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The Scriptorium

What God Sees

You and me. All the time. Psalm 119.159

Psalm 119.153-160 (5)

Pray Psalm 119.159.
Consider how I love Your precepts;
Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.

Sing Psalm 119.159.
(Angel’s Story: Angels from the Realms of Glory)
Lord, consider how I love the precepts of Your holy Word!
All Your Word is truth forever, and your judgments, righteous Lord.
O revive us! O revive us by Your kindness, loving Lord!

Read Psalm 119.153-160; meditate on verses 159.

Preparation

1. What did the psalmist seek from the Lord?

2. What was his attitude toward God’s Word?

Meditation
Here’s the great thing about God: He’s always watching us!

Here’s the scary thing about God: He’s always watching us!

The verb “consider” in our text is literally “see”. The psalmist says, “See how I love Your precepts.” Now of course, God looks on the heart where He can “see” whether it’s true that we love His Word. But He also looks on our outward life; and since true faith is both inward assurance and outward evidence (Heb. 11.1), God is looking for indicators that love for His Word is both internally grounded and outwardly visible.

And we know that, both inwardly and outwardly, our love for the Word of God needs improvement. The psalmist knew this, too, so he wisely called on God to “revive” him, that is, to grant him more of the great salvation of the Lord and, thus, more love for God’s Word.

It’s great and scary to know that God sees us inside and out. But we know what He’s looking for: evidence! He wants to see our soul pulsing with delight in the Scriptures, and to note the evidence of Scripture’s power for love issuing in all our words and deeds. When we want this as much as God does, we’ll be right where we’re supposed to be.

Completely happy and fulfilled (Ps. 119.1-3).

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
Most Saturday mornings in years gone by, the whole Moore family cleaned house. Kevin, Kristy, Ashley, and Casey all had to do a deep clean of their rooms (well, you know, Legos off the floor, clean sheets, beds made, floors vacuumed) and keep the shared bathroom clean enough that just in case tetanus shots weren’t up to date there wouldn’t be a problem.

And in order to do anything else on their day off, the room had to get an OK. And that’s when the tiny struggles began because, shocker, they didn’t buckle right down and get busy with the work at hand. There might have even been just a little dawdling involved.

“Come see my room. What do you think? Consider how clean it is.” My favorite excuse was Ashley’s when her space got a thumbs down. “Well, I just need to put the finishing touches on it.”

Are we really bold enough to say to God, “Consider how I love Your precepts?”
“Come see, God, how I spend quality time in Your Word.” “Observe how diligently I read Your Law.”
“See how I follow Your commands!” Do you think we will get the OK from God? A thumbs up from Him?
Or are we dawdling a bit with really getting down to business with God’s Word? Do you think we might even have to say, “I just need to put on the finishing touches”?

Truly, I miss those Saturday rituals and the time we had together as a family. And why do I miss that time so much? Well, because I love those children so much.

That is the same reason we can say to God, even in our imperfections, “Consider how I love Your precepts.” Because then in the same breath we say, “Revive us, according to Your lovingkindness.”

We know we are loved by Him. We know that He wants us revived even more than we want it. And we know that we are forgiven for our many shortcomings. “For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy; ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones” (Is. 57.15).

We are overwhelmed with His love and salvation: “I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the LORD and the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has bestowed on us…” (Is. 63.7).

Even when we are still “putting the finishing touches” on the working out of our own salvation with fear and trembling (Phil.2.12), we can rest assured of God’s eternal love for us. What God sees first when He looks at us is Jesus, and our redemption through Him. But then He sees us with eyes of love, loving Him back as best we can. “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 Jn. 4.19).

So, let’s get busy, and clean our rooms, so we’ll be ready to go out into our Personal Mission Field and share this reviving love with those who need to hear it!

For reflection

1. Why is it important to bear in mind that God sees us at all times?

2. Why do we need to remember that He sees us in Jesus?

3. Outline a daily regimen for making sure that your “room is clean” before the Lord always.

He encourages himself from the consolatory consideration, that God, when he sees his own people sore pressed, comes forward, seasonably to afford them succor. John Calvin (1509-1564), Commentary on Psalm 119.151

Pray Psalm 119.160.
All
Scripture is inspired and true. Wait in silence before the Lord. Ask Him to show any areas of Scripture you have neglected or any with which you need to become more familiar. Thank Him.

Sing Psalm 119.160.
(Angel’s Story: Angels from the Realms of Glory)
All Your Word is true and all Your righteous judgments will endure.
I will look to You and walk within Your Law forevermore.
O revive us! O revive us by Your Word so strong and sure.

T. M. and Susie Moore

You can listen to a summary of last week’s Scriptorium study by going to our website, www.ailbe.org, and clicking the Scriptorium tab for last Sunday. You can download any or all the studies in this series on Psalm 119 by clicking here.

What is the Law of God and how should we learn and obey it? Two books can help. The Law of God arranges the statutes and precepts of God’s Law under their appropriate number of the Ten Commandments. This book is an excellent tool for meditating on God’s Law and thinking about its application in our time. The Ground for Christian Ethics, on the other hand, explains why the Law matters and how we are to use it. You can order free copies of each of these here and here.

If you find Scriptorium helpful in your walk with the Lord, please seek the Lord, asking Him whether you should contribute to the support of this daily ministry with your financial gifts. As the Lord leads, you can use the Contribute button at the website to give with a credit card or through PayPal or Anedot, or you can send your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 360 Zephyr Road, Williston, VT 05495.

Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.

 

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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