Sermon
E22: Psalm 119: Living Life in the Light of God's Word - Evidence of those who are “Living Life in the Light of God’s Word”
Publisher transcript
Transcript
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You're listening to Key Life Fellowships Pulpit ministry
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podcast. We thank you for tuning in as we
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learn from God's Word together. If you would like more
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information regarding Key Life or to speak with one of our
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pastors, please visit us at keylifefellow-ship.com.
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Amen. Oh my soul, be still and know
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that he is God. We can rest in that because of
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Jesus Christ, Son of God, who came to this earth and who died
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to rescue sinners who would believe and trust in Him and him
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alone as their refuge. What peace and what hope we do
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have because Christ. And isn't it good to have peace
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and hope in a world as we have seen this past week, that is
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full of chaos and hatred, Turmoil.
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What unprecedented times we live in.
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If you didn't know this, you saw this as you watched your TV
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screens this week, or your phone screens.
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You saw, as I have already spoken of, an unprecedented
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thing. An unprecedented clash in world
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views happened. I make no mistake, this is a
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clear reminder to all of us that there are really only two world
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views. They're not multiple world
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views. There are two.
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There is the world view that embraces man's word, man's
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philosophies, man's ideology, man's sin, man's hate, man's
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unbelief. That is the secular, sinful
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worldview. There is the second worldview.
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That is the biblical worldview. This is the worldview that
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embraces God's word with everything that they are and
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everything that they have. This is the worldview that says
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I don't care about what man says.
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I care about what God says. I don't care about what man
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thinks in his sinful nature, that that is right when God
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says, obviously that that is wrong.
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It is a worldview that clings to sola Scripture, just as the
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Reformers did, that it is. Scripture and Scripture alone.
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That dictates our lives. And so we have seen the clash
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once again, of two worldviews. This is not the first time, nor
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will it be the last time that these worldviews collide.
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In fact, we can go all the way back to Genesis chapter 4, can't
Genesis 4 chapter mention
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we? The first offspring of Adam
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after the fall and what took place?
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Both brothers, you know them as Cain and Abel.
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Both of them offered a sacrifice offering unto the Lord.
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One was according to what God desired, and one was in
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opposition to what God desired. And the one who offered his
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sacrifice disobediently, Cain hated his brother Abel because
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Abel did that which was right in the eyes of God, and he despised
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that one would do what was right in the eyes of God.
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And you know the story. There were no knives, there were
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no guns, there were no missiles. There was only rock.
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And he took. His own brother's life because
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world views collided. But let us remember this.
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When this happens, our hope is in Christ and in Christ alone.
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I received a phone call of this week early the morning after the
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Charlie Kirk assassination and I had a brother in Christ who
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lives in another state asked me what are we going to do?
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Listen, what do you mean? What are we going to do?
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We're going to do what we've always done.
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This is not going to change anything that we do.
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If we were in Christ, we were going to continue to do what we
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do. We are going to stay the course.
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We are going to preach the gospel to the laws.
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We're going to teach the the word of God to the same so that
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they can grow in the relationship to Christ and their
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knowledge of Christ. We're going to say that you know
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what? This is not our home, this evil
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world that we live in. We're going to long even more
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for that place that he has prepared for us.
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And we're going to long even more for that Savior who has
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made us such a great promise. What do you mean?
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What are we going to do? We're going to get on our face
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and we're going to say, as we do daily, come, Lord Jesus, come.
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Nothing for us is going to change because the promises that
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we stand in that biblical worldview that I talked about,
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those promises are unchanging. They are unstoppable, They are
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immutable, they are infallible, and they are inerrant.
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And so we're going. To do what we always do, we're
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going to turn to the Word of God.
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We're going to stand on the Word of God.
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We're going to teach the Word of God.
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We're going to learn the Word of God.
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We're going to boldly live our lives according to the Word of
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God until the Savior who has promised to rescue us from the
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chaos and the wickedness of this world, fulfills the promise that
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He has made to rescue those who love Him.
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So I invite you to turn with me to the 119th Psalm as we
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continue in our study entitled Living Life in the Light of
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God's Word. That's what we're going to do.
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We're going to live life in the light of God's Word.
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We've been learning about this for months now, and the 119th
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Psalm all the way back to April when we dove into this beautiful
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text, and we begin section 21 today.
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We know this because of the Hebrew letter shin or sin
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depending upon where you put that accent Mark.
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And this shows us that we're winding down our study in the
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119th Psalm. I told you in the beginning,
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there are 22 letters to the Hebrew alphabet.
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Each of these eight verse sections are marked by one of
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those 22 letters. We are on 21 this week and as
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you know after being. Taught.
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Something over and over and over, through repetition.
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There comes a time for a test. There comes a time for an
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examination. There comes a time where we ask
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ourselves the question, do we get it?
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Do we get it? Do we really understand what it
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means to live live in the light of God's Word and to ask
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ourselves this question? Are we doing it?
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Are we truly living life according to the scriptures?
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And I pray that you would ask yourself that question this
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morning. I pray that you would not ask
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that question in reference to your husband, reference to your
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wife, reference to your children, children, not in
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reference to your parents. I pray that we as individuals
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would ask ourselves that question, that we would dig to
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the depths of our souls and ask ourselves that question.
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Are we living life in the light of God's Word or are we not?
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Or maybe I am, or I hope I am, or I would like to.
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Whatever the answer may be, we are going to find our answer
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here in Scripture. And as I said, this passage is
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going to serve a test to answer the question that we have seen
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running through this entire chapter of Scripture, the theme
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of the Word of God. And today, what the psalmist is
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going to do, he's going to hone in on that theme.
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And each of these eight verse sections thus far we have seen
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the Word of God mentioned. Multiple times in each of those
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sections, but in this section it is particularly interesting
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because he mentions it in all 8. Verses the Word of God and I
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pray that we would utilize this as a tool to examine our lives
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to answer the question as to whether or not we are living
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life in light of God's word. Psalm 119, verse 161.
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If you haven't turned there, turn there with me and let us
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read this together. It says rulers persecute me
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without calls, but my heart trembles at your word.
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I rejoice in your promise like one who finds great spoil.
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I hate and I have a horrible falsehood, but I love your law.
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7 times a day I praise you for your righteous laws. 165 says
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great peace have they who love your law, and nothing can make
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them stumble. I wait for your salvation, O
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Lord, and I follow your commands.
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I obey your statutes, for I love them greatly.
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I obey your precepts and your statues, for all my ways are
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known to you. Let's pray together.
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Father, in the name of Jesus, we come to you now, thanking you
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for your word, thanking you for the past several months of being
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challenged to live our lives according to your word.
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And Lord, now we come to a time of examination where we have an
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example laid before us that we need to lay our lives alongside
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of and scrutinize our lives in light of the Scripture.
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God, I pray that we would receive wisdom from your Spirit
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in doing this, That you would, through this, raise up a group
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of people who say that they're going to live according to the
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Word of God no matter what those around them are going to do or
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choose to do. That we truly would be men and
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women who live our life according to the scriptures.
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God, I pray for those who were here today who do not know
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Christ. I pray that as the truth of Your
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Word goes forth that You would use it as only You can to open
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their eyes and open their hearts to see their need for a Savior
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Lord, that You would through Your word show them that there
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is a Savior who saves repentant, wicked Sinner God.
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You would bring that repentance and that faith into their life
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today to believe and trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
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God, I pray that You would receive all the praise and all
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the glory for that. But we ask that You teach us by
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Your Spirit. You equip us to be the men and
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the women that you, Lord Jesus, died for us to be, and we pray
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these things in Christ's name, Amen.
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So as we begin to take this test, as we endure this time of
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examination, let me just tell you, I know where you are.
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I'm there too. I also have had to do evaluation
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in my life during the study. Am I truly living like God's
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Word teaches me to live? I've had to pray those difficult
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praise. Lord, let me not be deceived
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into thinking that I am when I'm not.
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And let me not resist You when I realize that I'm not passing the
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test. Let me humbly submit to You.
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Broken and contrite before you, I pray that you would do the
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same. As we look at the evidence today
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of one who is truly living life in the light of God's Word, we
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see the first one today. One who is living alive in the
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light of God's Word will have write it down the reverent awe
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for God and His Word. They will have a reverent awe
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for God and His Word. 161 says this rulers persecute me without
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'cause these people are persecuting me and I've done
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nothing wrong, all I have. Done is stand on truth.
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Hasn't the psalmist been standing on truth?
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This entire Psalm? Everywhere you turn, his enemies
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were coming against him. And what did he do?
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He stood in truth. He upheld the law.
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Of God. He upheld the promises of God.
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He says rulers persecute me without calls, but my heart
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trembles at your word, as we saw a moment ago in Isaiah 66 verses
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one and two particularly they're in verse 2, and the Lord says,
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these are the ones I look on with.
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Favor those who are humble and contrite in spirit, who tremble
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at my Word. To tremble at His Word is to be
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in utter awe of who He is as His Word has revealed unto us, to
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see who God is through the pages of His Holy Word, and to
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literally tremble in awe of His Majesty and His glory, of His
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attributes, of His characteristics, of His power,
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of His sovereignty. The Psalmist understanding that
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very clearly here, that one who walks in the light of the Word
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of God, we will have a reverent awe for God and His Word,
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because it isn't His word that we see who God is.
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This reverence is. Awe, it's trembling, governs the
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psalmist life, not the fear of persecution.
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But the hatred of men or what men can do to him, even taking
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his very life, he's, he's not going to bow down to what men
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can do to him. But he trembles at the very word
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of God, in reverence and in holy fear, in awe of who God really
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is according to the Scriptures. And fear of God, not the fear of
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men, will be the mark of those who really live.
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Their life in the light of God's Word.
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They tremble at the word of God when the enemy's at the door.
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They are not trembling because of their enemy.
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They're trembling and in all of God, trusting in His Word above
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all things. They're like the psalmist in
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Psalm 118, verse 6 where he says this.
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The Lord is with me. I will not be afraid.
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What man? What can man do to me?
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The Lord is with me. He is my helper.
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I look in triumph on my enemies. It is better to take refuge in
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the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to seek refuge.
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In the Lord, and in the promises of His word, than to trust in
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man anything that man can say about you, anything that man can
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do to you, Any effects that man may bring.
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Upon your life, the psalmist says.
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I tremble at the word of God, because I know ultimately that I
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will stand and I will give an account of my life, not to man,
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but I will give an account of my life unto God.
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May we understand that as we examine our lives this morning,
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as we ask ourselves the question, Am I really living
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life in the light of God's Word? Do you have a reverent?
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Awe for God and for His Word and brought by and through His Word.
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Do you have that in your life? Is there an element of that in
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you? You can quickly come to a
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conclusion here. Let me just help you.
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A moment ago when we began our worship service the same way
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that we do every single week, and we opened the Word of God,
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was that a time for you to talk to your neighbor about trivial
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things? What is that a time for you to
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just come in late to church? Because all I'll miss is the
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Scripture reading. No, we're talking about people
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who tremble at the very Word of God, who know when we open the
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pages of Scripture, we are hearing from the sovereign God
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of the universe. We're not hearing from man.
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The Psalmist, as I tremble at your word in the depths of my
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being, my heart trembles at your word.
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I fear You over all things. I am in awe of my Creator and my
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Savior as His Word reveals Him to me.
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Secondly, we see this. Not only will those who are
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living life in light of God's Word have irreverent all for God
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and a referent all for God's Word, they will have a high
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value of God's word. Look at 162 he says, I rejoice
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in your promise. Again, a reference to the word
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like. One who finds great spoil.
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He's talking about the spoils of war.
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Now let me just tell you how this worked, because we don't
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understand that in our culture. But what would happen is an army
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would go off and they would defeat an enemy, and then
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defeating the enemy, they would take the things that the enemy
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owned for themselves. But they didn't just get to grab
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what they wanted, they actually brought all the spoils back.
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And the king would then distribute by His grace the
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treasures as he saw fit to have them distributed.
