1
00:00:02,640 --> 00:00:05,400
Good morning church. 
This morning Scripture reader 

2
00:00:05,400 --> 00:00:10,240
will be from Psalms 119. 
If you're using the Bible under 

3
00:00:10,240 --> 00:00:14,640
the seat, you can find that on 
page 480. 

4
00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:20,720
Blessed are those whose way is 
blameless, who walk in the law 

5
00:00:20,720 --> 00:00:23,320
of the Lord. 
Blessed are those who keep His 

6
00:00:23,320 --> 00:00:27,640
testimonies, who seek Him with 
their whole heart, who also do 

7
00:00:27,640 --> 00:00:33,040
no wrong but walk in His ways. 
You have commanded your, You 

8
00:00:33,040 --> 00:00:37,320
have commanded your precepts to 
keep diligent, diligently. 

9
00:00:37,960 --> 00:00:40,440
Oh, that my ways may be 
steadfast in keeping your 

10
00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:42,840
statutes. 
Then I shall not be put to 

11
00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,040
shame. 
Having my eyes fixed on all Your

12
00:00:46,040 --> 00:00:48,680
commandments. 
I will praise you with your 

13
00:00:48,680 --> 00:00:50,680
upright heart. 
When I learn your righteous 

14
00:00:50,680 --> 00:00:52,640
rules. 
I will keep your statutes. 

15
00:00:52,640 --> 00:00:55,440
Do not utterly forsake me. 
This is the word of the Lord. 

16
00:00:57,680 --> 00:01:00,360
Good morning, poor city family 
and friends. 

17
00:01:00,360 --> 00:01:02,320
How are we doing? 
Sorry, my hair has gotten a 

18
00:01:02,320 --> 00:01:04,800
little longer. 
So we're in this thing is get 

19
00:01:04,800 --> 00:01:07,560
stuck in there. 
But hey, it is a pleasure to be 

20
00:01:07,560 --> 00:01:10,000
with you. 
My name is Ron and I am one of 

21
00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:13,560
the pastors here again. 
Every single time I get up have 

22
00:01:13,560 --> 00:01:15,840
the opportunity to preach. 
It is a joy. 

23
00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:17,600
So so thank you for for being 
here. 

24
00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:20,760
I'm excited to dive into God's 
Word today. 

25
00:01:21,560 --> 00:01:24,720
So we're going to be beginning a
short series over the next three

26
00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:29,520
weeks entitled In the Word. 
And so over the course of the 

27
00:01:29,520 --> 00:01:31,840
next three weeks, we're going to
be looking at reading the Word, 

28
00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:34,800
meditating on the Word, and 
living out the word. 

29
00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:38,520
And we've chosen Psalm 119 
because if there's any chapter 

30
00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:42,760
of the Bible that does not allow
us to approach kind of the the 

31
00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:45,840
God's Word casually is Psalm 
119. 

32
00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:50,880
I don't know about you, but I 
don't know if you're anything 

33
00:01:50,880 --> 00:01:55,280
like me, but on on most days, 
like I'm pretty casual with my 

34
00:01:55,280 --> 00:01:56,600
like phone battery. 
You're right. 

35
00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:59,680
So like sometimes I might charge
it, sometimes I might not. 

36
00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:01,560
A lot of times it's because my 
kids have like moved the 

37
00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:04,160
chargers and but you know, I'm 
casual. 

38
00:02:04,160 --> 00:02:06,520
Like if it's charged, it's it's 
fine. 

39
00:02:06,920 --> 00:02:08,520
If it's not, I'll find a 
charger. 

40
00:02:08,520 --> 00:02:10,320
We'll we'll get it charged up. 
We're good. 

41
00:02:11,080 --> 00:02:15,120
But imagine if I change the 
setting now imagine I'm not in 

42
00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:19,360
my home, but I am somewhere 
where I don't know and my phone 

43
00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:23,000
only has 10% battery where I was
casual before. 

44
00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:27,000
Now I'm like in a panic because 
this phone is my lifeline, 

45
00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:29,440
right? 
It's like it is, it's going to 

46
00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:32,800
guide me, it's going to help me.
This GPS is, is essential. 

47
00:02:33,960 --> 00:02:38,520
And, you know, if we, when we 
look at Psalm 119, we are 

48
00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:42,240
looking at someone who kind of 
knows the difference, who, who 

49
00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:46,080
treats the word kind of like 
that, like it's a lifeline. 

50
00:02:46,080 --> 00:02:50,760
Not, not something casual that 
we sort of kind of read like 

51
00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:53,800
we're scrolling. 
But it is something that the the

52
00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:59,640
psalmist desperately needs. 
And so we're going to see over 

53
00:02:59,640 --> 00:03:04,720
the next couple weeks really 
that our hope is to to capture 

54
00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:08,840
sort of the heart of the 
psalmist, his posture as he sort

55
00:03:08,840 --> 00:03:12,760
of approaches the the word. 
And so a little context before 

56
00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:16,360
we dive in further. 
Psalm 118 is the longest chapter

57
00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:20,280
in the Bible. 
It is kind of written as an 

58
00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:26,360
acrostic poem. 
So it is each HH stanza is 

59
00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:29,320
matches one of the Hebrew 
letters in the alphabet. 

60
00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:32,360
So from a kind of to Z, if you 
will. 

61
00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:36,160
It's almost like God is saying 
that, you know, my word speaks 

62
00:03:36,160 --> 00:03:40,280
to every part of life. 
It is complete and we're going 

63
00:03:40,280 --> 00:03:44,160
to see that that nothing outside
of I'm sorry, nothing in the 

64
00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:47,760
world exists outside of God's 
word. 

65
00:03:48,320 --> 00:03:52,040
And it is, you know, it is 
profitable for for all of life. 

66
00:03:52,040 --> 00:03:55,600
And so I do want to say, you 
know, as we, you know, think 

67
00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:59,240
about the word and, and talk 
about the word, you know, the, 

68
00:03:59,280 --> 00:04:04,680
the primary goal of of today's 
message isn't, you know, I want 

69
00:04:04,680 --> 00:04:09,080
us to leave like loving the word
and excited about the word. 

70
00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:13,960
But ultimately it is not about 
loving the Bible as much as it 

71
00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:18,320
is loving the God of the Bible 
and loving who the Scriptures 

72
00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:22,480
point to loving God through his 
revealed words. 

73
00:04:22,480 --> 00:04:26,200
So if you leave today, kind of 
beating yourself up about, you 

74
00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:29,560
know, how much you have not read
or should be reading, you really

75
00:04:29,560 --> 00:04:33,320
have missed the the point. 
This is not sort of a guilt trip

76
00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:37,360
as much as it is an invitation 
for us to walk with God through 

77
00:04:37,480 --> 00:04:41,280
his word. 
And so, you know, the big idea 

78
00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:45,120
we're going to see, you know, in
looking at Psalm 119, there's 

79
00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:47,480
this, this blessed life, this 
flourish in life. 

80
00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:50,720
It comes from a wholehearted 
devotion to God's word. 

81
00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:56,360
But that only comes through his 
grace, his sustaining grace, not

82
00:04:56,360 --> 00:04:59,720
our efforts, not our kind of 
trying to will, not our, you 

83
00:04:59,720 --> 00:05:02,720
know, our checklist and our, 
our, you know, our habits. 

84
00:05:02,880 --> 00:05:07,840
But it is his grace that keeps 
us and that allows us to, you 

85
00:05:07,840 --> 00:05:10,320
know, leave from the word the 
way we should. 

86
00:05:10,320 --> 00:05:13,760
So my prayer today is that we 
would leave more eager to meet 

87
00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:17,480
with God in his word with a 
posture of dependence, not 

88
00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:21,880
self-confidence. 
So, so let me pray, Father God, 

89
00:05:21,880 --> 00:05:26,040
you are the greatest and your 
word, it really is the greatest.

90
00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:32,400
And so often we, we just yawn at
it or we casually, you know, 

91
00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:36,080
indulge in it. 
Father, I, I pray that you would

92
00:05:36,080 --> 00:05:40,160
forgive us. 
I, I pray that where we go 

93
00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:44,920
throughout life sort of focused 
on the words of others and not 

94
00:05:44,920 --> 00:05:48,160
your word or, or that we are 
just distracted when we approach

95
00:05:48,160 --> 00:05:50,920
your word. 
I pray that you would, that you 

96
00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:53,320
would forgive us and that by 
your Spirit you would make us 

97
00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:56,320
new. 
God, that you would do as Psalm 

98
00:05:56,320 --> 00:05:59,880
118 verse 18 says, Would you 
open our eyes so that we might 

99
00:05:59,880 --> 00:06:05,680
see wondrous things in your law?
Father, I know that all of my 

100
00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:09,400
preparation has been, and it 
will be in vain unless your 

101
00:06:09,400 --> 00:06:11,600
spirit moves, unless you open 
eyes. 

102
00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:14,960
And so God, I ask that you would
do that this morning. 

103
00:06:14,960 --> 00:06:18,040
Father, what we are not, would 
you make us. 

104
00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:22,120
What we have not, would you 
teach us, and what we know not, 

105
00:06:22,120 --> 00:06:24,640
would you teach us? 
And may the words of my mouth 

106
00:06:24,640 --> 00:06:28,080
and the meditations of my heart 
be pleasing and acceptable in 

107
00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:30,640
your sight, O Lord, our rock and
our Redeemer. 

108
00:06:31,240 --> 00:06:33,840
And God's people said, Amen. 
All right. 

109
00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:39,520
And so for the psalmist, right, 
life only works when God speaks.

110
00:06:39,640 --> 00:06:41,720
And that is what we're going to 
see. 

111
00:06:42,360 --> 00:06:47,840
And so when we look at Psalm 
119, it opens with this idea 

112
00:06:47,840 --> 00:06:51,880
that aiming our lives toward 
this path that actually leads 

113
00:06:51,880 --> 00:06:53,640
somewhere. 
And it's the psalmist calls it 

114
00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:57,120
the blessed life 'cause somebody
say the blessed life verse one 

115
00:06:57,120 --> 00:07:00,520
says blessed are those who walk 
is blameless. 

