Last Sunday was the beginning of a new unit titled “Spiritual Disciplines: Becoming More Like Jesus.” The first lesson from 1 Timothy 4:1-10 overviewed the benefit of practicing spiritual disciplines. I must admit that this is good for me to consider in hindsight - as I did not practice the discipline last week to write the lesson overview.

For various reasons, as I isolated I found other things todo rather than what would have been most beneficial. That gets us back to discipline, doesn’t it?

We have choices to make every moment of every day. When we choose the path of least resistance we will fail to grow and develop as we ought to. As it relates to health, effort is involved in eating the right things or less of the wrong things. Physical activity does not happen without an effort to get up and get going.

The truth of the lesson last week was that we experience growth in Christ through the practice of spiritual disciplines.

The disciplines encompass: prayer, confession, worship, Bible study, fasting,

giving, serving and more. Paul compares the practice of spiritual

discipline to physical training (vv.7-8).

We are to train ourselves in godliness. We know the benefits of godliness far surpass the benefits of training the physical body. Verse 10 re enforces this truth as he writes that

we “labor and strive” in service to God. It sounds too simple but if you are

struggling in keeping your spiritual disciplines then deliberately make the

choice new everyday to follow through. Forget what lies behind and strive

toward the goal for which you were called (Philippians 3:13-14). If that’s not

quite enough ask a friend (of the same gender) to help you be accountable and

encourage one another daily. 

Psalm 119 is poetically arranged in twenty-two eight verse sections, each one headed with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This was most likely done to aid in memorization and instruction. That is appropriate in that memorizing God’s Word is a spiritual discipline. The overall theme of the chapter is delighting in the word of God and the benefits we can derive from that. The writer first asks for God to deal with him “generously.” He requests God’s mercy and goodness rather than judgement. As he lives he will seek to keep God’s commands as a servant of the Master. In verse 18 he asks for God to open his eyes in order to see the truth. We see here a request for insight and clarity, something the spiritually blind will not see. We see throughout the Bible that spiritual blindness is overcome by the light of truth. The phrasing of the CSB is so great here as he seeks to “contemplate wondrous things” that God reveals to him. The Michael W. Smith chorus based on Ephesians 1:18 is brought to my mind this morning: “Open the eyes of my heart, Lord I want to see you.”

1 Peter 2:11 echoes the words of the psalmist found in verse 19. This thought is translated in many ways we are: aliens, strangers, travellers, sojourners, exiles, pilgrims, etc. You get the idea - this world is not our home. Even though we are in a strange land we are never alone. The psalmist goes on to reveal that he is suffering persecution because of his love and loyalty to God and his commands. He is waiting intently if not patiently for God to make things right. Like Jeremiah we too are often compelled to ask why do the wicked prosper (Jer. 12:1)?

In verse 21 the adjective “arrogant” is used to describe these oppressors.What does the arrogant person do? They “wander” away from God’s commands. These wanderers don’t simply fall into error, but they run to error because in their reasoning they know better than God. They willingly exchange the truth of God for a lie (Romans 1:25). The psalmist even writes that the arrogant are under a curse. This curse is the polar opposite of the blessing for those who “delight” in the law of the LORD (Psalm 1:2). He closes this section with a plea for God to give relief from those who insult him. The blinded do not receive the truth of God or those who uphold His truth’s. In difficult times he did not wander or walk away, but he kept God’s decrees. 

Psalm 119:23 portrays groups of powerful and influential people conspiring against God’s servant. This could have been private conversation, but they may have also slandered him in public discourse. The purpose was to turn opinions and people against the psalmist. We see a good example from the psalmist here. He did not allow these untruths and accusations to distract him from his first focus. He continued to dwell on (meditate and memorize) God’s statutes. Abiding in God and His Word enables us to be strong, maintain our composure, and bear fruit. He says that God’s decrees are his delight and his counselors.

This leads me to a couple pretty simple questions for application. Before you answer, take a moment to find Psalm 1 and read it slowly.  

Remember the truth we started with: “Our hearts are satisfied as we encounter God through His Word.” The Word is a powerful and two-edged sword. The Word is our weapon against the enemy. The Word is truth, giving sight to the blind. The Word is God’s supernaturally preserved record of His revelation to humanity. We get to know Him better through His Word.