Make me to know your ways, O LORD;
teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all the day long.
Remember your mercy, O LORD, and your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.
Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
according to your steadfast love remember me,
for the sake of your goodness, O LORD!
Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in what is right,
and teaches the humble his way.
All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness,
for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
For your name’s sake, O LORD,
pardon my guilt, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the LORD?
Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
His soul shall abide in well-being,
and his offspring shall inherit the land.
The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.
My eyes are ever toward the LORD,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net.
(Psalm 25:4-15 ESV)
I spent time praying thru these words this morning, for various people the Lord laid on my heart. It is sweet to pray the Psalms.
But we also learn much about our God in this Psalm. We learn that God will teach us (v4-5); he is merciful and has covenant, steadfast love (v6-7); that he will not remember (intentionally) our former sins (v7); that he is good and upright and because he is those things he instructs sinners in his way (v8); we need humility to be lead and taught by him (v9); and when we do, he filles our lives with love and faithfulness (v10); he forgives sin for HIS glory (v11); and when we revere him, honor him as first in all our lives he instructs us (v12); our souls will have peace (v13); we are to give him the honor that he deserves and he will instruct us in his covenant (v14)
We see a big theme running thru these verses: God is 100% good and faithful to his promises, we need to be humble and honor him in our lives as God – and he will then teach us his ways and his covenant. Now that Christ has come, we have a new covenant – by grace thru faith in Jesus we are God’s children, we are forgiven, we have a new identity, we are blameless before God because of the work of Christ.
May we be humble and teachable to grow in the knowledge and mature in Jesus, and may we come to understand the covenant faithfulness and mercy of our God.
Mike Ruel 