are our Creator, and thus, You know what is best for us. That is why we should look to You to be our Teacher. You offer that teaching through the Holy Spirit. Through You most excellent grace, You have gifted us with Him. Your judgments are always righteous; Your ways are always best for us. We approach you in reverence and humility with thanks from the depths of our hearts. We acknowledge Your omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience. You are the Sovereign Lord of our lives. Honor, glory, praise, worship, and adoration be Yours eternally. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will look at the spiritual meaning of the eleventh Hebrew letter, kaf from PS 119: 81-88. Our Father in heaven watches over us every day of our lives. He taught the Son to have empathy for the pain we suffer while He was incarnate. Then, He installed the Son, in the process of opening the heavenly Holy of Holies to us, as our Advocate and Intercessor to take our prayers directly to Him. We are never unloved or abandoned. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn