Psalm 119:41-48

[0:00] Good evening. Good evening. I'll be in the Old Testament tonight.!

[0:30] Psalm 119 is an acrostic psalm.

[0:41] And acrostic psalms typically are built in a certain manner. And the first letter is used for every first line of a given stanza.

[0:57] And that's how each stanza in Psalm 119 is done. Some of your Bibles may have these divided up into eight verse stanzas.

[1:08] I have seen Bibles where they're not divided up as such. And that's fine too. But tonight we'll be in the stanza beginning at verse 41.

[1:23] This is the stanza of the Hebrew letter Vav. Some people call it Vav. Some people call it Vav. Some people debate, scholars debate whether or not to call it Waw.

[1:39] And I'm glad that it's Vav because I would hate to say Waw all the time. But each one of the stanzas throughout the 176 verses of the 119th Psalm, each eight verse stanza has a letter designated to it for the Hebrew alphabet.

[1:59] There's 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet. You may look at your Bible and say, well, not all these lines begin with the same letter. Is what he's telling me true? Yes, you've got to understand Hebrew is not English.

[2:10] Not only is Hebrew not English, but Hebrew reads from right to left instead of left to right like we're used to. And that's been one of the most challenging things when I study the original Scriptures in Hebrew to get used to is reading right to left instead of left to right.

[2:30] But there are some differences definitely. And our English transliteration of what Hebrew is saying doesn't necessarily mean that our lines are going to begin with the same letters.

[2:44] Like I said, you'll see that that's not the case here. But this word or letter here, Vav, is also a word.

[2:56] It's much like our English language. You know, we have the letter R. We also have the word R. We have the letter Q. We also have words for Q. We have the letter A.

[3:07] We have a word called A. Vav is also a word in Hebrew, which means either hook or peg. And that's not, that's just a little side note that doesn't have anything to do with the stanza we're going to be going through tonight.

[3:24] But you do see that whenever you especially see it when God is given the instructions for the temple and he's talking about the pegs of the pillars. And that's the word that is used there is Vav.

[3:38] But Vav is also used as a conjunction to link to things like men and women, boys and girls. So it's used for the word and many times in Hebrew.

[3:50] And that's kind of what this particular stanza of Psalm 119 gets into. We see the psalmist here going from one state into another state and from that state into another state.

[4:09] So it's kind of like ands are connecting all these things. Only eight verses we're going to read tonight. Verses 41 through 48 in Psalm 119.

[4:20] So we'll begin at verse 41. The psalmist says, Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation according to thy word.

[4:31] So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me, for I trust in thy word. And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for I have hoped in thy judgments.

[4:44] So shall I keep thy law continually forever and ever, and I will walk at liberty, for I seek thy precepts. I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings and will not be ashamed.

[4:59] And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved. And I will meditate in thy statutes.

[5:12] Something else that probably should have brought up in that little bit of an introduction to Psalm 119. These words that we're seeing here, words like mercies and judgments and statutes and things along those lines and just the word word.

[5:29] These are all sown throughout the 119th Psalm. The entire 119th Psalm really is a love letter directed toward the word of Almighty God.

[5:42] There's only three and some people say four. Some people will say verse 84 is another verse within the 119th chapter of Psalms that does not include something about the judgments, the statutes or the word of Almighty God.

[6:01] But every other verse in there does. We have verse 90, verse 122 and verse 132 that don't directly mention the word of God in any of those ways.

[6:14] And like I said, some people will argue whether or not verse 84 does as well. But folks, even at that, that's 172 verses minimum, possibly 173, that are all about the word of God.

[6:30] And it's one song, it's the longest chapter in all of the Bible. And that shows us amongst other scriptures throughout the Bible, how important the word of God is.

[6:44] And the word of God, if it's not important to you, I would honestly question your salvation or not. The word of God is essential in the walk of a Christian. You want to know what a biblical worldview, and you want to walk this life in a biblical worldview, you read through Psalm 119.

[7:02] And this will direct you and how you're feeling, however you're feeling, or what you feel, how you act, how you step, how you treat others, how others treat you.

[7:14] All these things can be found in the 119th Psalm. The 176 verses that comprise the 119th Psalm. But back to verse 41, he says, let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation according to thy word.

[7:31] So, if you notice here, he doesn't begin with self. He says, let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation. He doesn't begin with self.

[7:43] He doesn't say, Lord, let my works come unto you. Lord, let my deeds come unto you. Let my thoughts come unto you. Let my affections come unto you. No, he's saying, he's saying, let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation.

