Not to Blame!  (February 28, 2016)

 

1 Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.

2 Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—3 they do no wrong but follow his ways. 

4 You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed. 5 Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees! 

6 Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commands. 

7 I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws. 

8 I will obey your decrees; do not utterly forsake me. (Psalm 119:1-8)

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            Somewhere I remember reading (I think it was G.K. Chesterton) that the Christian life has been rejected, not because it has been “tried and found wanting,” but because it has been "found difficult…and, therefore, left untried." (My apologies if I misquoted him, but I think that was the gist of it.) Jesus himself called the Christian life a "road" that was “narrow and difficult” (Matthew 7:14—NKJV), adding only “a few...find it.”

            Lest we become disheartened by such “statistical discouragement” and contemplate quitting early, let’s spend some time considering the citation from the one-hundred and nineteenth Psalm written above. The psalmist assures us that obedience to God’s commands—the “narrow path”—is a blessing; that those who walk in obedience to God’s commandments are “Blessed.”

            Among several reasons he gives for making this claim is that those who obey God's commands are “blameless” (1)—that is, they are not the source of trouble. They are not to blame. They are innocent of the charges. Though someone is to blame for the misery in this world... and someone is to blame for the misery in people’s lives... though someone is at the root of every crime and every piece of gossip, those who obey God's commands can be sure that they are not the origin of such trouble!

           Wouldn’t it be nice to know that, no matter the situation, no matter the unrest that arises in our world, we could be sure of our innocence?  Surely, you will agree, that sounds desirable, doesn't it? Although the apostle Paul knew that a clear conscience was not necessarily an indication of blamelessness (1 Corinthians 4:4), still, this psalm teaches us that obedience to God’s commands can be a major step toward gaining such assurance!

            Let’s not deprive ourselves any longer of this blessing! We will never be faultless; of that, you can be sure! But that doesn't mean we can't gain a measure of assurance when we make our best effort to walk consistently in God's commands! Let us obey our way, as much as we can, to the peace of a blameless or innocent life.