You Have Dealt Fairly
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65 You have dealt well with Your servant, O Lord, according to Your word.
66 Teach me good judgment and knowledge, For I believe Your commandments
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word
68 You are good, and do good; Teach me Your statutes
69 The proud have forged a lie against me, But I will keep Your precepts with my whole heart.
70 Their heart is a s fat as grease, But I delight in Your law.
71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statues.
72 The law of Your mouth is better to me Than thousands of coins of gold and silver.
Psalm 119:65-72
As we along with he Psalmist reviews our life, we should feel that God has been good to us. Yet there are times when the Psalmist, just as you and I have, have past through difficult and trying experiences. But in each experience the Psalmist has said, the Lord has always been by my side.
Therefore, David desired delicate moral discernment and good taste in all the affairs of life. These qualities are gifts of God granted through His Holy Spirit to those who seek to bring their lives into complete harmony with the will of God.
Yet it seems that man of our greatest spiritual lessons and our most precious experiences are found when we travel through the valley of affliction. When we are tried and tempted, and instead of doing it alone we rely on God, then He brings us through the difficulties, then we rejoice when we look back seeing how God has led.
But there are times when we go our own way, when we like sheep have gone astray. It is then God allows suffering and affliction in the hope that it will draw us closer to Him. As we examine the life of the Psalmist, we often see how trial and affliction brought him closer to God.
For even in affliction good can come from evil. As the hammer of a blacksmith is used to shape hot metal into the desired shape, so affliction shapes and molds us into what God desires for us to become.
The hearts of the wicked are insensible to the finer things of a spiritual life. God instructed His people to not eat the fat of animals. As we know, it tends to clog the veins and lead to health issues. So, it is with those that indulge in sensual pleasures. Their mind becomes clogged making it difficult to comprehend spiritual things. Therefore, the Psalmist found his delight in meditating upon the law
The Psalmist continues by saying, “it is good for me that I have been afflicted.” Although the affliction often comes from evil men, it is overruled by God for good. Although the sorrow and suffering seem hard to bear with no end in sight, the lessons learned from such experiences are invaluable in the development of the Christian character.
All these experiences that have shaped and molded my character and yours are of more value than gold and silver. There is no earthly reward or pleasure that is of any worth when compared to the work God has done within my life and yours. Therefore, since this molding and shaping of character is a blessing sent by God, although it might be painful, its value is greater than all the gold and silver or any riches that I might collect. And such wealth that comes from gold and silver can never purchase that which is so necessary to life everlasting. A relationship with Christ who daily molds me and shapes me into his character when I choose to follow his law which is the essence of His character.
The Bible In Your Hand 