[7:59] So, this shows us that the psalmist here has a dependence upon Almighty God. He understands that God is under no obligation whatsoever to extend mercy unto him.

[8:11] He understands that God is in the heavens. God is sovereign. God rules and reigns over all. And this is his petition unto God. Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation.

[8:25] But he doesn't end it there. He says, according to thy word. So, this psalmist, he would have had a knowing of what the word of God contained.

[8:36] He would have known about the salvation that God had promised within his word. He would have had an understanding of all these things. He would have had an understanding that there was a Messiah promised.

[8:48] He would have had an understanding of the salvation that was promised. But not only these things, but the very mercy and the salvation that he is bringing up here. He would have had an understanding of these things.

[8:59] And that's why he can say, according to thy word, folks, I don't want salvation that is not according to the word of God. And there is many people out there. There are many churches that are proponents for a salvation that is not of the word of God.

[9:14] It is a false salvation. It is a false security. It is a false cross that they preach. It is a cross that will allow them to live any way that they want to, that will allow them to go any place that they want to, allow them to hang out with anyone they want to, allow them to talk, allow them to act, and allow them to step any which way that they want to go.

[9:36] And God Almighty will still be pleased with them and pleased with their walk and pleased with their actions. Folks, that is not the God of the Bible. That is not the God of the Scripture.

[9:47] The God of the Scripture demands holiness out of his people. He demands a righteous walk out of his people. He demands all of these things. And while you and I, we cannot do it perfectly, we are affiliated and we are union to one who did.

[10:03] We are union to Jesus Christ. We are affiliated with him. We are one of his bought and paid for by his precious blood. And that's who I depend on to get me home.

[10:16] I don't depend upon my perfect walk because I have not walked perfectly. And neither of you but I depend upon the perfect walk that he walked while he was here on this earth, fulfilling every law, fulfilling every command, every jot and every tittle of the Scripture was fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

[10:34] And God was pleased with the work of his Son. And Jesus Christ imparts his righteousness unto me. And I'm glad that I can depend on that instead of depending upon myself.

[10:47] The psalmist here is depending upon God. He says, Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation according to thy word.

[10:58] He wants it exactly as God has promised it. And thus saith the word of God. He doesn't want it any other way. And neither should we. I want it according to the word of God.

[11:09] That if I confess with my mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and I believe in my heart that God hath raised him from the dead, I shall be saved. That's how I want my salvation.

[11:20] That's how I want to be redeemed. And that's how I was redeemed. And that's how I am redeemed. Even to this day. Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation according to thy word.

[11:32] Verse 42. So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me. For I trust in thy word. So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me.

[11:44] Do you see a little bit of a distinction here? Or a little bit of a segue with the first verse. Verse 41. He says, Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation.

[11:57] Then in verse 42. He says, So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me. Folks, if we have the mercy of Almighty God. We've also got a message from Almighty God.

[12:08] We've got a testimony from God. If we have received his mercy. If we have received his salvation. The psalmist here says, Let thy mercy and thy salvation come unto me, God.

[12:19] He says, So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me. Folks, the world will reproach you. If you are a child of God. If you have been born again.

[12:30] And you walk in the spirit as you are supposed to. The world will reproach you. The world will hate you. The world will hate your gut for being a child of God.

[12:41] We live in a world that reproaches everything that is biblical. They reproach biblical truth. They reproach biblical authority. They reproach biblical sexuality.

[12:54] They reproach biblical marriage. They reproach everything that is biblical. The world comes against us. And what is our answer to that? It is not philosophy.

[13:05] It is not coming back with clever arguments. Our argument is the word of God. We say, I will stand upon the word of God. Regardless of what you think. Regardless of how much you hate me.

[13:16] Regardless of your reproach. Regardless of your rebuke. I will stand upon what thus saith the word of God. Hallelujah. And that should be the attitude of every Christian out there.

[13:28] To stand upon the word of God. Stand upon this word, folks. This word is living. This word is alive. This word gives life. It tells us how we can have life.

[13:39] It tells us how we are to walk. After we have received life. After life has been imparted unto us from He who is life. This word gives us all the instructions that we will ever need.

[13:49] You stick to this word of God. Don't ever back down from it. The world will hate you for it. But Jesus said it would be that way. Jesus said, If men hate you, Know that they hated me first.

