Psalm 119:41-48

Vav.

May Your lovingkindnesses also come to me, O Lord, Your salvation according to Your word; so I will have an answer for him who reproaches me, for I trust in Your word. And do not take the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for I wait for Your ordinances. So I will keep Your law continually, forever and ever. And I will walk at liberty, for I seek Your precepts. I will also speak of Your testimonies before kings and shall not be ashamed. I shall delight in Your commandments, which I love. And I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments, which I love; and I will meditate on Your statutes.^[1]

Who among us has not had an encounter with someone that reproached them (a reproach is an expression of disapproval or disappointment)? The most natural reaction is to become defensive and lash out with equal or greater disapproval. But the psalmist relied instead on God’s loving kindness and His salvation according to His Word. Can you imagine that the answer to the one or ones that bring reproach against us is in the Word of God. Though we don’t tend to view the Word in quite that way we find that Jesus Himself would rely upon the Word as an answer to the temptations the devil brought against Him.

It is not so strange or far-fetched that the Word of God would contain answer to personal reproach because the Word of God is transformational. It transforms the manner in which we think about God, ourselves and others. It is impacts the way we see our circumstances, our pasts and our futures. The Word of God causes us to walk in freedom. How then can we not worship the giver of the law, the ordinances, and the statutes?

Gracious Lord, thank you for Your Word. Thank You for the liberty we find contained in it. Thank You for the confidence to speak Your Word and of Your Word in high and low places. Thank You for the privilege of celebrating Your Word. Like the psalmist help us to maintain our focus on Your Word that it would never be taken out of my mouth. Then will we continue to praise your because we love Your Word. Amen.

^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Ps 119:41–48.