Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes;
And I shall keep it unto the end (Psa 119.33).
The well-known maxim, “all’s well that ends well,” has a counterpart in Scripture. “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof” (Eccl 7.8). This truism will be most wonderfully seen in the spiritual realm when the end of God’s saving work in countless sinners will emerge for the public and everlasting praise of His grace and power.
Cheer up, then, poor Christian. “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof.” See that creeping worm, how contemptible its appearance! It is the beginning of a thing. Mark that insect with gorgeous wings, playing in the sunbeams, sipping at the flower bells, full of happiness and life; that is the end thereof. That caterpillar is yourself, until you are wrapped up in the chrysalis of death; but when Christ shall appear you shall be like Him, for you shall see Him as He is (1 John 3:2). Be content to be like him, a worm and no man, that like Him you may be satisfied when you wake up in His likeness.
To most of us, the wondrous biological process that takes place in the unseen cocoon is a great mystery, but this text reveals much about the means by which carnal caterpillars are turned into soaring spiritual butterflies, or, after a manner of speaking, how saints get their wings, a subject of much practical importance for us now.
Saints will finally be saved by God’s grace.
SAINTS ARE TRUE CHRISTIANS
Roman Catholics commonly use the term “saint” as restricted to “especially holy men and women who, through extraordinary lives of virtue, have already entered Heaven” by official declaration of the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) in a process called “canonization,” which looks for miracles allegedly performed by the candidate after his death! The RCC acknowledges this idea and process lacks explicit Scriptural support but that never troubles them.
Biblically, “saint” simply means a “sanctified one” and designates Christians, even sinful ones still living in this world, like the members of the church at Corinth (1 Cor 1.1-2). For this meditation, let us understand that we are using the term not for professing, but for real Christians, God’s elect who have already been regenerated by the Holy Spirit. By saints we simply mean true Christians.
SAINTS DO PERSEVERE
For a long time, clear-thinking Christians have spoken of “the perseverance of the saints” as a convenient shorthand for the truth that such people are preserved by God and will persevere (continue, persist) in a state of grace, despite all hindrances, until the very end of their lives, and then they will experience a glorious resurrection and the consummation of God’s redeeming work in them, for they will finally be glorified together with Christ for all eternity. To use our biological metaphor, every one of God’s caterpillars will become butterflies; not one will be lost (John 17.12; 6.39; 10.28).
The distinction between true and false saints, between believers and hypocrites, is an important one because some apparent Christians do not persevere. Judas Iscariot was counted among the Twelve and yet fell away from Christ totally and finally and went to his own place, that is, to hell. We surely see this kind of apostasy illustrated by supposed believers who, for example, are justly excommunicated and die as apparent impenitents. One of the marks of a genuine, saving faith is that it perseveres to the end by the grace of God (1John 2.19).
How, then, do real saints become fully redeemed and glorious? There is much more to the answer than we can present now, but this verse shows us some of the most important means.
SAINTS PRAY TO GOD FOR INSTRUCTION
The psalmist prayed, “Teach me, O LORD,” a sincere petition of humility and desire for God. These virtues are distinctive to saints. Only true Christians have them, and all true Christians have them, at least in some measure. Saints humbly realize something of their own folly (1 Cor 8.2). Saints know that continuing in sin would have the most disastrous consequences. Saints revere God with holy awe for His great wisdom (Rom 11.33-34). Saints seek instruction at the mouth of the Lord (Prov 2.1-6), that they might hold ever-closer communion with Him. “Can two walk together, except they be agreed” (Amos 3.3).
Does your heart ever sincerely, earnestly pray to the Lord to teach you? If you are a saint, you will. This is an important means by which God keeps you from being lost.
