8Good and upright is the LORD;
therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
9He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them his way.
God is our Teacher, for He alone is good and upright. He alone is the source of truth, righteousness and holy living. Today, in the new testament, the Holy Spirit, who indwells every true believer, is the One who teaches us, enlightens our hearts concerning God's Word. As the verse above says "He instructs sinners in His ways".
A sinner is someone who has realized that he/she has gone astray from his/her Shepherd, that he/she has transgressed and done what is wrong in God's sight. Not everyone will admit this. This is why a sinner saved by grace recognizes that only God is good and upright, and that he/she is in need of His instruction to walk in His ways.
Psalms 25:4-5 (NIV)
4Show me your ways, O LORD,
teach me your paths;
5guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.
But God is not a teacher who stands in front of a class teaching students who are not listening to Him. He teaches those who are humble. A sinner saved by grace has a heart that is humble, that realizes that he/she needs a Teacher to tell them what is right. And contrary to what we may think, this is not a natural state of our heart. We are rebels by nature. We are all teenagers in heart who think that we already know what we need, what is right, and so our tendency is to follow our own heart, our own ways.
This is why God will only teach those who humble themselves before Him, who acknowledge their nothingness with regards to life, and to what is right, and listen to Him.
James 1:21 (NIV)
21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
What a blessing to have a good and upright God who graciously teaches us His ways. And what an important attitude for us to have humble hearts truly listening, learning and applying what our God teaches us.
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