116
00:07:00,960 --> 00:07:02,400
I'm sorry, whose way is 
blameless? 

117
00:07:02,400 --> 00:07:05,800
Whose walk in The Who walk in 
the law of the Lord. 

118
00:07:06,360 --> 00:07:10,280
The psalmist starts with where 
we all want, right, We all want 

119
00:07:10,280 --> 00:07:13,680
sort of the good life. 
We all want to to live well, 

120
00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:15,760
right. 
We want to be blessed. 

121
00:07:15,760 --> 00:07:19,880
We want to to flourish. 
Nobody sort of wakes up wanting 

122
00:07:19,880 --> 00:07:26,800
life to be empty or to be 
anxious or to be sort of broken,

123
00:07:26,880 --> 00:07:28,880
right? 
We want a life that sort of 

124
00:07:28,880 --> 00:07:33,520
works and can be held up even 
when things are difficult. 

125
00:07:33,920 --> 00:07:38,080
And our culture certainly has a 
lot to say about what sort of 

126
00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:41,920
the good life is. 
Sort of the message comes 

127
00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:44,360
everywhere through so many 
different forms. 

128
00:07:44,720 --> 00:07:47,920
But it is something to the 
effect of, you know, more money,

129
00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:51,800
more things, more possessions, 
more freedom, more control, 

130
00:07:51,800 --> 00:07:56,840
fewer restrictions and limits. 
Well, Psalm 119, it, it pushes 

131
00:07:56,880 --> 00:07:59,920
back on that definition of 
blessedness. 

132
00:08:00,400 --> 00:08:04,720
And it says that blessing is not
set in a sort of set of 

133
00:08:04,720 --> 00:08:09,000
circumstances, but rather it is 
found in alignment with a God 

134
00:08:09,760 --> 00:08:13,360
The, the word blameless. 
It, it can be confusing if we're

135
00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:16,080
not careful. 
It doesn't mean sinless. 

136
00:08:16,680 --> 00:08:20,240
Because if it did, then that 
would disqualify all of us right

137
00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:24,800
here, every person in the room. 
But instead, blameless refers to

138
00:08:24,800 --> 00:08:31,240
undivided, not not perfect, but 
oriented, not again, not 

139
00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:34,440
flawless, but in a faithful 
direction. 

140
00:08:34,720 --> 00:08:38,400
And so the psalmist is sort of 
describing a life that is 

141
00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:43,159
pointed somewhere, a life not 
just somewhere, but pointed at 

142
00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:46,520
at God. 
There again, it says that he is 

143
00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:51,440
walking in the law of the Lord. 
His life is oriented around 

144
00:08:51,680 --> 00:08:54,560
God's word. 
That reminds me of of something 

145
00:08:54,560 --> 00:08:56,440
that happened recently in our 
house. 

146
00:08:56,800 --> 00:08:59,360
We recently dusted off our old 
we. 

147
00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:02,160
So we've been playing a lot of 
tennis. 

148
00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:07,200
And one night, my kids, you 
know, one of my kids was we were

149
00:09:07,200 --> 00:09:10,520
playing double S tennis and he 
just kept missing the ball over 

150
00:09:10,520 --> 00:09:13,160
and over again. 
You know, turns out he was 

151
00:09:13,160 --> 00:09:15,000
watching the wrong character, 
right? 

152
00:09:15,440 --> 00:09:17,760
He was swinging hard. 
He was trying his best, wasn't 

153
00:09:17,760 --> 00:09:21,160
trying to miss the ball, had a 
lot of effort, but just no 

154
00:09:21,160 --> 00:09:23,920
alignment. 
He was focused on the wrong 

155
00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:27,720
target, had a lot of energy, but
a misplaced focus. 

156
00:09:27,720 --> 00:09:32,040
And I just wonder if that's a 
picture of how many of us 

157
00:09:32,040 --> 00:09:34,080
approach life, approach the 
word. 

158
00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:37,560
Many of us, you know, maybe we 
are busy, maybe we're even 

159
00:09:37,560 --> 00:09:41,720
sincere, even disciplined. 
But it's misdirected. 

160
00:09:41,840 --> 00:09:46,080
The the word doesn't just tell 
us what to do, but it wants to 

161
00:09:46,080 --> 00:09:49,680
Orient our lives. 
It want to kind of point us in a

162
00:09:49,680 --> 00:09:52,240
direction. 
It wants our goals to be shaped 

163
00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:56,920
by his desires for us. 
And we find that in his, in his 

164
00:09:56,920 --> 00:09:58,680
word. 
And so for many of us, the aim 

165
00:09:58,680 --> 00:10:02,040
is not God. 
Often times it is 

166
00:10:02,040 --> 00:10:06,160
self-sufficiency, it is control,
it's freedom. 

167
00:10:06,160 --> 00:10:09,320
It is, you know, restraint. 
No, no restraint, freedom from 

168
00:10:09,320 --> 00:10:14,240
limits. 
If we want a life that the 

169
00:10:14,240 --> 00:10:18,400
psalmist is describing, it is 
not found in chasing the right 

170
00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:23,120
set of circumstances, but it is 
found in walking with God, not 

171
00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:27,280
going ahead of him. 
But walking with him, not sort 

172
00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:31,880
of negotiating around him, not 
consulting with him only when 

173
00:10:31,880 --> 00:10:34,160
you're in great need, but 
walking with him. 

174
00:10:34,640 --> 00:10:37,240
And verse 2 sort of deepens this
idea. 

175
00:10:37,560 --> 00:10:41,280
It says blessed are those who 
keep his testimonies, who seek 

176
00:10:41,280 --> 00:10:46,840
him with their whole heart. 
To keep means to guard, to 

177
00:10:46,840 --> 00:10:51,440
treasure, to cling to, right? 
And testimonies refers to sort 

178
00:10:51,440 --> 00:10:54,320
of what God has declared, what 
he's revealed about himself, 

179
00:10:54,320 --> 00:10:57,280
what he's revealed about his 
people, what he's revealed about

180
00:10:57,560 --> 00:11:00,680
how to live in his world, his 
way. 

181
00:11:01,320 --> 00:11:07,200
And so to seek God then is not 
sort of chasing this spiritual 

182
00:11:07,760 --> 00:11:11,040
kind of feeling. 
It's about a wholehearted 

183
00:11:11,040 --> 00:11:14,040
response to what he has already 
spoken. 

184
00:11:14,280 --> 00:11:19,200
See, we don't seek God by 
ignoring his word and what he's 

185
00:11:19,200 --> 00:11:22,840
already said. 
We don't love God by treating 

186
00:11:22,840 --> 00:11:27,120
His word lightly. 
The word, it's, it's not sort of

187
00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:29,280
an obstacle to our intimacy with
God. 

188
00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:33,720
It's the primary means of it. 
God makes himself known through 

189
00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:38,040
what he has said. 
And then verse 3, as we continue

190
00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:40,120
it, it grounds us in in everyday
life. 

191
00:11:40,120 --> 00:11:44,000
It says they also do no wrong 
but walk in his ways. 

192
00:11:44,160 --> 00:11:47,520
And again, this is not a claim 
to sinless perfection. 

193
00:11:47,960 --> 00:11:51,080
It's a description of 
directional faithfulness. 

194
00:11:51,240 --> 00:11:55,480
It is a life that keeps choosing
God's way overtime. 

195
00:11:55,480 --> 00:12:00,840
It's long obedience in the same 
direction to walk with God. 

196
00:12:00,840 --> 00:12:06,680
It means to agree with God about
reality, to live in God's in 

197
00:12:06,680 --> 00:12:10,640
God's world, his way. 
It is a settled conviction that 

198
00:12:10,640 --> 00:12:15,520
knows that God actually knows 
what how life works best. 

199
00:12:16,080 --> 00:12:19,680
And so I remember, you know, 
before really being a believer 

200
00:12:19,680 --> 00:12:22,480
and really understanding, I 
thought that, you know, God just

201
00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:25,400
wanted to control my life. 
And, you know, that reading the 

202
00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:27,920
word was all about trying to do 
a bunch of things. 

203
00:12:27,920 --> 00:12:31,760
And you know, I quickly realized
that that was not that's not 

204
00:12:31,960 --> 00:12:37,200
what God intends with his word. 
It is to show us who he is and 

205
00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:41,800
his word and his, the commands 
are intended to lead to a life 

206
00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:45,240
of flourishing again, Let's 
let's think back to sort of the 

207
00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:50,360
GPS again. 
When you miss a turn, the GPS 

208
00:12:50,360 --> 00:12:53,680
doesn't shame you, right? 
It doesn't yell like, I can't 

209
00:12:53,680 --> 00:12:55,440
believe you missed the turn 
again, right? 

210
00:12:55,880 --> 00:12:57,680
What does it say? 
It just simply says 

211
00:12:57,680 --> 00:13:02,040
recalculating. 
Psalm 119 isn't describing a 

212
00:13:02,040 --> 00:13:06,080
life that never misses a term, 
but a life that keeps 

213
00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:13,040
recalculating back toward God. 
Where direction is is more 

214
00:13:13,040 --> 00:13:15,320
important than, you know, 
perfection. 

215
00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:18,960
The Word of God doesn't exist to
condemn you for every wrong 

216
00:13:18,960 --> 00:13:22,280
turn. 
It exists to keep reorienting 

217
00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:26,320
you toward a life that actually 
leads to life. 

218
00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:31,280
And so over and over again, God 
is patient with us. 

219
00:13:31,520 --> 00:13:34,440
You know, he's directing us with
his Word. 

220
00:13:34,440 --> 00:13:37,840
Reading the word doesn't just 
give us information, but again, 

221
00:13:37,840 --> 00:13:40,360
it gives us a direction. 
It gives us orientation. 

222
00:13:41,000 --> 00:13:44,280
It teaches us what the blessed 
life actually is. 

