THE PATH OF LIFE: FOLLOWING THE GUIDE

Psalm 100:1–5 (NKJV) Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! 2Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. 3Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. 4Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. 5For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

Today, we begin a series for the rest of this month focused on finding the Path of Life. Why am I here? What is my purpose? What’s the point? Ultimately, Psalm 100 answers the questions we’ve all asked but we’re going to spend the next few weeks in the Psalms finding deeper understanding of the purpose of life. Today, we’re going to begin in Psalm 16.

1. Finding your purpose requires finding your source

Psalm 16:1-4 (CSB) Protect me, God, for I take refuge in you. 2I said to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have nothing good besides you.” 3As for the holy people who are in the land, they are the noble ones. All my delight is in them. 4The sorrows of those who take another god for themselves will multiply; I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood, and I will not speak their names with my lips.

• In Him we find the safety we need for our lives
• Determining early in life to “take refuge” in Him is the greatest step forward for us all
• We find our source through fearing God
• Hebrews 12:28–29 (CSB) Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful. By it, we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, 29for our God is a consuming fire.
• John Piper said, “Notice that fearing God and taking refuge in him are parallel. Those who keep the fear of God before their eyes will not run from him but take refuge in him.”[i]

2. Finding your purpose comes from seeing His provision

Vss 5-6 Lord, you are my portion and my cup of blessing; you hold my future. 6The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

• In Him we find the provision we need for our lives
• Our greatest possession, both now and forever, is found through following Him
• Warren Weirsbe stated, “Since life is so brief, we cannot afford merely to “spend our lives”; and we certainly do not want to “waste our lives.” We must invest our lives in those things that are eternal.”[ii]

3. Finding your purpose flows from total dependence

Vss 7-8 I will bless the Lord who counsels me— even at night when my thoughts trouble me. 8I always let the Lord guide me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

• In Him we find the guidance we need for our lives
• In all the temptations of life, leaning on His leading is our only path
• “There is nothing facile in the divine guidance depicted here: on God’s side it is counsel rather than coercion, and on man’s side the kind of heart, searching that may drive away sleep.”[iii] – Derek Kidner
• Tony Evans said, “The Lord counsels, instructs, and guides him because David was near him…. The greater life’s challenges, in fact, the more believers should strive to remain in God’s presence.”[iv]

4. Finding your purpose is in discovering who HE is 

Vss 9-11 Therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices; my body also rests securely. 10For you will not abandon me to Sheol; you will not allow your faithful one to see decay. 11You reveal the path of life to me; in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures.

• In Him we find the deliverance and purpose we need for our lives
• There is no hope in this life outside of following Christ
• In speaking of our key verse today, Charles Spurgeon once wrote, “In this verse are four things observable: A Guide, A Traveler, A Way, The Path.”[v]
• Josh Smith said, “The God we can trust for our future is a God we can trust today no matter what…The Lord determines the way, and we will walk in it.”[vi]

[i] John Piper, Sermons from John Piper (1980–1989) (Minneapolis, MN: Desiring God, 2007).

[ii] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 371.

[iii] Derek Kidner, Psalms 1–72: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 15, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1973), 102.

[iv] Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2019), 515.

[v] C.H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Volume 1 (New York, NY: I.K. Funk & Co., 1882), 235.

[vi] J. Josh Smith and Daniel L. Akin, Exalting Jesus in Psalms 1–50, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2022), 119.