Psalm 25:8-9

Scripture

Good and upright is the LORD; therefore He instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in justice and He teaches the humble His way.

Observation

Here are three attributes of the Lord. One He is good. He is not just good in action. Good is who He is. He is upright. He is righteous, He never does anything wrong. And finally, His name in this verse LORD is all capitals. Which means Yahweh. This is a very sacred name for the Lord, in fact the Israelite's would only write the name and would never say it (Behind the name). The Israelite's instead would say the name Adonai which is lower case Lord (Kay Arthur, Precepts for life, Isa 1:1-6). So in the first sentence I see reverence for our God. I find this extremely insightful because fear of the Lord (reverence) is the beginning of understanding (Prov. 9:10, Psa. 111:10). When we want to receive instruction from God, we need to first come in reverence of who He is.

The verse goes on to say that God is a Teacher also. His instruction is not for the perfect in this example, but instead for the sinner. Acknowledging that you are a sinner begins with humbling yourself. It is when we humble ourselves that He will lead us in justice and teach us His way. These are promises that we can be sure of when we confess our sins and repent (1 john 1:9, 2 Chron. 7:14).

Application

Reverence for God is one of many things I feel is missing in today's society. We use God's name flippantly and offer self-righteous prayers to a God we tend to believe is impotent, but one we will gladly blame when things don't go according to our plan. We very often want God to follow us instead of us following Him. It is the culture we live in. Isaiah 1:23 say's "everyone chases after rewards". We often do that with God. We will pray for the glory, but are unwilling to wear the crown of the thorns.

I have learned the most in my life when God has humbled me and I praise Him for that. In fact I'm excited about this season of life for that very reason. In the worlds eye I am not successful and have nothing to boast about. But God grants an eternal benefit that those without the Holy Spirit cannot imagine; and each day that God wakes me up with His word I can't help but rejoice.

Prayer

God who is good, holy, and righteous, how precious our time together is to me. Your word is a lamp to my feet (Psa 119:105) it leads me through both times of rest and times of trial. I praise You O Lord, for Your mindfulness to humble me and ask that You continue to do so each and every day so that I might always receive instruction from You. I am a sinner Lord, I need Your saving grace. Wash me of my pride and lead me in paths of righteousness (Psa 23:3).

Psalm 25:6-7

Scripture

Remember, O Lord, Your compassion and Your lovingkindness, for they have been from old. Do not remember the sins of my youth our my transgressions; according to Your lovingkindness remember me, for Your goodness sake, O Lord.

Observation

The first word that comes to mind is humility. David here is calling on the attributes of God, instead of his own works. David is asking God to remember compassion and lovingkindness, and just this request alone would draw David's mind to remember God's lovingkindness and compassion as well.

Both lovingkindness and compassion are attributes of God. Our vision of our circumstances and even our sin changes its appearance when placed in the light of God's attributes. In this case David feels like he can come before God and ask for his sin to be blotted out, because of God's goodness and lovingkindness.

In just a few short sentences these words echo us to come before God in humility and ask for cleansing of sin. A good God, full of love and compassion waits for us.

Application

This is a great time to examine my heart and see if there is an evil way within (Psa 139:23-24). Then humble myself and both confess and repent to a kind and loving God; falling upon His mercy.

Prayer

Savior, You are loving, You are kind, You are good, and You are gracious. Forgive me for my pride, selfishness, & self-righteousness. In Your mercy remember them no more. Cover me with the blood of the Lamb. Purify my heart and lead me in Your everlasting way. I need You Lord.

A study note:

I have an ASV inductive study Bible. When I am reading scripture and I run across an attribute of God, I mark a big A next to the attribute. If I run across a promise of God, I will mark a big P next to the promise. Knowing God's promises and His character are two very important elements in worship, spiritual warfare (taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ), and Evangelism. Knowing these attributes and promises also bring about hope. It gives you both words to encourage yourself and others with.

Psalm 25:4-5

Scripture

Make me know Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me. For You are the God of my salvation; for You I wait all day.

Observation

• Knowing God, who He is, how He works, etc. is the key ingredient to going down the righteous path.
• To know God, you must come to Him humbly with a teachable spirit.
• You must seek out His truth in the bible and ask Him for understanding of His word. I'm learning the importance of really diving deep into God's word. For sometime now I have been kind of skimming over. More of a fast food daily meal. But not really getting all the nutrients out of His word that I could and should be getting.
• Who is God? Well one attribute of God is listed right here. God is my Savior and you have to be aware of your need for a Savior before you can truly follow Him.
• The last part of this text is also very important. Waiting can be difficult to do, especially in the fast paced society that we live in. I'm particularly terrible at waiting. I think that is because I am task driven and I usually schedule too much in a day. But I praise God that He is teaching me how to wait on Him.
• Moreover, God is arranging things for the good of me and all those who are called according to His purpose. I struggled with waiting on God for a man. But God restrained me, and wow He has blessed me with an amazing husband. Although I don't know what is next in my story, I'm reminded that it is through waiting on God that true and pure blessings come.
• Waiting on God also makes you stronger. Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord (Isa 40:31). When I waited (unwillingly) for who God was going to bring to be my husband, God strengthened my relationship with Him immensely during that time. I am forever grateful for that moment, even with all the pain, because He refined me so much in that fire.

Application

• I have been given a precious gift at this point in my life to sit at the Teachers feet and listen. I need to do that very thing and not worry about tomorrow and what God is calling me to.
• I think this scripture will become increasingly important to me as this time of rest continues. I am a task oriented person and derive much of my confidence from accomplishing goals, so waiting can be a very difficult thing to do.
• I plan to memorize this verse and use it to take thoughts captive that might distract me from the Lord's teaching and plan.

Prayer

Lord, You know me. You know the most intimate details of my life, of who I am, everything. You know me better then I know myself. I want to know You, I want to earnestly seek out who You are and what Your will is. Here I sit O Lord, at Your feet. Instruct me and lead me beside still waters. Restore my soul O Shepard. How my soul longs for more of You.