Psalm 119: The longest chapter in the Bible

My childhood was a much simpler time in America. Growing up in the 1970’s I attended elementary school in South Carolina. The high school students drove the school buses! The thinking was, “They are attending high school. They have their driver’s licenses. They must as well drive the school buses!” We had some wild rides to school.

After school I was not allowed to watch television. My mother welcomed us home from school. We couldn’t wait to change our clothes, run outside and play. We played football and baseball and cops and robbers and marbles. We played in the mud and got dirty. It was a great time.

Occasionally, in a moment of weakness, my mother allowed us to watch television after school. One of my favorite shows was Popeye. Every Popeye was the same. Popeye got in trouble. He ended up in a fight. He somehow found his spinach which he ate and then won the fight. It is indelibly imprinted on my brain that eating spinach makes a person strong!

The Bible is like spinach. The only difference is the Bible tastes good. God’s Word produces incredible power in our lives. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible. It is 176 verses. Almost every verse mentions God’s Word. Psalm 119 is almost in the center of the Bible. As we meditate on God’s truth His power flows into our lives.

Psalm 119 does not focus on the inspiration of Scripture. The Bible is inspired or God breathed but that is not the focus of Psalm 119. The psalm does not major on the inerrancy of the Bible. God’s Word is without error. It is perfect. Neither does Psalm 119 focus on the infallibility of Scripture. The Bible is trustworthy but that is not the purpose of Psalm 119.

The focus of Psalm 119 is the supernatural power of the Bible. When we read the Bible and study the Bible and most of all apply the Bible its supernatural power flows into our lives. The Bible is modern day spinach! God strengthens us as we read the Bible.

This psalm is an acrostic. It is designed to be memorized. There are 21 letters in the Hebrew alphabet. The first eight verses begin with the Hebrew letter aleph (the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet). The next eight verses begin with the Hebrew letter beth (the second letter in the Hebrew alphabet). Each section of eight verses begins with the next Hebrew letter. Every good Jewish boy and girl was to memorize Psalm 119.

Psalm 119 verse 1 says, “How blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord. How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, who seek Him with all their heart.” Psalm 119 teaches three great lessons.

First, when the Bible moves in sin moves out. When we are meditating on God’s Word it drives sin out of our lives. Second, when sin moves out of our lives holiness moves in. Sin and holiness are opposites. They are incompatible. Third, when holiness moves in happiness moves in. Happiness and holiness are like twins. They always live together!

Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. When we are not reading and hearing and thinking about the Bible sin moves into our lives. When sin moves in holiness moves out. When holiness moves out of our lives happiness moves out also. Holiness and happiness always live together!

The Christian faith is based upon thinking. The battle is won or lost in the mind. Proverbs 23:7 says, “As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” Perhaps the most famous verse in Psalm 119 is verse 11. “Your Word I have hid in my heart that I might not sin against God.” As we memorize the Bible it drives sin out of our lives. Another very famous verse is verse 105. “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” God’s Word provides strength and guidance. Many things have changed in America since my childhood in the 1970’s. Eight track tapes have been replaced by smart phones. Our phones are no longer connected to the wall. I don’t know anyone with a CB radio. Even in South Carolina the high school students are no longer driving the school buses!

Many things have changed in America but many things remain the same. The story of Popeye is timeless. We all find ourselves in difficult, impossible situations. The odds seem hopeless. We need a source of strength. Real strength is not found in a can of spinach. Strength flows into your life through the Word of God. The Bible always points to Jesus. Jesus died for us. He rose again. He paid for our sins. He offers eternal life. Read the Bible every day and watch God’s supernatural strength flow into your life!

Ethan Hansen is the pastor at Faith Bible Fellowship in Big Lake