WORD OF GOD AND CHRISTIAN LIFE
PSALM 119: 105 – Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
We all know that faith in Jesus Christ and in God is based on the Bible alone. But such understanding is often not applied correctly in the Christian life, meaning that the word of God in the Bible is often forgotten or not used by Christians in practical situations of life.
The verse in Psalm 119:105 is a typical example. All Christians know this verse by heart, but often they do not think much about its deeper meaning. This verse reveals one of the important characteristics of God’s word for the Christian’s life in the world. But often Christians know this verse by heart but do not apply it to the reality of their lives. When we meditate on this verse carefully, we can see that.
We Christians believe that God is both real and absolutely wise, which means that God’s words in the Bible reveal that characteristic of Him and are therefore also perfectly wise. So when God’s word says that His word is a lamp to our feet, it means the following:
First, we are walking in darkness and need the light of God’s word. Walking in darkness means not having understanding, but also having no purpose. This meaning is often refused to be accepted by many people. The reason is that many people still think that they already have understanding and have a purpose in this life.
Their understanding may come from education, from degrees, from experience from living long on earth. Their goals are certainly there, such as having a lot of money, having good health, having a reputation, having a high position in society, being respected and admired by everyone, or their goal is to enjoy the joys of this world.
The goals listed above are common goals in human life and are often Christian goals as well, although they are rarely stated in words.
But the words of God in the Bible show us that this human view is completely wrong. For example, when it comes to the fact that people often think that they have knowledge or wisdom, the words of God in the Bible tell us the complete opposite of that view.
As for those who do not believe, the word of God tells us that they have neither knowledge nor wisdom, because they honor and value the vanities of the world, as it is written in…
1CORINTHIANS 1: 20 – Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
ROMANS 1: 22-23 – 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.
As for Christians, the word of God teaches that we should not be wise in our own eyes, as mentioned in…
ROMANS 12: 16 – Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but consecrate yourselves to the lowly. Do not be wise in your own conceits.
In fact, we can see that because the Word of God tells Christians not to consider themselves wise, Christians never dare to boast, but in their hearts many still think they are wise. Their inner thoughts are revealed outwardly by the fact that they seldom rely on the inspiration of the Word of God for their steps in the world.
This can be seen in the fact that Christians make decisions or choices in this life without relying on God’s words but only based on their own opinions or the invitations and advice of others, and are even led astray by the propaganda of evil people, of organizations and parties that oppose God.
As for the goal of the individual in this life, all the things that people desire are not the real goals. That is because money, fame, position, beauty and power all become meaningless when people face death. The Word of God has clearly mentioned this in…
MATTHEW 16: 26 – For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
LUKE 12:20 – But God said to him, “You fool, this night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?”
1TIMOTHY 6:7 – For we brought nothing into the world, and we can carry nothing out.
That is why King Solomon, despite his position, power, wealth, and many wives and concubines, saw that all these were meaningless.
ECCLESIASTES 1:14 – I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and behold, all is meaningless and a striving after wind.
Ecclesiastes 2:1 – Then I said in my heart, Come, let me try mirth and enjoy pleasure; and behold, this also is vanity.
Ecclesiastes 2:21 – For there is a man who has labored in wisdom, in knowledge, and in skill, and then must leave it as an inheritance to one who has not labored for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.
ECCLESIASTES 4:4 – I also saw that all toil and every skill in work is a cause for envy of one another. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
ECCLESIASTES 6:2 – There was a man to whom God had given riches, wealth, and honor, so that he lacked for nothing his soul desired; yet God did not give him the power to eat of it, but another man ate it. This is vanity and a sore misfortune.
The goal of human life should be Heaven, especially for Christians, because all the saints from ancient times to the present have taken Heaven as the most important goal of their lives, as mentioned in the word of God in…
HEBREWS 11: 16 – But they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly one; therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
The second meaning of walking in darkness is that we Christians are walking in the darkness of the world (as opposed to personal darkness). This world is dark because of man’s sin. We can see this in the fact that the world today is full of sin. Men even boast about their sin and brag about the unnatural things they do in their bedroom and encourage others to sin the same way as well.
People often think that the development of science and technology will make society better and people will no longer need to believe in God. But the reality shows that the more science and technology develop, the more sophisticated human sin becomes. Any means of science and technology, humans have a way to use them as tools to commit crimes.
In a world filled with such sophisticated evil, Christians must rely even more on the Word of God to enlighten our steps in the world, that is, to help us understand what to do and what to avoid, who to befriend and who to stay away from, what to listen to and what not to listen to.
Trying our best to apply God’s words to our daily lives is a way to demonstrate our strong faith in God. On the contrary, ignoring God’s words or refusing to apply them to our personal lives shows that our Christian faith is still weak and therefore we will surely encounter many spiritual failures in this life, and even physical losses.
(to be continued)