223
00:13:45,920 --> 00:13:50,280
And again blessed happens when 
our lives line up with how God 

224
00:13:50,280 --> 00:13:54,360
has designed the world to work. 
And so but once we're on this 

225
00:13:54,640 --> 00:13:58,680
but once the word directs our 
paths, it doesn't stay neutral 

226
00:13:58,920 --> 00:14:02,720
as soon as we start walking with
the Lord and you know following 

227
00:14:02,720 --> 00:14:06,080
his word, it begins to speak 
with wait direction quickly 

228
00:14:06,320 --> 00:14:10,400
gives way to confrontation, 
which is our our second point is

229
00:14:10,400 --> 00:14:14,480
that the word confronts us. 
Look at verse four with me. 

230
00:14:14,480 --> 00:14:19,080
It says you have commanded your 
precepts to be kept diligently. 

231
00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:23,680
Verse 4, it confronts us this 
with this reality that we often 

232
00:14:23,680 --> 00:14:27,160
try to forget you or maybe just,
you know, intentionally or not 

233
00:14:27,440 --> 00:14:29,720
that God's word carries 
authority. 

234
00:14:30,640 --> 00:14:34,080
You know, his word is not just 
suggestions. 

235
00:14:34,080 --> 00:14:38,040
It's not helpful life hacks. 
It's not inspiration. 

236
00:14:38,760 --> 00:14:45,760
God's Word is God commands not 
because he's harsh or because He

237
00:14:45,760 --> 00:14:48,480
is, you know, trying to control 
your life, but rather because he

238
00:14:48,480 --> 00:14:53,640
is loving and he is wise and his
commands flow from his wisdom 

239
00:14:53,640 --> 00:14:56,440
and his care and so his 
authority. 

240
00:14:57,040 --> 00:14:59,800
He, you know, when he speaks 
with his authority, it is 

241
00:15:00,240 --> 00:15:04,520
directed toward what will lead 
us to true life. 

242
00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:08,040
And notice the language to be 
kept diligently. 

243
00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:12,360
The Word confronts our 
casualness, right? 

244
00:15:12,800 --> 00:15:17,120
God's word demands not not just 
convenience, but intention. 

245
00:15:17,120 --> 00:15:21,960
And again, we shouldn't be sort 
of afraid of that because, you 

246
00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:25,080
know, grace isn't opposed to 
effort, it's just opposed to 

247
00:15:25,080 --> 00:15:27,440
earning. 
So the problem isn't our 

248
00:15:27,440 --> 00:15:30,280
diligence, it's about what we're
diligent about, right? 

249
00:15:30,280 --> 00:15:35,080
We all are diligent. 
And so God calls us to, to keep,

250
00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:40,240
to keep, to guard, to watch over
with care like a shepherd, you 

251
00:15:40,240 --> 00:15:44,840
know, tending his sheep. 
It is not a passive reading, but

252
00:15:45,040 --> 00:15:50,200
a one that has responsibility 
and friends. 

253
00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:53,600
I, I don't think there's ever 
been more of a time for us to be

254
00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:57,840
diligent in God's word where it 
matters more because, you know, 

255
00:15:57,840 --> 00:16:03,040
we're constantly being formed by
screens, by stories, by all 

256
00:16:03,040 --> 00:16:04,800
kinds of noise. 
And if we're not paying 

257
00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:09,280
attention, then formation will 
happen without us even noticing.

258
00:16:09,840 --> 00:16:13,000
Because the Christian life, in 
the Christian life, whenever 

259
00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:16,160
we're coasting, if we're not 
walking, if we're coasting and 

260
00:16:16,160 --> 00:16:18,720
we're drifting, that means we're
going downhill. 

261
00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:24,480
Nobody accidentally grows in 
Christ, but plenty of us just 

262
00:16:24,480 --> 00:16:28,760
drift, accidentally drift and we
go with the ways of the world. 

263
00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:33,000
And verse five turns the 
confrontation inward. 

264
00:16:33,720 --> 00:16:36,720
The psalmist says, oh, that my 
ways may be steadfast and 

265
00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:42,000
keeping your statutes. 
This is not sort of the psalmist

266
00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:45,040
being confident it instead it's 
actually a confession. 

267
00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:51,120
The the word confronts sort of 
the gap between what we what we 

268
00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:54,880
know and what we actually do. 
But the psalmist doesn't hide 

269
00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:57,160
that gap. 
He doesn't pretend. 

270
00:16:57,160 --> 00:16:59,480
He doesn't posture. 
He prays. 

271
00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:05,520
So it is a prayer where he says 
that my ways, that my ways may 

272
00:17:05,520 --> 00:17:07,560
be steadfast in keeping your 
statutes. 

273
00:17:08,079 --> 00:17:11,800
He is saying, God, you command 
what is good and I want to 

274
00:17:11,800 --> 00:17:14,920
follow you, but I need your help
like I need you. 

275
00:17:15,520 --> 00:17:21,200
He is dependent on grace. 
And when the word confronts us 

276
00:17:21,319 --> 00:17:25,680
honestly, it, it doesn't just 
leave us exposed, but it begins 

277
00:17:25,680 --> 00:17:29,160
to do something deeper. 
It begins to shape our posture. 

