Discovering the joy of reading the word of God (Part 1) March 6, 2007
Posted by Han in : Relationship with God , trackbackI would like to share to you one of the greatest excitements I had in my walk with the Lord is to discover the joy in reading the word of God. It’s neither painful nor torturing; you do not have to drag yourself into reading it. The secret can be found in Psalm 119. It’s very exciting and challenging. Let us begin:
Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the bible. All together there are 22 parts. Each part consists of 8 verses. It is different from other Psalms. Other Psalms were penned from a response to a situation, circumstance or happening. But this Psalm is design to magnify the law and make it honorable. The word of God is here called by the names of law, statutes, percepts (commandments), judgment, ordinance, righteousness, testimonies, ways and word.
This Psalm is divided into 4 aspects:
1) Discovery
Discovery is the keyword. The psalmist made many discoveries in the word of God. It puts the heart into the right condition to read the word of God. Without any discovery, the word of God will become boring and irrelevant; it is just merely a historical book!
What is discovery? It is about finding, seeing, unveiling and gaining insight. The more we discover something, the more we want to read the word of God. This is very much like “eating peanut”, once started cannot stop!
The process of discovery takes time. It is not instant like cooking noodle or making instant 3-in1 coffee! We cannot rush through. It is very tedious and time consuming but it is rewarding. The attitude of a discoverer must be right. He must be serious, diligent and hardworking. He does not mind spending long hours searching for the treasure in the word of God.
The feeling is so wonderful and great when we discover something in the word of God. It is very much like we had found a treasure. It is so exciting!
Alright, let’s do some practical exercises. What did the psalmist discovered?
1) Those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord and those who keep His statutes and seek Him with all their heart are considered blessed. (v1-2)
2) The only way to keep a young man pure is by living according to the word of God. (v9)
3) The word of God is his counselor. (v24)
4) The word of God is righteous. Psalm (v75)
5) The word of God is eternal and it stands firm in the heavens. (v89)
6) The word of God is a lamp to his feet and a light to his path. (v105)
7) The word of God is his heritage forever and the joy of his heart. (v111)
8) The word of God is forever right and it gives him understanding. (v144)
9) The word of God is true. (v160)
Above are the Psalmist’s discoveries about the word of God. We can see how much the word of God impacted his life. Let us spend more time to read the word of God.
2) Experience
Next, let us take a look at his experience. Experience is precious. Without any experience, the word of God will not come into reality but it is only some information residing in our head. What is needed is to get this information to travel from our head to our heart.
It is not enough to discover something about the word of God; we must convert this discovery into valuable experience in our life. For example let us take a look at this verse: God’s word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. For a businessman, God’s word is able to give him wisdom to deal with his daily challenges and His word is also able to provide him the long term goal and vision.
What about the Psalmist, what were his experiences?
1) The word of God can strengthen his weary soul. (v28)
2) God is able to set his heart free when he runs in the path of His commands. (v32)
3) God is able to preserve his life according to His word. (v37)
4) He is able to find comfort when he remembers His ancient laws. (v52)
5) He would have perished in his affliction if God’s word had not been his delight. (v92)
6) God’s word has made him wiser than his enemies. (v98)
7) The unfolding of His words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple. (v130)
8) Those who love God’s word will have great peace and nothing can make them stumble. (v165)
The Psalmist had great experiences in the word of God. The following 4 verses sum up the importance of the word of God in his life.
1) I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. (v14)
2) The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold. (v72)
3) I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes.
I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts. (v:99-100)
4) How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
(v103)
Click Discovering the joy of reading the word of God (Part 2) to continue:
Comments»
Really blessed! Thank you for sharing… =) God bless~