Ps 119:9-11 – Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my *whole heart* have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. 

This is a very common “go to” passage of scripture for young men. Oftentimes, with this particular passage, young men are exhorted to be diligent in the study of the Bible as the iron-clad way to cleanse oneself and keep oneself pure. Usually with this exhortation comes an emphasis to “hide God’s word in your heart” by diligently reading and studying the Bible.

And while it is definitely a good thing to read and study scripture, it is only a partial remedy and I don’t think the heart of this passage. I believe the heart of the passage, which is often even omitted in the quoting, is actually found in verse 10: “With my *whole heart* have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments”.

The problem is, it’s not near enough to just read and study scripture. It must also be coupled with seeking after God with a *whole heart*. Unless a young man, or any Christian for that matter, is earnest and persistent in going after God every day in prayer and diligently seeking Him with a strong desire to know Him more deeply and be conformed to His image, then we will have great difficulty keeping ourselves from sin and making any headway in our transformation. It is of very little value that we can quote large sections of the Bible if it is not resulting in a great transformation towards godliness and a stark change of attitudes and behavior in our own lives.

If we don’t find ourselves truly “rejoicing in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches” and “delighting myself in thy statutes” then bookish study can never make up for it. Along with reading scripture, we need to cultivate a daily habit of earnestly seeking after God in prayer until we develop a true hunger to be like Him, that we KNOW is real, and that drives us and keeps us from stumbling.

Jude 1:24 – Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy.