How does Psalm 119:107 connect with other scriptures about God's sustaining power? Setting the Scene Psalm 119:107: “I am severely afflicted, O LORD; revive me through Your word.” The psalmist is honest about pain yet utterly confident that God’s word is the channel of revival. That single line becomes a doorway into a rich, Bible-wide testimony of God’s sustaining power. Key Words, Key Truths • Severely afflicted – real, crushing trouble, not a minor setback • Revive – breathe new life, restore vitality, keep going when strength is gone • Through Your word – Scripture itself is the means God uses to pour life into the weary Old-Testament Echoes of Revival • Psalm 119:50 – “This is my comfort in affliction, for Your promise has revived me.” – Same author, same theme: affliction + divine promise = life. • Psalm 71:20 – “Though You have shown me many troubles and misfortunes, You will revive me again…” – Past faithfulness fuels present hope. • Psalm 138:7 – “If I walk in the midst of trouble, You preserve me…” – God’s preserving hand reaches right into the mess. • Isaiah 40:29-31 – “He gives power to the faint… those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength.” – Waiting on God and feeding on His word belong together; both result in renewed power. • Isaiah 57:15 – God dwells “to revive the spirit of the lowly and revive the heart of the contrite.” – Humble hearts become living proof of divine restoration. • Lamentations 3:21-23 – “Because of the LORD’s loving devotion we are not consumed… His mercies never fail.” – Even national catastrophe cannot exhaust God’s sustaining mercy. Jesus, the Living Word, and Sustaining Power • Matthew 4:4 – “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” – Physical bread sustains the body; Scripture sustains the whole person. • John 6:63 – “The Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.” – The life-giving power Psalm 119 longs for is ultimately found in Christ’s own words. New-Testament Assurance for the Afflicted • 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 16 – “Hard pressed… but not crushed… Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.” – The same divine renewal promised in the Psalms continues for believers in Christ. • 1 Peter 5:10 – “After you have suffered for a little while… [God] will Himself restore you, secure you, strengthen you, and establish you.” – Restoration, strength, and stability—all functions of God’s sustaining grace. Connecting the Dots 1. Scripture presents affliction as common but never final for God’s people. 2. God’s word is repeatedly identified as the instrument of revival. 3. The flow of sustaining power moves from promise (Old Testament) → Person (Jesus, the living Word) → Presence (Spirit-empowered renewal in the church). 4. Believers experience day-by-day renewal that mirrors the psalmist’s cry and God’s timeless response. Living the Connection Today • Open the Word when energy is lowest; it is the appointed conduit of life. • Recall specific promises (Psalm 71:20; Isaiah 40:29-31) when circumstances shout the opposite. • Anchor prayers in Scripture itself—“Revive me through Your word”—echoing Psalm 119:107. • Look to Christ, the Word incarnate, whose speaking still imparts life (John 6:63). • Expect ongoing renewal, not a one-time surge (2 Corinthians 4:16). The Scriptures knit together a single, unbreakable theme: the God who speaks is the God who sustains. When affliction presses hard, His word revives—yesterday, today, and for all eternity. |
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