First of all, I want to wish everyone a happy new year. I pray that 2021 can be a year of growth and transformation for our community and our brothers and sisters. We transform by the renewing of our minds, so what better way to start the year than to study God’s word. And what better place than Psalm 119. So I’ve been writing about Psalm 119 for the past few posts. This chapter is the longest in the Bible, with 176 verses, 22 stanzas, each for a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and 8 verses per stanza. The content seems very repetitive on the surface, with the Psalmist talking about how much he loves God’s Word. He refers to God’s Word a number of different ways, referring to God’s Word as: His commandments, His precepts, His statutes, decrees, His Law, His Promises. Each of the terms refer to God’s word, or parts of Scripture, but they refer to it from a slightly different angle or perspective

פ Pe

• 129 Your statutes are wonderful; therefore I obey them.
• 130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
• 131 I open my mouth and pant, longing for your commands.
• 132 Turn to me and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name.
• 133 Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.
• 134 Redeem me from human oppression, that I may obey your precepts.
• 135 Make your face shine on your servant and teach me your decrees.
• 136 Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed.

The Psalmist proclaims the wonderfulness, the marvelousness of God’s statutes, Because they are wonderful, therefore the Psalmist obeys. King James says because God’s testimonies are wonderful, therefore his soul obeys them. The obedience that we see here especially when looking at King James translation is not an obedience of a puppet following the strings of a puppet master. We aren’t just following God’s commands or his statutes or his testimony because he said so and that’s that. (Although God does deserve such devotion, but here’s why. When you Look at God’s Character, look at the source of the commandments. God is Good. God is as perfect as Perfection can be; his perfection is holy and lacking nothing. God is faithful, God is All Good, God is the source of all wisdom and knowledge. God is powerful. We can look at God’s commandments and say, just because of the source, we know His laws are worthy of our obedience. But the Psalmist goes even further and says all that wonder of God’s character is reflected in the wonderfulness of the statutes, the testimonies, the Law. And the style of obedience that flows from that wonder is not just . “I Obey” like NIV. It’s “My Soul Obeys” like King James. Obedience is the right thing, it is the proper thing, Obedience is what my body and mind should do, because it’s the thing for which my Soul longs. Vs 130 says the unfolding, opening, and entrance of God’s words gives light and understanding. God’s word is Dense! It is something that needs to be unfolded and unpacked. It is deep/ profound. But in that same verse, it says it can give instruction and understanding to the simple. It’s not an indigestible piece of roughage; it’s bread that you can digest. You can unpack it, unfold it, and when you do that, even the simple can gain understanding. Vs 131, we open our mouths and pant for these commandments, we long and yearn for them. When you read Psalm 42 and hear that Psalmist say, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God”. In that same way we yearn for God, thirst for him, to be in His presence, we should pant and thirst for the Word of God and God’s Commandments to affect us, to change our hearts, to be followed. You shouldn’t have one without the other, but Sometimes people who say they are Christian seem to. People will say how much they love God and how much they want to be in his presence, but when you ask them about their study of God’s word, they don’t pant for God’s word, they don’t long for God’s commandments. When you examine their lives, they are content to disobey some of God’s commandments or neglect the study of God’s word. If you love God, you love God’s word. If you say you love God and want to be in His presence, you should want his Will to be done and his Laws to be followed. Let’s jump to 136 where the Psalmist mourns and streams tears when God’s law is not followed. We should be hurt when God’s laws are not followed. We should feel pain, and remorse when people treat God’s mercy with contempt. Now back to vs 132, as we study God’s word, his commandments, and see how wonderful they are, how marvelous they are, we see our deficiency. We see our own need for mercy. We see the need of God’s Gracious Forgiveness. The unmerited gift of God not giving us what our sins deserve. In vs 132 The Psalmist prays God, turn to me, look upon me with mercy and favor. Help us! This isn’t an empty plea, the Psalmist is thinking and reminding himself of how God has shown his mercy and favor in the past on those who love Him. In Vs 133 and 134 the Psalmist asks, prays for God to deliver him from human oppression as well as the oppression and bondage that comes from our sinful nature. When we pray for God to deliver us from evil, lead us not into temptation we are asking the same thing, to be protected and redeemed from human oppression, and to be guided away from temptation, disobedience, and the indulging of our selfish whims and sinful nature. Verse 135 brings up again something that has been recurring in Psalm 119. Make your face shine on your servant and teach me. The face of God. To see the face of God is a benediction a blessing, May the Lord bless you and keep you, may the Lord’s face shine upon you. in Exodus 33 Moses was told Nobody may see God’s face and Live. Moses was not permitted to see the face of God, only the back of God once He’s passed by. In First Corinthians, we have a promise to see God Face to Face so What has changed? God? No. God is unchanging. Man? No. we aren’t suddenly more deserving than Moses to see the face of God. To see the face of God or to have God’s face shine upon us and is the ultimate Grace or Mercy, and it only is permitted because we have the gate to go through. We have an intercessor, an intermediary. We have been given Christ’s righteousness. But there;s more. We don’t just have the righteousness of Christ, He also took our sin, the opposite fo seeing God face to face, is to have God’s face turn away from us. To be Condemned, to be Forsaken by God. When Christ took our sin. When he became our propitiation, he paid that penalty. He cried to God, why have you forsaken me? If Christ hadn’t been forsaken, there would be unpaid penalty. We deserved to either see the face of God and die, or to have the face of God turn away from us- to forsake us. But that happened to the Son. The Son took upon himself our sin, our curse, and the word of God says whoever hangs from a tree is cursed. The wages of sin is Death. And the Bible says He died for sinners, of whom I am the worst. Because the Word became flesh, all of the precepts and statutes and decrees and promises that the Psalmist loves and longed for- all these things manifested themselves in Christ, and because of what Christ did, when we see God face to face, we will live. God didn’t change, we didn’t change. Christ came!

