How to Find the Path of Life. Psalm 16:11

We need to know the way of life, one that leads to peace with God, others, and ourselves. How do we find the Way?

"You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand."  Psalm 16:11, NIV*.

BACKGROUND:
This verse is like a prayer of praise.  It is from one of the messianic psalms which speak of the coming savior, but like many scriptures, this has more than one application.  We can use this verse to inspire worship, and yet we find instruction.

LIFE
The path of life is described as eternal life, full of joy and pleasures forever. It is a life in the presence of God, which must mean life in acceptance with and in accord with God. This life is associated with the image of a path; it is not a life of self-indulgence.
While we rest and do nothing. A path is a road we travel upon and make progress toward a destination, the destination of the path of life is itself life.

Path of Life Illustration.

Often we hear the metaphor of the path of life used to illustrate a final end at the grave, but the opposite is the truth; the path of life here is eternal and ends with an unending beginning.

MAKE KNOWN
We often think the way of life is a thing to be earned or merited, but it is something that God makes known. We cannot find the way of life without God. This knowing is a knowing of experiencing something, different from head knowledge. To know something in the head is one thing, but knowing the path of life must be experienced in the heart.

JOY
This joy is fullness of joy, not just the transitory and shallow happiness of this world dependent on external sources. This joy is unique- it fills us, but it is caused by God and not ourselves. This joy is associated with being in the presence of God; he is the source, he makes joy known, and he is the one who fills us with joy.  It seems God is not a cosmic kill-joy who commands all kinds of don't have fun rules but instead is the very essence of joy.

PLEASURES
The pleasures of life are eternal; heaven will not be a boring place where we just sit on clouds, wear white, and play dumb harps, but it seems to have a sensual aspect of tactile pleasure. These pleasures are from the very hand of God, so they must be holy and yet be awesome.

THE REVELATION OF THE WAY
Jesus said, "I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the father but by me." John 14:6. And "I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10. To come to Jesus is to come the way of life; he is the revelation of life.

To read this verse in other translations, visit this link: Online Parallel Bible.

(c)Adron Dozat 8/15/12