278
00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:33,600
The word doesn't just challenge 
our behavior, it starts to form 

279
00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:38,160
our hearts, which is the Third 
Point the word forms us. 

280
00:17:38,560 --> 00:17:43,600
And verses 6 and 7, the psalmist
says, Then I shall put to shame,

281
00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:47,320
having my eyes fixed on all your
commandments. 

282
00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,960
See, shame comes from building 
life on what can't hold us. 

283
00:17:52,720 --> 00:17:58,000
The psalmist knows that drifting
from God's word will lead to 

284
00:17:58,120 --> 00:18:01,400
exposure, regret, collapse. 
So what does he do? 

285
00:18:01,720 --> 00:18:05,320
He fixes his eyes. 
And that is again, formation 

286
00:18:05,320 --> 00:18:06,560
language. 
We repeat. 

287
00:18:06,560 --> 00:18:09,760
What we repeatedly look at is 
the thing that shapes us. 

288
00:18:10,640 --> 00:18:13,880
It shapes what we love. 
And again, what we fix our eyes 

289
00:18:13,880 --> 00:18:18,320
on is what we become. 
And so often, most of us again, 

290
00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,440
myself included, right We, we 
don't fix our eyes. 

291
00:18:21,680 --> 00:18:23,400
What do we do? 
We, we escape. 

292
00:18:24,560 --> 00:18:27,920
Distraction is our default. 
When, when things get heavy, 

293
00:18:27,920 --> 00:18:32,120
when things you know, are, are 
difficult, we, we reach for 

294
00:18:32,120 --> 00:18:36,880
distractions, Netflix, 
scrolling, food control, 

295
00:18:37,320 --> 00:18:41,160
cynicism. 
But the psalmist doesn't escape.

296
00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:46,160
He focuses because formation is 
happening either way. 

297
00:18:46,160 --> 00:18:49,760
And he says, I will praise you 
with an upright heart when I 

298
00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:52,360
learn your righteous rules. 
Did you? 

299
00:18:52,480 --> 00:18:57,320
Did you notice the order right? 
I will praise you when I learn. 

300
00:18:57,520 --> 00:19:02,280
Learning leads to worship and 
formation leads to praise. 

301
00:19:02,520 --> 00:19:07,040
See, when the Word rightly forms
us, it doesn't just inform our 

302
00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:12,960
mind, but it stirs our heart. 
The Word produces in US 

303
00:19:12,960 --> 00:19:18,760
humility, gratitude, joy. 
And so if reading the scriptures

304
00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:22,800
never leads us to praise, then 
we might want to ask ourselves, 

305
00:19:22,800 --> 00:19:24,560
are we just? 
Maybe, Maybe we're just 

306
00:19:24,560 --> 00:19:29,720
consuming information instead of
actually encountering God. 

307
00:19:30,760 --> 00:19:34,120
The Word forms us by reshaping 
our focus. 

308
00:19:35,120 --> 00:19:39,240
And so obedience becomes a 
response, not a performance. 

309
00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:44,600
We don't read again, I want to 
also emphasize we, you know, 

310
00:19:44,640 --> 00:19:47,920
here at Port City, we don't read
the word alone. 

311
00:19:47,920 --> 00:19:51,720
Like God is forming a people 
that are stumbling forward 

312
00:19:51,720 --> 00:19:56,120
together, helping one another 
keep our eyes fixed on him. 

313
00:19:56,120 --> 00:20:00,240
And so that's why belonging to a
local church is so necessary. 

314
00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:04,640
There is no, you know, walking 
with Christ in isolation. 

315
00:20:04,640 --> 00:20:08,920
We need each other to help one 
another stay, keep our eyes 

316
00:20:08,920 --> 00:20:13,200
fixed on Jesus. 
And so, but even, you know, 

317
00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:17,640
being formed isn't sort of the 
final word because the psalmist 

318
00:20:17,640 --> 00:20:21,080
knows something that we often 
forget, right? 

319
00:20:21,080 --> 00:20:25,920
We can have the right direction.
We can sort of be confronted. 

320
00:20:27,360 --> 00:20:32,960
But all of that is for not if we
don't have grace. 

321
00:20:33,520 --> 00:20:37,640
So the stanza ends as every 
faithful reading of Scripture 

322
00:20:37,640 --> 00:20:41,600
must end with dependence. 
And this is sort of my last 

323
00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:44,520
point. 
The word sustains us. 

324
00:20:45,880 --> 00:20:48,680
Verse 8 says I will keep your 
statues. 

325
00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:53,080
Do not utterly forsake me. 
The psalmist opens with a 

326
00:20:53,080 --> 00:20:57,960
blessing and ends with a plea. 
He says God, if you don't 

327
00:20:57,960 --> 00:21:01,360
sustain me, I won't make it. 
There's desperation there. 

328
00:21:01,680 --> 00:21:04,920
This is the posture Scripture is
meant to produce in us. 

329
00:21:05,360 --> 00:21:08,120
Not self-confidence, but 
dependence. 