[14:02] He said, In the world you shall have tribulation, But be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. Jesus warned us that it would be this way. But folks, You stand true to the word of God.

[14:12] You stand on what this word says. And regardless of what the world says, And regardless of how cunning they might be, With some of their arguments, You stand true to the word of God. The world can make some arguments that are almost right.

[14:27] They are almost correct. But in almost being correct, They are completely wrong. You stick with the truth of the word of God. Verse 43, And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, For I have hoped in thy judgment.

[14:45] He said, Again in verse 42, So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me, For I trust in thy word, And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth.

[14:57] He says, I'm hoping in this. In verse 42, He says, I trust in thy word. Verse 43, Take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, For I have hoped in thy judgments.

[15:09] Folks, He said, Let me continually speak the truth, Your truth, Let me continually speak the truth of Almighty God, The truth of the Bible, The truth of the Scripture.

[15:20] Let me continually speak these things. Folks, Why is this verse directly following verse 42? Verse 42, One more time, So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me, For I trust in thy word, Verse 43, And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth.

[15:39] Why is this verse following verse 42? Verse 42, He's saying, Or verse 41, He's saying, Let your mercy, And let your salvation come unto me, According to your word.

[15:51] Verse 42 again, So I shall have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me, Verse 43, And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth. What was He talking about in verse 42? The people that reproach Him.

[16:02] And He says, And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, For I have hoped in thy judgments. Folks, What is the temptation when the world rebukes us?

[16:13] When we get reproached from the world, What is the temptation? It's to remain silent. We are not to remain silent in the things of God. We are not to remain silent in the Word of God.

[16:24] God commands us to go into all the world And preach the Gospel to every living creature. We are not to be silent in these things. But the temptation when reproach comes, Is to stay silent.

[16:38] The temptation is to say, Well, maybe I don't need to be so bold in what God says. Folks, We are to be bold. And the Holy Spirit of God will give us that boldness.

[16:50] And the more we seek it, The more bold we will get. Let me tell you now, If you cannot talk about the things of God amongst your friends, You will never speak it in a bigger audience.

[17:01] You will never be able to speak it in a bigger audience. You won't speak it before a congregation. You won't speak it on a street corner. You won't speak it across radio waves or anything else.

[17:12] If you cannot speak it amongst your family and friends. And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth. For I have hoped in thy judgments.

[17:24] Take not this word of truth out of my mouth. Let me continue. Regardless of how much reproach comes my way. Regardless of how much hatred comes my way. Regardless if I'm going to lose my job. Regardless of if my children hate my guts.

[17:37] Regardless of any of these things. Let me speak the truth boldly. Oh God. Is what the psalmist here is saying. Do not remove your truth from my lips.

[17:48] Till my dying day. Let me speak the truth of the word of Almighty God. Till my dying day. Till I draw my very last breath. Let me speak the truth of the word of God.

[18:03] 1 Corinthians 15. Paul addressing the church. Addressing believers. Says some have not the knowledge of God. But I speak this to your shame. Speaking to the church.

[18:14] Some don't know about God. And if they don't know about God. They don't know about His mercy. In verse 41. They don't know about His salvation. In verse 41. They don't know about His word.

[18:26] All throughout the 119th Psalm. If they don't know about God. It's the church's fault. That they don't know about God. And that they don't know that they can be forgiven.

[18:38] They already know that they're sinners. They already know that what they do. The life they live is offensive. Romans chapter 1 says they suppress the truth.

[18:49] The truth is in them. They know right from wrong. They know good from evil. They know it's wrong to lie. They know it's wrong to steal. They know it's wrong to fornicate. They know that adultery is wrong. They know that all these things are wrong.

[19:02] But they suppress the truth. What is the truth? Jesus Christ is the truth. He's the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but by Him.

[19:13] Take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth. Lord, help me to speak Jesus Christ. All the days of my life. The one that saved my soul. The one that gave Himself for me.

[19:25] The one that died for me. The one that suffered for me. Let me speak the truth of Jesus Christ and His word and the gospel to a lost and dying world. That maybe, just maybe, one more soul might be saved.

[19:39] Not because of what I've done. And not because of what I've spoken. But because of what God has spoken in His word. And because of the Spirit of God that draws man unto Him.

[19:50] God, help this to be the case. Help this to be the case for all of us. That we speak the word of truth to our dying day. For I have hoped in Thy judgments. I have hoped in Your word. Folks, we have nothing else to hope in.