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And the psalmist here is barring from that type of thinking and
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that type of ideology. And he says, I rejoice in your
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promise, your word, like one who finds great spoil.
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He says it's valuable to me. See what happens here.
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His fear and his reverence of God and His word that happened
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there in verse 161. Leads to his rejoicing.
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And his joy because of the word of God, he said, I rejoice in
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your promise like one who finds a great spoil.
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Matthew Henry said it like this, they that tremble at the.
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Convictions of the word. May triumph in the consolations
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of it, those of you who do tremble at His word, knowing
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that he is a God who is to be feared, because he is a mighty
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God and he is a jealous God. You also have this consolation
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in your fear. He is also a God who loves, and
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he is a God who encourages, and he is a God who brings rejoicing
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into. Your life.
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Oh, see it here in the life of the psalmist.
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He goes from trembling at the Word of God to rejoicing in the
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Word of God all at the same time.
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And he's rejoicing in the Word of God, and he's saying that it
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is a great treasure, like finding great spoil.
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So what he's doing here, as we all should, he's living his life
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in all of God's Word and in all of God, reverently approaching
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God and His Word, and also rejoicing in the fact that God
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would graciously give him such a treasure.
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Oh please. I know we live in an entitlement
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generation. Please don't think for one
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second that God is entitled to give you anything.
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But aren't you thankful that He has given us His Word to warn us
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about the coming judgement, to warn us about the coming wrath,
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to warn us about His holy expectations of man, to provide
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for us in His Word? The testimony of a Savior who
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came and who died on the cross, The Lord Jesus Christ who will
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rescue. Those who believe.
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And trust in him from the penalty and the power of sin.
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I'll be thankful for the word of God because God could have just
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left us to ourselves, left us in our sin, the psalmist says in
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his word. I rejoice because I have been
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given a great treasure, but do you rejoice in the word of God?
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Psalm one 19111 you remember he says this.
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Your statutes are MyHeritage forever.
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They are the joy of my heart. Is it the joy of your heart
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today to be sitting with other believers, Bibles open, looking
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at the word of God, seeing what it is that he desires to teach
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us this morning. You rejoice in that Psalm 119,
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verse 14. He says I rejoice in your
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promise, like one who finds great spoil again.
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This is. Valuable to me Jeremiah chapter
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15 verse 16 he says when your words came, I ate them and they
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were my joy and my heart's delight for I bear your name
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Lord God Almighty those who bear his name rejoice in his word as
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a psalmist is doing here. Isn't it true that joy in this
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seemingly chaotic, ungrateful, and joyless society?
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Isn't it true that joy is a priceless treasure?
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The psalmist says more than that, he says joy is the spoil
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of the battle. For it was Christ himself who
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came to this earth and who died on a cross of brutal death that
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you and I deserve, so that we could experience joy in exchange
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for his suffering. Psalmist gets it.
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I rejoice in your promise like one who finds great spoil that
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priceless joy. Psalm 1/19/72.
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It says the law from your mouth is more precious to me than
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thousands of pieces of silver and gold.
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You don't know if you're living life in light of God's Word.
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Is God's Word valuable to you? Is it more valuable to you than
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pieces of silver and gold? The economy of the day, the
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treasure of the day? The Psalms are saying yes, it's
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a great spoil. It causes me to rejoice.
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That I have been given such a treasure.
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The apostle John understood this treasure.
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In fact, in his first epistle he says this in chapter one of
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First John verse 1. He says that which was from the
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beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our
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eyes, which we have looked at, and our hands have touched, This
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we proclaim concerning the word of life.
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John understood that Christ is the word.
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It was John. Testified that Jesus said I am
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the way, the truth and the life. It is John who testified that in
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the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the
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Word was God. It is John who testified in
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chapter 1 verse 14 that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.
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And now what he's doing, he is teaching the church how
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important the word is. He says this we proclaim
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concerning the word of life. The life appeared, We have seen
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it and testified to it, and we proclaimed to you the eternal
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life which was with the Father and has appeared to us.
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And we proclaimed to you what we have seen and heard, so that you
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also may have fellowship with us, and our fellowship is with
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the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.
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Now watch verse 4. We write this to make our joy
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complete. It is the Word that gives us
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complete and full joy when we read about the Savior that John
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speaks of, who came, and He came with the words of life, and He
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came with salvation, and He purchased the salvation on the
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cross for all who will believe through His precious blood as He
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gave His life in our place. Oh, do you have a high value on
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God's Word? You say, Well Kirk, you sound as
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if you are equating the word of God with Jesus himself.
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That is exactly what I am doing. He is the word of God and the
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word of God is Christ. And when we see the treasure of
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Christ, we have a high value on God's word.
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He said, I rejoice in your promise.
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Rejoice in your promise like one who finds great spoil.
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So if you've asked yourself the question, are you living life
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and light of God's? Word.
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Is there a reverent all for God and His Word in your life?
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Is there a high value of God's word in your life that brings
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you great joy, that brings you to a place of rejoicing?
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Thirdly, as a psalmist continues this examination, he says, I
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hate and abhor falsehood, but I love your law.
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I hate and I abhor all the deceit, all the lies of this
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world, all the philosophies of men that aren't true, all the
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false teachings, all the heresies, all the false
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doctrines and teachers. I hate these things, but I love
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your law. We see here the third.
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Evidence is a love for truth. The Psalmist the spied the
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despise the lies of men he despised, false beliefs that
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were counter to the scriptures, that were counter to the one
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true and living God. Can I, can I just stop for a
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second and just say this? Please listen to my heart.
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It is a joy to be able to pass through a church that is
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predominantly made of people who love the truth.
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People who love the truth from the word of God.
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Because I know this, you don't come here to be entertained.
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There are enough so-called churches that that they're
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designed to entertain people. I am not entertaining.
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I do not seek to entertain you. I seek to simply deliver to you
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truth from the Word of God week after week after week, and week
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after week after week. We see what God does when His
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truth has been declared, and we're rejoicing that.
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And so from the bottom of my heart, I say thank you for being
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a people who love truth, because that is a mark of those who are
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walking in the light of God's Word.
