An Exposition of Psalm 19 (Part 4 of 4)

There's a difference between this was a good friend.

You might hit it off with someone when you first meet them takes time and effort to become friends in the same way.

It's not enough for us to simply open the Bible, 17 know it intimately today on Truth for Life. Alistair Begg describes the power of God's word explains why we need to continually return to Alister's concluding our study of Psalm 19 verses seven through 14. If these adjectives describe these nouns. What in actual fact, are these verbs and making clear to us in terms of the effect of the law of God, or the impact of the word of God.

While there there written for us here on day that not only do they revive the soul, but he also make the simple wise now when in Proverbs chapter 9 you have that sort of personification of wisdom and and Solomon is speaking to his son and he says leave your simple ways and live and walk on the path of insight that is not of the person is a simpleton intellectually here, but rather it is that they are morally susceptible to the bypass meadow, and so on, so that God teaches from his word lessons that are appropriate to our weakness so that he might reach down to where we are. Not only do they make wise the simple, but they also create deep-seated joy in the heart.

It was or what about the Bible. What is it actually do. Why would I ever read the Bible. I don't do very much at all and some of the some of the people who find themselves in in all kinds of predicaments and and I say to them unit would you ever just take your Bible and read or do you believe that God may actually speak to an open your eyes and you realize that the precepts of the Lord provide a deep-seated joy not only creating rejoicing in the heart, but bringing enlightenment to the eyes. Eyes are by nature darkened and dim and foggy and suddenly as in this story of a man who was blind and Jesus touched him and touched him again. First of all, he began to see I see Mandy look like trees, walking and anything I think I got it entirely. Now again plumber. He says at the doctrines then show us what we must believe the precepts what we must do the warnings that we must shun and the promises that we must hope for, but it is as we turn to God's word that we then are made aware of each of these thing at the same time, the word of God creates an enduring purity. The fear of the Lord is clean and that endures forever.

In other words, the word of God doesn't lead us into bad and corrupt thoughts. The word of God does not enable eyes to engage in emotional journeys that take us away from the purity and clarity of his instruction. The word of God does not grant us freedom to use our tongues and our words in ways that run counter to his purposes, and certainly not in relationship to our defense and then you say weather should be 1/6 one to balance this out, but it then ends the rules of the Lord are true and righteous altogether so.

But wait a minute that the parallelism demands 61 and we don't have a 61 with God that it revives the soulmates wise the simple rejoices the heart. It enlightens the eyes.

It endures forever. And then just says in his righteous at that annoyed me for a little while and then I realize know it just Aegis pauses for a moment.

This is poetry after all right he pauses. The six here's the final one verse 11.

What is it do it warns your servant by them is your servant warned so here he says in the majesty of creation in the clarity of the Bible, we discover all of this and more in verse 10, which is this a little bridge verse.

There is his own personal evaluation that these these things he says are more to be desired than gold much fine gold sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. I don't have that strikes you, it doesn't actually appeal to me at all. I just it just makes me recall, I don't like stickiness.

II don't I do not like that. I've never I've never been able to get my head around the metaphor about the blessing of God running down the beard of so-and-so dripping dripping all over the place.

It just I've I'd I just that's I'm not I'm not doing that one is not. It's not part barred my deal so warm I supposed to do this while here here lately.

Here's my thing. And these are more to be desired than honey and money is in the more the more to be desired than honey and money.

In other words, that if if into the extended honey represents the good life in the provision and the overflow and the magnificence of you know your favorite food magazine and money represents the security that we are told is to be found in the amassing of these things then says the psalmist. In actual fact, when God impresses upon the heart of the believer, the extent and the wonder and the clarity of his word and all that it means in him to him through him and for him than in actual fact, you will find that you come to believe that the benefits exceed anything else. Calvin says the sense is that we do not esteem. God's word as it deserves. If we do not pre-ferret to all the riches of the world what what are these great benefits then what are the benefits of this while here you have them in verse 11. The greatest benefit is that they provide warnings that need to be heated and they provide promises that are to be trusted.

They provide more warnings and rewards again. That is the appeal of all the way through the book of Proverbs to my son, listen, heed the warning stress the promises heed the warning stress the promises. It's the story of Hebrews is heed the warnings and take God at his word.

So there's a revelation in the glory and eloquence of creation in the clarity of Scripture itself. So what is the sum is due by way of responses. He warns of a PhD is in himself. I can take it off.

