Listening Purposefully and Walking Worthy

For the last several days, everywhere I have turned I have encountered two concepts consistently.....in our Bible Study class at church yesterday, in devotional readings, in a message I heard on TV as I was getting ready for church yesterday morning, in conversation, in Scripture I have studied......the concepts of listening with a purpose and of walking worthy.

Now what does that all mean, and what does that have to do with Psalm 119?  Well, I think it actually has quite a lot to do with what we are learning from this Psalm.  Here's what I mean......let's look first at "walking worthy."  To do that, please read these passages in the New Testament:  Ephesians 4:1, Colossians 1:9-10, Colossians 2:6-8; 1 Thessalonians 2:12.  The consistent message of these verses is "walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called."  What does that mean?  If you do some word study, especially on the words "walk" and "worthy", and if you read all these (and other) cross-references carefully in their context, I believe what you will find is the exhortation (instruction) to live your life in a way that is consistent with the faith you profess.  In other words, walk your talk.  We're not told to walk worthy so that by our behavior we somehow can earn our salvation.  That is not the teaching of Scripture at all.  What we are told is that our behavior, our conduct, our lifestyle, our choices should reflect what we profess to believe!

Listening purposefully is closely connected to walking worthy.  For example, as you read this blog you have a choice to read quickly through it and then just as quickly forget about it.  Or you can choose to use it as a guide to search the Scripture, "listen" to hear what God has to say to you, and then make a conscious choice to align your behavior or your attitudes with what He says to you.  The same is true when you attend church on Sunday, or listen to a Bible teacher on the radio as you're driving in your car.  Does what you hear go in one ear and out the other?  Do you find yourself critiquing the speaker more than listening for what God has to say to you through them? Are you listening carefully with a clear intent to act on what you hear?

Are you at all like me and find yourself sometimes just "going through the motions"?  This is an area where God has really been convicting me, and I am reaffirming my commitment to listen purposefully with the goal of walking in a manner worthy of my calling.

What does all this have to do with Psalm 119?  If you think back over what we have studied so far, I think you may find it parallels the Psalm in a number of ways.  Think back to the very first verse.  Could we not view "those whose way is blameless" or those who "walk in the law of the LORD" as those who are walking worthy?  Can you find other parallels in the Psalm?  What about the psalmist?  Did he "walk worthy"?  Do you think he "listened purposefully" to the LORD?  What evidence do you find in the portion of the Psalm we have studied so far?

And what about you?  Are you listening purposefully and walking worthy?  As we are just past the mid-point of Psalm 119, maybe it's time to pause and do some self-examination.  What have you learned so far about the psalmist?  About God's Word?  About God Himself?  Have you aligned your thoughts, your behavior, your attitudes, with what you have learned?  If not, why not?

That's some pretty heavy thinking for a Monday, isn't it?  Let's reflect on these things today, and we'll move ahead to the mem stanza tomorrow.