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October 5, 2021 8:00 am
The word of God is an ample the people wear out their hammers trying to shatter and it never ever works toward Iraq is a Gibraltar massive testimony to the enduring strength and truth of God unchanging God being weeks of his great power and majesty. It also speaks of his perfect character and unmatched holiness. There is nothing on earth or in heaven that is above it or is there bill right this is the truth. Paul put with Don green received today that the only thing that God holds above his name is his word. Right now Fred if you have your Bible handy.
Let's join our teacher for today's lesson in the truthful Scripture is not the word of men, but it is the word of God as the spirit works through human thoughts human personalities.
The human experiences of the author work through those to make sure that what the authors produced was exactly what God intended so that the final product of their written work was exactly what God had spoken to man.
It is the word of God and that has a lot of implications. Beloved in Psalm 119 draws them out for us. First of all, the fact that it is the word of God. Our second point is this is that Scripture is true Scripture is true. In other words, Scripture is certain. Scripture is dependable Scripture is right. Scripture is correct, Scripture is accurate. All of those things falling under the umbrella of the assertion that Scripture is true. Let's look at a few passages that assert this force again, remembering that were treating things in a in a thematic way here.
Look at verse 41 Mayor lovingkindness is also come to me oh Lord, your salvation according to your word. So I will have an answer for him who reproaches me for I trust in your word, and here it is, and do not take the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for I wait for your ordinances. Your word of God is the word of truth. Look at verse 142 your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and your law is truth verse 151 you are near a Lord in all your commandments are truth, and finally in verse 160 the Psalm of your word is truth and every one of your righteous ordinances is everlasting. It reminds me of what our Lord said is in his high priestly prayer in John 17. Sanctify them in the truth. Your word is truth.
Old Testament and New Testament, Psalm 119.
The lips of our Lord Jesus, all speaking to the reality that Scripture is true is accurate, it is correct it is honest, it never deceives us.
It never leads us astray in anything that it asserts everything that it says is completely reliable and as a result of that, my friends, Scripture is the one and only means by which you can come to know the living God.
A man who does not read the Bible, a man who does not expose himself to Scripture. A man who does not know what the Bible says is a man who was far from God and until the spirit of God brings his mind into contact with Scripture until he brings himself into and under the authority of the word of God, you remain separated from God because it is only in Scripture where the truth about God and the truth about salvation is made known. There is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved. There is an exclusivity to the truth claims of Scripture. Scripture is true and everything else is judged by it so. True faith must be built on the truth of Scripture.
You know it's frightening the these are simple propositions I I get it.
These are simple propositions in one sense it. Were talking about, but it's it's because people ignore the simplicity of the truth claims of Scripture and the simple propositions are ignored. The people souls are in eternal danger. People say you know all that may be what you believe but I believe something else or you know you have your God. I have mine.
You had your truth.
I have mine know know Scripture is to Scripture, is because the place where all human thought is evaluated whether it's accurate or not, and thought that is contrary to Scripture apart from Scripture is false by definition.
It's not a question of whether you think you have a God of your own or not. The question is whether your God is one that is revealed in Scripture because that alone is where truth is found.
If your faith your beliefs. Your thoughts about God are not rooted squarely in Scripture. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes, I really wouldn't. I really wouldn't know matter how good it makes you feel for the time being. At the end there is an accountability for believing lies and rejecting and ignoring and disdaining the truth of the word of God. Scripture is the word of God and Scripture is true and that means that we must study it and come to grips with all that it says thirdly is another aspect of Scripture that we find in Psalm 119. It's this in and it's sweet. Thought Scripture is sweet but that's not the point that I'm making here Scripture is faithful Scripture is faithful faithful in the original languages is closely related to the word true and has the idea that that the word of God is firm. It is steady. I know some of you are like me and you don't like a lot of change in you don't like it when new buildings go up, the roads get redone or whatever the case may be, in the changes in society and the changes in life and the changes in relationship and there's just so much just so much change constantly turning around us all. I don't like that. That's the nature of the world that I live in, but I don't naturally embrace that the refuge that you and I have in this is that Scripture is faithful Scripture is firm and it is steady and is something that we can stand on knowing that the ground under our feet is not going to shift or or move. Look at verse 30 with me of Psalm 119. The psalmist says I've chosen the faithful way. I've placed your ordinances before me in verse 86 he says all your commandments are faithful. In verse 138. He says you have commanded your testimonies in righteousness and exceeding faithfulness what God has said in his word, he will uphold what the word teaches us is something that is steady is firm.
It is reliable. You can build upon it as life changes as trials, assault, US sorrows way down on your head.
