TURN OUR EYES TO JESUS
Opening Prayer
Thank you, Father, for the guidance you offer me in your Word. Help me to seek your will and to follow it with thanksgiving and praise.
Read PSALM 119:25–48
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
ד Daleth
25 I am laid low in the dust;
preserve my life according to your word.
26 I gave an account of my ways and you answered me;
teach me your decrees.
27 Cause me to understand the way of your precepts,
that I may meditate on your wonderful deeds.
28 My soul is weary with sorrow;
strengthen me according to your word.
29 Keep me from deceitful ways;
be gracious to me and teach me your law.
30 I have chosen the way of faithfulness;
I have set my heart on your laws.
31 I hold fast to your statutes, Lord;
do not let me be put to shame.
32 I run in the path of your commands,
for you have broadened my understanding.
ה He
33 Teach me, Lord, the way of your decrees,
that I may follow it to the end.[a]
34 Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law
and obey it with all my heart.
35 Direct me in the path of your commands,
for there I find delight.
36 Turn my heart toward your statutes
and not toward selfish gain.
37 Turn my eyes away from worthless things;
preserve my life according to your word.[b]
38 Fulfill your promise to your servant,
so that you may be feared.
39 Take away the disgrace I dread,
for your laws are good.
40 How I long for your precepts!
In your righteousness preserve my life.
ו Waw
41 May your unfailing love come to me, Lord,
your salvation, according to your promise;
42 then I can answer anyone who taunts me,
for I trust in your word.
43 Never take your word of truth from my mouth,
for I have put my hope in your laws.
44 I will always obey your law,
for ever and ever.
45 I will walk about in freedom,
for I have sought out your precepts.
46 I will speak of your statutes before kings
and will not be put to shame,
47 for I delight in your commands
because I love them.
48 I reach out for your commands, which I love,
that I may meditate on your decrees.
Footnotes
- Psalm 119:33 Or follow it for its reward
- Psalm 119:37 Two manuscripts of the Masoretic Text and Dead Sea Scrolls; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text life in your way
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
‘I lay in dust, life’s glory dead, / and from the ground there blossoms red / life that shall endless be.’1
The young man of the psalm is weighed down by his past. He knows he has failed to keep God’s Law. He has been formed by his upbringing, his religion, and his culture, all of which have combined to reinforce the one creed. The way to gain God’s favor, and therefore his blessing, his care and protection, is by obedience to God’s Law. He feels that he has let himself down and let God down: ‘I am laid low in the dust’ (v. 25). However, his God – and our God – has always been a forgiving God. Although this was supremely demonstrated in the sacrificial death of Christ, this young man already knew he could be forgiven. He would need to bring a sin offering to be sacrificed at the temple and, if he was truly penitent, God, who knows the heart, would forgive him and he could once again devote himself to obeying God’s Law.
The young man understood his own weakness. He knew that without God’s help, he was incapable of obeying God. He confessed his sinful past and then, with prayer after prayer, supplication after supplication, he entreated God to help him obey: ‘Teach me … Give me understanding … Direct me … Turn my heart … Turn my eyes …’ (vv. 33–37). These must be our constant prayers, too – not that God will turn us toward the Law but that God will turn us toward Jesus. The young man didn’t know that the ultimate sacrifice would one day be paid. It would be so perfect, so all-embracing, that the sacrifice for the living would be sufficient also for the dead: ‘… only together with us would they be made perfect.’2 Jesus is the only way for us to the Father, but the power of his sacrifice transcends all time and space. Through Jesus, we and this young man will all reach eternal life with God.
Apply
May our hearts and minds always be toward Jesus, Lord of the new covenant.
Closing prayer
Holy Spirit, in my faith journey, I look to you to teach me in ways that increase my love for God and obedience to his Word. Strengthen my walk with him so that others might see him in me and want to know him.
1 George Matheson, 1842 – 1906, ‘O Love that wilt not let me go’ 2 Heb 11:40
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