97 Oh, how I love your law!
I meditate on it all day long.
98 Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are ever with me.
99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.
100 I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts.
101 I have kept my feet from every evil path
so that I might obey your word.
102 I have not departed from your laws,
for you yourself have taught me.
Psalm 119:97-102 (NIV)
In order to become an attorney, a student of law must study the law. The student must complete many courses dealing with the law; developing critical thinking skills and learning to think like a lawyer. Once that student has passed the bar exam and has earned the right to practice law, as one practicing the law they must continually study the field of law in order to keep their mind sharp in legal processes. A good lawyer must be instilled with the law in order to act as a good defender of their cases.
We are defenders of our faith, not only against the detractors whom we may encounter, but also against our internal wanderings and temptations which befall us. We should not set out to start arguments, but we should be able to effectively argue our side when the occasion does arise. We should know God's word thoroughly by reading it and by carefully meditating upon it. We may not literally be able to meet the standards set by the psalmist in this passage, but it is a goal for which to strive. We should set our sights high and believe and obey what we learn. To best achieve this we must read, study, meditate, and live by God's words.
11 I have hidden your word in my heart
that I might not sin against you.
12 Praise be to you, O LORD;
teach me your decrees.
13 With my lips I recount
all the laws that come from your mouth.
14 I rejoice in following your statutes
as one rejoices in great riches.
15 I meditate on your precepts
and consider your ways.
16 I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.
Psalm 119:11-16 (NIV)
God's word is like a precious treasure to be carefully kept within us. We should rejoice that we have that treasure as God's words guide us through our lives. The Word should be a lamp to our feet and a light for our path. Know God's word competely and be happy. God's words should be the words that we store up to declare to all the world to show that we are His.
But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.
1 Peter 3:15-16 (NIV)
Memorizing scripture provides us with the solid defense that we need to confront our detractors. Those words will speak for themselves to open the eyes of all those who hear them when we present them in a loving and caring manner. Sometimes people will take the words to use them for their own personal gain, which is wrong. Instead we should be God's mouthpiece conveying the messages of the Bible as God intends them to be heard, and that is a message of hope that can be found through Jesus Christ.
17 Pay attention and listen to the sayings of the wise;
apply your heart to what I teach,
18 for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart
and have all of them ready on your lips.
Proverbs 22:17-18 (NIV)
Very good advice Lee especially on a Sunday. Whatever our faith and beliefs there are always the laws and rules we must abide with.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this with us.
Happy Sunday.
God Bless:
Yvonne:
No doubt the Psalmist was right when he said that he had hidden the word of God in his heart in order not to sin.
ReplyDeleteI am using the Fighter Verses from Bethlehem Baptist in MN. I don't always stay on top of it, but memorization is important!
I think we had like minds today regarding Psalms. I do believe we need to memorize scripture, which may be a old fashion thing, and share it with others.
ReplyDeletePutting scripture in our heads (heart) will indeed help us not fight the good ways of God.
A remarkable post indeed.. I loved the way you said that we need to have good skills in order to present our case! God's word is much more deeper than any law and every person has to be lawyer ...
ReplyDeletewow.. very impressive
I used to memorize scripture when I was younger. Close to a hundred verses. Although I can't say the verses now, I can still find them. My kids are in Awanas and are great at memorizing scripture. I need to do one a day. I can handle that.
ReplyDeleteI did recognize Psalm 119:11 from your blog; Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee.
Stephen Tremp
I like your comparison of a law student to a student of the The Word of God.
ReplyDeleteThe Word of God is like the manna the Lord rained down from heaven for Moses and the children of Israel in the wilderness. They were instructed to cook it and eat it every day or it would rot and become inedible. Exodus 16:1-31
It's not good enough to say I read the Bible once back in 1982 but I have never read
it since.
Like manna we need to digest it daily or our memory of Gods Word will soon fade away and rot.
Have a great day Lee,
Ron
I love how I get a double dose every Sunday by visiting your blog as well!
ReplyDeleteHi Arlee. I like the comment "We should not set out to start arguments, but we should be able to effectively argue our side when the occasion does arise." It made me think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel in Chapter 3 when they refused to bow down and worship King Nebuchadnezzar's image of gold and were thrown into the blazing furnace.
ReplyDeleteI am studying Beth Moore's Bible Study of Daniel, and Wed night the ladies made the comment that long before this happened those boys had already decided what they would do if they were ordered to do bow down to worship another god. They didnt just decide out of the blue to disobey the king.
They knew God's word by heart...like you are talking about. Thank you for sharing.