[20:01] There is no hope outside of the word of God. In the beginning was the word. The word was with God. And the word was God. Amen. Amen. So shall I keep Thy law continually forever and ever.

[20:14] Verse 44. So shall I keep Thy law continually forever and ever. Folks, this is perseverance language. That the psalmist is using here.

[20:25] So shall I keep Thy law continually forever and ever. Well, continually was enough. So shall I keep Thy law continually.

[20:36] He could have stopped right there. But no, He had it forever and ever. Talking about His perseverance, folks. This isn't Him being conceited in His resolve to live a moral life.

[20:48] This is Him hoping in verse 43 in the word of God. This is Him trusting in the word of God in verse 42. And this is according to the word of God in verse 41.

[21:00] He is all hope, all faith, and all trust. That He will keep the law of God continually forever and ever. My question to you is, have you done it?

[21:12] Have you done it? Have I done it? None of us have done it. We certainly didn't do it before we were saved. And we certainly haven't done it since we've been saved. But once again, folks, we are affiliated with.

[21:25] And we are in union with the one that did. And our faith and our hope and our trust is in Him. You and I could not keep the law. He, the very one that gave the law, was able to keep it.

[21:38] And is able to keep it. And because He kept it, He was the spotless, blameless Lamb of God. He was the one that suffered. He is the one whose blood was shed.

[21:48] And He is the only one whose blood was pure enough. And who was holy enough. And who was righteous enough to be able to offer righteousness unto all of those that repent of their ways and believe on Him.

[22:02] Hallelujah. That's who I'm trusting. But, we strive. We strive to keep the law. We strive to obey.

[22:13] If you ain't striving to obey again, I question the salvation. Folks, if we have received salvation. If we have received the greatest gift known to mankind.

[22:26] Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift. Is the way the Bible phrases it. The way Paul phrased it. If we have received this unspeakable gift. Folks, we should strive so hard to keep the law.

[22:39] Knowing that we're not going to be able to. Brother CJ this morning. Preaching from Romans chapter 7. Talking about Brother Paul. And now he called himself a wretched man.

[22:52] And if Paul could call himself a wretched man being saved. And having that personal experience with Jesus Christ on the Damascus road that He did. How much more wretched am I?

[23:04] How much more should I refer to myself as wretched? Folks, we are all wretched sinners. Saved by the marvelous grace of Almighty God. That's all any of us are. God did not save me because I was holy.

[23:16] He saved me because I was unholy. He didn't save me because I was righteous. He saved me because I was unrighteous. And He wanted to make me that way. He came to seek and save that which was lost.

[23:29] He came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. Is that not the words of the Scripture? He didn't come to call those that were already all right. There were none that were right.

[23:41] There's none that doeth good. There's none that seeketh that through righteousness. No, not one. Not one. That includes me. That includes you. So shall I keep thy law continually forever and ever.

[23:52] I cannot do that. But I should resolve within myself and within my heart knowing that I have received salvation. Knowing that the Spirit of God dwells on the inside of me to reject sin.

[24:05] To flee from sin. To flee from youthful lust. To flee from all these things. And all of us have temptations in our lives. Every single last one of us have temptations in our lives.

[24:16] It's not sinful to have temptation. It's sinful to give in to the temptation. It's sinful to say I can't take it anymore. I've got to do this. I've got to have this.

[24:27] I've got to have him. I've got to have her. I've got to have this thing. I've got to have this money. I've got to do this and that. Folks, that is when it becomes sin. It is not sin to be tempted.

[24:38] If that was the case, Christ would have sinned, would He have not? Wasn't He tempted three times in the wilderness? That wasn't the only three times He was tempted. That's three times we have recorded in the Scriptures. Now folks, He was without sin.

[24:51] No God was ever found in His mouth. Verse 45, And I will walk at liberty, for I seek Thy precepts. Folks, this is one of the greatest paradoxes in all Scripture.

[25:03] Verse 45 again, And I will walk at liberty. I will walk in freedom. I will walk in liberty. Why? For I seek Thy precepts.

[25:15] For I seek Thy law. For I seek Thy Word. What does the world say about the Word of God? It's nothing more than a bunch of rules and regulations for us to live by.

[25:26] The world will say, I don't need a book to tell me how to live. That's how the world looks at it. And folks, really and truthfully and honestly, that's what the Word of God is. It's instructions.

[25:38] And it is commandments. And it is statutes. And it is precepts. And it is judgments. It's all these things that the 119th Psalm classifies as the Word of God.