צ Tsadhe

• 137 You are righteous, Lord, and your laws are right.
• 138 The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.
• 139 My zeal wears me out, for my enemies ignore your words.
• 140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested, and your servant loves them.
• 141 Though I am lowly and despised, I do not forget your precepts.
• 142 Your righteousness is everlasting and your law is true.
• 143 Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands give me delight.
• 144 Your statutes are always righteous; give me understanding that I may live.

Vs 137 and 138, we discussed this before, but we can say it again. God is righteous, and his laws are right. King James says God is Righteous, and his Judgments are Upright. But it is interesting to think about the progression in thought. Because God is righteous, his laws are right. Because God’s laws are right, his Judgments are Upright, fair and good. When we break God’s laws, if we ignore his commands, if we disobey his precepts, his Judgement and His penalties are severe but they are fair, upright, honorable and honest. Because of God’s character and His Nature, His statutes and words are trustworthy. In vs 139, the Psalmist admits that his Zeal wears him out, and that he gets worked up because his enemies ignore the words of God. He is pained when God’s words are ignored. For the psalmist, enemies of God’s word are his enemies, people who ignore God’s words don’t get along with him. It makes me wonder whether it is cause and effect. If these people consistently ignore God, he has no friendship or commonality with them; there is no occasion or reason to make peace.. If he is following God, they are going to be opposed to him. Are they enemies of the Psalmist because of their hostility to God, or did they just happen to be enemies of him beforehand and he realizes the way they are treating him conflicts with God’s commands? Either way, his enemies are God’s enemies, and that makes sense. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus begins with this list of Beatitudes and he says blessed are the peacemakers. The Bible tells us we should endeavor to and attempt to be peacemakers. But we should be enemies of a culture that makes God out to be an enemy, we should be opposed to those people who ignore God’s word. Because we don’t share anything with them, they will naturally be opposed to people like us. If there is common ground to be had, we should celebrate it and teach why those good things that we agree on are Biblical and Godly teaching. We should try to live at peace with each other, but at the same time we don’t need to bow to unbelievers and compromise God’s word for what’s popular. And this is a good place to remind you that following God generally won’t lead to us being popular in this world. In the the same sermon on the mount (Matthew 5:10-12) Jesus said “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Popularity is not something that’s promised to followers of God. Even if you limit yourself to hanging out in churches and Christian groups, usually the most devout followers are not the most popular in the group; they might be seen as the uptight, or legalistic. They probably don’t care as much to fit in to a group as they do to follow God’s instruction. The Psalmist understands this, and in vs 141 and 143 he recognizes he is not popular. He says although he is lowly and despised, he doesn’t forget God’s precepts. Although trouble and distress have come to him, God’s commands are what give him delight, so he keeps them near in his memory. Then vs 142 and 144 reiterate that the righteousness of God is everlasting, and God’s Statutes (word) is Always Righteous. So, vs 137 said that God is Righteous, but 142 says yes, God is righteous, AND that Righteousness is everlasting, eternal, Permanent. 137 says God’s laws are right, 142 says yes they are right, but not just because they aren’t wrong; they are true.

ק Qoph

• 145 I call with all my heart; answer me, Lord, and I will obey your decrees.
• 146 I call out to you; save me and I will keep your statutes.
• 147 I rise before dawn and cry for help; I have put my hope in your word.
• 148 My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promises.
• 149 Hear my voice in accordance with your love, preserve my life, Lord, according to your laws.
• 150 Those who devise wicked schemes are near, but they are far from your law.
• 151 Yet you are near, Lord, and all your commands are true.
• 152 Long ago I learned from your statutes that you established them to last forever.

