Psalm 119:14 – Finding Greater Joy in God’s Word Than in Riches

Psalms 119:14

¹⁴ I rejoice in following your statutes

as one rejoices in great riches. (NIV)

As we continue our examination of this passage, we go back to the comparison of finding great riches. Our response to His statutes should be the same as if we discovered great riches. 

Our culture is more deeply connected to self-help and DIY than ever. Most of us have spent hours searching YouTube for videos on how to do this or that. Our social media stream is flooded with people advertising their services to teach us how to make a lot of money, lose a ton of weight, or find inner peace. Everyone seems to be an expert. But one thing we must remember is that all true wisdom comes from God, and it is found in His Word. 

If the statutes of God, His laws and ways of operating in this life, are true, then it seems the whole world would be flocking to the Bible. That is not the case. The world refutes and rejects the Bible. But even as believers, we do not place the appropriate priority on the Word of God. 

If someone we trusted to have perfect knowledge of where we could find a box full of tax-free money that we could keep, would we not be excited to receive those directions? If we knew without a shadow of doubt that some guru could make our marriage all we hoped it to be, would we not give a small treasure to hear what he has to say? Of course, we approach all of these so-called experts with caution as we should. We do this because we know that no one has the answer. But the question we must ask ourselves is whether we believe God has all the answers. If we do, and He has written it all down in the stories and narratives in the Bible, why are we not excited each day to get into His Word?

Some of the reasons why we don’t engage in the Scriptures as we should are spiritual. Of course, the last thing the enemy wants us to do is read and meditate on the Word of God every day. He will create all kinds of pressures and distractions to keep us from our time with God. But there is another reason that could be true? Are we fully convinced that all wisdom is found in Scripture? We might not ever say out loud that we don’t believe that, but when we look deep within ourselves, do we truly believe God’s wisdom for our best life is in the book collecting dust on our bookshelves? 

We will never pursue the Word of God with the zeal it deserves until we are committed to following its teachings completely. Only then will we see its wisdom and power. As we see this, our delight for His law will increase all the more, and our time with God will become more precious than all the treasures of this world.

Prayer: Lord, help me to pursue Your Word and to follow it with faithfulness that I might know its great wisdom and see it in my life. Amen.