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They hate lies. They hate falsehood.
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They hate man's ideology. They love God's word.
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Why did the psalmist love God's word?
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Because it's true. It's truth.
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He saw the lies, he saw the falsehood, and he knew the exact
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opposite of that. I told you there are really only
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two world views, lies, untruths and the truth of the word of
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God. And the psalmist is standing on
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the side of truth. He says I love truth.
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When he says that I love truth, you know what he's saying?
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I love truth because your law reveals truth.
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Is that not what Jesus said in John 1717 when he prayed for the
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believers to be sanctified and he said sanctify them by truth.
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Your Word is truth. And so you can't claim to love
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truth if you don't love the word of God, because the Word of God
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is truth. That is why the psalmist said I
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love your law. 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2, verse 10.
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Often overlooked and read. Past.
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But you know what it does? It speaks of the wicked.
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Perishing under the deception of Satan in the end.
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And you know why they perished? They perished because they
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refused to love the truth. 2nd Thessalonians 210.
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It says that. It says they perish because they
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refuse to love the truth and so be saved.
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Were it not for the truth of the Word of God, none of you would
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be saved. It is the truth, and upon
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hearing that truth, that all of us have come to know Christ.
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And Paul says that the unbeliever perishes because they
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refuse to love the truth and so be saved.
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You know what he's saying there. Don't miss it.
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Saved people love the truth, and those who do not love the truth
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are not saved people, because saved people believe the truth.
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And they love the truth, just as the psalmist is displaying here.
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I hate and abhor falsehood, but I love your law.
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I love the truth. Isn't it true in the church
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today always spoke of revival in our last time together.
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But don't we need men and women who will hate the wicked lies of
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this world and who will cling to the truth of God's Word?
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Why? Because they love it.
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Because they love it. People ask me all the time.
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Why are you so excited? Why are you passionate when you
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preach? I'm not angry.
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So all you people who are new here today, don't leave her.
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So wow, he must be mad. I'm not mad about anything.
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I'm passionate about the truth of the Word of God.
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Why? Because I love it.
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I love it because it was a time in my life where I walked into a
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church service and I was an enemy of God.
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I was a wicked, sinful scoundrel, deserving of the
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wrath of God, deserving of hell. And I walked into that building
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and a man preached to me the truth from the word of God.
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And it is that truth that God used to rescue me from my sin,
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to rescue me from the hell that I deserved.
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It is that truth that I. Love.
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And so pardon me if I'm passionate about proclaiming
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that truth. I think we need more men and
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women who are passionate about proclaiming the truth.
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Why? Because your lack of passion
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disturbs me. Your lack of passion.
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Contradicts the word of God. The psalmist here saying I hate
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and abhor falsehood, but I love your law, Oh my God.
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Raise up a group of men and women who value the truth of the
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word of God and who will not compromise on that truth because
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they love it. I love your law, the very word
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from the mouth of God. Was there anything wrong with
-
loving that? No.
-
I've already used this illustration and one of our
-
sermons together in this particular chapter, the
-
illustration of the love letters that I received from my wife
-
when I was just a teenage boy that stay in a box.
-
They are some of my most prized earthly possessions because
-
she's a gift from God to me and I watched him develop that love
-
that we have for one another that endures all the hardship of
-
this life. We serve him together.
-
If I were to open one of those letters today, and you grew up
-
in the 80s or 90s, you know what I have to do?
-
I have to see the little tab that says pull.
-
You young people that are dating, you got it easy.
-
You just send a text message. We actually have to put some
-
effort into learning how to fold those things with the pool and
-
heart. If I were to pull those one of
-
those letters and open it up and see her expressing her love for
-
me again, I would love those words because I love the one who
-
has written those words. So the psalmist.
-
Saying here I love the word of God because these are the very
-
words of God. This is his love letter to us.
-
And I love his truth. So I see one who's living life
-
in the light of God's word. We'll have a reverent all for
-
God in his Word, a high value of God's Word, a love for truth.
-
Fourthly, they will have a life of praise for the God of
-
Scripture. Look at 164, he says.
-
Seven times a day. I praise you for your righteous
-
laws. 7 times a day and no one can argue.
-
He must be passionate about praising the Lord, right?
-
What? What does this guy have?
-
Does he have an alarm set 7 times on his Apple phone?
-
No, he doesn't. They didn't have those things.
-
What is he meaning here? Is he?
-
Is he meaning this figuratively? Perhaps.
-
Perhaps he's meaning that oftenly and consistently.
-
I take time to praise the Lord throughout.
-
My day and we should, shouldn't we?
-
But there are those who. Believe that he is speaking
-
literally here. In fact, just.
-
A little research and you'll find there was a Jewish custom.
-
Among the rabbi's where they would pray twice in the morning
-
before reading the 10 commandments and once after, and
-
then they would pray twice in the evenings before reading them
-
and then twice after, which equals 7.
-
Perhaps he's talking about those seven times a day.
-
The scripture does not give us clear indication for those of
-
you who are checking my math because you know how horribly of
-
a mathematician I can be. That's.
-
Right, that's 7 and I don't. Know if he's speaking here of
-
literally 7 times in the literal sense or in the figurative
-
sense. But I can't conclude what he is
-
saying. He's saying this throughout my
-
day. I'm consumed with praise to God
-
for His Word. I'm consumed and passionate
-
about praising the Lord. And this did involve praise for
-
his word, Thanking the Lord that you have given me such a
-
beautiful treasure. When's the last time that you
-
read a passage of Scripture that gave you hope and peace?
-
And you stopped and turned to the Lord and said, thank you,
-
Lord, thank you for giving me that hope and peace from your
-
word. I praise you for your word.
-
He didn't have to give you that. Blessing but he's preserved it
-
so that we can have it so that it does bring him praise and
-
honor and glory in our lives. Psalm 5610 it says I trust in
-
God will not be afraid what man can do to me.
-
I trust in him and him alone. What what a comfort that we have
-
from the word of. God, should we praise Him for
-
that? Yes.
-
We should praise him that we don't have.
-
We don't have to be afraid of what man can do to us.