[25:49] But He says, I will walk at liberty, for I seek Thy precepts. Folks, the world says, Cast off the law of God, and you will be free. The world says, Cast off God.

[26:01] Cast off His church. Cast off those hymns. Cast off the cross. Cast off the blood. Cast it all off. Send as much as you want to. Do what Thou will. And you will be free.

[26:13] What did Jesus say? Take my yoke upon you. Take my yoke upon you. For my load is easy and my burden is light. Take the yoke of Christ upon you.

[26:26] And that will free you. Folks, if you've ever really and truly studied the Ten Commandments found in Exodus chapter 20. If you've ever truly, deeply studied those Ten Commandments, that is some of the most liberating scripture.

[26:40] That is some of the most liberating scripture in all of the Bible. Is to follow the Ten Commandments. Folks, we are not given liberty and we are not given freedom to sin.

[26:51] We are given liberty when we are saved. When we are born again, we are given liberty to worship God. We are given liberty to the throne of God. We are given liberty to pray and to make our petitions known unto God.

[27:06] That's where our liberty is. The world can have what they say is liberty. They can have what they say is freedom. I want to be free in Christ. If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.

[27:18] And if that means taking His yoke upon me, so be it. If that means to follow Him, I must deny myself, take up my cross daily and follow Him, so be it.

[27:30] Folks, that is freedom. That is freedom. This Hebrew word that's used here for liberty is a Hebrew word called rakav. It actually means a great or an open space.

[27:43] You know what that tells me? When I obey God, I can breathe freely. I can breathe with no restraint when I obey God.

[27:56] Again, we go back to the first couple of verses that we went through tonight. Regardless of how the world reproaches you, if we are obeying God and we are speaking the truth of God's Word, folks, we can breathe freely in this grand and open space that God has provided for all of those that strive to follow His commandments, to follow His precepts, to trust in His judgments, to trust in the Scriptures, to trust in His Word, folks.

[28:25] There is no freedom that is greater than to be found in Jesus Christ. You'll either be a slave to this world and a slave to sin, or you'll be a slave to Christ.

[28:36] It is that simple. Either way, either way, you're a slave to something. There is no riding the fence. There is no middle road.

[28:47] There is no middle ground. We're a slave to one or the other. I would much rather be a slave to Christ. Because being a slave to Christ, I have liberty and I have freedom. And that is not how I'm interpreting this.

[28:59] That is what the Scripture is saying here. Even the psalmist says, And I will walk at liberty, for I seek Thy precepts. I am seeking after Your law. I want to abide in Your law.

[29:12] I want to abide in Your Word. And if I do these things, I will walk in freedom. Hallelujah. Does the Scripture not say where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty?

[29:23] There is liberty where the Spirit of the Lord is. Are you born again? The Spirit of the Lord is in you. If the Spirit of the Lord is in you, there is liberty in you. Liberty to do what?

[29:34] Again, to worship God. To seek God. Folks, the lost world cannot do that. They don't have liberty to do so. They don't have freedom to do so. Only those that are godly can truly seek God.

[29:47] Because the Bible again says, There is none that seeketh after righteousness. There is none that seek God. That's why God had to come here. That's why the psalmist had to say in verse 41, Let thy mercies come also unto me.

[30:02] Because he couldn't ascend to heaven and get the mercies. He had to beg and plead with God to let the mercies come from heaven to him.

[30:14] Come from God to him. And I will walk at liberty for I seek thy precepts. Verse 46, Folks, this is the boldness we were talking about earlier.

[30:30] I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings. Again, we were talking over in verse 42 about the reproach that comes from the world.

[30:40] It seems to be that much worse when it comes from those that are in authority. Or those that are in power. Those that have rule over you. And I'm talking about earthly, worldly rule.

[30:51] Whether it be a boss or whomever it is. But he says, I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings. And will not be ashamed. Folks, we cannot afford to be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

[31:05] We must speak with boldness the truth of Jesus Christ. The truth of the gospel. The truth that the Bible says. That all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And the truth that the Bible teaches.

[31:17] That God is salvation. And salvation is of the Lord. We must speak all of these truths. And speak it before kings. And speak it before peasants alike. Don't change the message because of your audience.

[31:30] I've seen so many preachers. And you probably have too, brother Mike. Amen. They'll walk into a meeting. There'll be six, seven, eight people there. Well, I ain't preaching. Yeah.