I've learned a tremendous about now I'm able to speak concerning these things now right striking is because removed from the majesty of God's words to the clarity of God's word to the humility of God's worship for our God servant is interesting is immediately to his errors is false sins's transgressions. Why is that one old commentator puts it like this, no good person with any tolerable degree of knowledge of themselves can be ignorant of the fact that they come far short of the absolute perfection required by God's word. This is somewhat akin to Isaiah in chapter 6 is in Isaiah's as I saw the Lord and I went on television and I told everybody I saw the Lord and I explained to them what an amazing thing. It was not his as I saw the Lord.

And then I fell flat on my face and I said was me because I'm a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of the people of unclean. Yet the same thing on the disciples on you on the boat and the manifestation of of the glory of Christ and and and the disciple falls on his face depart from me, because I am a sinful man, oh Lord no easy I think. I think the temptation for us, especially in the study of the Bible because were so into gratification were so into affirmation were so into making sure that were feeling good and better as a result of having taken the time to go out and do something that the idea that the impact of the word of God might be to us to put us on our knees is not something necessarily that appeals. But that's exactly what happens here.

That's why sometimes we pray before we turn to the Bible and the old song from homemaker book lived to me oh Lord, show me yourself within your work. Show me myself you really want to see yourself painful is why, because God's word exposes our errors who can discern his errors.

I can even discern my own errors. I know some of them but I don't know all of them. What about my hidden faults. Whatever your hidden falls.

What about the things that your wife doesn't know your husband doesn't know your mom and dad don't know your neighbor doesn't know. But God knows how are they to be dealt with in the clarity of God's word to clear me innocent from hidden falls.

In other words, equip me and help me verse 13 keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins, presumptuous sins. Now this is not things that we've done inadvertently or mistakenly or unwittingly. This is now. He says why this flight I want to send. Why would it take something that the Bible says don't do not want to do and then I want to say to myself, I did but nothing happened. What I want to see what I did it and nobody knew both guns were wrong.

The psalmist says as I come to the end of this program that I've written my great concern is that you won't allow my presumptuous sins to have dominion over me. What is that me. Don't let him control me control me see if we are controlled by said then we are the servants of sin nor the servants of God and God in his mercy, and in his grace will allow us to be brought under the dominion of our presumptuous sins as a measure of judgment on our life's until we reach the point where we are prepared to acknowledge and ask and cry to God for forgiveness and he says in late if that if you will keep me in this way, if you will help me in this way, then I shall be blameless and innocent of this great transgression, you get a PhD on the great transgression or the great sin and I got a delay on it is bad, that's for sure. Exodus 32 you have the great sin the great sin the great sin three times what was the great sin with a limited golden calf. We so I'm good on that one. Glenn, Eric, Irene fancy, a golden calf. I never even give it any thought at all. None of the Golden Represented what willful rebellion against the divine authority of God, willful rebellion against the divine authority of God. Now you think about it I just think in terms of, this is King David. Women he's the point.

And if you lived at all in the circles in which I have lived. You know, and some of these are are so up-to-date. It is painful to even mention them but we have all had occasion to mourn the loss of those whose impact on our lives for the gospel and for good was so singular, so striking, so powerful that we would have been very happy to carry this person's suitcase for the rest of our lives and carried on our backs if we could only be in his company. If we could only have his advice. If we could only have the instruction from the Bible that this individual was so powerfully able to give.

And yet, somewhere along the line in a moment in a moment. It would seem there's a tremendous collapse disintegration a moral or financial failure and into the abyss goes the individual and as of right now, tonight, they have never risen and everybody says I don't see how that could happen while I'm going to tell you how I can have. I'll tell you how it did happen, even though I don't know the details myself. It starts with hidden faults.

It starts with an unwillingness to discern our errors.

It starts by being unprepared to keep short accounts in the realm of our life that is known only to God in the secret place. There that unchecked leads to presumptuous sins that boldness may leaders then to a great transgression and a dreadful collapse answer, if you read something where she is a never happens to me, then take heed. In case you actually come crashing down. Alan steps, who was a wonderful teacher of the Bible in his day, wrote a number of little books, teaching God's word believing God's word. Understanding God's word, and so on, and I turned to this, it just happened like it caught my eye as sometimes happens when I'm sitting in in the cave and so I want us to read this and I'm going to stop some of you youngsters done very very well. Sitting through this and I should take you all out and buy ice cream but I don't have any money and so I'm a very stingy Scotsman but EEE in this little book on understanding God's word has has a number of chapters how to get a true tax how to understand the tax how to interpret the text in relationship to figurative language in prophecy, and so on. And then he says let's get to the heart of it. Let's get down to the Bible and Christian living is what he says about dealing with the Bible. He says listen Amy to discover spiritual truth which is capable of immediate personal application do not read the Bible as a detached spectator, or inquiring student whose only concern is to know what it contains, rather regarded as a looking glass in which you can buy God's help, see both the man you are and the man you are meant to become as a child of God looks first in it for the things which directly bear on your own needs and problems, failures and temptations, responsibilities and duties. Be prepared seriously and sincerely to ask and to face the answer to such questions as what is God say to me in this passage now what may I learn here concerning my daily life.

