The Word Will Cleanse You

Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

Psalm 119:9-11

There is only one way that we can purge the sin within us and be released from the penalty of Eternal Death… Many have tried to develop their own way or abided in their own will to fulfill the desires that they have; however we are reminded by David today that the only way to be brought out of condemnation is through the word of God… David was a man that made many mistakes in his life; from adultery with Bathsheba to encamping with the enemy we find many instances in which David made poor decisions… I am sure that if we look over our lives, we too can agree that there are a lot of choices that we made and things we have done that have strained our relationship with God and caused us to fall short of His calling… The key is not living a mistake-free life, but in recognizing your mistakes and knowing who is able to deliver you from them… After making mistakes, David poses a question here in the 119^th psalm that we all ask when we are down and out, “wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?” How can we get back up when we have fallen, how can we be cleansed from the filth in our lives, how can we overcome the mistakes that we have made, how is it that we can right our wrongs or turn a negative into a positive? We all have asked ourselves these questions and David provides the answer to us in the very next piece of the text, “By taking heed thereto according to thy word…” 

The bible is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our pathway… When we are engrossed in the word of God it will show us our mistakes and convict our spirit into remorse… Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” If you really desire to walk in the will of God, if you want to learn from your mistakes and see the areas in which you need to grow than study God’s word for it will penetrate down to your very soul and expose the areas of your lives that are keeping you from living according to the will of God… In understanding that it is the word of God that reveals to us our duty to God and how we are to conduct ourselves on this earth we acknowledge that there isn’t anybody on this earth that can cleanse us, there isn’t any good deed or task you can complete to be made whole. David understood that he made mistakes, but the most important thing he learned was that the word of God had to be a part of him and within him in order to be cleansed and made whole… If you want to become a better person, study God’s word, if you want to overcome the challenges of this life, be immersed in the word, if you want to fill the voids in your life, spend time with God by reading His word… David had tried everything and could not overcome, he sought vain things and still couldn’t fill the voids in his life, in this scripture he has turned everything over to the Lord… If you want peace in your life, turn it over to the Lord, if you want victory in your life; turn your trials over to the Lord… 

David said, “With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments…” When you experience the peace, love, kindness and compassion that comes from God you won’t want to leave it, when you know that God has filled the voids in your life, forgiven you of your sins and mistakes you won’t want to turn away from Him… David has found joy and doesn’t want to lose it, he has found love and doesn’t want to destroy it… We too have seen many struggles in our lives and have also seen God’s faithfulness manifested, let us live a life that mirrors David today… David said with his whole heart he sought the Lord, he wasn’t trying to hide his skeletons, he wasn’t worried about the dark corners of his life, and he looked intently for the Lord desiring to be made whole… Have we sought God with our whole heart, have we given all that we have to him, do we desire to stay the course and not wander from His commandments? This will call for you to confess your sins, this will call for you to acknowledge your mistakes, and this will call for you to humble yourself… We enter this world as sinners but we have a choice as to whether or not we leave the same way… David said, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee…” The bible makes many references about the importance of your heart and how it is the guide and shows your true intent… You will have some short-falls, you will make mistakes, but understand that God can cleanse you if you immerse yourself in His word and allow His word to be the guide of your life within your heart…

ALL FOR HIS GLORY!