“Teach me good judgment and knowledge: for I have believed thy commandments.”
Psalms 119:66 (KJV) Hi friends, How are you? Today we look at a verse from one of the longest psalms and the longest chapter of the Bible. It also contains a topic of prayer about which I pray quite often. I have read the Bible quite a few times. However, each time I learn something else. God uses His word to speak to us all. He has the same basic commandments for all of us. Yet, God does use His Word to speak a different message to each of us. He may also speak a different message to each of us each time we read His Word. One would think that once we read His Word and study His commandments, that we would “know it” and wouldn’t need to ask for knowledge or good judgment. Unfortunately, that is just not true. We need to continually as for knowledge and good judgment. We are human and don’t always “remember” or follow through with what is right. So, let’s take a look a Psalms 119:66 a little closer. There are three statements and topics in Psalms 119:66. Let’s start with the last part of Psalms 119:66 (KJV) which reads, “…for I have believed thy commandments”. If we don’t believe that God’s Word is the right way to live, if we don’t trust God, if we don’t believe that we are to do as God calls us to do, we might as well not ask Him to give us good judgment or knowledge. Sometimes we may say that we believe, but our actions are different than our words. Our actions don’t match what is written in God’s Word. That has happened since the second human was created. Our nature of sin is the reason we need to pray the first part of this verse. There are two main groups of people in the world, believers and nonbelievers. (There are also “on the fence” people.) Once we realize and admit, especially to God, that we are believers, than we can go on to the first two parts of Psalms 119:66. In the second part of Psalms 199:66, the psalmist is asking God to teach him knowledge. To me, there are different levels of knowledge. When we learn math as a kindergarten student for example, we learn things like identifying numbers, adding and subtracting numbers up to ten, counting by ones and fives and tens, and the basic coins. Those are the types of things a kindergarten student can know and understand. Asking a kindergarten student to solve long algebraic equations would be wrong. No matter how much a kindergarten student tries, he or she couldn’t have the knowledge to solve such a difficult problem. The same goes with God’s Word. Every time we read God’s Word, we may have a new understanding. We may have more knowledge and be able to understand it’s meaning a little better. Sometimes we go through the motions of reading God’s Word, but don’t take the time to take it in, study it, or pray about it. We may know God’s Word on one level, but not to the extent that we could with more study and prayer. We might know the words in our mind, but not know the words in our heart. This brings us to the first part of Psalms 119:66 (KJV) which reads, “Teach me good judgment…”. As I mentioned earlier, it is one thing to know the difference between right and wrong, but it is another thing to actually follow through and do what is right. This is the part of the verse where we acknowledge the fact that we are sinners and need to ask God to help us good judgment often. Satan has a way of giving us temptations and trying to get us to go down the wrong road each day. So, praying for help in having good judgment needs to be something that is continual instead of a one-time thing. The first time we pray, we might learn how to have good judgment when one problem comes up. However, we might not have the strength to make a good judgment the second time it comes up. We may also not know how to make a good judgment when a different problem arises. To me, Psalms 119:66 is a prayer that we can pray always. Like other verses in God’s Word, we can learn something new from it as we grow in our faith, our relationship with God, our knowledge, and also grow in our abilities to do things such as make good decisions. Each time we grow in knowledge and faith in God, we can know God’s Word on a higher level. We can know His Word and know the knowledge in our hearts as well as our minds. Heavenly Father, Thank you for your precious Word. Help us to pray the words in your Word and seek the wisdom you want to share with us continually. Help us to have faith in you and trust in you always. Help us to not only know your Word, but also to reflect upon it in order to make good judgments. Give us the strength to do what is right and follow your Word and way for us, I ask you this through your Son, Jesus. Amen. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Reflective questions for Psalms 119:66 (KJV): *What does Psalms 119:66 mean to me? *Why must we continually pray for knowledge? *Why must we continually pray for the ability to make good judgments? *What is the difference between judgment and knowledge? *Do I trust God’s Word? Do I show it? *What can I do to better heed the words in Psalms 119:66? *What message is God giving me right now through Psalms 119:66? Note: If you enjoyed this post, you may like similar posts on the same topics. *Knowledge *Prayer Now, it is your turn: Thank you for being here. I appreciate your kindness and support. I pray that you find God talking to you through the Faith Blog by DUO Inspirations. If you are finding value in the Faith Blog by DUO Inspirations, please feel free to share it with others, so that they might find value as well. If you would like me to address a specific topic or verse, please feel free to contact me. 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“The heart of the prudent getteth knowledge; and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge.”
