WORD OF LIFE, PART 22: "CONSUMING FIRE AND ZEAL - MY DELIGHT"

Psalm 119 is an epic in the entire God-given, God-breathed Scriptures. It is not only the longest chapter in the Bible (176 verses) but one of the few chapters of Books of Scripture which covers every range of the Human Condition imaginable.  All sections of each portion of eight verses are sub-headed by a letter of each of the twenty two letters in the Hebrew Alphabet.  Now that we are at the end of our incredible journey through the entire 176 verses, which served up a cornucopia of such rich goodness, we can see the Person of Jesus Christ from beginning to end! 

THE ORIGINAL HEBREW FROM GOD TO MOSES, GENESIS 1:1

In fact, one of the Name of the Lord of Hosts is “Alpha and Omega” or “The Beginning and the End” in the biblical Greek language. The original paleo Hebrew of the Creator of all things is “Aleph Tav” . In theology terms, it is known as the Signature of God and is immediately evident in the very first verse of the Bible – Genesis 1:1, where the Holy Spirit says "In the Beginning created God Heavens and Earth". The English translation does not do it justice, but nevertheless, the “Aleph Tav” – the Great I am, the Beginning and the End because He is Eternal – is right there. "Aleph Tav" is circled in RED and cannot be translated.

"They will look on Me whom they
 have pierced "- Zechariah 12:10

In case there is any doubt, the SIGNATURE of God is found again in Zechariah 12:10, where He says "I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn". Here the un-translatable Aleph Tav is found AGAIN to emphasize that Scripture is talking about Jesus (the red arrow).

There was never any doubt that the entire Bible is all about Jesus, even without His bold signatures seen here as examples. However, Jesus Christ is not just a letter of the Alphabet. The two letters, represented here in Psalm 119 as the Aleph (first eight verses) and Tav (these final verses) are a reflection of one of His Mightiest Attributes. John 1:1 tells us Jesus is the WORD Who became flesh.  1 John 1, Jesus is called the “Word of Life”. On the way back to earth in Judgment and Victory in Revelation 19:13,  He is called “The Word of God”. When we read the Scriptures, we are reading BOTH the Word of Life, the Words of Life AND the Word of God. When we study the Law, we are studying Life, as the Law giveth Life. It is not a bunch of legalistic jargon but the parameters to keep us from hurting others, ourselves and the Holy Name of God. So when we see the Laws of God and His statutes magnified in the verses of Psalm 119, we have the explicit power words from Heaven right before us. It should behoove us to take them, well, as “Gospel”!

Psalm 119:169-176

Tav.

169  Let my cry come before You, O Lord; give me understanding according to Your word.

170  Let my supplication come before You; deliver me according to Your word.

171  Let my lips utter praise, for You teach me Your statutes.

172  Let my tongue sing of Your word, for all Your commandments are righteousness.

173  Let Your hand be ready to help me, for I have chosen Your precepts.

174  I long for Your salvation, O Lord, and Your law is my delight.

175  Let my soul live that it may praise You, and let Your ordinances help me.

176  I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I do not forget Your commandments.

When Yahweh spoke to Solomon at the dedication of the incredible First Temple in Jerusalem around 832 BC, Almighty God gave Solomon and option of ANYTHING he could wish for, and God would grant it. Solomon prayed for nothing else but “BIYN” – a discerning (wisdom with feet) mind. At the start of his life as King, Solomon also had the major component of wisdom – the Fear of the Lord. Verse 169 is an significant acknowledgement of the Power of God (read “respect, awe, fear”) from one who is wise enough to seek the counsel, love, protection and Grace from the Lord, for in this case – discernment. In a world where true wisdom is so rare, the there is a huge caveat to the dispensation of Discernment by the Holy One of Israel. This caveat is the umbrella under which the attributes of such a recipient of this special portion of Grace stand.

A full comprehension brings us to a large and awesome view of the One True God. Job 42:2a recognizes the omnipotence of Almighty God when Job says “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted". In light of this, we look at the final eight verses of Psalm 119 and what they light up in the lamps of our very souls. This can only occur due to the confirmed Power, Majesty and Grace of God Himself.  

