GIVE ME UNDERSTANDING!

"Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. . . . Thy hands have made me and fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments." (Psalms 119:34,73)

AS A MAN ESPECIALLY CLOSE TO GOD, David had a profound appetite for the Word of the Lord. He was not satisfied to merely have an academic acquaintance with Scripture, but desired to understand, or comprehend, this appointed means of sustaining spiritual life. Although noted for being wise, and having a disciplined mind, he sought understanding from the Lord Himself. Five times in the 119th Psalm, he pleads with God to give him this precious understanding (vs 34,73,125,144,169). In this, he provided a noble example for us.

THERE IS A DIMENSION of understanding that goes beyond the reach of the natural mind. Unless we receive assistance from the Lord Himself, we will not be able to appropriate this understanding. David knew this and sought such comprehension from the Lord. He realized he could not observe, or align himself with God's Word, without this understanding. His life could not be godly without a proper understanding.

SUFFICE IT TO SAY, we need Divine assistance in the matter of spiritual understanding. "For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding" (Col 1:9). It is God who "fills" us with wisdom and understanding in spiritual matters, and He does so by personally teaching us. This thought focuses on the unique privilege of being "taught by God." His teaching does not obviate the disciplined involvement of the human heart and mind. Without God's personal instruction, however, all such activities are vain. There is no such thing as life in Christ without Divine involvement.

NOTICE, THE APOSTLE PRAYS the people will be "filled with the knowledge of His will IN all spiritual wisdom and understanding." This involves the knowledge of Scripture, but is not limited to it. The Scripture obtains its power and profitability from God, not from human thought. It is axiomatic that until this type of wisdom and understanding is perceived as coming from God, it simply will be not possessed. It is something for which we must ask (James 1:5).

THE NEW COVENANT IS NOT the induction of a deistic enterprise–i.e., one in which God Himself is uninvolved. In such a case, men imagine God is really not present. It is a situation where things run by laws and principles. Spiritual life is thus thought to run something like a clock that is wound up. It just ticks away automatically, without any personal affiliation with the living God. Emphatically, this is not the case with the regime of Jesus! A Person holds all things together, not an imagined "law of nature" (Col 1:17).

MORE WITNESS FROM DAVIDBecause of his sensitivity to the Lord, David was a "man after" God's own "heart" (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22). As such, I am interested in His observations about the teaching of God. David did have a Bible. It was limited, because revelation was limited. However, he devoured the Scripture he possessed, meditating upon it in the night time, and rising early to ingest its message (Psa 63:6; 119:147,148). Yet, he saw the necessity of Divine tutelage. He wanted to be "taught by God." When counsel was given, David responded in a God-glorifying manner. "I will bless the LORD Who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night" (Psa 16:7, NASB). Notice that the counsel of God is paralleled with the instruction of David's mind. When God teaches, our minds do become spiritually productive.

THIS WAS INNER INSTRUCTION, not an audible voice like Samuel heard. Of course, God does have access to the heart. He not only sees what is in the heart, He can effectively counsel the heart. He can direct our thinking without violating our wills or compromising His character! No one should shrink from this thought. One of the marks of the New Covenant is, "I will put my laws into their minds" (Heb 8:10). There is such a thing as a mind being "controlled by the Spirit" (Rom 8:6, NIV). This is how God counsels His people, opening realities to them in their minds, expanding their thoughts, and elevating their contemplations. It is true that He uses Scripture, but that in no way removes His personal involvement.

AFTER PAUL HAD WRITTEN to Timothy, declaring the Word given to him, he relied upon the teaching of the Lord. "Consider what I say; for the Lord shall give thee understanding in all things" (1 Tim 2:7, ASV). What a marvelous provision! As our hearts and minds become involved in holy reflection, the Lord becomes involved with us. No wonder the Apostle reminded the Ephesians, "But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus" (Eph 4:20-21, NKJV).

THE WORD OF GOD notifies us that God "directs" people. Solomon said, "The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps" (Prov 16:9). The 37th Psalm records, "The steps of a man are established by the LORD; And He delights in his way" (Psa 37:23). He directs us by teaching us.

– Given O. Blakely