SAINTS REVERE SCRIPTURE FOR GUIDANCE
“Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes,” is clearly a reference to the Scriptures, as a Bible study of the term readily shows. The psalmist reveres Scripture for guidance. He wants to know, not only the wording of the statutes, but the way of them, the lifestyle of holy conduct they require and explain. In the Hebrew mindset, teaching and learning was not merely intellectual, as in Greek philosophy which has so much more influenced Western thought, but the Hebrew concept of learning was acquiring a skill to perform a noble task. The Lord granted wisdom to many in Moses’ day that they might have the skill needed to manufacture the tabernacle and its associated objects (Exod 36.1). Our English word “training” is nearer the Hebrew idea than “teaching.” “Train me, O Lord, in the way of Your statutes.”
Mere hypocrites may have a thirst for religious knowledge for many base reasons, for example, that they may glory in their superiority over others, or have ammunition to defeat others in theological debates. Saints, on the other hand, thirst for God’s truth that they may walk in the holy way. All and only saints have such a heart and purpose inclined to practice the righteous love of God and neighbor codified in God’s Word and exemplified in God’s Son, Jesus Christ.
Do you have a practical, life-transforming regard for Scripture as the guide of your life? If so, God uses that desire to beautify your soul and conduct more and more.
SAINTS EMBRACE THEIR RESPONSIBILITY OF OBEDIENCE
“And I shall keep it,” that is, “the way of thy statutes.” What begins with a plea for God’s act is followed by an expression of the psalmist’s spiritual commitment to act. He is decided; he is resolved. “I shall keep it,” in humble dependence upon the instruction which comes in answer to his petition.
Many wretched antinomians (heretics who think grace nullifies the necessity for good works, a Christian’s obedience to God’s law) may indeed offer prayers like the first line, but they do it without any intention of fulfilling their own responsibility to obey, thinking grace requires their passivity. God’s gracious work in a saint motivates him both to will and to do God’s good pleasure (Phil 2.12-13). True saints have a sincere intention, when pleading for God’s wisdom, to do God’s will.
Again, unbelievers could even possibly pray the second line, but they only do it insincerely, and their hypocrisy is only exposed by their steadfast refusal to obey God when His will has been plainly declared. Familiarize yourself, if you do not already know the story, with the account of the Jewish exiles in Babylon who sought God’s will through the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 42-43). Oh, how sincere they sounded at first (42.1-6)! And only ten days later, when Jeremiah plainly told them they should stay in Babylon and not go down to Egypt, they rejected him and his message because they were determined to disobey the Lord’s counsel (43.1-2). We are all prone to this kind of pretense, and only saving grace grants us a change of heart, when we really and truly embrace our responsibility for obedience to God’s Word, and have a measure of success in carrying it out as an expression of true love, faith, and reverence. This is another indispensable means by which God further beautifies His saints toward ultimate perfection.
As a real Christian, you should be able to point to specific ways in which you are consciously carrying out the precepts of God’s Word in your day to day life, motivated by your love for God Himself.
SAINTS HOPE IN FUTURE GRACE
“And I shall keep it unto the end.” This is not boasting, but an expression of confidence in God’s everlasting mercy toward the petitioner. “I shall keep the way of your statutes unto the end” because You, Lord, will teach me Your statutes, and keep teaching me, in Your merciful faithfulness.
The gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ promises not only a salvation from the guilt of our sinful past, but also a progressive deliverance from our sinful present and a triumph over a sinful future. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3.2). Jude wrote most encouragingly to his fellow saints of “the only wise God our Savior” who “is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24-25). It is on the basis of such promises that we can pray with much assurance, “I shall keep the way of Your statutes unto the end.” This assurance of future salvation is another way in which God preserves His people from despair in the struggle for spiritual purity and growth.
God will never, ever fail to finish the good work He has begun in such people (Phil 1.6). Our hope in future grace will be abundantly granted even beyond anything we can possibly comprehend now. We will perfectly reflect all the beautiful colors of virtue, having been transformed like exquisite butterflies. God’s own image will be perfectly restored in us and we will enjoy perfect, blissful communion with Him, to the glory of our Savior Jesus Christ for all eternity. Amen.
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