[31:41] Preach to the ones that are there. Right. Preach the Word of God to who's present. Don't worry about the ones that were too lazy to show up. Amen. Otherwise, you'll stand before God one day.

[31:53] And give an account why you left His sheep starving. Right. The ones that show up are the ones that want to hear it. They're the ones that came at feeding time. So feed them.

[32:03] Amen. Feed them. Yeah. I've preached to two people before. It didn't bother me a bit. That's good. And I'll preach to a hundred. The same message. Yeah. Man is a sinner, but God is a Savior.

[32:14] Preach the Gospel. Preach the Gospel. I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings. The psalmist here telling God, I will speak of your testimonies, your Word, your law, your judgments, your precepts.

[32:27] I will speak of these things before kings. Folks, this is the boldness that we need to have regardless of whom it is. Folks, when Jesus was, we've already brought it up once this evening, but when Jesus was being tempted by Satan, how did he go about responding to Satan?

[32:45] He didn't respond with philosophy. He said, it is written. Yeah. It is written. All three times, it is written. Yeah. How did he respond to the Pharisees and the scribes when they came against him?

[32:58] Have you not read? Have you not read? Have you not read this? Have you not read that? He responded with the Word of God. And this psalmist here is saying, I will speak of thy testimonies. I will speak of your Word.

[33:10] Even to kings. Even to those in power. The message doesn't change. The Word of God doesn't change. Jesus said Himself, I believe in Matthew 24, He said, the heaven and earth will pass away, but My Word shall not pass away.

[33:28] Speak the truth of the Word of God. To peasants. To family. To friends. To kings. To queens. To whoever. Speak the same truth to all these people.

[33:40] For it is the same gospel. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ. That is the power of God unto salvation. And don't think for one second, they don't deserve to hear it.

[33:50] Because you didn't either. And nor did I. I didn't deserve to hear the message. I didn't deserve to know that there was a way of salvation. I didn't deserve salvation. Period.

[34:01] But God allowed me to hear it. And God allowed me to repent. And God allowed me and gave me salvation. I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings and will not be ashamed.

[34:12] Folks, this is the boldness we need. Think of Daniel. Think of Daniel. When they said no one was to pray. Think about what he did.

[34:23] I'm going to do what they said. I'm going to pray to my God. I'm going to pray to my God. Think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the book of Daniel. They said, when you hear all this music, when you hear the sound of the psaltery, when you hear the sound of this instrument and that instrument, you're to bow down before this image and worship it.

[34:44] Did they? No. But they spoke the truth. They spoke the truth. You know why? Because they believed in the mercies of God and the salvation of God according to His Word.

[34:56] As in verse 41 of this psalm that we are reading here tonight. They believed in the Word of God and His mercy and His salvation. That's why they could say, whether God delivers us or not, we will not bow to this image.

[35:12] Whether He does so or not, hey, that's completely up to Him, O King. But we will not bow to Your image. Folks, that's the boldness that we need as Christians. And that's the boldness that we should have.

[35:24] Folks, we have the authority of this book. And I know the world doesn't see this book as their authority. And I didn't before I was saved. But we have the authority of this book.

[35:38] Written by men. Inspired by Almighty God. What more authority do we need? What more authority do we need other than this book?

[35:50] Verse 47. I will delight myself in Thy commandments, which I have loved. Folks, this is the heart of this entire stanza. I will delight myself in Thy commandments, which I have loved.

[36:07] He's not talking about drudgery. He's not talking about, I'm going to do this for just a few minutes, and then I'll check my box. And then I'll do that for a few minutes, and then I'll check another box.

[36:19] And I'll move on down the line throughout the course of my day. Folks, listen to me right now. Obedience without delight is nothing more than religion. It is nothing more than religion.

[36:33] That is what the Roman Catholics do. They think if I go to church, if I go to Mass, if I repeat what I'm supposed to after the priest says what he's supposed to, if I give a couple of Hail Marys, eat a couple of stale crackers, and drink some sour wine, I'll be alright.

[36:54] That's what the Catholics do. That's religion. And it is obedience without delight. Most of them don't want to be there. They're doing it because they feel like they have to be there. Folks, I show up to the house of God because I want to be here.

[37:07] I sit under the preached Word of God because I want to. There is no more pure form of worship than to listen to a sermon preached from the Word of God.

[37:19] Amen. I like to amen the preacher sometimes because I agree with the Word of God and I agree with what he's preaching. I like to sing the hymns. I like to sing the songs.

