PSALM 119:1-8 ALEPH What is the longest chapter in the Bible? How many verses does it have? How long would it take you reading it? What is it about? It is Psalm 119 of course and we are going to study it together not all in one go, you will be glad to hear! but we will take it as the Holy Spirit has set it out for us. Just a few words of introduction The psalm has twenty-two sections each consisting of eight verses (i.e. a total of 176 verses altogether). Each section has its own individual heading, which is simply a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, - aleph, beth, gimel, daleth, he, etc. In, for example, the first section (aleph, a) each of the eight verses begin with that letter in the Hebrew. As is all things associated with our relationship with God, the writing of this psalm has demanded great time and concentration from the psalmist. It is only correct and proper that we too treat it in the same way he treated this subject. He was led by the Holy Spirit, we should also seek the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to consider what this psalm has to teach us. Its emphasis is clearly upon the vital ministry of the Word of God to the bringing to maturity the child of God, - this psalm is telling you that if you want to grow in Christ you need to mature in God s Word, you and I need to read and study and apply it. A car won t go very far without petrol. The only direction it will take is downhill! God does not have one standard for one Christian and another standard for another Christian or another church. He has the same basic principles and doctrines that have never changed. They tell you nowadays you need to update Christianity, - get into the 21 st century! - but any improvements you make actually detracts from what God has set out in His Word. God s Word doesn t need to be added to and this psalm teaches us again that God s Word is the ultimate emphasis of instruction for the believer. You will notice too the psalmist uses eight different words for the Scriptures, - law (torah, the first five books of the Old Testament), testimony, precept, statute, commandment, judgment (i.e. a rule for
2 living), word (of God), and promise. In fact, 169 verses out of 176 make a direct mention of God s Word. Who wrote it? We don t know for sure and therefore we can t really say for certain when it was written. (Some commentators suggest Jeremiah, but we can t be sure). Whoever the author was, he had an intense hunger and passion to understand God s Word in a deeper way. This passion for God is illustrated in the fact that in all but fourteen verses the writer of the psalm addresses his words to the Lord personally. It is so plain and easy to notice the basic theme of the psalm is simply the practical use of the Word of God in the everyday life of the believer. But imagine that this man didn t have the Bible we have today! He probably didn t have the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament; he definitely didn t have the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. Believer, do you realise how blessed we are with this Holy Book God has gifted to you and me! It is no wonder the devil tries his best to water it down and corrupt it, it is no wonder he tried to burn it and destroy it, and it is no wonder he still tries to rid the world of it today, - this is God s Word, and here, - in this psalm, - the psalmist rejoiced in God s Word. He called it his daily food, (v. 103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!). It was his greatest wealth, (v. 72 The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver. v.127 Therefore I love thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold). It is quite a thought too, that the Bible of the early Church consisted only of the Old Testament, - it didn t have the accounts of Jesus, His life, His miracles and the story of Calvary, it didn t have Jn. 3:16. It didn t have the teachings of Paul and Peter and John as we have today. Yet, with the Old Testament and the help of the Holy Spirit the first Christians had a most dynamic, explosive and powerful ministry... and their message came solely from the Word. Get away from the Word and you lose the power God has invested in His people. Look here how this man delighted in God s Word, v.16 I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. v. 24 Thy testimonies also are my delight. v. 35 Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight. v.47 I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved.
v.70 I delight in thy law. v.77 Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law is my delight. v.174 I have longed for thy salvation, O LORD; and thy law is my delight. Why is it such a delight? Why should you and I love the Word of God? Again the answer is simple: if you love the Word of God, you also love the God of the Word as the psalmist did, v.132 Look thou upon me, and be merciful unto me, as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name. Indeed, as you read through this psalm, you will find the writer in a variety of experiences, but his devotion to the Lord and His Word do not change. This is our confidence too, - as we begin to study this psalm, - though circumstances change, our God and His Word never change! Let s read the first section together. 119:1 ALEPH. Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD. 2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. 3 They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways. 4 Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently. 5 O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes! 6 Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments. 7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments. 8 I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly. By way of having headings, we shall briefly consider these verses under five headings: Walking (vv.1,3), Seeking (v.2), Praising (v.7), Learning (v.7), Keeping (vv.2,4,5,8) WALKING (vv.1,3) Walking is a sign of maturity. It is the actions of someone who is growing up. They take their first tender steps, and they fall; they get up again and persevere until they have mastered the art of walking. Walking has to be worked at. Walking on a smooth surface is different to walking in a mucky field or on a rocky hill, - we need to get used to the different types of surface. This is a special walk the psalmist is writing about, - it is not an ordinary path; Jesus said, Mt. 7:14 narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life. It involves walking against the main flow against the way the majority is walking. It means you are walking in the one direction with one objective on your mind that you will do no iniquity (v.3). God s people strive not to sin! Let s put it like this: 3
