PSALM 119:30 – I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I set your rules before me.
THEME OF THE DAY. THE DECISIVE CHRISTIAN LIFE. Our lives are lived on purpose. Oh, we have mindless routines we do each day, but even they happen on purpose. And this extends throughout the day. We will make decisions on how we live, as well as what and who we live for. This equally applies to the specifics of living the Christian life. It is never mindless. There is no “spiritual cruise control” for us to engage if we want to glorify God by Christ-centered living. I read something a long time ago whose author I don’t recall that has left a huge impact in my life. He said, “In life, we will always find time to do the things most important to us.” I have used that wise saying over and over when faced with choices in the use of my free time. I know what I give my time to reveals what matters most in my life. But I would add another little saying of great importance . . . “We will choose today and throughout today to live a Christian life that brings pleasure to the Lord.” Yes, we will choose to either live the Christian life or not. And that means we make conscious decisions of obedience to God’s commands or not. A very helpful Bible study is to trace the place the mind holds in living out the Christian life. It is everywhere in the Scriptures. And when it comes to the decisive Christian life, the question put forth by the Apostle Paul to the Galatian believers is one put forth to us – “Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” (Galatians 5:7). Or we might paraphrase Paul’s words, “Who kept you from making spiritual decisions leading to decisive actions to live for Christ today?” The answer to that question is “no one but ourselves.” We will be decisive or passive all through today as to our obedience to the commands of God. Yet, there is a starting point if we are live the decisive Christian life. It is found in today’s scripture.
The Psalmist does two things to lay the foundation to live the Christian life on purpose. First, he makes a conscious decision to walk in the way of faithfulness – “I have chosen the way of faithfulness.” What is “the way of faithfulness” as described in the Bible? It is to follow the Word. The object of our faith walk is the Scriptures. When it comes to the Christian life, it starts by faith, is lived by faith, and ends by faith. And it is faith in how God has chosen to reveal Himself and how He desires us to live – by His perfect Word. So, if we want to live the decisive Christian life for God’s glory, it begins with a choice to obey the Word; to walk in the way of faithfulness.
Another thing the Psalmist models for us to live the decisive Christian life is resolving to not deviate from the narrow path of faithful obedience to God’s Word – “I set your rules before me.” The picture we see is the Psalmist putting forth “guard rails” in his life to keep him safely on course. These “guard rails” are the commands and warnings in God’s Word.
Basically, to live the decisive Christian life, we must determine to chart our lives, set our daily course and conduct, by the clear instructions found in our Bibles. And this must happen on purpose; by conscious, moment-by-moment decisions to “choose the way of faithfulness” and “setting God’s rules before us.” As we do, we grow in our love for the Lord and our experiences of His love for us.
PRAYER: “Father, help me to make decisions throughout today that honor You.”
QUOTE: “The Christian life doesn’t just happen. It is lived on purpose by decisive acts of our wills.”