Keep me far away from false ways
May 04, 2020
Psalm 119.29 Put false ways far from me and graciously teach me your law!
When life is heavy and difficult, it is easy to listen to our soul enemy. He pumps our head full of lies that are easy to believe: That there is nothing you can do. That there is no hope for you. That you might as well give up. That everything is meaningless. That you are hopeless and without a future. That you have said no and turned away from God, so there is no more forgiveness for you. That you are not good enough and never will be.Only give up. Or maybe he says, you are good enough the way you are, and can live the way you want to after your own desires, without it having any negative consequences for you.
We are in a spiritual battle against false truths. The devil whips out thoughts full of lies that he wants us to believe. He is a liar and everything he says is a lie. Even as he quotes the Bible, he lies. Sometimes he seems to know the Bible better than we do, when he tries to get us away from the holy faith that was once for all delivered to us. There is reason to be vigilant when words in the Bible are taken out of context and are used to deny what has been our Christian church's belief for 2000 years. To reject the apostolic Christian doctrine never leads to anything good.
Therefore we pray: Keep the road of lies away from us! Close the path that leads us away from the Word of God! Lord, set up a great barricade on the road leading to Nowhere! Save us from the devil's lies and the empty life he wants to lure us into. Save us from the false life. Let us live in the truth so that we can reach the goal you have set for us. Save us from from sinful behavior and from seductive desires.
The opposite of going on the false path is to receive grace in God's law. It means grace to embrace all that God says in His Word. It is to say no to ourselves and our own desires, to take up the cross and follow Jesus. This is where the fight stands. The lies and desires contradict the word of God. Who will we obey? Whom do we want to listen to? In this struggle we need help. We receive this help when we pray as David prayed.
This is something I try to do with my own words: Give me grace in your law. Give me grace to get hold of the spirit of the Law. Give me revelation in your law. Let me see your grace in your law. Give me grace to be faithful to your word and to live according to your will.
"Keep me far away from what is false, grant me grace to be faithful to your laws."