Psalm 119:169

Psalm 119:169 “May my cry come before You, O Lord; give me understanding according to Your Word.”
 

It is comforting to know that the cry of our heart comes before “The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin” Exodus 34:6-7. Can you imagine praying to a god who is anything less than our God? HE is what gives prayer its hope. This is our hope of glory! 
 

David’s cry is that he would understand according to the Word of God. The Word is God, and God lives within His Word. To gain understanding according to His Word would be to learn how to treat all other people the way God treats us. What understanding would we need other than how to treat our fellow man? We can fulfill the entire law through the simple act of loving God with all our heart, mind, and soul, and loving our neighbor as our self. 
 

We understand the Word according to our level of love. God is love. To understand His Word we too, must love. “Whoever does not love does not know God” 1 John 4:8. If we do not love, we do not need to pray to understand the Word, for there is no understanding outside of love. We must understand love before we will understand judgment, suffering, or righteous indignation.

Without a full understanding of God’s love for all, parts of the Word will seem to be a contradiction of itself. God’s love is expressed in mercy. Because of God’s desire to have mercy on everyone, it becomes entirely necessary for certain “negative” things to happen. However, if those “negative” things ultimately draw us close to God, they are no longer “negative” at all.
 

Let me encourage you to take some time to meditate on this verse. As you do, ask God to give you understanding according to His Word.

Continued