Psalm 119:151

Nearer My God To Thee

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

The Lord is very near us at all times, especially near to those whom he has saved by his grace; for He promised to be with them and never leave them nor forsake them.

Acts 17:27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

It is comforting to know that God is not elusive nor exclusively transcendent. He is to be known, though God must reveal Himself to us in order for us to know Him. He has revealed himself in nature and in the Bible. He also revealed Himself through his Son when He came to the earth, and He reveals Himself through the Spirit.

The commandments of God are truth. That is also a comforting thought. It is the truth that sets us free (John 8:32). It is the truth that is the foundation upon which churches are built and upon which believers depend for their way of life and their confidence of an inheritance with Jesus.

Those who pervert the truth are the ones who go away from God, and that is the reason they are not near him. They have gone the way of Cain and the gainsaying of Core (Jude 1:11).

Isaiah 53:6All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

May God come down to our souls, revive us again, and bring us to a Closer Walk With Thee. May we be faithful to serve God with diligence, hope, and endurance (patience). In that way our lives can be worthy and joyous.

Psalm 119:150

Away From God's Law

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

David's enemies pursue him; they "draw nigh" to him in order to kill him. They do this out of hunger for terror and mischief and evil. Their nature is so taken by depravity that they have allowed depraved tendencies to draw them far into the realm of sin. They hunt after mischief as a hunter hunts after a deer, and they are not satisfied until the deer is killed, or, in this case, until mischief has been tasted and David is dead.

There is evil in the world, and it comes from man's own depravity. A man sins when he is drawn away by his own lust (James 1:14). If a man is left to himself without any Christian instruction, he will fall deeper and deeper into himself and his own depravity and be tempted beyond nature and do things that abound above that which is right and proper.

At times it seems the world at large tends in this direction of going away, away from God's word, his standards, his principles, his guidelines, his instructions. Thus, the second part of this verse, which says, "They are far from thy law."

The law of God is pure and perfect. It is the standard for all men. Those who love it and obey it shall be blessed, but those who deny it and turn away from it shall suffer loss and will be filled with wickedness.

But a sinner can be changed from this disposition of wrath and evil and be brought to merciful and gracious peace through God and his word. We see this in the life of Saul of Tarsus as he pursued believers in Jesus Christ and the first church at Jerusalem to destroy it. He had torture and murder on his mind until Jesus came to him, opened his heart, and showed him his need. Then Saul, who later became Paul, surrendered to the will of God to suffer for the name of Jesus and for the sake of Christ' body, the church (Col. 1:24).

Here is a poem that I memorized, hearing it from Bro. Ralph Sears several years ago:

I walked life's way with an easy tread.

I followed where comforts and pleasures led

Until one day in a quiet place,

I met the Master face to face.

I saw Him and knew Him and blessed to see;

His eyes full of pity were fixed on me.

I stumbled and fell at this feet that day;

My castles all crumbled and vanished away.

Vanished away and in their place

None else could I see but the Master's face;

And I cried, "Oh, Lord, please make me meet

To follow the path of Thy wounded feet.

My mind is now on the souls of men;

I lost my life to gain it again.

E'er since that day in a quiet place

I met the Master face to face.

Psalm 119:149

Quicken Me

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

David did not call upon God due to his own merit or worthiness but according to the lovingkindness of God. David had no initial awareness of the need of calling upon God, nor did he have the ability to call upon God. It was all from the sovereign, unchangeable mercy of God that David called upon Him.

It is only by God's loving mercy stretched out to David that he could from his own deep spirit call truly unto the God of heaven, which required an approach that David did not possess unless prompted by God's grace.

His cry was "Quicken me according to thy judgment," Psalms 19:9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. God's judgments are both true and righteous

David, being in a downcast state, was asking for quickening as a believer, not as a lost sinner. He needed quickening in order to be brought out of his discouragement and dismay of life, for the reviving in fellowship and service with God, which most of us need, also.

Only the word of God can bring this kind of quickening. Notice Psalms 119:25 My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word.

 

 

Psalm 119:148

The Night Watch

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

We have learned that David arose early, before the "dawning of the morning" in order to pray to God. In this verse we notice that he also awoke at each watch of the night to have devotion with the Lord.

David was a busy man, but he was not too busy to spend time with the Lord. Should we not take time every day, and that often, to talk with the Lord and study his word? May God remind us to be faithful to our praise, worship, and study.

 

 

Psalm 119:147

Hope In God's Word

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

To prevent a thing means to go before it or to precede it. David here admits that he awakes very early in the morning, before the daylight (dawning of the morning) in order to say, or to cry that he hoped in the word of the Lord.

David needed diurnal prayer, but it must be early, before the busy day begins. He needs to know that he can put his hope and trust in God. He needs to praise God for His faithfulness. He needs to put his dependence upon the Lord, for David knows that the days can be long and stressful. Even Jesus arose early to pray, Mark 1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.

Our hope is also in God's word. We can trust his word, for it is truth (John 17:17). We cannot be successful through the day unless we receive words from God through the Scriptures, review God's blessings upon us, and rely on His word for our strength throughout the day. We can hope in his word . . . until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: (2 Peter 1:19).

 

 

Psalm 119:146

Crying Out To God

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

In this verse David is crying out for God to save him. I do not believe this is for eternal salvation but for immediate and human salvation from death, as enemies were, no doubt, surrounding him on every side.

David did truly cry out to God! We should never be embarrassed nor consider ourselves overly needy and unworthy (although we are in ourselves) so much that we cannot sorely cry out to God. Psalms 3:4 I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.

If God will save him, allow him to live through his distress, then he will continue to keep the testimonies of God, the word of God, the Scriptures, God's commandments.

To surrender to the will God is the mind of Christ, so we see in Philippians 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.

Are we willing, after all we suffer for Christ, to benefit from our submission to His will? It is important to do so, and God will bless.

Psalm 119:145

Hear Me!

By Pastor Dr. Ronnie W. Wolfe

Our dedication to God's service and our keeping the statutes of the Lord is expressed through our mind and mouth. We cry, not simply with our mouths, but with our hearts, and express to God "Hear me."

We know that God will hear us when we pray, for he says that he will. John 14:13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

But here we are not asking God for anything, but we are simply expressing to him (as though he doesn't already know) that we will keep his statutes. We should shout out to God every day that we will keep his statutes. This is our lot in life. This is one of the reasons he saved us. We should all be faithful to keep his statutes, his commandments, his word. May God give us grace to do so and to agree with God (confession) that we should and will do it.