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“Teach me Your way, O LORD; I will walk in Your truth: unite my heart to fear Your name.” —Psalm 86:11
Psalm 86 is a psalm of David. It is a psalm of petition, penitence, and praise. It is thought that the occasion of this psalm was when David was forgiven of his great sin with Bathsheba, his deliverance from the rebellion of Absalom, and restoration to his throne.
This psalm could also be described as “a prayer of David.” Verse 3 states, “For I cry unto You daily.” In these words we see that as children of God we must seek the Lord on a daily basis. The more one develops this prayer life, the deeper one’s relationship with the Lord becomes. It is through prayer that one’s heart becomes more sensitive and tuned to the voice of the Lord.
Teach Me Your Way, O Lord
In this psalm we are given three great truths. There are three paths or three ways before the child of God: the way of man, the way of self, and the way of the Lord. The first two will always result in failure, heartache, and destruction. The ways of man and self-will never lead one to God.
Far too many people who are in church today follow the way of their denomination or their church, and, though cloaked in great religious activity and verbiage, it is a false path. It is a false path that is always predicated by works, meaning that too many Christians think that the doing of certain things or not doing certain things is evidence of a righteous life. In other words, it’s the doing of certain things that portrays our holiness.
Every believer should strive to do good works, but our works must be properly understood. If one’s faith is properly placed in Christ and Him crucified, then proper works will be realized. It’s not us trying to earn something from the Lord according to our works. Instead, our life becomes a life ruled and directed by the Lord through the work of the Holy Spirit. Proper faith will always produce proper works and proper righteousness—not self-righteousness.
I Will Walk In Your Truth
Truth is not a philosophy, for philosophies change, but truth does not change. The truth is threefold and corresponds with the Trinity:
a) Jesus Christ is truth (Jn. 14:6).
b) The Holy Spirit is truth (I Jn. 5:6).
c) The Bible, God’s Word is truth (Jn. 1:17).
All truth can be summed up in Jesus Christ, who is “the Word of God.” One’s church is not truth; one’s denomination is not truth, only Christ.
The word walk implies that there is a specific path, or one could say “a fixed course” that the Lord has ordained for each of His children to follow. Psalm 23:3 says, “He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” The only way the child of God can stay on the proper path is through knowledge of the Word of God and to be led by the Holy Spirit.
Unite My Heart To Fear Your Name
One of the greatest obstacles for the believer is a divided heart. A heart that is divided is caused by an improper relationship—a relationship where the Lord is only a part of the believer’s life and not the totality of his life. Only when every aspect of his heart is united in Christ will he properly “fear Your name.” The word fear, as used here, means “to truly respect the Lord and His Word.”
The world has no respect for the things of God, and sadly much of the church does not respect Him and His Word. Only when there is a proper respect for the Lord and His Word will He teach us and give us truth for us to walk therein.
Let our prayer be, “Teach me Your way, O LORD.”
Pastor Donnie Swaggart - JSM
Psalm 86 is a psalm of David. It is a psalm of petition, penitence, and praise. It is thought that the occasion of this psalm was when David was forgiven of his great sin with Bathsheba, his deliverance from the rebellion of Absalom, and restoration to his throne.
This psalm could also be described as “a prayer of David.” Verse 3 states, “For I cry unto You daily.” In these words we see that as children of God we must seek the Lord on a daily basis. The more one develops this prayer life, the deeper one’s relationship with the Lord becomes. It is through prayer that one’s heart becomes more sensitive and tuned to the voice of the Lord.
Teach Me Your Way, O Lord
In this psalm we are given three great truths. There are three paths or three ways before the child of God: the way of man, the way of self, and the way of the Lord. The first two will always result in failure, heartache, and destruction. The ways of man and self-will never lead one to God.
Far too many people who are in church today follow the way of their denomination or their church, and, though cloaked in great religious activity and verbiage, it is a false path. It is a false path that is always predicated by works, meaning that too many Christians think that the doing of certain things or not doing certain things is evidence of a righteous life. In other words, it’s the doing of certain things that portrays our holiness.
Every believer should strive to do good works, but our works must be properly understood. If one’s faith is properly placed in Christ and Him crucified, then proper works will be realized. It’s not us trying to earn something from the Lord according to our works. Instead, our life becomes a life ruled and directed by the Lord through the work of the Holy Spirit. Proper faith will always produce proper works and proper righteousness—not self-righteousness.
I Will Walk In Your Truth
Truth is not a philosophy, for philosophies change, but truth does not change. The truth is threefold and corresponds with the Trinity:
a) Jesus Christ is truth (Jn. 14:6).
b) The Holy Spirit is truth (I Jn. 5:6).
c) The Bible, God’s Word is truth (Jn. 1:17).
All truth can be summed up in Jesus Christ, who is “the Word of God.” One’s church is not truth; one’s denomination is not truth, only Christ.
The word walk implies that there is a specific path, or one could say “a fixed course” that the Lord has ordained for each of His children to follow. Psalm 23:3 says, “He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” The only way the child of God can stay on the proper path is through knowledge of the Word of God and to be led by the Holy Spirit.
Unite My Heart To Fear Your Name
One of the greatest obstacles for the believer is a divided heart. A heart that is divided is caused by an improper relationship—a relationship where the Lord is only a part of the believer’s life and not the totality of his life. Only when every aspect of his heart is united in Christ will he properly “fear Your name.” The word fear, as used here, means “to truly respect the Lord and His Word.”
The world has no respect for the things of God, and sadly much of the church does not respect Him and His Word. Only when there is a proper respect for the Lord and His Word will He teach us and give us truth for us to walk therein.
Let our prayer be, “Teach me Your way, O LORD.”
Pastor Donnie Swaggart - JSM
