Peace From The Word

⏱️ 4 minutes.

Greetings, chosen ones of God,

Today, let’s take a moment to learn about how to escape the stumbling blocks of this world:

Those who love Your law have much peace,
And nothing causes them to stumble.
— Psalm 119:165

The psalmist makes this statement after having gone through persecution. He says that this persecution is without cause. He also states that those who do this do so because of the word of God:

Princes persecute me without cause,
But my heart stands in awe of Your words.
— Psalm 119:161

It’s also interesting to note that those who persecute the psalmist are noted to be princes. Here, the word princes can mean “prince, ruler, leader, chief, chieftain, official, captain.” Those who would persecute him because of the word of God and cause him to stumble are people of high repute in society. This speaks to the kind of persecution that believers would face, that opposition will indeed come from people who are well-respected and of high repute in society.

In pushing back against this stumbling, the psalmist points us to a rather peculiar place—the word of God. He says that nothing causes those who love the law of God to stumble.

The emphasis here is on the love of the law of God. It’s one thing to simply have an awareness of the word of God, and another to actually love the word of God, follow it, and obey it. This is what James says about being doers of the Word:

But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
— James 1:22

In order to become a doer of the word, one must come to a place of truly loving the word of God. This was the attitude of the psalmist:

I shall delight in Your commandments,
Which I love.
And I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments,
Which I love;
And I will meditate on Your statutes.
— Psalm 119:47-48

The question then would be: how do we come to a place of loving the word of God?

Here are some main ways that we learn from the Bible to come to a place of loving God’s word:

Complete Exposure to God’s Word

We need to submerge ourselves into the word of God. In doing so, we are exposed to the truths of God’s word and consequently grow in our appreciation and affection for it. This is the advice that Moses gave to Joshua at the end of his life:

Only be strong and very courageous to be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn aside from it to the right or to the left, so that you may be prosperous wherever you go. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.
— Joshua 1:7-8

Joshua was instructed to be exposed to the word of God all the time. The specific instruction was “day and night,” which alluded to this constant, unceasing exposure to God’s word. This is what it takes to come to a place of loving God’s word.

The more we are exposed to the word of God and see the truths within it, the more we come to a place of loving the Word of God as it ushers us into a deeper relationship with our Father in heaven. One such truth that can really open our eyes to how delightful the word is, is how it keeps us from sinning against God:

How can a young man keep his way pure?
By keeping it according to Your word.
— Psalm 119:9

Your word I have treasured in my heart,
That I may not sin against You.
— Psalm 119:11

The end of it all leads to something very precious to the believer, and anyone else who would take heed. The psalmist states that those who love the word of God have much peace. This is such an outstanding reward. Loving God’s word keeps us from stumbling and fills us with the peace of God.

Let’s think through these questions:

• Can we say we love God’s word?
• As we delight in the word of God, do we see ourselves getting over life’s stumbling blocks?
• Is peace the result of loving God’s word in our lives?

I pray this word reminds us to immerse ourselves into God’s word daily.

Peace be upon you,
Paul.