Good morning. It is one thing to know the rules, it is another thing altogether to be committed to following those rules. We know that this is true whether we are talking about current traffic laws or the commandments of God as we read of them in His Word. Consider with me these few verses from Psalm 119:
It was good for me to be afflicted
so that I might learn your decrees.
The law from your mouth is more precious to me
than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.
Your hands made me and formed me;
give me understanding to learn your commands. Psalm 119:71-73
Jewish tradition tells us that King David wrote Psalm 119, the longest single chapter in all of God’s Word, to teach his son Solomon the alphabet. But the goal wasn’t only to teach the letters of the alphabet, but to also systematically teach the “alphabet” of spiritual life. At the heart of the Psalm, we read the above noted verses.
David writes, It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. David had come to understand that afflictions, and they were many, had served a purpose to help teach him the truths of God’s commands. He then writes of the value of those commands: The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold.
A powerful point is made in the third of these verses, Psalm 119:73 Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands.
David pleads with God, our God who so wonderfully constructed each of us, to provide additional understanding regarding His commands. David desires that God help him learn truth beyond the words.
God gifted each of us with a variety of talents. He has done the same with those who live around us. If we are most concerned with our neighbor’s talents, with whether he or she is utilizing them appropriately, we will often neglect our own. If we concern ourselves with our own talents, whether or not we are living in such a way to utilize those gifts and talents to the glory of God, we may find that we are not only being useful to God but even an inspiration to others.
There is much to learn about the ways of God, the will of God, the commands of God, and this is always true: progress is made when we humbly bow before the Lord for personal guidance and instruction. Progress is lost when we spend our time worrying about what the people around us are up to. Please Lord, increase our understanding and help us to learn.
Vern