You can always come back to the word of God and find it saying the same things that it is always said for those of you that were raised in Christian homes, you find it is saying the same things that you were taught on your mother's knee that it is it is repeating the same things that an earnest father pleaded with you to hear and to respond to an ad and as pastors have spoken to you in different places over the years, those appointed to you to the word of God is true today as you look at it as they were faithful to tell you those things in the past. It's the same now it is firm. It is steady. It isn't shifting as the philosophies of the world.
Change is not shifting as political parties come and go, our political leaders come and go. It doesn't change when loved ones come and go. It doesn't calm when prosperity comes and goes. Some of you have walked in severe lack seeming like there was never going to be an end to the financial pressure upon you the word of God was true to you then.
Now that is change the word of God is still saying the same thing. Our circumstances change our people change our environment changes.
Our leaders change, but the word of God is faithful.
It is the same all along.
There is a faithful friend beside us as we walk through this world and it is the faithful, true word of God. When you start to realize that truth of the word of God.
The faithfulness of the word of God start to love it. You start to appreciate the fact the Scripture is like that that there is a genuine anchor. There is a cornerstone in my life that I can always build on that.
I can always rest on this word is precious because of what it is those of you that have been greatly harmed by unfaithful people who have treacherously betrayed you in life. Those of you that been harmed by unfaithful spouses harmed by unfaithful friends harmed by parents or children who failed you are straight from you and rejected you and you see all of the carnage that that leaves behind in the baggage that didn't Jackson our lives beloved. You can leave the baggage outside and find in the word of God. That which refreshes your soul because it's true faithful. It can be relied upon, and I can picture somebody saying well if this is really wonderful to hear. If that's true then that means that we should really be giving ourselves over to the word of God so we can be blessed by yes exactly, that's the whole point of Psalm 119. How blessed are those who walk in the law of the Lord, you know what you experience in life.
As a result of that you experience truth you experience faithfulness you find something sustaining your soul that nothing else can do.
That's the whole point, because what the world is you give yourself to it, to walk in it, not out of external obligation, but out of an inner presence of mind and inner affection that says this is really precious and I want to know this word to get rid of all my stuff you me a table in the lamp in this book I've got all I need. That's the far-reaching consequences of the true and faithful word of God, not closely aligned with those thoughts.
Point number four. Here's is this is that Scripture is unchanging Scripture is unchanging because it's true because it's faithful because it's the word of God, we find that it doesn't change God does not change.
One of his one of his perfections. One of his attributes is that he is immutable. What he has always been.
He always will be, is never changed.
God does not go through mood swings.
God doesn't respond to outs external stimulus and alter his frame of mind. There is just an ongoing stability and reality of his character Scripture talks about God being angrier or delighted or things like that. It's not because his emotions are flipping up and down as as day-to-day events unfold, it simply expressing in human terms. Something about the permanent eternal outworking of his character toward a changing world in a way that we can understand God himself. He doesn't change, neither does his word.
Verse 89 Psalm 119 verse 89 forever. Oh Lord your word is settled in heaven.
Your faithfulness continues throughout all generations, you establish the earth and it stands, Lord, your word is settled, it's settled in heaven where men cannot attack it and change it. It is settled forever.
It is secure or is it his final verse 152 Psalm 119, 152 of old old. I've known from your testimonies that you have found them forever, and Psalm 160 we looked at it a moment ago, the sum of your word is truth and every one of your righteous ordinances is everlasting God's word today is the same as it is always been in the very distant past. God's word today is the same as it will be in the very distant future. How great is that constancy. How comprehensive is that unchanging essence of the word of God. Well, our Lord Jesus gave us a sense of perspective on it when he said this in Matthew 24 he said heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away, the known world.
We see all around us. We look at the earth.
We look at the heavens. That's all going to change.
One day you can read about that in second Peter in the book of Revelation. Everything that we assume about the constancy of the stars and all of this heaven and earth pass away God's word, no, God's word is in a realm of its own of constancy of unchangeable notice. Scripture states that compares it to heaven and earth and Jesus says they'll pass away, but my words will in a macro sense it makes a comparison there's a micro comparison that it makes with daily experience.
The grass withers, the flower fades, the word of our God stands forever. Isaiah 40 verse eight men live and die.
God's word stays the same biblical critics come and go. Liberals spout their theories. People chase after them than those men died in their their books lie unopened testing on shells fuel. Years later, the word of God living active unchanged still powerful still working in accomplishing the will of God through the outworking of the word of God is its proclaimed by his people, the word of God is is an ample the people wear out their hammers trying to shatter and it never ever works so to rock. It's a Gibraltar it's half Dome in Yosemite, a massive testimony to the enduring strength and truth of God unchanging.