[37:31] I like to worship God. Why? Because that's my delight. I'm delighting myself in His commandments. Again, the world sees those commandments as fetters.

[37:43] Something to hold them back. Something to tie their feet together. Something to tell them what to do and what not to do. Folks, we look at the commandments of Almighty God as a reflection of the beauty and the holiness of the One who gave those commandments.

[38:00] And that's exactly what they are. The Ten Commandments were given for two reasons. One was to show the holiness of God. One was to show the unholiness of man.

[38:11] Because man could not follow them and God could. That's the two reasons the Ten Commandments were given. The reason Jesus Christ came is because we could not follow those commandments.

[38:23] It says, I will delight myself in thy commandments. Folks, delight yourselves in the Word of God. Be happy when you read the Word of God. Don't sit down in the morning or in the evening or whenever it is that you might do a devotional or you might read a chapter or two and say, Well, I've got to get this out of the way.

[38:41] That is no attitude to have with the Word of God. You sit down with the Word of God. You pray over the Word of God. You pray to God that He show you something from His Word. You pray to God that He will show you through His Spirit what He is saying in His Word.

[38:55] You delight yourself in the commandments and the judgments and the precepts of your Savior. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! That's the difference between religion and having an actual relationship with Jesus Christ.

[39:11] I delight myself in the commandments of Christ because He saved my soul and because the Spirit of God dwells within and because I have something that I do not deserve.

[39:28] Salvation. I have received mercy from God and salvation according to His Word. Verse 41 again. I don't deserve any of those things. And I delight myself in the commandments of God because of this.

[39:41] But the psalmist goes on at the end of that verse, which I have loved. Do you love the Word of God? Amen. Amen, I love the Word of God. I've actually had people say, I just, I can't read it.

[39:59] I can't understand it. I can't this. And I can't that. I went on visitation one time to a woman's house. She said, I can't read that Bible. I can't understand half the words that's in it.

[40:11] But she could pronounce every prescription drug that she took. She said, Oh yeah. And they're in the cabinet. I bet you she blew off 15 or 20 different drugs that she was taking.

[40:21] And the big Greek and Latin words that I couldn't pronounce. And she said she couldn't understand the Bible. No, she don't want to understand it. That was the problem.

[40:33] She didn't want to understand it. Folks, we will not be able to plead ignorance with God. Amen. Once upon, back when God winked at man's ignorance, according to the book of Acts, but now commands men everywhere to repent.

[40:49] We all, God commands all of us to repent. We will not be able to plead ignorance. And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. Folks, love the Word of God. Love the Word.

[41:00] And the more you love the Word of God, the more you will want to read the Word of God. The more you will want to study the Word of God. The more you will want to dig in the Word of God. And find the little nuggets here and there.

[41:11] Find things that you never saw in the Scripture. Read John 3.16. Read a hundred times through and see how many different things you can find in that one verse of Scripture.

[41:22] And then do it again a year later. Keep your list. Do it again a year later and see how many other things you do that you find. Reading through the Word of God.

[41:33] Love the Word of God. Verse 48. My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved. And I will meditate in thy statutes.

[41:43] My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved. Now, let me make something real clear here. He is not talking when He says, I will lift up my hands unto thy commandments.

[41:55] He is not talking about worshiping this book. I have seen people do that. I have seen people do that. I have seen people make idols out of the version of the Bible that they use.

[42:07] Folks, that's dangerous territory. Now, I'm a KJV guy. Y'all know that by now. That's what I use. It's what I teach from. It's what I preach from.

[42:18] It's what I read. But that's not the only version of the Bible I got at my house. Right. And, you know, y'all can think about that what you want to. Yeah. And that's fine.

[42:29] But I do love my King James Version. That's the one that I'll stick with. That's the one I preach from when I'm on the street. It's the one that I, again, that I preach and teach from. It's the one that I use. But that's not what I'm talking about here.

[42:43] And that's not what the psalmist here is talking about. Right. He's not talking about holding up a copy of the Torah or the Pentateuch and worshiping it. He says, My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments which I have loved.

[42:58] Now, yes, hand raising is a form of worship toward God. That's found all throughout the Scripture. I can't argue that. But what else is it symbolic of?

[43:11] What do you see when you see the robber running down the street? Yeah. Cop jumps from around the corner and points his gun at him and the robber says, Yeah. Surrender. Surrender. It's surrender.

[43:26] My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments which I have loved. Yeah. Not only do we need to love the Word of God, we need to surrender to the Word of God.

