Sunday, September 13, 2015 pm
STUDIES IN PSALMS
THE Word of God
Psalm 119 – 2
Last week we began a study of Psalm 119.
We identified the various words used to describe the word of God.
We also talked about the poetic nature of the psalm in Hebrew
(acrostic). Noting these
words we find that God’s word is to be respected as His word, both as a
whole and in each and every statute and precept.
Today, we want to choose a handful of verses from this psalm and discuss
them.
a.
2 –
Blessed are those who keep His
testimonies, who seek Him with the whole heart –
It is certain we need to keep His word – Jesus taught that it is not
enough to say “Lord, Lord”, we must do – Matthew 7:21-23
Beyond that it is imperative that we serve Him wholeheartedly - not as
with leftovers or weak devotion, and not with divided loyalties.
119:3 continues the
thought saying, “They also do no
iniquity; they walk in His ways.”
Matt. 5:8, Blessed are the pure in
heart, for they shall see God.
Be reminded that purity can mean 2 things – undiluted and
unpolluted. The Greek word
in this beatitude means clean or guiltless.
Some 6 times in this psalm the writer speaks of serving God with a whole
heart – 119:10, “With my whole
heart I have sought you,…”
“The proud have forged a
lie against me, But I will keep Your precepts with my whole heart.”
(119:69)
God will not accept
anything less than whole hearted service to Him.
This is imperative because God knows not only what we do, but our
motives. Psalm 139:1-2, “O
Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my
rising up; You understand my thought afar off.”
b.
4 – “You have
commanded us To keep Your precepts diligently.”
Diligence is a quality we need in all that we do as Christians
. Whatever you, do it
heartily, as to the Lord. (Col. 3:23)
2 Peter 1:10 calls for us to be even more diligent to make our calling
and election sure.
It is with diligence that we grow, adding to our faith – 2 Pet. 1:5-7
To please God we must diligently seek Him in faith (Heb. 11:6)
Romans 12:11 calls for us to
not be lagging in diligence as we serve one another as brethren.
To say that serving God is easy is a misnomer. Anyone who has tried
knows differently – we face challenges and struggles, setbacks and
disappointments. (It may be
easy in comparison to the alternatives, but sometimes it is a struggle).
It is possible, but it requires great effort and at times we need
determination to keep going and to do our absolute best.
c.
9 – “How can a young
man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word.”
We live in a society full of temptations.
Our youth are particularly bombarded with sensuality, conformity
and other temptations.
Most young people don’t have the maturity to fully comprehend the
consequences of their actions.
That is why they need to be given standards.
SADLY, our society has tried to discredit, diminish or demolish
every standard that calls for accountability to God, or any
accountability in some cases.
As godly parents, we are entrusted with instilling God’s standard in
their lives – Prov. 22:6, Eph. 6:4, etc.
That was one thing Solomon emphasized continually to his son in
Proverbs – Prov. 3:1, “My son, do
not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands.”
Prov. 6:20, “My son, keep your father’s command, And do not forsake
the law of your mother.”
ONE of the best things we can do for our youth is to instill in them a
love for God’s word – it WILL cleanse his way! Philippians 4:8 –
meditate on these things!
d.
11 – “Your word I
have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You.”
The idea of His word being hidden doesn’t mean you are not revealing it
to anyone (cf. Matt. 5:14-16).
Rather it means it is deeply rooted within your soul –
within that which makes you spiritual.
That is the heart that the Bible frequently speaks of – your
emotions, thoughts, understanding, will and attitude – the whole of the
inner man. That part of you
that will stand before Him in judgment.
Consider the parable of the sower in Luke 8:11-15 Jesus explained that
the soils were different types of hearts – the “good soil” received the
word, keeps it and bears much fruit with patience.
When the Lord returns He will “both
bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of
the hearts. Then each one’s
praise will come from God.” (1 Cor. 4:5)
His word needs to be ingrained within us.
That causes us to think before we act.
That prevents sins of ignorance and doubt.
