PSALM 138:1-2 – I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing your praise; I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.”
THEME OF THE DAY: THE SIMPLICITY OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. There is something refreshingly simple about the Christian life. I didn’t say easy but simple. When Jesus finished washing the feet of His disciples, He said, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you” (John 13:12-15). Our Lord gives them and us a simple direction – do as I have done. Rather simple, clear, not open to misunderstanding or confusion isn’t it? Again not easy, but simple. And we will find the many directions for living out the Christian life just that – simple. What makes the Christian life, and life in general, complex and not simple is our selfishness and sin. Remove those two things and we have removed the very things that make life chaotic and confusing.
In today’s scripture, we find simplicity. It is a simplicity declared by God Himself in the two things He is committed to exalting about Himself – His Name and His Word. Imagine if we lived all of life – every relationship, every conversation, every circumstance, every situation and every trial with the simple goals to honor God’s name and Word by conduct, attitude, and speech. Or we may say to the Lord each morning in prayer, “Lord, help me throughout the day to exalt what You exalt, Your Name and Your Word.” Would that not be the practical application of these words of the Apostle Paul – So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31) and of the shorter catechism question one – What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and fully enjoy Him forever. I know, I know. Here is the big question, “Yes, so simple, but so hard. How may we consistently exalt His Name and Word?” Let me offer two applications.
First, we must make our relationship with the Living God our highest priority in life. The testimony of the Apostle Paul must be ours – that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death (Philippians 3:10). This means no neglect of His Word, prayer, corporate worship, and fellowship with other Christians. We simply cannot exalt the Name and Word of the One we don’t really know. Cultivate the relationship at all cost. Don’t give into the flesh and its scream for ease and comfort. Nor allow the pleasure of the world to steal our appetite to know Christ through His Word and prayer.
Second application is to live in the spirit of Psalm 139. Take time and read it. Be gripped like David with the all-pervasive Presence of God. Learn to live not with the felt Presence of God but the conscious awareness of God. It causes us to walk in His fear which is the key to exalting what He exalts – His Name and His Word. And thus the simple Christian life is lived as God intends.
PRAYER: “Father, may my life consistently reflect the honor of Your Name and the upholding of Your Word by obedience.”
QUOTE: “Live to never bring reproach or dishonor to what God exalts above all things – His Name and His Word.”
In the affection of Christ Jesus,