Delighting in God’s Word (Part 5): Yearning to Learn and Understand

By:  Dale Weckbacher

Psalm 119:40

How I long for your precepts!
Give me life through your righteousness.

(CSB)

In the previous section of Psalm 119:25-32 the psalmist seeks salvation from his sins, expressing a repentant heart.  The psalmist now moves on to expressing his desire to learn and understand the statutes of the Word of God.  In this section we see the psalmist expressing a sense of dependence and a consciousness of extreme need to learn the precepts of God’s Word.  (1) 

After receiving forgiveness of sins, our hearts desire must become learning to live by the Word of God.  Instead of returning to our former life of sin, we are now to be transformed by renewing our mind to discern the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2).  The good news is we all have the perfect will of God available to us in the Bible but must make the effort to open the book and learn what it says.  Like the psalmist we who desire learning more about God and his word must,

1)      Ask the Lord to teach us vowing to obey what we learn (Psalm 119:33) – One of the unique qualities of the Bible is how we can read a passage several times and suddenly receive new insight when we read it again.  As we live in obedience to the Word of God, God can teach us more of the deeper meaning of scripture.  In his letter to the Corinthian church, the Apostle Paul speaks of them not being able to learn the deeper meaning of scripture due to their living in the flesh (1 Corinthians 3:1-4).  As we live in obedience to the Word of God we begin shedding the works of the flesh and can learn the deeper precepts of Scripture.

2)      Ask the Lord for understanding, vowing to obey and follow it with our whole life (Psalm 119:34) – While full understanding of God and His Word will only occur after we see Him face-to-face (1 Corinthians 13:12), we can receive an increased measure of understanding as we shed the works of the flesh and allow our minds to experience transformation from the things of the world (Romans 12:2).  While our human nature is to want to understand everything now, with God we are a work-in-process and receive understanding as God decides we are ready for it. 

3)      Ask for staying power to stay on the path of obedience (Psalm 119:35-36) – Since we who follow Christ still live in an ungodly world, there will be temptation to stray from obedience to the Word of God.  We therefore must ask God to help us stay on the path of obedience to the Word of God.  The good news here is that whatever tempts us is not unique or unusual and God promises not to allow us exposure to temptation beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13), but provides a way of escape.  This fork in the road determines whether we will give in to temptation and sin or take the godly path of resistance and obedience.  May we all have the strength to choose the godly path. 

4)      Not become distracted by looking at worthless things of the world (Psalm 119:37) – There is no lack of visual stimulation in the information age.  Most of us carry smart phones with us that give access to news alerts, the ability to watch sporting events or movies wherever, and whenever we want.  While in and of themselves these things are not evil, they can distract us taking away valuable time we could spend in prayer and study of the Bible.  Even Jesus took time away from ministry to pray (Matthew 14:23). 

5)      Seek confirmation for what God’s Word teaches (Psalm 119:38) – When reading the Bible, if we receive some unusual or unique interpretation, it is wise to seek conformation from a pastor or teacher to insure this interpretation is from God.  It is also wise to seek godly counsel before making any major life decisions. 

6)      Develop a dread for sin and a hunger for God’s Word (Psalm 119:39-40) – The psalmist concludes this section by restating his dread for the disgrace of the sin of his prior life, and declaration of the goodness of God’s judgments, and a deep yearning for the precepts of God.  His reason for this desire is that the precepts of God give life. 

I encourage everyone reading this to seek to learn and understand the Bible.  Find daily time away from the many distractions of the world and focus on prayer and Bible study.  Seek a church with solid teaching from the Word of God and do not fear asking questions if you do not understand what you read, or you encounter some unique interpretation.  A dying world needs the life-giving precepts of the Bible and is counting on God’s people to gain understanding, so they can share it with them. 

1. Spurgeon, Charles. Exposition of Psalm 119:33-40. www.eternallifeministries.org. [Online] Eternal Life Ministries. [Cited: February 11, 2018.] https://www.eternallifeministries.org/psalm119e.htm.