INTRODUCTION
For me, Psalm 119 is one of the best Psalms on which to meditate. Each time I ponder what the Psalmist says in Psalm 119, I better appreciate just how important God’s Word is to me, and how important it ought to be to every believer. This morning I briefly write about my thoughts on Psalm 119:104.
PSALM 119:104
Psalm 119:104 reads:
(ESV) 104 Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.
(NLT) 104 Your commandments give me understanding; no wonder I hate every false way of life.
Obedience to what God teaches in His Word results in wisdom and discernment which then impacts our actions so that we stay on the straight and narrow. We know what is the right path and that we ought to stay on it.
God-given wisdom and discernment also helps us to know “every false way.” We can recognize what is good and what is evil and what is light and what is darkness. We can recognize the way of self-will, of self-righteousness, of worldliness, of pride, of unbelief, of hypocrisy. We have the understanding to hate these evil ways of life. One commentator writes:
This final verse of the section marks a great advance in character, and shows that the man of God is growing stronger, bolder, and happier than aforetime. He has been taught of the Lord, so that he discerns between the precious and the vile, and while he loves the truth fervently he hates falsehood intensely. May all of us reach this state of discrimination and determination, so that we may greatly glorify God.
The questions that arise from verse 104 are:
· Do you have the spiritual discernment to recognize what is light and what is darkness, what is good or bad, what is holy or evil, and what is true or false?
Although the extent of a person’s Bible engagement (reading, studying, listening, mediating) may not be completely determinative of their spiritual condition; in my opinion, it is a strong indicator of salvation. If you are reading this post and your Bible engagement is very weak or essentially non-existent, possibly you ought to examine yourself consistent with what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 13:5 (ESV):
5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
If you are reading this post and are not a Christian, unless God intervenes, your eternal destination is hell. But, your destiny can change. Today can be the day of your salvation. Please see my blog (https://stevebelsheim.com/2020/04/20/for-god-so-loves-you-2/) for a description of how you can be saved and a more concise description at my (https://stevebelsheim.com/2020/10/20/there-is-hope-even-when-there-seems-to-be-no-hope-2/ ).
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