Has An Old Man No Hope? | Psalm 119:9-16
Has An Old Man No Hope?
Psalm 119:9-16 | Milt Reynolds | December 2, 2021
“How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. Praise be to you, LORD; teach me your decrees. With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.” (Psalm 119:9–16, NIV)
I try to read one of the stanzas from Psalm 119 daily. So, once a month I usually find myself shaking my head in disappointment, or at the very least in doubt.
Does this passage speak only to "young people"? What are us old people? Chopped liver? Vienna Sausages? Saltine crackers? Canned mackerel in tomato sause?
I think the last time I thought of myself as "still young" was about twenty years ago. I was working daily as a teacher, and responding on an average to three emergency calls a week as a volunteer firefighter.
It was during a grass fire that I collapsed from heat exhaustion, vomiting and utterly helpless. That was the third and worst time that I'd suffered from heat exhaustion. That was the last time I worked as a firefighter.
I had heart surgery within the week, replacing three of my arteries.
Eight weeks later I was "an old man".
I know that sounds like whining...I've heard of many 70-80-90-year-olds who can out-work, out-walk and out-think younger folk.
But that surgery changed me. I can no longer think of myself as a young man.
I'm old.
So, this psalm bothers me a bit, because it seems to say that only the young can change, only the young can shine in delightful freedom from guilt or sin, free of evil action or intent.
But, that's not true. Here's the reason why this psalm looks squarely at the young:
A young person must learn to delight in God's Word as early in life as possible...An old person must have already learned to delight in God's Word, a long time ago. If not, they need to start now!
God's Word purifies a person's daily life. "Purity" here means "translucent", glowing as if the sun's light were shining through. That notion is used as a figure of speech for "innocent": free from guilt or sin, free from evil action or effect.
How does God's Word make a practical difference in a person's purity? By living a consistent, daily life in accordance with God's Word. By wholeheartedly seeking and sitting in God's Word. By rejoicing in, considering, and delighting in God's Word.
That is not easy. All of that is much harder to do than simply allowing personality, parentage, politics and other people to pick and choose for me. It's much harder to do than blithely allowing culture and society to teach me morality and meaning and magnificence.
It's not easy.
It's actually impossible.
The more I read God's Word, the Holy Bible, the more I realize that my heart, mind and body are all badly broken. Every good desire and work seems tainted with episodes of careless, selfish, dark, harmful, passive-agressive, secretive, habitual, reflexive responses that hinder and confuse morality and meaning and magnificence.
Oh, God of Creation, Father of Compassion, Ruler of All...I don't seek you with all my heart! Heal my heart so that I do. Hide your word in my heart. Teach my mind to carefully sort out the figures of speech, the prophetic passages, the difference between literal and symbolic, and the narrow and the wide of your Word. Your Son's sacrifice is all I can offer in my behalf. To be allowed to share in your Son's resurrection is my greatest delight. Your Holy Spirit is my only Helper in this humanly-impossible life of staying on the path of your Word. Teach me to rejoice daily, meditate often, consider always and delight wholeheartely in your Word.
Amen!
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