- By Internalizing the Word of God.
- It takes the entire alphabet to express the Grandeur of God’s Word.
“Psalm 119: All About the Bible
This has been called the golden alphabet of the Bible. The reason is that it is divided into twenty-two sections, one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Each section has eight verses and every verse in a section begins with the corresponding Hebrew letter. Thus in the Hebrew, every verse in the first section begins with Aleph; in the second section every verse begins with Beth; and so on.
In the NKJV, all but four verses in this longest Psalm contain some title or description of the Word of God. The four exceptions are verses 84, 121, 122 and 132. The names used to describe God’s Word are: law, testimonies, ways, precepts, statutes, commandments, ordinances, word(s), promise, judgments, faithfulness, appointment, justice and commands.
By using the alphabet in this acrostic form, Ridout feels that the writer may have been suggesting that “all the possibilities of human language are exhausted in setting forth the fullness and perfection of the Word of God”.
We have a similar suggestion in the New Testament. Our Lord speaks of Himself as the Alpha and Omega (Rev. 1:8). These are, of course, the first and last words of the Greek alphabet. The thought is that He is everything of goodness and perfection that can be expressed by every letter of the alphabet, arranged in every possible combination”. (Believer’s Bible Commentary by William McDonald, p. 736)
- The 22 Divisions of Psalm 119, based on the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet.
Camp in Psalm 119 – January 7th – June 3rd 2005. Study the following sections in the subsequent weeks.
“ The following subject headings for the various sections of the Psalm are based primarily on F. W. Grant’s notes:
- 1 – 8 The Blessedness of Obeying the Word
- 9 – 16 Cleansing By The Word
- 17 – 24 Discernment By the Word
- 25 – 32 Sense of Personal Insufficiency through the Word
- 33 – 40 The Power of the Word
- 41 – 48 Victory through the Word
- 49 – 56 Rest and Comfort through the Word
- 57 – 64 Perseverance in the Word
- 65 – 72 The Pricelessness of the Word in Good and Evil Times
- 73 – 80 Insights through the Word
- 81 – 88 The Afflicted One Sustained By the Word
- 89 – 96 Eternity of the Word
- 97 – 104 Wisdom through the Word
- 105 – 112 The Word a Lamp and Light For All Occasions
- 113 – 120 The Wicked and the Word
- 121 – 128 Separation and Deliverance through the Word
- 129 – 136 Joy and Communion through the Word
- 137 – 144 Zeal for the Word
- 145 – 152 Experience through the Word
- 153 – 160 Salvation through the Word
- 161 – 168 Perfection of the Word
- 169 – 176 Prayer and Praise through the Word”
(Believer’s Bible Commentary by William MacDonald p. 737)
- Assigned Memory Verses (See Chart on page 4)
- By Intensifying Your Praying – Walk on your knees (Eph. 6:18) Why?
- God Commands us to Pray Continually (Luke 18:1; 1 Thess. 5:17).
- God Encourages us to Pray Compellingly (Jer. 33:3; Heb. 4:16).
- God Rewards our Prayers Completely (Jer. 33:3) How?
- It is through prayer we are saved (spiritual) Romans 10:13
- It is through prayer we are healed (physical) James 5:14 – 16)
- It is through prayer we overcome worry – Phil. 4:6-7
- It is through prayer we are empowered to witness – Acts 4:31
- It is through prayer we are delivered from temptation –
- It is through prayer we send forth laborers into the harvest – Matthew 9:38
- It is through prayer we experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit – Luke 11:13
- It is through prayer that we experience the fullness of joy (John 16:24).
In a word, prayer is the key to triumphant living, whereas prayerlessness is the road to defeated living. Satan has a specific strategy to keep you from seriously praying – Note the 7 stages:
Stage # 1 – Prayerlessness – Satan will make you think you are too busy to pray and that you are justified in praying a few words as you go to work or during the day. This translates into no real prayer at all. “When you don’t pray, you will become more anxious about things, more concerned about things that you cannot change, and more fearful of things, some of which are unknown”. (When the Enemy Strikes by Charles Stanley, p. 178.
Stage # 2 – Prayerlessness leads to a heavy heart. “The person who doesn’t pray can feel as if he were carrying the weight of the world. He feels responsible for everything, and because such a responsibility is overwhelming, many people swing over and take the exact opposite approach and claim that they aren’t responsible for anything. In truth, they feel a weight in their souls.” (When the Enemy Strikes by Charles Stanley p. 178)
Stage # 3 – A heavy heart leads to weariness. “The person with a heavy heart experiences great weariness. Are you aware that people who live with constant needs, frustrations, or worries rarely have very much energy? They can be so overwhelmed by the sorrows, problems, and anxieties of their lives that they become almost paralyzed – they have no energy to exert on spreading the gospel, no energy to spend on helping others in need, and no energy to get up, get dressed, and get to church. They often feel too weary to read their Bibles or pray!” (When the Enemy Strikes by Charles Stanley p.178)
Stage # 4 – Weariness leads to weakness . “When a person becomes discouraged and weary—spiritually, emotionally, or physically –he is in a state of weakness. And the weaker a person becomes, the more he will focus on himself, his needs, and his failures or “lack” in some area of life.
The weak animal in the wild is always most vulnerable to predators, and the same is true for us as human beings when it comes to the devil. The weaker and more self-focused we become on our unmet needs and unfulfilled desires, the more we drop our guard against the devil” (ibid p. 178).
Stage #5 – Weakness leads to discouragement.
Stage #6 – Discouragement leads to frustration.
Stage #7 – Frustration leads to indecision, depression, and sin to satisfy the famished soul.
“A person who is strong in prayer does not take on the weight of the world. He trusts God to take care of every aspect of life and to take care of the world as a whole.
A person who is strong in praise, has great joy, and that joy in turn produces great spiritual strength. God’s Word declares, “The joy of the Lord is your strength” (Neh. 8:10). The person who prays has renewed energy and a zest for living. Such a person feels strong and is eager to take on life’s challenges.
If you could name one thing Satan hates above all else, it is this: believers in Christ Jesus who know how to talk to the Father and trust the Father and claim the promises of the Father. Persevering prayer, built on a foundation of faith, crushes the power of the devil”. (Ibid pp 178-179)