Revival in Psalm 119

From Darkness to Light, A Journey of Faith

As revival begins, even so, it must continue

If the Christian faith and experience are only mental and occur only in a classroom and never move into every aspect of our lives, it becomes dead and static. Every Christian is meant to live in the presence of God by fulfilling His calling on their life and not just men called into "ministry."

Not Desiring Revival Dwarfs the Church

I know the above concept is especially difficult for those living in the church box created by the Roman Catholic Church and perpetuated even after The Reformation. It is not so in the book of Acts, throughout the New Testament, or even in the Psalm set before us. God began to stir my soul on this very subject in my life as early as 1977.

These thoughts bring us to the longest chapter in the Bible, Psalm 119. Everyone knows that it is praise about the supremacy of God's Holy Word. However, what's it about? What is the author saying as he highly regards God's ways through His statutes, commands, testimonies, and precepts? Is it simply a walk through the Hebrew alphabet as he elevates the Word of God in poetry?

The Believer's Life Walk in Psalm 119

There are 22 stanzas, each containing eight lines in Psalm 119 corresponding with the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet in order. Some have suggested that the Psalm does not have an outline, but I beg to differ. The outline is not as ordered as the rest of the Psalm, but neither is life from man's perspective so ordered. The Psalm pictures a believer's growing appreciation for God and, in particular, His word and the lessons we learn along this short pilgrimage. The Psalm as our lives are sometimes cyclical but always with the purpose of imparting divine life in mind.

The following stanzas are divided in this way.

1. The confidence godly faith produces: 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, 13

2. Godly faith and a plea for revival 4, 5, 7, 11

3. Godly faith, a weakened confidence, and a plea for revival: 12

4. Godly faith, a plea for revival, and separation from the world: 14, 19, 20

5. Godly faith and separation from the world: 15, 16, 17, 18, 21, 22

Revival in Psalm 119

Psalm 119 uses the word revive eleven times, more than any other place in the Bible. The word revive is chayah in Hebrew, and it means to live. So when the Psalmist says in verse 25, "My soul cleaves to the dust; Revive me according to Your word," he asks God to give him life again, or as David tells us, "He restores my soul."

The believer's life begins at rebirth. Christianity is not a set of doctrines to be believed, nor mere intellectual assent, but it is to be translated from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of God's dear Son. John, in his first letter, said it this way, "what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ." (1 John 1:3) New Testament fellowship involves union with the eternal life.

Men want to turn Christianity into a set of teachings and the church into a classroom; however, God has made it to share His life through His Son for those He has chosen to impart saving faith by His grace. If that thought is too God-centered, you should rethink Christianity. The inspired author decided to repeat the need for revival or God's imparted life because there is an awareness of that need in the depths of a believer's soul. It's not a constant awareness, so it occasionally crops up in the 119th Psalm as the author becomes aware and prays to God in his need.

I could write many more pages about this subject and Psalm, and I may continue next week, but for now, I hope you will do your soul well by musing and contemplating through reading this Psalm and the things written here.

If you receive a blessing from God by reading this post, please share it with others as the Lord leads.