The Word of God

[Psalm 19]

As the people of God, we must draw near to God and distance ourselves from the world. We Christians must hold fast to the Word of God and not live in partnership with the world. One of the reasons is that, when we live in union with the world, we drift away from God’s Word, turn to the right or to the left, and ultimately sin against God.

What is truly frightening is that when we are distant from God's Word, we no longer recognize sin as sin. As a result, we fall even deeper into willful sin. Living in habitual sin, we are no longer led by the Word of God but rather by sin itself. What’s alarming is how rapidly such spiritual regression occurs. Faith can decline so quickly—and the root cause is the swift departure from God's Word.

In Deuteronomy 17:19, the Bible states that if one is to be king of Israel, he must "keep a copy of the law with him and read it all the days of his life, so that he may learn to fear the Lord and carefully obey all the words of this law." We are royal priests. Therefore, we too must keep God’s Word close by throughout our lives, reading it and obeying it faithfully.

Looking at today’s passage in Psalm 19—especially starting from verse 7—the psalmist David speaks about “the law of the Lord.” Under the title "The Word of God," I would like to reflect on what the Word of God is and what our response to it should be.

What is the Word of God?
David teaches us four aspects:

First, the Word of God is perfect, restoring the soul.
Look at the first part of Psalm 19:7:
“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul…”
Here, “perfect” refers to the completeness of God’s Word, which points to its supernatural nature (according to Pak Yun-sun). In other words, the Word of God, through its supernatural power, can regenerate dying souls. This is the very purpose of truth.

The Word of God brings life to dying souls; it has the power to restore souls that are dead and separated from God. Moreover, this Word has the power to lift up and strengthen the discouraged souls of us imperfect believers. Therefore, through God’s perfect Word, we experience the restoration of our discouraged hearts.

Second, the Word of God is trustworthy, making the simple wise.
Now look at the second part of Psalm 19:7:
“… the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.”
The Word of God, which reveals the truth that leads to knowledge of God, is “sure,” meaning it is “true” (according to Pak Yun-sun). This true Word of God makes the simple wise.

The word “simple” in the original Hebrew refers to one who is “open.” That is, the true Word of God works within the one who has an open heart and makes that person wise. When the seed of the Word is sown into a heart that is like good soil—open and receptive—it bears the fruit of wisdom. Therefore, we must open the door of our hearts, receive the Word of God in faith, and also obey it.

Third, the Word of God is upright and makes the heart rejoice.
Let’s look at the first part of Psalm 19:8:
"The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart..."
When it says that the Word of God is “upright,” it means it is “right” or “straight.”
The straight Word of God pierces the sinner’s heart and leads to repentance.
A person can only find true joy when they repent (Pak Yun-Sun).
A crooked, distorted heart is pierced by the Word of God, leading to repentance and making it right.
The Word of God is upright.
And only when our hearts are made upright can we experience true joy.
True joy resides in a right heart.
There is absolutely no way for true joy to exist in a twisted heart.

Fourth and last, the Word of God is pure and enlightens the eyes.
Let’s look at the second part of Psalm 19:8:
"...the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes."
Here, “pure” means “clean.”
In other words, the Word of God is clean.
When our soul is washed by this pure Word, our spiritual eyes are enlightened.
Then, we are able to see God (Matthew 5:8).
We experience God.
A good example of this is Job.
After walking the path of suffering, Job made this confession:
"My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you" (Job 42:5).
The lesson we gain from this confession is that if we endure the path of suffering while holding tightly to the pure Word of God, in the end, in the purity of our soul, we will see with enlightened spiritual eyes the God we had only heard about before.
We must obey the Word of God so that our souls may be purified (1 Peter 1:22).
In doing so, we will be able to experience God even in the midst of our suffering.

So then, how should we respond to the Word of God?
We can consider four ways.

First, we must fear the Lord.
Let’s look at Psalm 19:9:
"The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The decrees of the LORD are firm, and all of them are righteous."
The Word of God leads us to know God—not just any god, but the holy and righteous God (the phrase "the decrees of the LORD are firm, and all of them are righteous" refers to God’s certain and righteous judgment).
As a result, we come to fear the Lord, and thus obey His Word.
When we do so, our hearts are purified by the Word of God.
In a pure heart that fears God, sin cannot reside.
Ultimately, the pure in heart (verse 8) see the holy and righteous God with spiritual eyes, and in reverent fear of that God, they live a life that turns away from evil.

Secondly, we must long for the Word of God.
Look at Psalm 19:10:
"They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb."
Gold may bring worldly wealth, but it cannot bring richness to the soul.
The Word of the Lord enriches our souls (Pak Yoon-Sun).
While gold may provide material wealth, it often leaves our souls in poverty.
Therefore, we must earnestly desire the Word of God, which brings true spiritual wealth.
The more we taste the sweetness of God’s Word, which enriches the soul, the more we naturally long for it.
In the end, the upright (verse 8) cannot help but desire the Word of God.
Thus, the upright experience the joy of the heart and continue to enjoy that joy.

Thirdly, we must keep the Word of God.
Look at Psalm 19:11:
"Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward."
David was warned by the Word of God.
He kept God's Word in order not to sin.
The reason was because "there is great reward."
In other words, David kept God’s Word because the outcome for those who keep it is great
(The Hebrew meaning of “great reward” is “its outcome is great” – Pak Yoon-Sun).
We too must not ignore God’s warnings.
We must keep His Word to the end, so that we may receive the reward of salvation for our souls.
Ultimately, the one who opens their heart (verse 7 – “the simple”) becomes wise and keeps the Word of God.

Fourth and lastly, we must pray.
Look at Psalm 19:12–13:
"Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; let them not rule over me. Then I will be blameless, and I shall be acquitted of great transgression."
David prayed that God, through His Word, would help him recognize his “errors.”
He especially wanted to be made aware of his “presumptuous sins” so that he would not commit them again.
Thus, his prayer requests were: “Acquit me of hidden faults” (v. 12) and “I shall be acquitted of great transgression” (v. 13).
If we continue committing presumptuous sins, those sins will begin to dominate us (Pak Yoon-Sun).
In other words, sin will rule over us.
That is why David prayed, “Let them not rule over me” (v. 13).
The Bible says that the one who is perfect, the one who is mature, is a person of prayer.
We hope that through prayer and by believing in the Word of God, our souls may be restored (v. 7).

David, who drew near to God, desired that the words of his mouth and the meditation of his heart would be acceptable in the sight of the Lord, his Rock and Redeemer (v. 14).
He was a man of prayer.
He was someone who longed for God's Word and kept it.
He was a man who feared God.
A believer who lives a life centered on the Word is someone who fears God, longs for His Word, keeps it, and clings to it in prayer.
That person experiences the restoring, enlightening, and joy-giving power of God's perfect, trustworthy, upright, and pure Word.
I pray that this blessing of the Word may be upon you and me as well.

Sola Scriptura! (Only the Word!)

Shared by Pastor James Kim
(With a heart full of gratitude for the blessing of being led by the promise of God’s Word)