That gives us judgment to be able to discern between good and
evil (Heb. 5:14). Prior to
this the writer had said, “For the word of God is living and
powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the
division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews
4:12)
LET the word of God keep
you from sinning!
e.
36-37 – “Incline my
heart to Your testimonies, And not to covetousness. Turn away my eyes
from looking at worthless things, And revive me in Your way.”
The idea of incline is to turn something in a particular direction.
The psalmist requests that the Lord cause his heart to desire His
testimonies and His way.
This will keep him away from covetousness (the pursuit of things) and
“looking at worthless things” – which could include materialism, but
also includes sensual lusts and prideful things.
I think of 1 John
2:15-17which describes the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and
the pride of life. The Bible
identifies the lust of the eyes which is a serious problem in our
society – pornography continues to wreak immorality in our homes.
Everywhere we turn sensuality is prevalent – billboards, immodest
clothing, in the movies, etc.
Yet Jesus directly condemns such lust in Matt. 5:27-28 – do not
look upon a woman in lust.
Galatians 5:19 speaks of uncleanness and lewdness as being works of the
flesh as well as, “and such like” (5:19-21 Perhaps we need to memorize
and keep the words of Job – Job 31:1, ““I have made a covenant with
my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?”
God’s word inclines us toward contentment, self-control and
self-discipline, humility, standards in choosing our friends, and other
qualities that when develop overcome worldliness and ungodly conduct.
f.
40 - “Behold, I long
for Your precepts; Revive me in Your righteousness.”
When we think of longing for something, it is something we crave or miss
when we are not around it.
Consider the one who is working away from home for an extended period of
time – he longs to be home with his family and familiar surroundings.
Such ought to be our desire when it comes to the word of God:
Psalm 84, 1-2, “How lovely is Your tabernacle, O Lord of hosts! My
soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lord; My heart and my
flesh cry out for the living God.”
Psalm 42:1-2, “As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my
soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When
shall I come and appear before God?”
Psa. 119:20 says, “My soul breaks with longing For Your judgments at
all times.”
Psalm 119:174, “I long for Your salvation, O Lord, And Your law is my
delight.”
Consider also Matthew 5:6 which speaks of hungering and thirsting after
righteousness for they shall be filled.
How much do crave we God’s word?
How much do we desire to be with God’s people and assemble with
them? Between assemblies are
we anticipating the next time we can come together?
g.
53 - “Indignation has
taken hold of me Because of the wicked, who forsake Your law.”
In describing the love a Christian is to have we read that love “does
not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in truth.” (1 Cor. 13:6)
Sadly we are living in a society where evil is called good, and good is
called evil. Light is exchanged
for darkness and darkness for light (Isaiah 5:20)
1 Timothy 3:1-5 describes the coming perilous times which fit our time –
with selfishness in virtually every form.
The sentence is not executed speedily (Eccl. 8:11).
And many of descriptions that the Bible warns against.
And matters seem to be getting worse and worse.
What is most disturbing is that the Bible used to be somewhat
respected by our society, but now many professed believes will not stand
up for that which is right.
They say nothing or in many cases they manipulate scripture to justify
ungodly conduct.
For us, are we grieved by such.
Is there “righteous indignation” at the direction we are headed
as a society AND within churches that are compromising?
I am personally more grieved at
the latter (churches compromising as that will have the greatest impact
on the relationship between the church and society – i.e. persecutions,
excessive restrictions, etc.)
Psalm 119: 115 says, “Depart from me, you evildoers, For I will keep
the commandments of my God!”
Psalm 119:104, “Through
Your precepts I get understanding; Therefore I hate every false way.”
Psalm 119:136 - “Rivers of water run down from my eyes, Because men do
not keep Your law.”
Our text describes what
our attitude will be toward such IF His word is truly in our hearts.
And it will move us to do whatever we can to improve and protect
our environment. 2
Corinthians 6:14-17 – come out from among them and be separate.
1 Corinthians 15:33 warns us to not be deceived, “Evil
company corrupts good habits.”