By: Dale Weckbacher
Psalm 119:111
I have your decrees as
a heritage forever;
indeed, they are the joy of my heart.
indeed, they are the joy of my heart.
(CSB)
The popularity of websites like ancestry.com illustrate the
interest of people in their heritage. This
is especially true in countries like the United States populated by people from
all over the world. However, even though
knowing one’s heritage is interesting, the greatest heritage of anyone choosing
to make Jesus their savior is the Bible the Word of God. Like the psalmist stated in Psalm
119:111, this should be our greatest joy.
Unfortunately, our busy lives can rob us of vital time alone
with God in His Word and prayer. In this
Sunday’s message, my pastor mentioned the importance of setting up good
boundaries and keeping healthy margins in our lives. He cited three scriptures as support for this
statement.
1)
Exodus
18:13-18 – this passage is the account of Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law on
how Moses was leading. Moses believed he
was responsible and had to do it all.
Jethro’s instructions to him are basically to set some boundaries and
get help.
2)
Acts
6:1-4 – Similar to the situation encountered by Moses, the rapid growth in
the Church had led to a situation where the Apostles could not minister
effectively to everyone, leading to a complaint by the Hellenistic Jews. This situation led to the establishment of boundaries
for the Apostles to devote their time to prayer and ministry of the Word with
others taking on the responsibilities of ministering to the growing numbers of
believers.
3)
Mark
1:32-38 – No one had a busier life and ministry then Jesus. While he is the Son of God and in fact God Himself,
when he ministered on the earth He was also human and subject to burn-out. For this reason Jesus took time out from his
busy ministry to pray and when the pressures of ministry pressed in on him with
people demanding more or His time, did not lose his ministerial focus and moved
on to ministering in the neighboring villages, most likely as God directed Him
through His time of prayer.
We must avoid letting demands of others, work, ministry, and
even our own inner drive to succeed in robbing us of time with our Lord. Instead, we must follow the example of Christ
and find a spot where we can be alone with God in prayer and God’s Word staying
within the boundaries and margins of God’s will for our lives. Besides his heritage, the psalmist viewed the
word of God as,
1)
A light of guidance (Psalm
119:105) – Jesus said He was the light of the world (John
8:12). In John
1:1-5, scripture tells us that the Word was with God and was God. The Word spoken of in this passage is Jesus
described as being the light of men shining in darkness. Even a quick glance at the news on any given
day reveals the darkness prevalent in the world. While we as believers have the light of the
world living within us, we still live in a dark world and just like the
psalmist, need the light of God’s Word to guide us.
2)
Something he solemnly committed to follow (Psalm
119:106) – While the Word of God is powerful and wonderful lighting our
path, it is also sharp cutting off those things in our lives that do not
glorify God (Hebrews
4:12). While commitment to the Word
of God is easy when it involves believing the wonderful promises it holds, it
is difficult when it sheds light on some sin in our lives asking us to repent
and change direction. However, if we are
to reap the full benefits of our heritage in the Word of God, we must remain
committed even though it involves some pain.
3)
A source of life in the middle of affliction (Psalm
119:107) – Besides saying He was the light of the world, Jesus said he was
the way, truth, and life (John
14:6). Jesus also told us there will
be trouble and affliction in the dark world in which we live but reminds us
that he has overcome the world (John
16:33). While we will not meet Jesus
face-to-face until he returns or our death, we can experience the source of
life provided by Christ through the Word of God when afflicted by the dark
world in which we live.
4)
Something to learn and worthy of praise (Psalm
119:108) – In John
14:6 Jesus also said He was the truth.
Ironically, Pilate asked Jesus what truth was and unfortunately for him
did not stay around to hear the answer (John
18:38). The main benefit for us in
establishing a boundary of time daily for study of God’s Word is in not making
the mistake of Pilate but instead sticking around to discover truth by reading Words
from the author of truth.
5)
Something to remember in dangerous times (Psalm
119:109) – The psalmist speaks of constant danger in his life but never
forgetting God’s Word. In many parts of
the world Christians worship God under direct threat to their lives. In the United States, Christians typically to
not worship under direct threat to their lives but may suffer rejection or ridicule
for their faith. Whether it is direct
harm, rejection, or ridicule, we must remember the Word of God and in it find
comfort. However, to do this, we must know
the Word which comes through regular study and learning what it says,
making it available for us in dangerous times.
6)
A way to avoid the traps of the wicked (Psalm
119:110) – Satan is a crafty enemy with many weapons in his arsenal. The main traps he uses are deception and
temptation. Satan deceived Adam and Eve
in the Garden of Eden by causing them to doubt God had their best interest in
mind when He instructed them not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil
(Genesis
3:4-5). The deception was that they
would not die, the temptation was that they would know good and evil. Satan is still cunning and crafty, trying to
deceive and tempt us all. Therefore, we
must like the psalmist not wander from the precepts of the Word of God.
7)
As a valuable heritage, something worthy of
obeying to the very end (Psalm
119:111-112) – As we learn to know and understand more of God’s Word, we
will begin to realize the immense value of our heritage in Christ. The
more we realize our rich heritage in the Word of God, the more we will want to
live in obedience to it.
We have a rich heritage in Scripture, something worth learning, worth our praise, and worth our obedience. A dark
world needs the light of God’s Word and waits for the holders of that light to
let it shine. Will you join me in being
one of God’s lighthouses of truth?
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