How may I discover how to live it in pleasing God. That's number three of his application number 10 recognize the need for continual return to and fresh Reformation. According to the word of God.

The pursuit first of the discovery and then of the doing of God's will is revealed through his word never ends in this life we never reach the place of final perfection. Each fresh day brings its fresh challenge. The road is uphill all the way it is all too easy to degenerate to slip back from the observance of standards once accepted no one Reformation can put an individual or a church permanently right there is constant need for continual return to God to examine oneself afresh in the light of his word to be convicted of the beginnings of sinful decline to be made aware of fresh ways in which advancing holiness and love is now possible only so can we follow want to know the Lord and hope to share in coming to a perfect man, we must be willing ever and again to submit ourselves to the searching light and compelling imperatives of the word of God and recognize the person whom every man is responsible to judge. In this light is himself such practical moral application of Scripture to life and conduct is something which each believer is called unqualified in Christ to do for himself and this is our Christian calling to grow up from infancy to fulfill the responsibilities that are not ours and so no surprise that the Psalm ends with their cry.

In verse 14, which is usually used by the minister before he teaches from the Bible but it's a it's an applicable word for all of us is not let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight.

In other words, I'm in need of your divine grace, to pardon me to prevent me to restrain me to sanctify me. But where is the acquittal to be fun. How are we to be forgiven of these things, and of course the answer takes as from the king of Israel to the Lord himself a Jesus who is the end of the law. Jesus, who by his perfect life met its demands satisfied its claims and brings everlasting righteousness, so that what it does is it doesn't send us to ourselves. The train engineer this, but it sends is again to him because all depends on him for he is our role and our Redeemer is all our prayers and all our holy endeavors and abilities to serve God must be fashioned to us by the Lord Jesus, so also every other grace and the acceptance of our person and all of our service must always come through him. In other words, all the Bible sends us all the time to the Lord Jesus, so that will enable to say in the end in Christ alone. My hope is far he is my strength.

He is my song, he is my rock. He is my Redeemer.

If you're if the message was not. You better just get your act together here and clean it all up and fix it and hopefully God will set you know the answer is that it turns us again and again. Back to the finished work of Christ and to the work of the spirit in and through the agency of the Bible to say hey don't dance around these warnings and don't stand back from these promises, preventing us on the one hand and assuring us on the other hand, so that together we might make progress. To know the Lord God's word is full of both blessings and warnings, but we won't benefit from any of them, unless we read the Bible and apply the lessons learned listing the Truth for Life with Alistair Begg. Alastair will be back in just a minute to close with prayer studying Psalm 19 makes it clear just how important it is for us to understand and apply God's word every day as we just heard from Alister. All of the Bible points us to Jesus. He is our hope, our strength and our Redeemer. That's why our mission the Truth for Life is to teach the Bible with clarity and relevance. We do this trusting that God will use the teaching of his word convert unbelievers to build up believers in their faith and to encourage local churches to remain loyal to Christ, to the very end when line with this mission. We want to recommend to you publicly sound books and there were just a couple more days that will be talking about a particular book called mere evangelism. 10. The insights from CS Lewis to help you share your faith, you can request your copy of the book mere evangelism. When you give a donation to support the ministry. Click the image you see in the mobile app or visit us online at truthforlife.org/donate or you can call us at 888-588-7884. Now here's Alister close with prayer. Father, we thank you that when we meditate on your word it sinks into our hearts and begins to turn us again and again to your son, the Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you that he who knew no sin became sin for us, in order that in him we might become the righteousness of God and we affirm tonight that is just as we are in our start seminar stopping sin are hidden faults, and in our presumptuous hearts that we have to throw ourselves again and again on the amazing mercy and grace that is ours in Christ alone. So in his name we pray, about 15 thanks for joining us tomorrow we get a new series on Mary for many of us growing up reach was something we expected would happen, but it's not for everyone.

The apostle Paul identifies some clear benefits that come with singleness tomorrow will find out what those are. As we begin our series titled week two are one a study on God's plan for marriage Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life Learning is for Living