Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Pslam 119:105-106, 112 NASB

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.  I have sworn and I will confirm it, that I will keep Your righteous ordinances... I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes forever, even to the end.

Jim Collin spoke of "the genius of the and", and this has intrigued me.  Though he speaks of it in relation to contrasts, I have seen it as connecting vital words and thoughts, without which we won't see the whole.  This has caused me to especially take note of it in relation to its strong use in Scripture.  There are words, statements, thoughts, concepts and truths that are only half full without the "and" that connects it with another word or phrase, without which we would not have the full picture, meaning, strength and color.  For example:  male and female, Alpha and Omega, and faith and works.  What would one be without the other?  I would say, "this is the power of the and".  The Psalmist knew this and said, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.  If you've ever walked in the darkness with a flashlight, you are constantly moving the light from your feet to the path ahead and back again to keep from stumbling.  In the same way, God not only sheds light on the present, right where my feet are right now, but also on the path ahead, and back again.  Then the Psalmist says, "I have sworn and I will confirm it, that I will keep Your righteous ordinances.  I learned, over my 38 years of ministry that a trip to the altar, like a diet, takes more than an emotional experience.  It necessitates both commitment and continuation.  But continuation doesn't just happen.  It becomes a part of our lives when we "incline" ourselves toward it.  Here's how the Psalmist put it: "I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes forever, even to the end." Inclination is that set of the soul that chooses to chose for God every time. This is that inclination that keeps us from sin and keeps us to Him.  Jim Carattini, managing editor of a Slice of Infinity at Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, tells of John Wesley once asking his mother for a definition of sin.  John received this response:  "Take this rule.  Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or takes off your relish of spiritual things...that thing is sin to you, however innocent it may be in itself." (Letters of Susanna Wesley, June 8, 1725).  This is profound and powerful! So which way are you inclined? You cannot be given to God and sin at the same time.  There is simply not this kind of "and" in this relationship.  Many, like a car out of alignment, need for God to realign the heart so it doesn't pull to the right or to the left.  Could this be what the Psalmist was getting at when he prayed, "Unite my heart to fear Your name" (Psalm 86:11)?  What a wonderful possibility!  I think it's worth praying,

Psalm 119:105-106 NASB

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.  I have sworn and I will confirm it, that I will keep Your righteous ordinances." 

As I travel to various places, one thing I try not to forget is a flashlight.  I've gotten caught in situations where there was no power for light and, in some of these places, the utter darkness in a house or on a path, can be overwhelming, smothering and frightening.  It actually doesn't have to be a very big flashlight.  In the darkness, light is alive no matter the size.  Sometimes, as you walk down a dark and lonesome path of life's difficulties, that want to overwhelm, smother and frighten, one little promise from God's word can be the light you need to take another step forward.  As with the comfort of a small flashlight in my pocket, I am thankful for the comfort of the small promises of God's word in my soul.  "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."  These promises aren't to be treated like a good luck charm, such a rabbit's foot in the pocket.  If that's what they become to us, we are no different than the pagan lost in his own superstitions, believing that everything has to do with fortune, and that , if we play our cards right, we have a better chance with life's twists and turns.  God's promises have nothing to do with fortune.  They have everything to do with favor.  The man or woman walking with God with all their heart is like a little child who depends and delights in his parents joyful and present care.  This child responds to his parents in loving obedience, which keeps the child close and covered.  This parent doesn't have to scream at the child to keep him from wandering onto the street.  All the parent has to do is speak to the child, and the child quickly and quietly responds, thus protecting him from the dangers of the street.  It's in this sense that the Psalmist says, "I have sworn and I will confirm it, that I will keep Your righteous ordinances."  This wasn't something forced on him.  This, he knew, was the safety of God's favor toward him and he responds to it.  There is nothing like the favor of God on your life.  This is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path.  Walk in it with all your heart.  It will lead you home safely.