-
Psalm. 5610 I misquoted that. Let me read it to you correctly.
-
In God whose word I praise. In the Lord whose word I praise,
-
the psalmist that are being totally captivated by praising
-
the word of God. You have to pardon me.
-
I'm getting used to my new spectacles.
-
As if you didn't notice the psalmist praising God for His
-
word. We see him doing that again in
-
Psalm 19 verse 7 and 8, where it says the law of the Lord is
-
perfect, reviving the soul. The statues of the Lord are
-
trustworthy, making wise the simple.
-
The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart.
-
The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving a light to the
-
eyes. He's taking his time, and he's
-
praising God for His word that He has given unto us.
-
Are you doing that in your life? Are you thankful for the peace,
-
the understanding, and the wisdom that we glean from the
-
Word of God, the joy that it brings to our hearts and to our
-
lives? So we see the Psalmist giving us
-
the example of one who has a life of praise for the God of
-
Scripture. It's in and through the Word of
-
God, isn't it, that He has revealed truth concerning how
-
worthy He is to be praised? Is there anyone here who would
-
like to argue God's worthiness and being praised?
-
I can tell you this if you just talk in simple terms.
-
You woke up this morning when many didn't.
-
You have a reason to praise Him. He's worthy because He is the
-
giver and He is the sustainer of life.
-
Psalm 145 verse 3, it's as great as the Lord and most worthy of
-
praise. His greatness no one can fathom.
-
He's more worthy than you can even begin to fathom.
-
Psalm 96 four says for great is the Lord and most worthy of
-
praise. He is to be feared above all.
-
Little G Gods, are you approaching him in this manner?
-
Is your life a life praise for the God of Scripture.
-
The psalmist said seven times a day I praise you for your
-
righteous laws. Let me just go on and help you
-
all out and tell you, you can't truly study the Word of God and
-
not have praise for it. I find myself often studying the
-
scriptures and I get to something that maybe I have read
-
20 or 30 or maybe even 100 or 200 times and I will see
-
something in there that perhaps I missed or perhaps I had
-
forgotten my fallible mind and God reminds me of it.
-
And is that in those moments where my eyes turn away from the
-
pages of Scripture, my eyes turn to heaven.
-
And I began to think and thank you Lord, for your word.
-
Thank you for revealing that to me.
-
Thank you for teaching me that you didn't have to do that.
-
It is by your grace, it is your kindness that has done that.
-
Thank you Lord, you are worthy of all of my praise.
-
Oh, don't think for a second that you were entitled to His
-
word. Praise Him for it.
-
It's a gift continue on in this 119th Psalm 1, who's living life
-
in the light of God's Word will have fifthly a great peace from
-
God's Word. He says great peace have they
-
who love your law and nothing can make them stumble.
-
Psalmist here testifying to the peace of God that comes from
-
loving and walking in God's word.
-
Now don't we have that peace? Those of you who have walked
-
with Him and walked in His word any amount of time, you know
-
that it brings peace into our lives when the whole world is
-
freaking out and the whole world doesn't know what to do.
-
His people should rest in the peace that comes from His Word.
-
Great peace have they who love your law.
-
In fact, Isaiah. In the 26th chapter of his book
-
he says this. In chapter and verse three he
-
says, You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are
-
steadfast because they trust in you.
-
How do we know to trust in Him? We learn to trust in His Word,
-
and we see how faithful He is to His Word.
-
And when we see His faithfulness in His Word, our trust and our
-
faith in Him grows ever and all the more.
-
He keeps us in peace, he says. Perfect peace, the psalmist here
-
calling it great peace. Aren't you think well that his
-
peace is great and it's perfect. It's not mediocre,
-
run-of-the-mill, average peace. That's what the world has.
-
God in his word has given us great peace.
-
In fact, Paul says to the Philippians in chapter 4 verse
-
six, he says do not be anxious about anything, but in every
-
situation by prayer and petition with Thanksgiving present your
-
request to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all
-
understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ.
-
Jesus, oh what great peace as many as often happens in chaotic
-
situations. Are looking for peace.
-
May I say to you, look no further, We have peace from the
-
word of God and we have peace from the word of God because it
-
is the word of God that that reveals to us the Prince of
-
Peace, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the Lord Jesus Christ who
-
allows us to walk in peace and who guards our hearts and our
-
minds. If we are in him.
-
There's no reason to run around anxiously fretting or worrying
-
about thing. With the trust Christ, with your
-
life, and walk in the peace of God.
-
It is the peace of God that carries the one who trusts in
-
the Word of God. Second Thessalonians chapter 3
2 Thessalonians 3 chapter mention
-
Paul praying for those at Thessalonica.
-
He says this in verse 16. Now may the Lord of peace
-
himself give you peace at all times, in every way.
-
The Lord be with all of you. Oh.
-
Don't you love how Paul says that at all times and in every
-
way? May you rest in the peace of God
-
at all times and in every way. How do we know about this peace?
-
Through the word of God. That's why the psalmist can say
-
great peace Have they who love your law?
-
Nothing can make them stumble. It is the peace of God that
-
carries us through everything, any and all things, through
-
suffering, through chaos, through persecution, through
-
trials. Any of you ever been through a
-
trial? It is the peace of God that
-
comes from his word, that comes from Christ that carries us
-
through trials. How about sickness?
-
How about death? About death, Great peace have
-
they who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble,
-
not even death, Death itself. Why?
-
Because the word declares that we in Christ have victory over
-
death because he has overcome the grave.
-
John Bunyan said believers won't stumble because, and I quote,
-
they have a God to fly on to in. All their troubles and a sure
-
covenant to rest upon. We have a God to fly to in all
-
our troubles and a sure covenant.
-
That covenant that was made through the precious blood of
-
Jesus Christ and cannot be undone.
-
So in every situation we have great peace, peace that
-
surpasses all human understanding and human
-
explanation. Peace that allows us to walk
-
with hope when others are seemingly hopeless.
-
Romans chapter 15 verse 13, the apostle Paul speaks on this.
-
He says, may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace
-
as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the
-
power of the Holy Spirit. Isn't it true that the peace
-
that we received from the word of God also brings us hope from
-
that same peace? How can this be so?
