It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees. Psalm 119:71
Gracious Father, only a humble certainty about your love could’ve moved King David to praise you for the “gift” of affliction, rather than charge you with a dereliction of duty. His attitude demonstrates how the gospel of your grace turns everything upside down, or rather, right side up. It also reminds me of how long I was willingly influenced by some pretty bad teaching.
I spent a lot of years trying to finagle my way spiritually out of harm’s way—believing if I just claimed the right verses… prayed the right prayers… did the right things, and then I’d have an abundance of “blessings” and a scarcity of difficulties. I can see how I wanted you to be more of a “sugar daddy” than “Abba, Father.” I wasn’t primarily thinking about learning your decrees, but escaping discomfort. Such is the dastardly goal of man-centered gospels, which are no gospel at all. I praise you for your patience and persistence with me. What a loving God you truly are.
Lord Jesus, because you took all the judicial afflictions we deserve as sinful rebels, we’re now only afflicted as beloved sons and daughters. Because of you Jesus we don’t have to be afraid of God as our judge. We revere and love him as our Father. Only because of you, Jesus, we no longer dread the decrees of God, rather we are now learning to delight in them. They aren’t rules by which we earn anything, they are the wisdom by which we learn everything we need to know about a life shaped and fueled by the gospel. We praise you for the Scriptures.
Father, the truth is, you have filled our lives with more creature comforts than we could have ever imagined. Help us to be far more generous with these good gifts, even as you help us be far more grateful for the good gifts of affliction, correction and trials. It’s no longer about our punishment. It’s all about your praise. So very Amen, we pray, in Jesus’ holy and gracious name.
