PSALM ONE-HUNDRED NINETEEN

We have been studying the longest book of the Bible. It is the 119th Psalm. It is divided into twenty-two sections of eight verses each. Nearly every verse of this psalm makes reference to the Word of God.

Tonight we come to the fifth section. In this segment of the Psalm we have four pictures of a godly man. What makes a godly man? How do we identify a person who is godly? Let's look to this section of the Psalm and see what kind of person we would consider to be godly.

Life is a journey, and as believers we are wanderers in this world.

Like Abraham we are a stranger and sojourner on the earth.

The old song says, "This world is not my home, I'm just passing through."

As travelers, we need directions.

Here the psalmist is seen asking God to guide him on his way, and he promises to follow God's directions:

1. He sees God's Word as a path to be followed, a sure way through the wilderness.

2. We need guidance.

3. We need to pay attention to the Lord's leading and follow it carefully.

4. Even though sometimes the Lord's leading seems contrary to what our own thoughts on the matter might be.

5. God does not promise us an easy path to Heaven, but He does promise us a safe one.

6. So the psalmist prays, "Teach me the way of Thy statutes."

a. Not just His statutes, but the way of His statutes.

b. He is determined to follow that way faithfully no matter how difficult the road.

c. He is a sojourner in a hostile world and needs God's leading home.

1. Understanding is better than knowledge.

2. We have knowledge of God available to us by reading the Bible.

3. But that does not mean we understand biblical principles.

4. However, meditation on God's Word will give us understanding.

a. Behind all God's commands are two goals God has in mind.

b. One has to do with our good-God never has anything else in mind for us than that.

c. The other is His glory, God always acts in ways that reflect His glory.

d. When we have understanding of God's Word, we will follow His direction faithfully and completely.

Life is not only a journey, it is a battle.

The psalmist realized that if he was to keep his life in line with God's Word there would be a struggle.

1. Imagine having to ask God to make us to do something we love doing.

2. We do not have to make a child eat ice cream! We might have to make him eat spinach or parsnips but we have trouble keeping them away from the cookie jar.

3. We might have to make them practice their piano lessons, but we won't have to force him to run and fetch our wallet when we get ready to give them their allowance.

4. So why must we be made to go in the path that we delight in?

a. We are not one person but two.

b. There is "the old man" and there is "the new man."

c. Note: Romans 7:22-23

d. The new man loves the path of God's commandments; the old man doesn't, so the fight is on.

e. As a result we tend to swing back or and forth like a pendulum.

5. The psalmist says, You to make me to go in the path of Your commandments."

6. That is the mark of a true believer.

7. That is the difference between the prodigal's going-away petition and his coming-home petition: "Father, give me," and "Father, make me."

8. The psalmist wanted God to make him obedient.

1. The psalmist has just told us that he delights in God's law.

2. But he needs that to be reinforced and strengthened. Incline means to establish a pattern; a predictable pattern; be programed; to be habitual. Covetousness means want without need; it is our natural inclination.

One law of spiritual victory we need to learn is to look the other way. A great deal of temptation comes to us through our eyes. Sinful things have great attraction for us. The song and advertising jingle, "Just one look…that's all it took". That is why the psalmist wanted his eyes to be controlled. 'Quicken thou me' He was asking God to make him alive to His way. He wanted inner strength to keep his eye on the Master.

This is a healthy master-servant relationship.

The servant must stand in awe of his master, must hold him in respect, must measure the distance between them. There are at least three ways we can read the Bible.

There are those who read it and forsake it…rebelling against God's Word. There are those who read it and forget it…they simply allow it to be crowded out of their lives. Then there are those who read it and fear it… It gets a hold on them. The psalmist takes his stand with those who fear God's Word, with those who have healthy respect for it.

What are we to be if we are to be godly? We are to be like a:

Sojourner who needs direction from the Word.

Soldier who battles to keep his life in line with the Word.

Servant who seeks to serve the God by obedience to the Word.

Saint who is empowered to live righteously by the Word.