-
Because it's promised by Jesus himself in His Word to all who
-
follow him. John chapter 14 verse 27.
-
The Lord said peace I leave with you, my peace I give you.
-
I do not give to you as the world gives.
-
Aren't you thankful for that? He's not giving you the same
-
kind of peace that the world's looking for.
-
I'm giving you a different kind of peace.
-
I'm giving you a piece of knowing this, that I'm going to
-
a cross and I'm going to suffer and I'm going to die at an end
-
and endure A brutal death. But my Father who is in heaven
-
has promised me by his word that he is going to to raise me to
-
life again. And he says, I'm giving you that
-
kind of peace, the peace that Christ had on the cross, the
-
peace that Christ had when he stood before his accusers and he
-
said nothing. He said My peace I leave with
-
you. He says, I do not give to you as
-
the world gives, because the world gives peace like this.
-
Peace is just the absence of conflict.
-
No, that's not the peace of Christ.
-
The peace of Christ is peace in the midst of conflict.
-
It's in the midst of turmoil. It's in the midst of death.
-
It's in the midst of tragedy. And then he says this, Do not
-
let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.
-
Oh, we have great 'cause to not let our hearts be troubled and
-
to not be afraid in every situation.
-
Why, we have the peace of Christ.
-
If you were in Christ, you have that peace.
-
You have that. Confidence of that peace from
-
the Word of God promised by Jesus Christ himself.
-
So if you're still taking this test, oh, don't dare check out.
-
If you don't finish the test, you're surely not going to pass
-
the test. One who is living life in the
-
light of God's Word, we'll have a great peace from God's Word.
-
Do you have that peace? You have that peace that
-
surpasses all understanding. You have that peace from Christ
-
Himself to those who He has truly saved and cleansed of all
-
their sin, you have that peace. Next, one who's living life in
-
the light of God's Word, we'll have confidence in God's
-
salvation. 166 The psalmist says, I wait for your salvation,
-
O Lord, and I follow your commands.
-
I wait for your salvation. I follow your commands.
-
You know what he's doing. He's confident, confidently
-
believing that God can and does and will save those who trust in
-
Him through the promises of His Word.
-
It is God Himself who promises salvation unto us.
-
Know that salvation has not come to full fruition in our lives
-
because we know that we are justified.
-
We are being sanctified, and one day we will be glorified where
-
we are perfected in the presence of God forever.
-
We are not yet there at glorification, but the psalmist
-
has confidence of knowing this. But I'm going to patiently wait
-
for that salvation because God has promised and God is good.
-
He is faithful to all of His promises.
-
Hebrews Chapter 7, verse 25, it says this about our Lord.
-
Therefore, He is able to save completely those who come to God
-
through Him because He always lives to intercede for them.
-
We can have confidence that He can and does save us completely,
-
and we have that confidence from the Word of God.
-
And so we are not waiting. For the fulfillment of our
-
salvation in vain, we are not waiting for our glorification in
-
vain. And that's why He tells us that
-
He's given us the Holy Spirit as a deposit, a guarantee that He
-
is going to fulfill that which He has started in US.
-
Just as Philippians chapter one, verse 6 says that we can be
-
confident that He who began a good work in US, we'll carry it
-
unto completion. Are you thankful for?
-
That this morning and we can have confidence in God's
-
salvation, longing for him, waiting for him, waiting for the
-
promises that are as good as ours.
-
Hebrews Chapter 9, verse 28, it says so Christ was sacrificed
-
once to take away the sins of many, and he will appear a
-
second time not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who
-
are waiting for him. Do you have that hope?
-
Because when he comes the second time, he's not coming to die for
-
sin again. He's already accomplished that.
-
He's coming to rescue those who are waiting for his salvation.
-
As the psalmist is waiting for his salvation here.
-
They're waiting on the promises that have been revealed as
-
through the scriptures. Does that describe you?
-
Not only is he confidently believing that God can and does
-
save all who trust in Him for salvation, he's also confidently
-
believing that those who are saved will have evidence that
-
they are truly saved. I know this bothers some people,
-
but watch what the psalmist says.
-
I wait for your salvation, O Lord, and I follow Your
-
commands. You know what he didn't say?
-
I follow Your commands so that I can have salvation.
-
See the order there? As I am waiting for the promise
-
of salvation to be completed in Christ Jesus, I in my sanctified
-
life am following and obeying Your commands.
-
He's saying that those who are truly saved will have evidence
-
that they are truly saved. I say that so that you
-
understand this clearly. If you have no God wrought
-
desire to obey God's word inside of you, you have no real hope of
-
salvation because a true believer will have a God wrought
-
desire to please the one who gave himself for him or for her.
-
And if you don't have this, you're in deep spiritual trouble
-
according to what John said. First John chapter 2 verse 20,
-
verse three there of of chapter 2 he says we know that we have
-
come to know him if we keep his commands.
-
Whoever says I know him but does not do what he commands is a
-
liar and the truth is not in that person.
-
James in a more blunt fashion says this in James chapter 2
-
verse 17. And the same way, faith by
-
itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
-
What are these men of God saying they are?
-
Complimenting what the psalmist is saying here, he's saying, I
-
wait for your salvation, O Lord, and I follow your commands
-
because I am saved. I have been given that
-
guarantee. Now, out of appreciation for the
-
salvation that you have so freely given me, I am obeying
-
your word. I'll make no mistake.
-
He's not trying to live a right life so that in the end God will
-
say, OK, your right outweighs your wrong.
-
It's never going to happen. He's saying, because God, you
-
have so graciously saved me according to your word, and I
-
have that promise, I wait for that promise.
-
And as I wait for that promise, I obediently live for you.
-
Well, if you claim to be waiting for the promise salvation that
-
Jesus has made to his followers, let me remind you of this.
-
Now, if you're really one of those who is truly saved, that
-
your life will be changed, you are a new creation.
-
In fact, Ezekiel describes it like this.
