Not only is Psalm 119 the longest Psalm, but its particular focus is on the way the Word of God is to operate in the life of those who seek, serve, and submit to God. This is what makes it an important Psalm to consider and meditate on.
My hope and prayer are that as we consider what the Psalmist wrote, we will see through the Psalm like a lens. And as we peer through the images and illustrations offered to us, we will understand more deeply what God is calling us to.
81 My soul longs for your salvation;
I hope in your word*.
82 My eyes long for your promise;
I ask, “When will you comfort me?”
83 For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke,
yet I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How long must your servant endure?
When will you judge those who persecute me?
* Through these reflections, those phrases that identify God’s word, revelation, or law will be highlighted in the text in the hopes of accentuating the many and varied ways we can visualize what God has given to us for our good.
The language of “longing” has been mostly lost in the modern world. We speak more of desire and wanting. But these words tend to be used to capture ideas of immediate relief. If we can just get what we want, we will be better. Even better off.
But longing, and in particular, the biblical conceptualization of it, speaks to an all encompassing satisfaction that will not be met by just anything. Especially not anything in this world. The longing the Psalmist is speaking to is an awareness that what is missing in our lives is of a spiritual nature. That the void that must be filled is as vast as God is eternal.
Only God can satisfy what is missing in us because it is God who created us to exist with him. The separation we commonly call sin, in theological terms, is the emptiness created by the distance our disobedience creates. The greater the distance the more ravenous the longing. And the longer we exist in this condition, the more desperate we feel.
But the closer we draw to God, the more satisfied we become. And we find ourselves not looking for something to fill that space where we know something is missing. Rather, we can then begin to look to God and be fulfilled as we were always meant to be.
Verse 81: To know God’s word is to know the hope God offers. To believe what God has revealed is to see what God can and has done. As these realities and realizations take root within our minds and hearts a longing for God’s promised blessings take root. In particular, we begin to see salvation as God’s greatest gift. The one from which all others emanate. And the one we should seek above all others.
Verse 82: On our journey of faith, the more time we spend with God, the more accustomed we become to his presence. This does not mean that we will not have times of drift. We are a people who must always fight for a disciplined way of living. However, our proximity to God is a constant reminder of the joy of his promises. When we have tasted and seen, it will become more difficult to ignore what we are missing out on when we are distant from God.
Verse 83: The imagery here is of a wineskin no longer in use, set aside, and allowed to fall into disrepair because of smoke, usually in the place of a tent where food was cooked and prepared. With this picture in mind, we are to see the effect of being dismissed or ostracized unjustly. To be kept from fulfilling ones purpose. In spire to these circumstances, we are encouraged to not forget what God has commanded. God’s purposes for us are not at risk, just because we find ourselves in places not of our design.
Verse 84: This is the first verse in which the Psalmist does not make some direct reference or allusion to God’s word. Over and over again, the author was pointing back to how all God had spoken had impacted and guided their life. After reflecting and considering all the good that comes through obedience to God’s commands, there is a pause and a question for God. How long must there be suffering for continued faithfulness to what God has said? At this point, there is no answer. Only the question. And the wrestling that comes from seeking God in the midst of difficulties.
One of the great reasons I have remained encouraged is because I genuinely believe that God is sovereign. I believe that God has not let go of the steering wheel.
Tomorrow will be the first day of the season of Lent. During this season in the Church calendar, is is particularly a good time to take a step back and look at our lives. Where are we going? Is it where we want to go?
This kind of reflecting is one we should practice often. But, it is not always easy to do. If we are not careful, it could become a time of discouragement rather than growth.
One of the great reasons I have remained encouraged is because I genuinely believe that God is sovereign. I believe that God has not let go of the steering wheel.
Now, while some would take this idea of sovereignty to mean God controls every individual facet of the world, we do not need to believe that to trust God’s goodness. The miracle of God’s oversight over the whole of creation is something we should rejoice in.
We don’t have to understand it all. We don’t even have to agree with what or how God is doing things. But, we do need to trust God. This can seem so difficult to do. At least at first.
I have often asked myself why? Why do I struggle to trust God in and through the varied circumstances of life?
I think it has to do with our fear, or at the very least, our reluctance to live a surrendered life to God.
Our desire to maintain control over what we can’t control is more damaging than we know. And what are we trying to control, you may be asking? We are trying to control outcomes. But that is not for us to decide. We must live our lives the best we can. With the information we have available to us.
We don’t know how any individual choice will turn out. But we can decide how we will respond regardless of the outcome.
Our attitude, to a degree not often considered, determines how well we live.
The season of Lent is a penitential time in the Church’s calendar. What this means is that during this season, we seek to refocus our lives. We strive to identify those attitudes and habits that are getting in the way of our spiritual growth.
One of the great challenges of the Christian journey is reflection. For those us who did not grow up in a liturgical church, the ebb and flow of the Church Calendar can seem strange. And yet, as the years have passed, I find this steady rhythm comforting.
There have been so many events and situations that have happened in the last year. I think a time of intentional reflection is warranted. Maybe its needed now more than ever.
In the last two years, I have become immersed in the study of the Book of Common Prayer tradition. And while there are other traditions in the Christian family, this particular form has been both encouraging and challenging. I have been encouraged by the simple pattern of prayer that I am offered as I pray the Daily Office. I have been encouraged by the thought that there are millions of other Christians praying in similar, if not identical ways. I have been encouraged by the effect it has had on and in my life.
But have also been challenged. As we read the scriptures, either corporately when we gather for worship or individually in private devotion, there is a short call-and-response we participate in. The leader reads the scriptures appointed and says to the congregation, “The Word of the Lord.” The people then respond, “Thanks be to God.”
What has been so challenging about this short exchange is that it reminds me that the word of God has been heard. That when I hear the Scriptures read aloud, or when I read them during my times of prayer, God is doing something through those words that is specifically for me. As a child of God, I am being blessed by those words that God spoke and preserved in the collected Scriptures.
What a wonderful gift!
It’s with this in mind that I want to draw our attention to the focus of this Lenten Series.
We will be working through and exploring the longest Psalm in the song book of the Bible, the Book of Psalms: Psalm `119.
Not only is it the longest Psalm, it has a particular focus on the way the Word of God is to operate in the life of those who seek, serve, and submit to God.
My hope and prayer is that as we consider what the Psalmist wrote, we will see through it like a lens. And as we peer through the images and illustrations they offered to us, we will understand more deeply what God is calling us to.
That the Word of God is what we need not just at the rest stops of life, but as we live and as we continue to walk in the way of the Lord.
May our love for God lead us to a deeper commitment and more faithful obedience to his Word.
