Psalm 119:130 "The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple."

The artist who wrote Psalm 119 divided his song into 23 sections, each one pertaining to a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. By the time we get to verse 130, we’ve already made it through most of the song already, and we can reflect on how most of this psalm has been centered around the idea of how valuable God’s laws/instructions/scriptures are. They give live, help, healing, and direction to those who follow them. In verse 130, we see specifically how God’s words to us help us gain wisdom.

Psalm 119:98-100 "Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts."

These earlier verses demonstrate further how helpful God’s wisdom can be. Not only have God’s instructions and insights made this author wise, but they’ve become even more wise than their own human teachers and respected elders. Because this author is a natural genius, a hard worker, clever, rich, resourceful, etc? No! It’s because they continually strive to “keep [God’s] precepts”…they choose to obey God’s instructions written down in Scripture.

At first, that may sound like a burden. But actually, it can be quite good news! Any person, then and now, doesn’t need to ace the SAT/ACT or have powerful resources or be the best at anything in order to gain great wisdom. To find true wisdom and benefit from it, we only need to seek it from God and obey Him. It’s that simple!

Job, the man facing terrible loss, grief, isolation, and confusion in the Bible Book named after him, was desperate to find wisdom to explain his horrible situation as well. After thinking through where wisdom comes from and how he could find it, Job concluded this:

Job 28:28 "‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’"

Job recognized that wisdom is not discovered from within ourselves or a commodity that we can purchase or obtain. He recognized true wisdom is received as a gift from God, especially as we live a life of reverence for Him and respond to His instructions. Centuries later, King Solomon would agree. Even though Solomon was the richest, most powerful, most clever man around, he admitted true wisdom comes from God:

Proverbs 9:10 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight."

So, if you’d like to glean great wisdom from God to understand life better and navigate these troubling times better, develop a healthy respect and reverence for God. Also, obey God’s instructions and guidance to you. God loves His children, and wants to help and empower them to get through tough times! (see Matthew 7:9-11)

If you’d like to learn more on this topic and more, I’d encourage you to check out the great resources on our Revive webpages at neighborhoodchurch.com. Our church is currently exploring the Book of Job together this season, and it’s been a great journey of learning how to navigate troubled times together! See more resources from this #WhyMe series.

Learning alongside you,

Kerry