So the word of God's true faithful it's unchanging one final point for point for today Scripture is the word of God. Scripture is true, it is faithful.
It is unchanging. Finally, Scripture is righteous Scripture is righteous the term righteous means that the Bible is is just it conforms to God's character which makes perfect sense, since it's the word of God than it would reflect the character of God that the attributes of God and this is a in an especially prominent theme in Psalm 119 Psalm 119 verse seven, the righteousness, the purity, the uprightness of the word of God. Psalm 119 verse seven. I shall give thanks to you with uprightness of heart, when I learn your righteous judgments. Psalm 40 behold I long for your precepts. Revive me through your righteousness. Verse 62 at midnight.
I shall rise to give thanks to you because of your righteous ordinances for 75.
I know Yahweh that your judgments are righteous and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me verse 137 righteous are you oh Lord and upright are your judgments. You have commanded your testimonies verse 138 you have commanded your testimonies in righteousness and exceeding faithfulness. Verse 160 we come to this verse multiple times, it seems to be a an intersection where so many of these characteristics of God's word. They meet at this intersection. In verse 160 the Psalm of your word is truth and every one of your righteous ordinances is everlasting. It is the word of God. It is true, it is faithful. It is unchanging. It is righteous.
Verse 164, seven times a day. I praise you because of your righteous ordinances. Finally, in verse 172 let my tongue saying of your word for all your commandments are righteousness God's word manifests the character of God himself. The nature of the word itself is righteous, the nature of God himself is righteous. It's right.
It's what's true, it's what's faithful is what's unchanging, you could you could say it this way will say things a couple of different ways. God's word exposes sin and it affirms holiness. You could say it this way. Scripture reveals the perfections of God. Scripture reveals the perfections of God and applies them without fear or favor to the character and actions of men. There's a vertical dimension to the righteousness of Scripture reveals God for who he is. There is a righteousness about Scripture, and that it is utterly pure and true and reliable. It is clean. It is honest, it is accurate, it is perfect in every conceivable way. And so there's this vertical dimension to it and then horizontally you can understand it in the sense that the word comes as a righteous judge of the motives, words, actions, thoughts and actions of men and it judges them all with precision and with perfection, and it does it to the great into the small, the word affirms the humble believer who trusts in Christ. It condemns the highest level of men, those with the greatest authority find no position before the word that gives them any benefit that none of the rest of us have without fear or favor. The word righteously judges the character and actions of men friends. We have an amazing privilege over the course of time you have an amazing opportunity in the course of your daily life. We hold in our hands today. The only perfect book we hold in our hands today.
The only book that is that is genuinely living that genuinely speaks to human hearts that has the power is the spirit of God works in it to change human hearts to give a life or death has prevailed to bring holiness for sin has been none merciful master word that shines Christ where Satan has blinded eyes word the changes you the changes me. This is the world's only prayer there is no other book like it.
It points centers like some of you to the fact that Jesus Christ is a merciful, crucified and risen Savior, who will forgive all of your sins.
If you come to him in perfect and in submission and repentance and faith. The word of the word of God offers offers hope to broken centers offers hope to those in broken marriages offers hope to parents with sorrow under their same roof. It shows the way of salvation. It teaches us what faith based obedience looks like.
I ask you my friends, I ask you from the bottom of my heart.
What are you doing with this true, faithful, unchanging, righteous word of God.
What role does it have in your life do you respect this divine book for its holy excellence. Do you think about the Bible is a book in a class of its own, with authority of its own unique.
The object of your love and affections because it reveals to you.
The Lord Jesus Christ. Beloved and respected.
That's what Scripture is. That's the response of the calls forth from this that's going green with a look at the indispensable role of God's word in the life of every believer. A friend were so glad you could join us for today's lesson done will continue in this series called the magnificent word next time on the truth pulpit.
Meanwhile, if you'd like to find out more about this ministry. Just go to the truth. Paul.com.
Once there, you'll find all of Don's messages along with a treasure trove of study materials to help you get God's word down into your soul.
Before we go though.
Here again is done with some closing words, my friend, if today's broadcast is help you. Can I ask you for a simple favor in return. It's more important than you could possibly know. Please just go to our website.
The truth Paul.com and tell us where you heard the broadcast sounds easy and simple I know but it's really important for us. You can do that at the website under our contact us link you may wonder whether such a simple act really matters, but I assure you that it does because it helps us know that our resources are rightly placed to reach you in ministry. Thank you in advance for that little act of service to us and again that website is the truth. Paul.com thanks Don and Fred. That's all the time we have for today hi Bill, right will see you next time on the truth