Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground, (143:10).

This prayer of David, to be led on level ground, may appear as though he is asking for a life free from bumps and rough spots, free from the jarring obstacles the enemy has incessantly placed along his path of life. And that makes sense; for David’s life was filled with difficulties, hindrances, persecutions and attacks. And I know I’d love to live in a world without bumps and bruises. Who wouldn’t?

But is that really what David is seeking, freedom from the injustices and afflictions of life? For our answer, we need to consider the context of David’s request.

Hear my prayer, O Lord,
Give ear to my supplications!
Answer me in Your faithfulness, in Your righteousness! (143:1).

David begins, as he often does, by asking the Lord to listen to him and to bring an answer. But David pleas for an answer that is in keeping with God’s faithfulness and righteousness. And from there, David goes on to pray for mercy.

And do not enter into judgment with Your servant,
For in Your sight no man living is righteous, (143:2).

We don’t know why David was concerned about falling into God’s judgment. Perhaps he had developed some wrong attitudes. Perhaps he found himself questioning God’s faithfulness. And then perhaps, as he came into the presence of Holy God, his own heart was revealed. And perhaps as he begged for God’s justice to be met on his enemies, he was suddenly struck with the realization that he too was deserving of judgment and undeserving of God’s blessings, “For in Your sight no man living is righteous.”

Being fully aware that God is just and must judge sin, David, the man after God’s own heart, also fully aware of his own unrighteousness, approaches God in humility as he asks Him to maintain His righteousness and yet extend His compassionate mercy.

…Answer me in Your faithfulness, in Your righteousness! (143:1).

Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy, (Proverbs 28:13 ESV).

David knew he was desperate to be taught and to be led by the Holy Spirit if he was going to make it through a world that is relentlessly uneven, rough and jagged, and dangerously potholed with temptations and fiercely pitted against truth.

So David asks, not for smooth and easy goings, but to be strengthened in truth to be led through life’s cruelties and hardships, trusting himself to the Lord to Lead him on Level Ground so that he doesn’t find himself bumped off the way of righteousness.

Level: “4334. מִישׁוֹר miyšôr: A masculine noun meaning plain, evenness, straightness, righteousness, equity. Evenness is the fundamental sense of this word. It denotes straight, as opposed to crooked (Isa. 40:4; 42:16); level land, such as a plain (Deut. 3:10; 1 Kgs. 20:23); and a safe, unobstructed path (Ps. 27:11). By analogy, it is likewise used to imply a righteous lifestyle (Ps. 143:10); and equitable leadership (Ps. 45:6[7]; Isa. 11:4),” Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance.

It is only the Lord God Who Leads Us on Level Ground, for in and of ourselves, we will surely take the crooked path.

Consider Him Who Leads Us on Level Ground

Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;
For I trust in You;
Teach me the way in which I should walk;
For to You I lift up my soul.
⁹ Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies;
I take refuge in You.

¹⁰ Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
¹¹ For the sake of Your name, O Lord, revive me.
In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble, (143:8-11).

As we consider Him Who Leads Us on Level Ground, we will be led straight to Jesus!

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us with His Lovingkindness
  •  Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning;
    • so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. ⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; ⁹ not as a result of works, so that no one may boast, (Ephesians 2:7-9).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us in His Faithfulness
  • For I trust in You;
    • so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁸ who will also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, (1 Corinthians 1:7-9).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us in His Way and Worship
  • Teach me the way in which I should walk; For to You I lift up my soul.
    • Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. ² And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect, (Romans 12:1-2).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us to His Deliverance
  • Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies;
    • For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, (Colossians 1:13-14).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us to His Shelter
  • I take refuge in You.
    • Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. ³ For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God, (Colossians 3:1-3).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us in His Will
  • Teach me to do Your will,
    • Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, ² so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God, (1 Peter 4:1-2).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us by His Lordship
  • For You are my God;
    • but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence, (1 Peter 3:15).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us by His Holy Spirit
  • Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
    • “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you,” (John 16:13-14).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us for His Glory
  • For the sake of Your name, O Lord, revive me.
    • Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God, (1 Corinthians 10:31).

• When He Leads Us on Level Ground, He Leads Us in His Righteousness
  • In Your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.
    • But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you, (Matthew 6:33).

How do we respond to Him Who Leads Us on Level Ground?

Today, let us consider our response in light of every verse we have read of Him Who Leads Us on Level Ground. Let us ask Him to show us any areas in our heart and life that are not following His Lead.

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your grace to Lead Us on Level Ground. Please convict us and conform us to Your image, that we would willingly deny ourselves so that we may truly follow how and where You Lead.

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. ²⁵ For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it,” (Matthew 16:24-25).

Lord, please teach us to do Your will, that we would lose our life to find Yours, that we would crucify our fleshly desires to walk empowered by Your Holy Spirit and bear the fruit of righteousness as You Lead Us on Level Ground.

Teach me to do Your will,
For You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me on level ground, (143:10).

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh…²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires, (Galatians 5:16, 22-24).

Let’s Grow Together!