Psalm 119:4-6

Scripture #

Source Scripture #

You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently.
Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes!
Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.

• Psalm 119:4-6 (ESV)

You have ordained Your precepts, That we should follow them with [careful] diligence.
Oh, that my ways may be established To observe and keep Your statutes [obediently accepting and honoring them]!
Then I will not be ashamed When I look [with respect] to all Your commandments [as my guide].

• Psalm 119:4-5 (Amplified)

LORD, you have given us your laws and told us to obey them faithfully.
How I hope that I shall be faithful in keeping your instructions!
If I pay attention to all your commands, then I will not be put to shame.

• Psalm 119:4-5 (GNT)

Cross-references #

You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently. #

Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children

• Deuteronomy 4:9 (ESV)

And if you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the LORD your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. Blessed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.

The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways. The LORD will command the blessing on you in your barns and in all that you undertake. And he will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. The LORD will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they shall be afraid of you. And the LORD will make you abound in prosperity, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your livestock and in the fruit of your ground, within the land that the LORD swore to your fathers to give you. The LORD will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. And the LORD will make you the head and not the tail, and you shall only go up and not down, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, being careful to do them, and if you do not turn aside from any of the words that I command you today, to the right hand or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.

• Deuteronomy 28:1–14 (ESV)

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

• Matthew 28:19–20 (ESV)

Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.

• John 14:21 (ESV)

By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

• 1 John 5:2–5 (ESV)

Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! #

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

• Psa 51:10 ESV

For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

• Jer 31:33 ESV

but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

• Rom 7:23-24 ESV

Then I shall not be put to shame #

For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty and lift up your face to God.

• Job 22:26 ESV

And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.

• 1 John 2:28 ESV

having my eyes fixed on all your commandments. #

You are my friends if you do what I command you.

• John 15:14 ESV

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.

• James 2:10 ESV

Observation #

1. God has commanded us to obey his instructions
2. Not only that, but he has commanded us to do that diligently and faithfully
3. In addition, he has commanded that we make these instructions made known to our children and grandchildren
4. If we follow God's instructions, he will bless us
5. We are to not only go and tell others the Good News, but also disciples who observe God's commandments
6. We show that we love God by keeping his commandments
7. If we love God, keeping his commandments are not a burden
8. We cannot do this ourselves, we can only keep God's commandments and they are only not a burden if he creates a new heart in us and delivers us from our sin nature
9. The reward of doing this is that we are able to experience and delight in God

Application #

This all comes down to a heart issue. We keep God's commandments, not because of fear of consequence, not because of the blessings that he has promised... but because we love God. And if our heart is right and we love God right, keeping his commandments will not be a burden because we just want to make him happy. This also means that for our children, if/when there is complaining, the solution isn't to scold and try to force them into compliance. It is a heart issue and they aren't correctly motivated love.

The thing is that we cannot simply will ourselves, trying harder to love God. A heart change comes only from God and we need to ask God to help us love him more. It's crazy when you think about it ... Jesus died on the cross, dying the death we should have died, paying the price we should have paid ... and then we have to ask him to help us love him like we should. But Jesus loves us with a perfect love, so he helps us. God is so amazing!

If we are faithful in asking God to revew our heart and to help us love him more deeply ... our reward is to experience and delight in Him! I'm reminded of Psalm 37:4, "Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart." (ESV) We love him so that we can delight in him. Once we delight in him, his desires will be our desires and he will give us what he has intended for our lives. It probably won't be what we initially desired, but it will be better than we can ask or think!