From Psalm 119 - He

"Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes, and I shall observe it to the end. . . . . . Give me understanding, that I may observe Your law, and keep it with all my heart. . . . . . Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, for I delight in it. . . . . . Incline my heart to Your testimonies, and not to dishonest gain. . . . . . Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, and revive me to Your ways. . . . . . Establish Your word to Your servant, as that which produces reverence for You. . . . . . Turn away my reproach which I dread, for Your ordinances are good. . . . . . Behold, I long for Your precepts, revive me through Your righteousness."

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God spoke to mankind in various ways prior to the time of Moses. His Word was being made known, not in writing, but through His speaking to man either in dreams, or visions, or in an audible voice. God provided man with a variety of physical signs that gave witness about Himself, and what His plan for redemption was, and how mankind should live their lives. Examples of these are God's establishment of a blood sacrafice, the order of nature, and the arraignment and movement of the stars. To go along with this there was an oral tradition that taught the meanings and types. The Holy Spirit could not dwell in the heart of man, but He could speak to the soul through these things to give wisdom and insight to be able to understand the physical signs. The spoken tradition began with Adam, who talked with God and who lived over 900 years, and carried on through the righteous line of Seth, with others such as Enoch adding to the treasury of wisdom. It continued to Noah. Although Noah did not know Adam, his father very well could have, as Noah's father Lamech was 66 years old when Adam died. Noah and his family went through the flood, and the new world began with them, and the teachings and traditions continued. However, most of mankind again turned away from God, and with that the meanings and interpretations of the signs and the oral traditions became corrupted. The message of salvation as laid out in the stars took on occultic meanings, sacrifices were made to demon gods, and nature instead of the Creator was worshipped.

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There remained some in every generation who sought after the Creator, and who passed on what survived of the truths in the oral traditions. There were some in every generation who heard directly from God. And so, God spoke to Abram, and made a covenant with him. His descendants, 70 in number, went to Egypt and grew to become a people of over 2 million. Moses led them out of Egypt, where they spent 40 years in the wilderness. It was in the wilderness that God wrote the 10 commandments on stone, and where He spoke to Moses for many days on the top of a mountain, giving him directions for the tabernacle, and instructions for offerings and sacrifices. It was in the wilderness that Moses wrote the first 5 books of scripture, containing in them the law and traditions that they were to follow. The writings of Moses were directed and inspired by the Holy Spirit. Just as every sign and type and oral tradition spoke in some way of the Son, so does every chapter of Moses written word. The Word of God was now in writing. Over the years it became lost and forgotten, and when it was found and read, the people wept. They cried in joy for it being found, and in anguish for what they had missed.

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Why does it seem to be a foreign concept that the path to the best possible life is to study the Word in order to find out what the will of God is? Think about it. God loves us and wants the best for us. He knows that we live in a fallen world and that we are easily deceived, not only by the evil one, but by our own desires. He as given us a written word so that we may find the true way designed by Him for our lives. There is reason and purpose for the religious practices contained in scripture, but it was not written to be used by the soul as a means for religious practice. Instead, it has as a companion the Holy Spirit, who will reveal the depths of scripture and it's meaning for every part of our lives. When we do so, our study of the Word leads us to a closer relationship with the Author. When I became a Christian and was filled with the Holy Spirit, I had a great hunger to read scripture. That hunger was not because I wanted to gain head knowledge, but because I needed more of God in my life. The more we come to know God, the bigger He becomes. I wish everyone could experience the excitement I've had when the Spirit reveals a part of God's plan and design, or the peace He has given me when He has lead me to a passage, and in it is confirmed His love for me. There have been times when I read a passage and said, 'all right God, you do know best'. In the Word we will discover the true nature of the Awesome God, and begin to appreciate His power and might, His holiness and majesty, His love and patience. We will also discover that rebellion results in corruption and sickness, lying and murder, lust and hate, fear and bondage. When the desire of our heart is to trust God, and when we decide to be obedient to His will as revealed by the Spirit in our reading of the Word, the result is peace and joy and thousands of other blessings as well.

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We live in a world that says that God wants to take something away from us. Scripture is seen as a book of outdated rules that keep us from enjoying all of what the world has to offer. The Old Testament is thought to be about an angry and mean God, who is really not much more than the creation of a tribal community, trying to explain God through the lens of the harsh life in which they lived. The New Testament is seen as reflecting the teachings of a very wise historical character, or his followers. These are thought to be good as general principles, but no one should get caught up in specifics. The modern world has a philosophy that replaces the truth of scripture, and it has a spirit that interprets that philosophy as well. We and our kids are bombarded with this message every day; There is no absolute truth, and the way to find peace is to be tolerant of all beliefs without imposing your values on anyone else. Of course, after the fall the world system has been ruled by the rebellious one, who has always opposed the Word. If he cannot keep us from hearing the Word, he will seek to replace the Holy Spirit as interpretator, which always leads to bondage.

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This is the battle that is happening full bore in the Western world today. We need to understand that none of us is immune from the cultural forces working against us, trying to keep us from entering the kingdom of God, or failing that, trying to rob us of the fullness of life that God has for us. The Word of God is living, and because it is living it can give us life. That life will transform our lives, able to mold us into the man or woman that God designed us to be. Let us, as the psalmist did, ask God to teach us and to give us understanding, and to establish His word in our hearts, for we will delight in it.