Orders

Psa 50:23 He who brings thanksgiving as his sacrifice honors me, and to him who orders his way aright, I will show the salvation of God.

One of the first things that you learn as a plebe at the Naval Academy is that when someone senior in rank to you gives a ‘command’ or a ‘order’ as the Junior person, you MUST obey. You come to quickly understand that a ‘order’ is not a request, or a wish, it is ultimately backed-up by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed forces and the weight of the entire chain of command. Initially, the consequences of not following an ‘order’ were push-ups, or being yelled at, or running laps or doing extra memory work, or marching laps in a dress uniform carrying a weapon during your free time. You learn early on that and ‘order’ is just that, it requires action on your part and a 100% effort to obey.

You also learn how to give orders. Various plebes would be given ‘charge’ of other plebes to issue marching cadences and to take leadership. When it was time for you to be ‘in charge’, if you issued an ‘order’ in a weak, wimpy and ‘girly’ voice, the trainers would be all over you, calling you names and trying to train us to be ‘manly’, to use a ‘command’ voice and ‘tone’ that would instill fear in those assigned to carry out the ‘command’. They were teaching us that ‘command’s’ or ‘orders’ needed to be received as such. They were to be carried and followed out, instantaneously and whole-heartedly. Failure to do so could ultimately endanger the men or the ship. Officers had to learn to both obey orders and to give orders. Inherent with the giving or orders was the understanding of authority behind the person issuing the command.

The word “ORDER” is used in this verse. “….To him who ORDERS his way aright…” God through the Psalmist is placing the responsibility on obedience squarely on man’s shoulders. A man, you and me, can ‘order’ our way aright. We can choose to obey God, or we can ‘order’ our way to disobey God. We can go either way.

Romans 6 says, “But thanks be to God that you who once were slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to that standard of teaching to which you were committed.” It also says, “For just as you once YIELDED your members to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now YIELD your bodies to righteousness for sanctification” The word YIELD is a word referring to our WILL. We can WILL or CHOOSE or ORDER our way toward impurity, disobedience and sin; OR, we can WILL, CHOOSE or ORDER our way toward purity, obedience and righteousness.

It is our choice; our will, our God given ability to ORDER our way aright. Before Cain killed Abel, God appeared to Cain and appealed to this very God-given, human quality of free-will. God said, “If you do well will you not be accepted, but if not, know that sin is crouching at the door and its desire is to master you, but YOU MUST MASTER IT”. God said, “Your choice Cain. Your call. Will you order your way against the evil and sin of murder in your heart, or will you order your members to kill your brother….” The same choice is ours everyday: bless or curse others, obey God or disobey; yield to lust or to put it to death; be kind or be mean.

God, please fill us with all of You. Give us Your strength to ‘order our way aright’ in all our choices.

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