“The entirety of Your word is truth,
and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.”
Psalm 119:160
It has been called the “Mt. Everest of the Psalms”— whether written by David, Daniel, Ezra or another, we know that whoever penned Psalm 119 was caught up in the value of the Word of God. The author exhorts the reader in both the value and the importance of absorption of the Word. There are five observations found in this Psalm absorbing God’s Word.
The first of these observations is to hear God’s Word— simply listening to it with intent. Verse 24 points out that the testimonies given in the Word are “my delight and my counselors.” What do we do with advice and counsel? We listen to it. The wise and first stop in the pursuit of counsel and wisdom for the believer is to be in the Scriptures.
Second, is to read God’s Word— Allow your mind to graze on the written Word. From verse 18, “Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your law.” Revelation 1:3 makes it quite clear there are special blessings for those who simply read and hear God’s Word. Read it in your time in prayer, read it to others, listen while driving or exercising. Begin in one of it’s 66 books and work your way through it. Each day read a section of it. Begin tomorrow where you left off today.
Third, study God’s Word. Certainly, casual reading is of value in itself, but the intentional, focused study of the Word has increasing reward. Verses 33-34 read— “Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes, and I shall keep it to the end. Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law; Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.” A simple suggestion to help in study is to have a pen or pencil handy to write notes in your Bible. Don’t be afraid to note what you are learning in a margin, or to underline a verse striking you as especially helpful.
Fourth, memorize God’s Word. Verse 11— “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” No better time to begin and continue in memorization than today. There is a spiritual battle in which every one of us is engaged. The Word implanted in our mind is of tremendous help, encouragement and value.
Finally, meditate on God’s Word. Meditation is forcing your mind to focus full attention on something. The idea is that of a cow while chewing the cud. The cow when doing so, is enjoying the food for a second time. When you meditate on Scripture you go back over it, chew on it, again and again. Verse 27 gives a wonderful encouragement in this— “Make me understand the way of Your precepts; So shall I meditate on Your wonderful works.” Meditation on Scripture liberates our minds from the very present, many and futile distractions of this world to those of the wonderful, valuable, eternal thoughts of God.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps.119:105). There is no brighter lamp. No matter what chapter of life you may be found, no matter the spectre of difficulty, God’s Word offers wisdom, correction, perspective and comfort… pointing us to, reminding us of, and refreshing us in Jesus…who is “found in the volume of the book” (Psalm 40:7; Heb. 10:7).
Maranatha!