Day 349: The path to purity – Psalm 119 vs 9 – 16

9 How can a young man keep his path pure? By guarding it with your words. 10 With all my heart I seek you. Do not let me stray from your commands. 11 I have hidden your sayings in my heart, so that I may not sin against you. 12 Blessed are you, O Lord! Teach me your statutes. 13 With my lips I tell about all the judgments that come from your mouth. 14-16 I rejoice in the way that is taught by your testimonies as much as I delight in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts, and I will consider your paths. In your statutes I delight. I will not forget your words. Psalm 119:9-16 Evangelical Heritage Version (English Standard Version)

What a vital question is asked in vs 9. It implies that living a pure life in this world is difficult, especially when men are young and full of vigour and adventure. By speaking of men it doesn't mean it's not for young women too. But, sadly, statistics show more young men end up in prison than young women. And in these days one often sees more women in Church than men. But, for both men and women, it's good to think about the writer's question while they are young - before wrong habits are formed and hardness sets in. What then is the answer he supplies to his own question as to how a young life can be pure? (vs 9)

The answer is clear – it is by applying oneself to all that God has revealed. When this Psalm was written that would especially have been the words God spoke through Moses. But ever since Christ came into the world we have God's word and truth in abundance. But it's not how much of God's word we have - but how much God's word has of us! When it comes to reading it, or hearing it preached, what does vs 10 suggest?

He had a whole hearted approach to God's word and an earnest desire to not drift from it. When the apostle Paul preached God's words in a town called Berea we're told that “they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11) That sort of approach will readily lead to what vs 11 says. If we make an effort to retain what we read we will quickly recognize sin in all it's shades. It was a common practice of many in the past to even memorize large portions of the Bible. What is the key to understanding the Bible in vs 12?

We must ask God for the help of His Holy Spirit. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would bring to the remembrance of the disciples all that He had taught. And in 1 Corinthians 2:12-14 Paul says: “We have received the Spirit who is from God so we may understand what God has freely given us. We speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit doesn't accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness. They cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” Ask God for the Holy Spirit to teach you each time you read His word. Verse 13 then mentions another important aspect about His word. What would you say that is?

God's word is meant to be shared with others. While we read the Bible and listen to preaching to shape our own lives with purity that pleases the Lord, we should also be willing to tell others the message that has changed our lives.

Verses 14-16 go on to describe how precious the truths which God made known to mankind were to the Psalm writer. He valued God's word in the same way he would value a great treasure. He 'meditated' often on it's truths. The Hebrew word for meditate means 'to chew over' something – not the modern view of 'emptying our mind'. He wanted God's thoughts to fill his thoughts. He delighted in God's word and was determined to not forget what he read. So the writer was teaching young people how their lives could be pure. Not that purity which is ours through the blood Jesus shed for our sins – but the purity which a saved person pursues in response to what Jesus did for us. Jesus prayed that for His disciples and said: “Father, I don't ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.” (John 17:15-17) God's word sets believers apart from the ways of the world and purifies their lives.