[43:39] We need to surrender to the commandments of God. God. And us being naturally children of wrath according to the Scripture.

[43:49] Right. Us in our natural state, us in this flesh that is constantly at war with the Spirit, we don't want to surrender to anything. Right. We don't want to do that.

[44:02] But folks, we must. Yeah. We must surrender. And again, he uses that term which I have loved. He says, My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments which I have loved.

[44:16] Now, another way you can look at this, what the psalmist may be saying, My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments. Not only surrendering, but reaching for those commandments.

[44:27] Wanting the commandments of God. He was depending on, in verse 41, of God allowing His mercy and allowing His salvation to come unto Him, to come unto the psalmist.

[44:41] Because the psalmist knew that he couldn't obtain them himself. And he also knows that he cannot obtain the commandments unless God gives them down to him. Unless God helps them with them.

[44:54] Folks, we can't either. We are in no different shape than this psalmist. No different shape whatsoever. My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments which I have loved.

[45:06] Love the Word of God. Surrender to the Word of God. And want the Word of God. Why would we not? Why would we not? This shows us the way of salvation.

[45:19] This shows us what we have to look forward to. Brother Mike said it before I got up here tonight. We really don't know a whole lot about heaven. I really don't know a whole lot about heaven. Quite frankly, Scripture don't tell us a whole lot about heaven.

[45:32] I know there's Jasper Walls. I know there's 12 foundations. I know like Brother Mike, there's a transparent street of gold. There's at least one. The Bible says street. Out of the film, there's more.

[45:45] But, I know these things. But the main thing I know is my Jesus will be there. My Savior will be there. If He wasn't there, it wouldn't be heaven, folks.

[45:55] It wouldn't be heaven. I want the Word of God. I love the Word of God. I must surrender to the Word of God. I must surrender to the commandments of God.

[46:06] He says, and I will meditate in thy statutes. Let me tell you right now, I don't know if y'all have ever practiced yoga. I don't recommend it.

[46:17] It's actually a very spiritual Indian and Far Eastern practice. I don't recommend it at all. But, they meditate in that.

[46:29] The Hindus do it. Many other people practice meditation, but worldly meditation is emptying your mind of everything. That is not biblical meditation.

[46:43] Biblical meditation. Read this again. My hands also will lift up unto thy commandments which I have loved, and I will meditate in thy statutes. I will not empty my mind of everything.

[46:56] I will meditate in thy statutes. I will meditate on your Word, folks. Let me tell you now, if you empty your mind of everything godly, you will become an idolater.

[47:07] If you fill it with the things of the world, you will become an idolater in one way, shape, form, or fashion. But if you fill your mind with the things of God, you fill your mind with the Word of God, with the statutes, and the precepts, and the judgments, and the commandments of Almighty God, you will live a godly life.

[47:27] Period! What goes in here will seep down into here. Same way with the world. Same way with the world. You let the world fill your mind, it will seep into your heart.

[47:39] But you meditate on God's statutes. Not emptying your mind of everything. As the Far Eastern meditation says that we are to do.

[47:50] You meditate upon the statutes of Almighty God. And once we do that and we fill our mind with the Word of God and the things of God, with what thus say at the Word of God, we fill our mind with that, folks.

[48:08] We are a whole lot less likely to get dragged into this world and get dragged into the things of the world and get dragged into the meditations of the world. And we won't be feel nearly as tempted when temptation comes if our mind is filled with the Word of God.

[48:27] That being said, I won't leave without bringing up the Gospel one more time. This entire stanza begins with the Gospel.

[48:39] In verse 41, Let Thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even Thy salvation according to Thy Word. I don't know everybody's heart, but this would be the beginning of it.

[48:55] To come unto God a broken sinner. Understanding that you are a sinner. Understanding your need of salvation. And understanding that you cannot obtain that salvation on your own.

[49:06] And come to God and say, Let Your mercy and Your salvation come unto me, O Lord, according to Thy Word. Folks, if it ain't according to the Word of God, you'll never get saved.

[49:21] But if it's in the way that God prescribes within His Word to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and Thou shalt be saved. To repent ye and believe the Gospel. Again, to believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead.

[49:37] To believe the words that there is coming a day when whosoever should call upon the name of the Lord shall be delivered. You believe these things according to the Word of God. And beg God to let His mercy and His salvation come.

[49:51] And He will. And He will. God bless you all. That's the message for this evening. Amen. Amen. Amen.