4 Do you read pornography? Do you watch pornography? As a believer, should you read pornography and should you watch pornography? The answer is simple: as a believer in Christ, you should be neither reading pornography nor watching it. If you are, you should stop it; if you don t want to stop it, then I would advise you to carefully examine yourself, lest you are not truly saved at all. You see, v.130 The entrance of [God s] words giveth light; and when God s light shines in Jn. 1:5 tells us it overcomes the darkness, - God s light and sin s darkness cannot work together. The question again Is it possible to do no iniquity? Well, the Bible says it ought to be our driving force because sin robs God of glory in the life of the believer and it is a bad witness. So, that which God convicts you about in your life He expects you to give up; if it is contrary to how a Christian should be acting you shouldn t be doing it. God the Holy Spirit works in you so that you would become like unto Christ. You see, sin defiles, - it dirties, it pollutes. When Christ saved you He brought you from the broad road and set you on the narrow road. The road He set you on has no filthiness, or foulness, smut or immorality. On this narrow road He has particular instructions how you should walk along it; these instructions are in accordance with the law of the Lord (v.1) and is applicable to those who walk in His ways (v.3). The psalmist tells you here that to be a successful believer you need to be walking, guided by God s Word. You might say, Ah, but the Bible doesn t tell me how to walk in every particular set of circumstances I can confidently tell you it does. The Bible misses nothing out. Any guidance you need the Bible will point you in the right direction. Walking SEEKING (v.2) Here is another proof of a true child of God. What would God have me to do? What would He have me say? What would He have me to be? The psalmist is seeking after God. He shows us the importance of putting God first and notice how he emphasises this, v.2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. If you start depending on God your trust in Him will grow and grow.
5 On the other hand, if you are not sure whether you could trust Him completely or not, you will find yourself going here, there and yonder and He becomes the last Person you come to instead of being the first. Now, when you come to Him at the very beginning He honours you because He sees you trust Him and when you come to Him sincerely at the very beginning you develop a confidence that you know He can help you. Once again, you turn to His Word and you see there how He has helped His servants in all kinds of circumstances; you establish the confidence that you know He is able to meet your need too no matter what your need may be! The psalmist is actively walking and actively seeking. PRAISING (v.7) He is praising God. He knows God is his Companion as he is walking and seeking. He is not ashamed of his relationship with God, - he doesn t hide it away ( for Sundays or for church meetings). He speaks personally to God and he has no problem speaking to others about his relationship with Him, - mention God s Name and his face lights up. There is a freshness in his voice and in his conversation. God is good to me, God is good to me; He holds my hand, He makes me stand, God is good to me! Yes, praise is good preparation for learning about God and His Word As the psalmist is walking he is also seeking, as he is seeking he is also praising LEARNING (v.7) How do you learn? Putting it crudely you stick at it! This is known in doctrine as The Perseverance of the Saints. You don t give up, - you keep on going; you are learning all the time. How long have you been saved? How much have you learned? They both go together. We are going to have a testimony meeting some Sunday evening soon you could tell us when you were saved and where but what about your testimony to God s grace today? What is God doing in your life today? What is He teaching you? What are you learning today? A true disciple is one who learns continually How do you learn? Where do you learn? You come to the infallible and inerrant Word of God. Seek out its instruction, - don t just
6 take a verse or passage here and there, - read it all; the psalmist wrote in another place (Ps. 73:24), Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel. It is a privilege and an honour to have God s Word in its completeness. Many Christians in many lands would love to have this Book in its entirety and yet so many professing believers who have it do not cherish it as they ought. Walking, seeking, praising, learning and finally KEEPING (vv.2,4,5,8) In these short eight verses there is much emphasis on keeping the Word of God. If you want to know blessing you need to keep the Word of God, If you want to be obedient to God you need to keep the Word of God, If you want to walk the right way you need to keep the Word of God, If you want to know perseverance in the faith you need to keep the Word of God. There is no substitute for God s Word. Our children and young people need to be taught it, - it s what the Bible says, Dt. 6:7 thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. It s for our protection, Prov. 30:5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Jesus said, Lk. 11:28 blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it. Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, 1 Thess. 2: 13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe. It is not a book for the shelf from one week to the next; it is a daily roadmap, a sword, an encourager, it is the very Word of the Almighty and Sovereign God to His eternally beloved people. Here is a sure and certain way to guard your walk with Christ, - read and study His Word every day, keep the instructions He gives you from its pages then, says the psalmist, v.6 shall I not be ashamed. Conclusion Walking, seeking, praising, learning, keeping. Here is the bad news first, - you can t and you won t do it in your own strength it doesn t work. You will soon give up.
7 But here is the good news, - you are not meant to do it in your own strength you are meant to do it in the strength that God gives you by the power of the Holy Spirit. Perhaps you are not saved yet but you are thinking about it, you have been thinking about it for some time. Enough of the thinking. If all you were to do about something was merely to think about it, you would never get anything done. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved (Acts 16:31) Believer, keep on believing as you ought and God will keep you on your feet and you will be walking, and seeking, and praising, and learning, and keeping the Word of God.