Psalms 112

The fear of God and worshipping God is very practical to everyday living. I’m not talking about just going to church services, or mandatory Bible reading, but I’m talking about really loving God and seeking his face. Nothing "put on" to be seen of people, but "real" before God Almighty.

The focus of the text is not what we give up when we worship, but what we gain while on this earth, and what we gain for all eternity, and what our children and those around us gain. But notice that worshipping and praising God comes before any gain.

Fear means to be afraid of, to revere, and to be terrified of. Reverential fear and respect comes before love and honor.

Delight means to take pleasure in. See the word greatly.

There is delight because it is known and understood that God never gives bad gifts, but he always gives good gifts. Even when we must go through terrible circumstances, God is always there to bless and keep us if we will continue to mediate on his word and will for our everyday lives.

Example of a person who is traveling and gets lost, and goes into a service station to ask directions. He comes out fuming at the attendant, who gave him exact instructions on how to get to the proper destination. He said you must turn right, go 1 mile, then turn left at a particular intersection, then go three blocks and go right for a certain distance. Would you get mad at that person or would you follow his directions? I should obey the instructions because the attendant has nothing against me; he is trying to help me get to my destination. So I should delight in the commandments of God, because that is the way to health, wealth and happiness.

Verse 2 – The reason we delight in the commandments of God is because of the impact on our children, grandchildren, and those around us. Verse 1 blessed means happy. Verse 2 blessed means to receive the blessings of God. It means God’s hand for good will be upon us, and we will be blessed more than we could ever imagine. We must also say the opposite is also true. If we fail to delight in the commandments of God, his wrath and displeasure will be upon our generations and us.

Verse 3 – The next reason we delight in the commandments of God is for wealth and riches. This is not just material wealth in this life, but mainly is speaking of eternal wealth and riches. The truly spiritual person is not so concerned with earthly wealth as he is with eternal, heavenly wealth and riches. I do believe the Bible teaches God will give enough material possessions to his people who delight in his commandments, and that he will remove material possessions from those that refuse to delight in his commandments. Those people that are concerned with finances will be bound to their finances, but those people that are concerned with delighting themselves in the commandments of God will not be bound to their finances.

Verse 4 – There is enduring, continuing hope. Our culture today has tried to forget God and they have no hope. Teenagers commit suicide, because they have committed every sin they can think of and these sins have not made them happy, but is slowly destroying their lives. Those who refuse to delight in the commandments of God have no hope and do not believe there is any value in worshipping and serving God, but the person who delights themselves in the commandments of God is able to see daylight in the most severe trial, and this hope is passed on to the children. Notice the Godly person must endure times of darkness, but he does not endure it as the ungodly person. There are four things the righteous see: (1) light out of darkness, (2) the grace of God [note the words "he is" is in italics], (3) the compassion of God, and (4) the righteousness of God in allowing darkness to come – gracious in allowing us to see the light in the darkness.

Verse 5 – In all these things, the righteous man is a good witness to all those around him, never ceasing to show favor and lending to those that ask. His trust is in God, not in possessions. Guiding his affairs with discernment reflects this man is also a thinking man, loaning to those that need it, but not loaning to those who would take advantage of him or his goodness, or the goodness of God. His not foolish concerning his possessions, understanding they are the blessings of God, yet also understanding God will burn them up one day, so there is no need of being too proud or possessive of his possessions.

Verse 6-8 – There is steadfastness with the person who delights himself in the commandments of God. He is not concerned with the "ups and downs" of this life, with the stock market going up and down, but is steady in the Lord and his favor toward him. He remembers the righteous that have gone on before him, and the righteous that are around him, and uses them for everlasting blessings. There is not a worldly fear about the unknown, but his heart if fixed on the Lord. This lack of fear and trust in God is passed on to his children and his children’s children. The fear that is natural for our children is held in check because we are trusting our children to the Lord. When we would like to "lock them up in the basement and never let them out and protect them" we know that is unreasonable, and therefore we trust God to watch over them. God can watch them much better than we can. Verse 8 speaks of a passage of time until the enemies of the righteous are taken care of by God.

Verse 9 – This summary speaks of the all the good things that happen to the one who delights in the commandments of God. See all the things he has done: these are eternal rewards.

Verse 10 – The result upon the wicked. This is not a good thing. Do you grieve because somebody has more than you have? You just might be one of the wicked. Think about that!