HETH. You are my portion, O LORD; I have said that I would keep Your words. I entreated Your favour with my whole heart; be merciful to me according to Your word. I thought about my ways, and turned my feet to Your testimonies. I made haste, and did not delay to keep Your commandments. The cords of the wicked have bound me, but I have not forgotten Your law. At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You, because of Your righteous judgments. I am a companion of all who fear You, and of those who keep Your precepts. The earth, O LORD, is full of Your mercy; teach me Your statutes.

To Aaron and his descendants, the Lord spoke, “You shall have no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel.” (Numbers 18:20). The Psalmists grasps this wonderful promise of the Lord for himself also. Indeed, those in Israel who looked beyond the temporal understood that the Lord truly was their portion. In Him, all who seek shall find great gain, an eternal inheritance. Surely, that was the focus of such men as Abraham (Hebrews 11:8-16) and Moses (Hebrews 11:24-25). Likewise, it ought to be the catalyst for the Christian’s conduct today – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you...” (1 Peter 1:3-4). Given this great promise of God, we ought to entreat the favour of God with the whole heart, as the Psalmist does. Certainly, God will bestow mercy upon those who approach Him aright.

The Bible makes a strong distinction between the ways of man and the way of God. The writer acknowledges the disagreement of his way with that of the Lord. To the people of Israel, the Lord spoke through the prophet Haggai, “Consider your ways! You have sown much and bring in little; you eat, but do not have enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes... Consider your ways!” (Haggai 1:5-7). The people had served themselves and left the things of God behind. They build their own houses, and adorned them in beauty while the temple of God lay in ruins. Friends, we need to consider our ways! Have we left the things of God bankrupt while attempting to magnify our own lives? It is a futile way!

Solomon, endowed by the Lord with great wisdom penned, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and depart from evil.” (Proverbs 3:5-7). We need to do as the Psalmist, think on our own ways, and turn our feet to the Lord. We ought to make haste, and not delay to keep the commandments of God.

The faithful Christian is never a delight to the wicked. When we do what we are supposed to as the children of God, we can expect that trial and trouble will come. The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” (2 Timothy 3:12). These were not empty words coming from an evangelist who had spent a life of comfort on earth. At the gates of Lystra, Paul was stoned and left for dead by the Jews of Antioch and Iconium. Amazingly, surrounded by brethren, the apostle rose, and continued a day later to Derbe. Can you picture in your mind the stone-bruised apostle a short time later, returning through Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, “strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.’” (Acts 14:22).

Though the wicked may surround us, though they may bind us and bring all manner of persecution upon us, may we subscribe to the attitude found in the apostle Paul, the Psalmist, and others who have kept the course. “The cords of the wicked have bound me, but I have not forgotten Your law.”

Not only did the Psalmist in the midst of persecutions hold fast to the word of God, but he declares, “At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You, because of Your righteous judgments.” I can’t help but think of the apostle Paul again, a few chapters later in the book of Acts, as he, along with Silas were imprisoned at Philippi. Having been beaten severely, and locked in stocks in the inner prison, we read, “...at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.” (Acts 16:25). When trouble comes our way, when we are wrongfully mistreated, we can choose to complain, fret, and sulk, or, we can decide to praise the Lord for His goodness and faithfulness. Even in the worst of conditions this life can offer, there is reason to give thanks to the Lord.

The prophet Amos inquired, “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” (Amos 3:3). One cannot share true companionship with those who are of a different mind. However, what a blessing it is that the Lord has many faithful servants, and we share together with them. Those who are children of God are members of the largest family in the universe and beyond. David later pens, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1). There is a bond among the saints of God which oversteps the bounds of this life – it carries on throughout eternity.

The bond which exists among saints never ceases to amaze me. While travelling, we have met with and stayed with brethren of whom we had no former knowledge or contact with. Just a few moments together, and it feels like we belong together and have been together. How can that be? We have been born of the same Father; we share the same hope; we follow the same family rules!

Finally friend, consider the closing words of this segment of our text, “The earth, O LORD, is full of Your mercy; teach me Your statutes.” The goodness of God is evident throughout creation. One need not look hard to see the great handiwork of the Lord and to appreciate His care for all of creation. The Psalmist elsewhere writes, “The LORD is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works.” Jesus reveals of the Father, “...He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust..." (Matthew 5:45).

There is just so much to learn about the goodness of our God. The writer’s statement amounts to an acknowledgement that the mercy of God surrounds us upon the earth, if we would be look. Lord, teach us your ways, make known to us your immense goodness!

Click here for this week's Answering The Atheist
Did everyone (except Noah and his family) die in the flood? Genesis 7:21-23 says that “all flesh died”, only Noah and those with him in the ark survived. However, Genesis 6:4 speaks of the giants which were on the earth prior to the flood, and what do we see after the flood, but the sons of Anak, giants who dwelt on the earth (Numbers 13:33). Is there a contradiction?