Because God Is Good and his Righteousness is eternal, because He is the source of understanding and wisdom, the Psalmist says he will call out to God. This 8 verse stanza is full of examples of the Psalmist “calling out.” In 145 He calls with all his heart, in 146 he calls out asking to be saved. In 147 He rises before dawn and cries for help. In 149 he asks God to hear his voice! This just shows that it is important to have an active prayer life. God asks us to cry out to him, and the Psalmist cries out to God regularly. If you read 145 quickly, it might sound like he’s negotiating. I call you God. Answer me, and I will obey. He’s not saying IF you answer me, THEN I will obey. He is saying that the only way he can obey the decrees, the only way he can keep God’s statutes is by God’s grace. The only way to treasure God’s word and keep God’s commands is by God Himself providing that Spirit and Counsel and that divine instruction. If you keep God’s commandments, it isn’t because you have discovered a method of obedience, or followed a certain training schedule for productivity in Godliness. The only way we obey is by God’s grace coming to us. When we keep God’s commands it isn’t something we do as our end of a bargain or our terms of a contract. It isn’t like if God answers our prayer, if God hears our call and then he responds, then we will obey. God’s response to our prayer is our obedience! God doesn’t hear the prayer and respond by saying, “10-4 good buddy, you’re good to go ahead” When God hears our prayer, Be answers us by teaching us and training us to obey; He answers our prayers by allowing us to do something that we were incapable of doing- Following Him! God saves us by drawing us to Him. God saves us by enthralling us with His character, His righteousness and His Law, his Justice, his Goodness. We would be blind to see the beauty in any of these things apart from his Mercy. We were dead in our sins, so that salvation – that Rebirth – is something that God has done, and our obedience is also something that God has done and is doing. The Psalmist mentions in vs 149 how God is responding to our prayer. It is amazing enough to know that God listens to our prayers and He hears us when we cry out. And then to know that He also responds to the prayers in a way to give us what He knows we need and helps to instruct us, but how He does all of these things is According to his Love. It’s not a response that is tired by our incessant whining, or our lack of understanding, or impatient with our self centeredness, God doesn’t respond to our cries the way we humans respond when we are fed up. God responds according to his love. He teaches us to cry Abba Father, and responds to those cries according to his Love. Then in verse 150 and 151, The Psalmist identifies that there are people devising wicked schemes and they are near. He says they are far from God’s Law. Yet God is near, and his Commands are true. These two verses discuss proximity, or closeness. On this Earth, we have problems, we have adversaries, we have opposition, and oppressors. There are persecutors, and conflict. There is hardship. And since we are Earthly beings, we have spent our lives responding to the things we see and hear and touch. It takes a little reprogramming to change how we respond to a negative stimulus, but the psalmist looks and says. That closeness of the wicked schemers is troubling and can cause anxiety. The psalmist sees the problem present and in his face. But the Psalmist then changes the scale and the measure of what Near and Far really mean. Even though the people scheming wickedness are near to us, they are actually far from God’s Law. To the Psalmist, God is near, and His Commandments are true. Since God is omnipresent (He is everywhere), then He is always nearer than any hardship staring us down in the face. And because God is Truth, and His commands are true, He will always triumph over any person’s schemes if they are far from his Law. He will always prevail over falsehood. We have a guarantee that God will overcome. In 1 John 4:4, we have this reminder, You have overcome false prophets and false spirits because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. The context in 1 John is dealing with false teachers, primarily Gnostics who deny Christ came in the flesh, but John is speaking against any false prophets or Spirits who deny Christ is from God. It’s not a motivational speech to say, hey church, we can prosper, we can win, we can succeed because God is greater than the world. The context and John’s goal is to identify false teaching, false doctrine, and reject that falsehood. How do we reject falsehood? We know truth. Going back to the Psalm verse 151, God’s commands are true. To identify false teachers like 1 John says, you need to understand truth and God’s law the way the Psalmist does. Now vs 152 is a bit interesting to think about. The psalmist writes. “Long ago I learned from your statutes that you established them to last forever.” Sometimes Christians are tempted to only study the New Testament and ignore the Old Testament. But Jesus himself warned that not a letter of the law was passing away. He said in Matthew 5:17-18. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” As the Psalmist said, God intended for his statutes to be established to last forever. We read that Jesus was the completion of the law, that He fulfilled the Law. But that doesn’t mean the law and God’s statutes are done or expired. The completion of the law is more like a culmination, all the law points to and leads to and is fulfilled in Christ. When you look at the law and see the framework for what is right and what is wrong, that will never change. When you read the law and see certain things are clean and unclean, and there are ceremonies for purification or cleansing, those things all point to and exalt Christ. We don’t need to carry those out, because Christ completed them, but we should study and understand how Christ fulfilled them. When we read about penalties for transgression listed out, we can know that those penalties are what true justice looks like, and we can praise Christ all the more for taking our penalties upon Himself. We can look at what true justice would look like for us, and that will never pass away. We have that impending day of judgment which should rightfully lead to God’s wrath on us. But in Christ, we have seen that justice poured out on the Lamb who was slain for us! We are clothed in the Righteousness of the Perfect Son, and we are objects of Mercy according to God’s love.