Proverbs 18:15 (KJV) Hi friends, How are you? I hope you are well. It seems a little strange to write something after the Lord’s Prayer Series. Part of me, finds it difficult to “beat” a topic such as that. However, all of God’s Word is important and deserves acknowledgement. So, today’s topic is knowledge. I figured, since it is the beginning of the school year for many, knowledge would be a great topic to explore. The Holy Bible has many verses on knowledge. This week’s verse is Proverbs 18:15. First of all, I looked up “prudent” in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary online. It shows four different definitions for prudent. The one I think fits the best is the following: “characterized by, arising from, or showing prudence: such as a: marked by wisdom or judiciousness” God considers knowledge important. Here, the words in Proverbs 18:15, say that “the heart of the prudent getteth knowledge”. So, to me, God is saying that those who are wise and judicious (or even those who want to be wise and judicious) learn. They know the importance of knowledge. So, they do what is necessary to learn as much as they can and value education. If that means study, they study. If that means, read, they read. If that means ask questions, they ask questions. If that means, taking notes, they take notes. Prudent people do what they need to do to learn. I don’t know for sure the Lord’s meaning behind the second part of this verse. Maybe it is meant to mean something different to everyone. I like that it states, “…and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge.” The word “ear” stands out for me. I am used to hearing that a person’s “heart” seeks knowledge. People often talk about their “heart’s dream” or “passions of the heart” or whatever. Heart is mentioned quite a bit about things we seek, and we do see the “heart” mentioned in the first part of this verse. Yet, in the second part of the verse it is the “ear” that is mentioned. So, to me, the second part of Proverbs 18:15 highlights the importance of listening. Not everyone possesses skills to listen or values the importance of listening. However, I think that this verse shows its importance. I don’t think the word “ear” would have been used and related to wisdom, if listening wasn’t important. Not only that, but one can learn more by listening than by speaking. I also think that if one is listening, one is showing that one is willing to learn. This isn’t always true when one is talking. One can say that one wants to learn, but if one is listening, one is showing that one is willing to learn. It may also be a reminder that one would be wiser to ask questions and remember to listen to the answer when one is seeking answers. Sometimes, we want answers, so we ask questions, plead for answers, and pray for help, yet we forget to actually stop and listen for the answers. Or, if God or someone else tries to give us answers, we say, “yeah, but…” and don’t really listen. Through our behavior, it seems like we don’t really want answers. We don’t want to learn. We need to remember that listening is an important part of learning. Heavenly Father, Thank you for giving us words to live by. Thank you for showing us the importance of learning and knowledge. Help us to seek knowledge all the days of our life. Also, help us to remember that listening is an important skill and an important part of learning. I thank you and praise you for your words of wisdom and life. Help us to learn all that you want us to learn. I ask you this through your Son, Jesus. Amen. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Reflective Questions for Proverbs 18:15 (KJV): *What does Proverbs 18:15 mean to me? *What are my thoughts about learning? *Do I value knowledge? *Do I seek out knowledge? *Do I pray and ask God what He wants me to know or learn? *Do I remember to listen, especially when I am searching for answers? Now, it is your turn. I value you being here and value your thoughts. Please, let me know what you think. Also, if you enjoy reading the Faith Blog by DUO Inspirations, please consider signing up to receive it in your inbox. (Just check the "faith box" as you sign up. Thank you. |
Hi friends!
This is Jodi. I am so glad you are here! I am a Christian and life-long learner. I enjoy sharing and encouraging others. I pray you are blessed by this blog. Thank you for being here. Archives
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