330
00:21:08,760 --> 00:21:13,120
This is someone who knows that 
even God's word requires God's 

331
00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:16,400
presence. 
Obedience requires grace. 

332
00:21:16,680 --> 00:21:21,360
Even loving the word requires 
God himself to move again. 

333
00:21:21,360 --> 00:21:25,680
Imagine if you, you know, we're 
with your, with a child, your 

334
00:21:25,680 --> 00:21:30,760
child and and you're in a crowd.
You wouldn't say or the child 

335
00:21:30,760 --> 00:21:34,120
wouldn't say like, let me go and
watch how I can walk on my own. 

336
00:21:34,120 --> 00:21:36,240
No, that the child would say 
like, don't leave me, like I 

337
00:21:36,240 --> 00:21:40,520
don't, I don't want to be left. 
That is sort of how the psalmist

338
00:21:40,520 --> 00:21:44,800
is approaching the the psalmist 
reads the word expecting God to 

339
00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:48,240
to meet him, to be with him, to 
walk with him, not so that he 

340
00:21:48,240 --> 00:21:51,440
walks away more impressive, but 
more dependent. 

341
00:21:51,840 --> 00:21:56,560
The word sustains us by keeping 
us near to God, and he is the 

342
00:21:56,560 --> 00:22:00,440
one who gives life. 
And so all throughout Psalm 119,

343
00:22:00,440 --> 00:22:03,320
you see the the psalmist 
constantly doing two things. 

344
00:22:03,320 --> 00:22:08,760
He's constantly declaring his 
desire to treasure God's word 

345
00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:12,680
while also pleading with God to 
produce that very desire in him.

346
00:22:13,560 --> 00:22:17,240
He knows that you know, apart 
from God's grace in his life 

347
00:22:17,240 --> 00:22:21,080
that he can't, that he won't. 
And the same is true for you and

348
00:22:21,080 --> 00:22:24,160
I. 
And so the diagnostic question 

349
00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:28,680
here is, do we read the word in 
a way that leaves us more 

350
00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:32,200
dependent on God or more 
confident in ourselves? 

351
00:22:34,360 --> 00:22:41,280
And so, you know, to apply this,
we should read the word that 

352
00:22:41,280 --> 00:22:43,840
leads to the Savior we need. 
OK? 

353
00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:47,240
We read the Word because it 
leads us to the Savior we need. 

354
00:22:47,440 --> 00:22:51,160
Psalm 119, It holds up this 
beautiful vision of the blessed 

355
00:22:51,160 --> 00:22:54,160
life. 
And if we're honest, it also 

356
00:22:54,160 --> 00:22:58,680
exposes how short we fall from 
that, right? 

357
00:22:58,680 --> 00:23:03,480
We are not naturally blameless. 
We are not consistently 

358
00:23:03,480 --> 00:23:06,720
wholehearted. 
We certainly don't always keep 

359
00:23:06,720 --> 00:23:11,880
God's word diligently. 
We drift, we forget, we resist. 

360
00:23:12,640 --> 00:23:16,520
And that's the point. 
Psalm 119 is not primarily meant

361
00:23:16,520 --> 00:23:20,520
to meant to make us feel 
capable, but to make us feel 

362
00:23:20,520 --> 00:23:24,440
dependent. 
The Word directs us, it comforts

363
00:23:24,440 --> 00:23:29,360
us, it forms us, it sustains us 
because it ultimately leads us 

364
00:23:29,360 --> 00:23:32,560
to Jesus. 
And Jesus is the true blessed 

365
00:23:32,560 --> 00:23:37,760
one that Psalm 119 talks about. 
He is the only one whose life 

366
00:23:37,960 --> 00:23:43,960
was perfectly directed, who was 
never misaligned, never aimed at

367
00:23:43,960 --> 00:23:48,560
the wrong target, never pulled 
off course by distraction or 

368
00:23:48,560 --> 00:23:52,120
fear. 
He always walked in the ways of 

369
00:23:52,120 --> 00:23:55,840
the Father. 
He is the only one who never was

370
00:23:55,840 --> 00:24:00,600
confronted by God's Word as 
guilty because he fulfilled it 

371
00:24:00,600 --> 00:24:05,520
completely, perfectly. 
Every command that we fail to 

372
00:24:05,520 --> 00:24:10,520
keep, He obeyed perfectly. 
He is the only perfect one 

373
00:24:10,520 --> 00:24:14,480
formed by delight in the Father 
who loved God's Word not out of 

374
00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:19,200
duty, but out of joy. 
Where we treat the Word lightly,

375
00:24:19,200 --> 00:24:24,640
Jesus treasured it. 
And on the cross, Jesus 

376
00:24:24,640 --> 00:24:28,240
experienced what verse 8 fears 
the most. 

377
00:24:28,840 --> 00:24:31,800
It said, don't, do not utterly 
forsake me. 

