Monday, June 22, 2015

A BOOK LIKE NO OTHER



Blessed are the undefiled in the way,
Who walk in the law of the LORD!  (Psalm 119:1)

The Bible is a Book like no other.  There are other books that are inspiring, but no other book is inspired like this Book—for God is the source, as well as the subject, of its message.  No other book has affected history like His story contained in its pages.  To read and heed the Scripture is to have the blessing of God in this world and in the world to come.

Psalm 119 is at the heart of this best of books.  It is no accident that in this Divine library of 66 books, that this longest chapter in the Bible extols the veracity and virtue of the Word of God.

The Bible is the best of books in the direction it furnishes (v.1-8).  Throughout these opening verses, the writer stresses how our walk in life is directed by the Word of God.  The Psalm begins with this:

Blessed are the undefiled in the way,
Who walk in the law of the LORD!  (v.1)
 
God’s Word gives us solid footing for our steps.  The world’s constantly shifting opinions and philosophies are quicksand, but God’s truth marks out a stable path for us to navigate safely our journey from earth to heaven.  The Scriptures are a roadmap to guide us home.

The Bible is the best of books in the delight it brings (v.9-24).  The author of this Psalm does not come to God’s Word with an attitude of obligation, but a spirit of anticipation.  He doesn’t see reading the text as a mere duty, but as a delight.  For instance, he exults:

I will delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.  (v.16)
 
The Word of God is a fountain of joy from whence flows rivers of pleasure.

The Bible is the best of books in the dedication it inspires (v.25-40).  Being devoted to grasp the meaning of Scripture will cause that message to grasp us and bring out devotion to obey it.  For example:

Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law;
Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.  (v.34)
 
Our culture has moved away from objective truth to subjective experience.  The church has been impacted by this, and too often prefers entertainment in songs rather than exposition of Scripture.  They want a little pop psychology with a verse or two of Scripture thrown in—a sermonette that produces Christianettes. 

David Wells speaks to this troublesome trend by noting: “Sustaining orthodoxy and framing Christian belief in doctrinal terms requires habits of reflection and judgment that are simply out of place in our culture and increasingly disappearing from evangelicalism as well.” 

Devotion to studying and meditating deeply on the truth of the text will lead to dedication and submission to those truths—and a shallow, superficial understanding will yield that kind of faith, as well—if it is any faith at all.

I am far from being all God wants me to be.  There has been come progress, however, in that direction.  Without question, the most significant factor in my spiritual growth has been a consistent pattern of daily study of God’s Word.  There is no substitute for the proper nutrition of feeding your soul on the best of books.

 

 

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