-
In chapter 36 verse 26, he said, I'll give you a new heart and
-
put a new spirit in you. I will remove from you your
-
heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh, and I will put
-
my spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful
-
to keep. My laws, What is he saying?
-
God is going to bring a work in those who are truly waiting for
-
the salvation that they have been promised, and that work is
-
going to be displayed by your life being consistent to the
-
things that the Word of God teaches and.
-
It is a work of God. And if the Spirit lives in you,
-
that work is going on. Now let me help all of you.
-
If that work is not going on, the Spirit does not live in you.
-
And if the Spirit does not live in you, you are not truly born
-
again. You're not truly in.
-
Christ, as Romans chapter 8 confirms that that if you are
Romans 8 chapter mention
-
truly in Christ, the Spirit will indwell you.
-
This is no second blessing. The Spirit is the guarantor of
-
all who come to know Christ that all of His promises will be
-
fulfilled. And He is that counselor, and He
-
is that Teacher who will lead our new hearts into obedience
-
for the glory of God. You're still taking this test.
-
Is your life marked by confidently believing that those
-
who are saved will have evidence of this, And is that evidence
-
seen in your life? Lastly, as we continue to
-
examine ourselves in light of God's Word, the psalmist says in
-
verse 167, I obey your statutes, for I love them.
-
Greatly a God wrought desire to obey always leads to obedience.
-
Don't miss that you're going to actually do what you say that
-
you believe it in high time that Christians actually do what they
-
say that they believe. Because you're not fooling
-
anyone and you're sure not fooling God.
-
You have a profession with no actions to back up your
-
profession. Because someone who's really
-
living life in the light of God's Word will have a life of
-
obedience to God and His Word to prove it.
-
I obey your statutes, for I love them greatly.
-
I obey your precepts and your statues, for all my ways are
-
known to you. What is he saying in these last
-
two verses? First thing he's saying is this,
-
that he's driven by a love for God and his Word.
-
I obey your statues, for I love them greatly.
-
Do you love the Word of God? Do you love the word of God
-
enough to obey the word of God? Because your love for the Word
-
of God is a direct mirror. It is a direct reflection of
-
your love for God himself. Jesus said if you love me, you
-
will obey me. This is not optional.
-
It is not optional even in our antinomian way of thinking.
-
We are recipients of grace only just to abuse grace.
-
You're no true recipient of grace at all, because if you
-
truly received grace the way that scripture says that you
-
have are to receive grace, you will have a life of obedience
-
unto the Lord. Showing that you were thankful
-
for the salvation that He has given you.
-
Showing that you understand that he who knew no sin became sin so
-
that you might become the righteousness of God, knowing
-
that that unfair exchange happened.
-
And you were saved because of it, because he loved you so
-
much. And in return, what are you
-
going to do? You're going to love him and
-
you're going to love his word, right?
-
You love him because he first what loved you.
-
Your life will show this. Your life will be driven by a
-
love for God and his word, just as the psalmist says here.
-
I, I obey your statutes, for I love them greatly.
-
He's driven by a love for God's word.
-
He's not ashamed of that. John chapter 14 verse 23, Jesus
-
replied, if anyone loves me, He will obey my teaching.
-
My Father will love him and He will come to Him and we will
-
come to Him and make our home with Him.
-
He who does not love me will not obey my teaching.
-
These words you hear are not my own.
-
They belong to the Father who sent me.
-
So it's pretty simple isn't it? Two world views, those who love
-
the Lord and His Word and who are truly saved in Christ, and
-
those who don't and who aren't. And it's high time we examine
-
our lives. Is our life consistent with our
-
claim? Am I obediently living my life
-
in the light of the truth of God's Word?
-
Am I driven by my love for God in His word and everything that
-
I do and everything that I say and everything that I
-
participate in, how I raise my family, how I treat my wife, how
-
I treat my husband, how I treat my friends, how I speak to my
-
children, my reflect in Christ. Not only do we see this life of
-
obedience to God and His Word in the life of the psalmist being
-
driven by the love of God that He has and love that He has for
-
His Word, we see this that it's motivated.
-
By an understanding of God's sovereign position.
-
Don't miss this. He says, I obey your precepts
-
and your statutes. He's going to give you the
-
motivation behind this. He says, I obey your statutes,
-
for I love them greatly, and I obey your precepts, steps and
-
your statutes, for all my ways are known to you.
-
The psalmist here being motivated by God's sovereign
-
position. He is actually living his life
-
knowing that it was under the constant gaze of a sovereign
-
God. Church, let me just tell you
-
this. Whether you are in Christ or
-
whether you aren't, you are living your life under the
-
constant gaze, gaze of an omniscient, omnipresent,
-
almighty God who sees and who knows all things.
-
What a motivator. You're not going to hide
-
anything from him. The psalmist says I'm obedient
-
because I know that he knows who I am and he knows what I'm doing
-
and he even knows why I am doing it.
-
Hebrews chapter 4 verse 13. It says nothing and all creation
-
is hidden from God's sight. Let's just take a deep breath
-
there for a second. Meditate on that nothing is
-
hidden from God's sight, nothing that you do, nothing that you
-
say, nothing that you try to hide in the darkness of your
-
sin. Everything is uncovered and laid
-
bare before his eyes. Before the eyes of him to whom
-
we must give an account. Look, the psalmist is saying
-
that is my vote of motivation. Let that be your motivation.
-
Why do I live in obedience to the word of God?
-
Because I'm going to have to give an account.
-
And God is not going to miss anything because he doesn't miss
-
anything. He knows the beginning from the
-
end. He has already seen it.
-
He is not shocked by any of it. And we?
-
Must understand that we're living our lives before him.
-
I obey your statues, your precepts, for all my ways are
-
known to you. Proverbs 521 For a man's ways
-
are in full view of the Lord, and he examines all his paths.
-
Well, if you were to really get in your mind today the truth
-
that God is examining all your paths, will there be change in
-
your life? Will there be repentance in your
-
life? Oh, for the believer there will
-
be. The believer will be convicted
-
and moved to that. To the unbeliever, he'll say, Oh
-
well, and he'll create all sorts of ideas as to why not believe
-
in a sovereign God, but you better believe in a sovereign
-
God. Because He knows all of your
-
ways, there's nothing that is hidden from Him.