Verse 169 - I believe. I call on God. He answers me. I fear Him. He opens the eyes of my heart.
Verse 170 - I believe. I pray with persistence and faith in the hearing of those prayers. God will deliver, according to His Plan, Purpose and Timing.
Verse 171 - I believe. Therefore, I worship, praise, lift up the Name of Jesus as Lord and bow down before Him, to the glory of His Name. For His Name is a strong and mighty Tower and His Name brings me wisdom.
Verse 172 - I believe. I sing because Your Spoken Word, through the Scriptures always proclaim directly from Heaven, that which is pure, fair, righteous, honorable and good - because God is Good. He is Sovereign.
Verse 173 - I believe. Therefore I know He will be with me. His ministering angels are at the ready, when we call and even when we do not even know we are in need of divine protection. This is easily confirmed in the testimony of every true follower of Christ. He watches over us, because we chose to obey when He called us to Salvation, Transformation and Sanctification.
Verse 174 - I believe. Therefore I must draw closer to the Flame. Our God is a consuming Fire and zeal for His House, His Truth, His Word, His Way should, would and will always invade and reside in every part, portion and fiber of my being.
Verse 175 - I believe. Therefore my soul is alive with life and hope and faith and power and fearlessness. But my soul also resides in the eternal realm right now! In addition, the laws and commands of the Lord, which are for my protection and for a good life, have now become a delight to keep and walk in daily! Our consciences are clear and hearts testify to this truth.
Verse 176 - I believe. Even when under duress, stress and my life is a mess...or need to confess, God shows up and gives His best. When I stumble, He keeps me from falling. When I fall, He reminds me of my calling. When I hurt, He sends a healing balm. When I try to run from Him, He pursues me as His law is written in my heart. This is WHY I can never walk away from Him, nor do I want to, deep down inside. This is WHY I love His law. This is why I will never forget His Law, His Commands and His Word of Life - because they are embedded in my very spirit and I will testify to Him, until my final breath, to the Praise and Glory of His Name. Amen and amen. 

PRAYER AUTHORIZED.....THEN ENERGIZED

The great men of prayer in the late 19th century were humble, yet giants of the Faith like circuit-rider Preacher Robert S. Sheffey and the prolific Christian author E.M. Bounds. Bounds is is known for his timeless works on Prayer, left behind for all believers of all ages to be encouraged....simply by reading his books!

Bounds said the following, as a man of God who had tremendous energy and passion in prayer. He said  "Prayer as spiritual energy makes way for, and brings into practical realization, the promises of God.  God's promises covers all things that pertain to life and godliness and that have to do with time and eternity".

The words "Prayer as Spiritual Energy" here is intriguing, if you think about it. Twice  in the Bible, Jesus said in Matthew Chapter 6 where this energy comes from. He says in Verse 6 in part "....pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly". Then again in Verse 18 (in part), Jesus confirms that "your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly". 

Putting aside the word "reward" here in these two verses spoken by Christ, we instead need to focus on the Person Who gives the rewards - Almighty God, Father of Lights, Heaven and Earth! This is crucial as we ramp up and fortify our prayer lives, in these uncertain days and times. It is God Himself Who looks down on His subjects (we); and empowers His children via the same Power that raised Jesus from the Dead - the Holy Spirit. Our spiritual energy comes ONLY from Him and without filter. Sin can be an obstacle, but the Energy is always available.

Therefore, one side of the equation is in place - the Holy Spirit of God, in us. He, the Spirit is a gentleman and never imposes His Will on the born-again Christian. He sits in wait to be allowed to empower and relay the fulfillment of the Promise with Which He came, when we first accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. 

The other side of this equation depends entirely on us. It is incumbent upon the Christian to respond to our Generous, Gracious, Good Father with the same passion with which He has imputed to us. Our example is the Lord Jesus Whose Passion for Abba led Him to pray "Our Father Who art in Heaven, Hallowed is Thy Name!" This manner of praying is especially beneficial to us in times of despair. When we get that scary medical report or financial disaster hits or there is a family tragedy, do we retreat and pull back our praise, love and adoration for our God? No! Ten times no!

Here is where our Spiritual Energy needs to match up to the Embedded Energy, courtesy the Holy Spirit, so that the praise and glory of God can get us through this unto victory! Here is where we prove the statement by the great prayer warrior EM Bounds to be true! Here again, is what he said in part: "Prayer as spiritual energy makes way for, and brings into practical realization, the promises of God". There it is - PRACTICAL realization of our God Who promises to never leave or forsake us. Therefore, we must not retreat but go bold with God, full of passion in our pleadings.

If we can come to that realization - that the God Who saved us, authorized us (John 1:12) to approach the Throne of Grace FREELY, then we can remain fueled with high octane Holy Ghost power towards a passionate prayer life. Then we can shout out, with dunamis - dynamic power, what the psalmist said here in Psalm 138:1-3:
138 I will give You thanks with all my heart;
I will sing praises to You before the gods.
2 I will bow down toward Your holy temple
And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.
3 On the day I called, You answered me;
You made me bold with strength in my soul.

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