378
00:24:32,160 --> 00:24:36,160
Jesus was forsaken. 
He was treated as if he had 

379
00:24:36,160 --> 00:24:40,640
wandered, wandered from the Word
and as though he had failed to 

380
00:24:40,640 --> 00:24:45,560
meet the law, as though he 
deserves separation so that when

381
00:24:45,560 --> 00:24:48,760
we would come to the Word, weak,
distracted, inconsistent, 

382
00:24:48,760 --> 00:24:50,880
needed, that we would not be 
rejected. 

383
00:24:51,360 --> 00:24:56,480
He stands in our place. 
The Word leads us to Jesus, and 

384
00:24:56,480 --> 00:24:59,440
Jesus meets us with grace every 
single time. 

385
00:25:00,160 --> 00:25:03,120
And so we don't read the 
Scriptures to try to prove 

386
00:25:03,120 --> 00:25:05,880
ourselves. 
We read because Christ has 

387
00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:09,440
already proven faithful friends 
we were. 

388
00:25:09,480 --> 00:25:12,840
We were made to gaze. 
We were made to seek. 

389
00:25:13,360 --> 00:25:16,920
We were made to walk a path with
intention. 

390
00:25:16,920 --> 00:25:20,920
We do these things naturally, 
but when we do them apart from 

391
00:25:20,920 --> 00:25:23,480
God, that's when everything 
begins to drift. 

392
00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:27,520
Our gaze gets misplaced. 
Our seeking is shallow. 

393
00:25:27,520 --> 00:25:31,840
Our walking leads off course. 
That's why reading the Word 

394
00:25:31,840 --> 00:25:35,160
matters. 
And so as we, you know, enter 

395
00:25:35,440 --> 00:25:38,480
the new year and we're, we're 
setting goals of, you know, 

396
00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:41,200
trying to set new habits. 
All of those things are great. 

397
00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:44,920
But we must remember that the 
word is not a ladder to climb, 

398
00:25:45,040 --> 00:25:50,080
but it's a place to meet our 
faithful God who has come and to

399
00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:52,840
hear from him who is eager to 
speak. 

400
00:25:53,720 --> 00:25:56,160
Reading the word is not about 
proving anything. 

401
00:25:56,160 --> 00:26:00,600
It's about positioning ourselves
so we don't come to the word 

402
00:26:00,920 --> 00:26:04,360
impressive. 
We come desperate, we don't come

403
00:26:04,360 --> 00:26:10,240
strong, we come dependent. 
We don't come, you know, without

404
00:26:10,240 --> 00:26:12,240
need. 
We come needy, we come honest. 

405
00:26:13,040 --> 00:26:16,040
And when we read the Word, 
because God still speaks, 

406
00:26:16,280 --> 00:26:20,560
because God still gives life, 
because God still meets his 

407
00:26:20,560 --> 00:26:23,560
people. 
So come to the word not to 

408
00:26:23,560 --> 00:26:30,440
perform, but to be sustained, 
not to earn but to receive, not 

409
00:26:30,440 --> 00:26:33,560
confident in ourselves, but 
confident in Christ. 

410
00:26:34,360 --> 00:26:43,190
Let's pray together. 
Father, we thank you so much for

411
00:26:43,190 --> 00:26:49,190
your word, God, that you did not
just put us here to try to 

412
00:26:49,190 --> 00:26:54,870
figure out what you want for us 
or life, but God, you have laid 

413
00:26:54,870 --> 00:26:59,030
out God, who we are, who you 
are, what you desire. 

414
00:26:59,990 --> 00:27:04,160
And Father, as we have seen in 
this Psalm and verses one one 

415
00:27:04,160 --> 00:27:10,520
through 8, God that we your word
confronts us, it directs us, it 

416
00:27:10,520 --> 00:27:12,880
gives us what we need, it 
sustains us. 

417
00:27:13,360 --> 00:27:18,520
And so, Father, I confess for so
often in my own life, I've 

418
00:27:18,520 --> 00:27:25,280
become casual and I have 
neglected to seek the word with 

419
00:27:25,280 --> 00:27:27,840
intention. 
But Father, I thank you that 

420
00:27:29,480 --> 00:27:34,520
God, that my walk with you, my 
acceptance before you is not 

421
00:27:34,520 --> 00:27:40,320
determined on my faithfulness, 
but it is yours, God, it is the 

422
00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:43,800
fact that you have been 
faithful, God, you have done 

423
00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:48,600
everything necessary to to save 
me, to bring me back into 

424
00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:52,680
relationship with Christ. 
And so, Father, I thank you for 

425
00:27:52,680 --> 00:27:54,280
that. 
God, I pray that you would make 

426
00:27:54,280 --> 00:27:59,160
us a people who love Your word 
more than we love the words of 

427
00:27:59,160 --> 00:28:03,320
others, Father, that we would 
desire because we know that in 

428
00:28:03,320 --> 00:28:05,720
your word is where true life is 
found. 

429
00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:10,560
And so, Father, I pray that you 
would help us, help form us, 

430
00:28:10,560 --> 00:28:14,480
make us a people who who who 
love your word and who are 

431
00:28:14,480 --> 00:28:17,920
shaped by it. 
Father, we love you seen your 

432
00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:18,720
beautiful name. 
We pray. 

433
00:28:19,160 --> 00:28:19,480
Amen.