Turned

“I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.” (Psalm 119:59)

Many times we do not know right from wrong until we open the Word of God and apply the principles we find there to our own lives. The world has its own sense of values which are often in conflict with God’s values. We need to filter all that we hear from the world through the Word of God. Only then will we have a proper sense of values.

2 Timothy 3:16 tells us that the Word of God is profitable to us for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.

Teaching tells us what is right. There are many places in Scripture that gives us standards of right and wrong; the Ten Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount are two examples. However, we often find ourselves falling short of the ideal.

Rebuking tells us what is not right in our lives. The Word of God is like a mirror which reflects back to us our short comings and failures. We read the Ten Commandments and know we have not lived up to God’s standard.

Correcting tells us how to make it right. That is why we must consider the teachings of the Word of God and turn back or repent of our failures. Jesus tells the Ephesian church in Revelation 2 that they need to remember how things were when they first loved the Lord, repent of their sins and return again to do what is right.

Finally training tells us how to keep things right. When we have failed, God’s word calls us to turn back to Him, to look into His Word and do what He has commanded.

When we consider our ways we realize that we have missed the mark and we need to get our eyes on the mark which is revealed through the statutes of God.