-
In fact, Psalm 139 verse one says you have searched me, Lord,
-
and you know me. You know when I sit and when I
-
rise, You perceive my thoughts from afar.
-
You know what's going through my mind before it ever goes through
-
my mind. You discern my going out and my
-
lying down. You are familiar with all my
-
ways. All my ways are known to you.
-
Is that not what the psalmist just said in Psalm 119, verse
-
168? He says in verse 4, before a
-
word is on my tongue. You, Lord, know it completely.
-
You held me in behind and before, and you lay your hand
-
upon me. He says I know you're you've
-
gone before me, you're behind me, you are encompassing me.
-
You are everywhere, all of the time, all knowing I cannot hide
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from you. William Ganahl said this.
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He said I may hide thee from my eye, but not myself from thine
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eye. Speaking of the Lord.
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Oh, I can hide myself from God, as Adam tried to do.
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And Eve tried to do in their shame, though they could not
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cast their eye upon God, God's eye was already cast upon them.
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Oh, you can hide God from your eyes, if you so choose to do
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that, as many have done right. Take the word of God out of the
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schools. Take the word of God out of the
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courthouses, if all but taken the word of God out of the
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churches. All in the name of being hip,
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cool, and relevant. And you can hide your eye from
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God all you want, but He does not hide his eye from you.
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Or to live our lives according to a Latin term, corumdeo, and
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it means this before the face of God or more accurate in our
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English language, in His presence.
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Fact, I have a placard in my office that a dear friend gave
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to me to which I'm I'm so thankful for because I have
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those days, just like all of you have those days when I need to
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be reminded I'm living my life in the face of God, that I'm
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constantly in his presence, that I'm living life.
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Corum Deo knowing, as the psalmist said here, I know that
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you're not going to miss a thing.
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All my ways are known to you. RC Sprole describes it like
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this. He says to live Corumdeo is to
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live 1's entire life in the presence of God, under the
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authority of God, to the glory of God.
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That's what it means. That's what the psalmist is
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doing here. He is saying, I'm living my life
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Corumdeo, obeying the precepts and the statutes of the Lord,
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because all of my ways are before Him.
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I cannot escape His gaze, and I will not escape His judgement.
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Therefore I obey Him. And so we see here an
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understanding of God's sovereign omnipresence and how it should.
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And it will motivate the true believer in his or her life to
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obey God even when they think no one else is looking.
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And your lack of recognition of God's omnipresence doesn't
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change the fact that He's always present.
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Let it motivate you, as it did the psalmist, to live a life of
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obedience unto his God and unto His Word.
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And so let's wrap this test up. I told you as we started.
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Examine yourself. Examine yourself to see if
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you're truly living life in the light of God's Word.
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Do you truly live according to the Scriptures?
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Because one who's living in in the light of the Word of God
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will have a reverent all for God and his.
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Word, do you have this? They will have a high value on
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God's Word. Is that present in your life?
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They will have a love for truth. They will be lovers of truth.
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Their life will be a life of praise.
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To the God of Scripture, their life will be a life of great
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peace that comes from God's Word.
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Do you have that peace? Your life will be a life of
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confidence in God's salvation as defined in Scripture.
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And as we saw just a moment ago, their life will be a life of
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obedience to God and His Word. So ask yourself that most
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difficult question. Are you living your life in the
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light of God's Word? Are you living your life in
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obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ?
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Are you living your life believer in obedience to what
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His Word has commanded you to those of you who profess Christ?
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After this extensive and intense, I'll be an examination
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and it is intense. Are you living?
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Life in the light of God's Word to the unbeliever you are not.
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And it is that plain and is that simple.
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You do not have the capabilities of doing so.
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You cannot live in obedience to the Word of God.
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You are living in darkness and you are living in deception and
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you are living in sin. And according to the Lord Jesus
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Christ Himself, you must be born again.
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My prayer for you today is that He in all of His mercy.
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Would come to you and that he would breathe life into your
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dead soul, and for the first time you would see the
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wickedness of your sin. You would know that that is
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deserving of the wrath of God, and you would plea that Jesus
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Christ would be charged to your account, that His sacrifice
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would be applied to you, that you would be washed and cleansed
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of all of your sin, that you would turn from your wicked
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ways, and that you would turn to faith in Jesus Christ and
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surrender to Him as your Lord and Savior.
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This. Very day as he ushers you out of
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darkness and into his marvelous life.
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As first Peter speaks of the second chapter, oh unbeliever
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surrendered to him today, pin of your sin and trust in Jesus
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Christ to forgive you and wash you of all of your sin.
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According to the word of God, there is no hope of salvation.
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Apart from that, there is no other name under heaven given to
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men whereby we must be saved. You're not going to get there
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any other way. You're only going to get there
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according to the light of Scripture and Scripture has
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spoken. Jesus himself said I am the way,
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the truth and the life and no man comes to the Father but by
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me. Turn from your sin, turn to
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Christ today. Let's pray together.
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Father, we thank you for your word.
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We thank you that it is all true and it is all inerrant and is
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all inspired God as it has gone forth today.
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We know that it will accomplish exactly what you desire for to
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accomplish today. Lord, my prayers this that it
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went out to the hearts of those who don't know Christ, Lord,
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that you would use it to open their eyes to see the truth.
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And the truth is that we are all sinners and we are all in need
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of a Savior and that that Savior has been given.
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That they would hear that clearly today, that they would
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turn to Jesus Christ and flee from the wrath and the judgement
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that is to come upon the unbelieving.
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That they would by faith believe in You, turning from unbelief
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and sin, turning to Christ. God, I pray for every believer
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in this room today. They would truly examine their
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life. And if they fall short, that
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they would run to your throne of grace.
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Grace this morning in complete honesty, confessing their sin
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and asking for help from from your Spirit to walk in obedience
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to your word and we'll give you all the glory for it in Jesus
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name, Amen. You've been listening to Key
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Life Fellowships Pulpit Ministry podcast.
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Join us each week for more teaching from God's Word.