God’s Provision for God’s Service

Bible, Bible Exposition, Bible Meditation, Faith, Prayer, praying the scriptures, Providence, Psalm 119, Psalms 2 Minutes

“Deal bountifully with your servant, that I may live and keep your word.” – Psalm 119:17

There are three thoughts that I would like to put before you.

  1. This is a prayer for God’s care and provision.
  2. This is a prayer from a servant to his Master.
  3. This is a prayer with God’s glory as the focus.

Allow me to briefly expound on these points.

A Prayer for God’s Care and Provision

The Psalmist prays that God provide for him and care for his needs. The Lord has taught us to pray for our daily bread to be provided in his model prayer. This is good and upright. We are God’s children, and as our children are dependent upon us for provision, we are dependent upon the Lord. Only we are more so. We depend upon him for all our existence. We cannot breathe and our hearts will not beat without him.

A Prayer from a Servant to His Master

We are the children of God (John 1:12; 1 John 3:1). We are also his servants. We have been redeemed to no longer serve ourselves but to serve the Lord Jesus Christ who died and was raised for our sakes (2 Corinthians 5:15). The Psalmist knows who has the lead in this relationship. He is not coming to God with demands or commands. He comes boldly with requests but not irreverently with commands. He comes as a servant wanting to do his Master’s will, and he knows that he cannot fulfill the Master’s will without his Master’s provision.

A Prayer with God’s Glory in Focus

The whole point of the Psalmist’s prayer is that God may be glorified. He asks the Lord to deal bountifully with him, not in the fashion of the so-called “prosperity gospel” or the so-called “word of faith” false religion. No. He does not want bounty for his own profit and comfort. He asks that God deal bountifully with him that he may live. But life is not his only desire either. He only desires to live that he may keep his Master’s Word. The word for “keep” is “guard.”

“Deal bountifully with your servant that I may live and guard your Word.” In essence he is saying, “Provide for me so I may live and be a faithful soldier in the battle of the faith (2 Timothy 2:3). Provide for me so I may guard your Word with my life.”

May the Psalmist’s heart be echoed in each of our lives. May we be as our Lord Jesus, who trusted the Father in all things and kept the Father’s Word in his life, in his death, and in his resurrection. Amen.

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

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