Psalm 119:81-104 Devotional
by Pastor Lawrence

Oftentimes those who are of a more liberal persuasion accuse conservative evangelicals of bibliolatry, which refers to the worship of the Bible, because we hold to the doctrine of the inerrancy of Scripture.  Because we believe the Bible to be the very Word of God, we don’t feel that we have the right to lay aside any part of it simply because it doesn’t live up to our standards.  But even if we say that we believe that, our actions don’t always correspond to our supposed principles, which makes the words of this psalmist all the more powerful, especially given the fact that he wasn’t privy to the fullness of the revelation that we have in Jesus Christ.  If there was anyone who came close to bibliolatry in ancient times, perhaps it was he.

Notice just how much he loved God’s Word: it was his continual delight, sweeter to him than even honey on his lips.  It was his meditation all the day long.  He longed for the promises that he found in it; he sought out every precept, and considered every testimony vowing never to forsake the words of life.  Even in the midst of great turmoil and persecution he recalled God’s Word and rejoiced in faith.

Notice also what he found in God’s Word: it brought him great comfort, hope and assurance in hard times, helping him in any situation.  He found that it made him wiser than all his enemies, gave him more understanding than all his teachers, and even gave him a leg-up on the aged, making him wise beyond his years.  Although he admitted to seeing a limit to all perfection in a fallen world, he found that God’s commandment was exceedingly broad, beyond his ability to fathom or to master; nevertheless, he delighted in exploring its every nook and cranny every chance he could get.

Notice finally how his love for God’s Word made him to hate every false way, for how can light and darkness live together in peace?  How can truth and falsehood be friends?  How can righteousness and wickedness be co-laborers?  They cannot!  A sure sign of a Christian who loves God’s Word is that he hates sin, especially his own sin, and also hates to see God’s Word contradicted and God’s name dishonored.

Of course, no believer, and not even the psalmist who wrote these words, consistently lives up to the holy desires that are expressed in this passage.  We all fall short of our good intentions.  Not so in the case of Jesus.  He continually delighted himself in God’s Word keeping every precept and walking fully in its wisdom.  Even in the midst of great temptation by the devil himself, Jesus is quoting again and again from the law of God that He had memorized and meditated upon continually.  And it is precisely because he didn’t fall into sin and yet paid the penalty for our sins that our greatest love is for Christ and not for the Law of God.  Even though we truly admire and are growing in our reverence for God’s holy Word, we do not worship the Bible but worship the Christ who has opened our eyes to the many wonders of his Word, and the greatest wonder is the man of wisdom, the Son of God, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.