1
The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. 2Day
unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. 3There
is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard. 4Their line
has gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In
them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, 5Which is like a bridegroom
coming out of his chamber, And rejoices like a strong man to run its race. 6Its
rising is from one end of heaven, And its circuit to the other end; And there is
nothing hidden from its heat.
7The
law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the LORD is
sure, making wise the simple; 8The statutes of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;
9The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of
the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10More to be desired are
they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the
honeycomb. 11Moreover by them Your servant is warned, And in keeping
them there is great reward.
12Who
can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults.
13Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them
not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of
great transgression. 14Let the words of my mouth and the meditation
of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19 NKJV
Psalm
19 gives us an awesome look at the transforming power of God and his word.
This transforming power is something we need to have if we hope to follow
Jesus.
Verses
1-6 prepare a worshipful introduction that declares the glory of God’s
creation. All around us we see
evidence of God’s magnificent power and creativity.
Verses
7-11 are applicable to the healing process from “sin-addiction.”
Sex addiction is a sin addiction.
The Bible, as the collection of God’s laws and statutes, is perfect,
sure, right, pure, true and righteous. When
we read it and load it into our minds, it releases God’s healing power in our
minds and hearts. Specifically, it:
·
Converts the
soul
·
Gives us
wisdom
·
Rejoices our
heart
·
Enlightens
our eyes
· Warns us about the paths of evil
·
Gives great
reward if we keep on the path of righteousness
Notice
how the above aspects of God’s power work in the areas that are damaged by sex
addiction – the soul, mind, heart and eyes.
As we study and meditate on God’s word, it will restore us, heal us and
enlighten us with truth. It will
help transform us into the people God created us to be. Additionally, when we apply God’s word to our lives
and obey his commands, God promises that we will have “great reward” (10).
Questions
for further thought:
·
Please list
at least three things that God’s word does in you.
·
How does
God’s word detoxify us from the evil things we have watched or heard about?
·
How often
have you read your Bible during this past week?
·
If less than
daily, what steps can you take to make reading the Bible a higher priority?
Prayer:
Verses 12-14 make an excellent repentance prayer from our secret sins.
Verse 13 addresses presumptuous sin (“overstepping due bounds” Webster’s),
which describes sex addiction. Presumptuous
sin will rule our lives if we let it. Just
as David asked God to not let the presumptuous sin have dominion or rule over
him, we can make the same prayer. For
example, we can pray:
“Father
in heaven, please forgive me of my sins and cleanse me from secret faults.
Thank you for washing me clean with the blood of Jesus.
Please keep me back from presumptuous sins and do not let them rule over
me. Please help me to
feed my mind daily on your word in the Bible.
Please use it to bring healing to my mind from the memories of sin. Father, if I am tempted to think on impure things today,
please convict me and help me direct my thoughts toward pure things.
Lord, You are my strength and my Redeemer.
I praise you now and forever. Let
the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your
sight. Amen.”