Word of Salvation – Vol. 26 No. 39 – July 1980
A Resolution Threatened
Sermon by Rev. D. J. Van Garderen on Psalm 119:9
Scripture Reading: Psalm 119:1-16
Psalter Hymnal: 51:1, 2, 3, 4 94:1,2 (Hymn of Confession) OR 72:1,2 (used in conjunction with Apostles’ Creed) 237 (Response to the preaching of the word) 407 493
A RESOLUTION THREATENED
“How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.” (Psalm 119:9)
Dear congregation,
Having resolved, with God’s help and for His name’s sake, to be a child of God, the Psalmist is immediately confronted with a big question!
Once you set your mind on the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God…. WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN?
It seems to be a common enough experience in life that a firm decision is invariably followed by a time of DOUBTS. Salesmen speak of the “cooling off” period…. that is, the day after a customer has signed on the dotted line to buy something they believe they MUST have. It is like buying an encyclopaedia from a door-to-door salesman. He’s convinced you that you cannot do without this investment in your children’s future. Sign here! And the next morning?
In a much more profound sense, this kind of “game” is played very effectively by the devil in our own lives too. You go to a youth-camp. The atmosphere is terrific….. the singing, discussions and fellowship make you realise the strength of God, sets your heart to really go out and serve the Lord… to be a light that dazzles for the Lord Jesus Christ! You have changed… but when coming back to work, or school after the campout…. people haven’t! Good intentions, prayerful dependence upon God, and the blessed assurance of Christ, soon begins to wear thin.
From the dizzy heights of intimacy with the Lord… back to the reality of being IN the world and struggling NOT to be a part OF it. Not easy!
I believe that it is the sudden landing back to the ground AFTER reaching the spiritual heights of commitment, that forms the heart of the “Beth” section of Psalm 119!
Listen to the Psalmist…..
I. THE QUESTION OF PERSEVERANCE.
He has a question: Having resolved, in God’s strength and for God’s glory, to be be His servant…. “How can a young man KEEP his way pure? How can I now keep on walking the paths of righteousness for your name’s sake? How can I now keep away from impurity, from sin, corruption, evil thoughts and deeds? How can I stay on the narrow road once I have passed through the narrow gate?
We should neither under-estimate nor over-estimate the importance of this question as we are called to face it in our own lives as Christians!
(1) By warning against UNDER-ESTIMATING IT, I mean this: Do not for one moment forget that the moment God has, through the Holy Spirit, led us to Christ Jesus for forgiveness and renewal, a great battle begins. It is the battle within… between two, seemingly opposed wills. There is the will to serve and glorify God in word and deed. There is, in direct opposition, the will to serve and glorify our own natural desires and cravings. Have faith in God… trust in the Lord with all your heart, in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight! God? Where is He? Come on, it is much easier to believe in the things you can touch, see, smell and hear! They are much more fun. Have a go… everybody else does, and enjoys themselves much more than you and your straight-laced life-style of self-deprivation!
Indeed, the devil goes around like a roaring lion, seeking to devour whom he can. The battle is like a global war.
Said Paul: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Eph. 6:12).
My God… what forces at work to destroy the narrow gate and drive us off the narrow road!
I sometimes hear the Gospel being preaching as though it is the means of entering into a new a trouble-free “happy ha-ha”, type of life. “Pack up all your cares and woes, swinging low…!”
Never! The moment the evil one has us snatched from his dominion, from his clutches….. the battle is on. Just read the testimony of God’s saints in the Bible, about their own lives, and about the lives all of God’s children in Christ… and see how sober you must be!
(2) Also a warning against OVER-ESTIMATION of this question. How can a young man keep his way pure?
Some Christians, in hearing about the warnings of Scripture, in being struck hard with the flaming darts of the evil one bemoan their fate and cry: “Impossible!” Given the pressures of modern-life, of modern-learning, of society, it’s IMPOSSIBLE to expect anyone to live a holy, pure life.
The pressure is TOO great, and Christ demands that we reach impossibly high. We are called to reach for a pie that is simply too high in applying our faith. Many a Christian, looking at him or her self, seeing the troubles that smash upon them with the apparent size and strength of a tidal wave, conclude that THEIR burden is impossible to bear.
“No one, but no one has ever had to bear burdens the size of mine! Look at what is being inflicted upon me…. through my children, through my illness, through my financial set-backs, through the line of work I’m in! No, it’s impossible to stay on the road to eternal life!”
Plain nonsense! Not true says the word of God,
“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way so that you can stand up under it.” (1Cor.10:12,13).
And what about Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of your faith? Says the writer to the Hebrews: “Because he (Jesus) himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.” (Heb.2:18).
This is the same Jesus, who claims, with total justification and in truth: “ALL authority has been given to me….!” (Mat 28:18) and: “Come to ME, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Mat 11:28); If GOD is for us, if God, through His Spirit is in us to work and to will for His good pleasure…. WHO or WHAT can stand against Him?
The Psalmist, in assessing his spirit-led and strengthened choice to walk in the way of obedience and service to God, asks: “How can a young man keep his way pure?” Do not UNDER-estimate and do not OVER-estimate the future as you walk along God’s way!
II. THE GUIDANCE IN PERSEVERANCE:
Thus, having put the question, and knowing WHY it must be asked, here is the answer: “By LIVING according to your Word.” It is the WHAT to and HOW to of living according to God’s Word that is answered in the remainder of this section. In the battle of life…. persevering and being preserved along the narrow road, notice WHAT is to be done.
1. “I will seek you with all my heart…..!” No matter what, no matter when….! There must, all the time, be a determination to SEEK God’s presence and guidance. Face up to the realities of life: PRAY without ceasing and ask the Lord.
God, be HERE, right with me, in the situation where I am! Come close. God, now YOU show me what I should do…. tell me. Through his commands, the revelation of His will in the Bible, God DOES. God, now YOU help…. without you, without your strength and power, I can do nothing, I am nothing.
2. In order to HEAR God, to know His will it becomes necessary to heed the Psalmist’s counsel when he says: “I have hidden your words in my heart…!’ Earlier on, in the first section, he had spoken about “learning” God’s righteous laws….! THAT is the one way of transferring them to our hearts so that, just like a precious treasure, they may be safely hidden and deposited there. To fight thirst… we need water. To fight hunger… we need food. To fight temptation…. we need God’s Word, and that Word must be familiar to be accessible!
Is it not true that we stumble into all kinds of doubts and temptations precisely because we fail at that point? Familiarity with Scripture… THAT is so necessary when it comes to fighting against falling. Hand in hand with familiarity, there must also be a prayer…! A prayer that we will RECOUNT, bring to mind and apply the promises of God, that in recounting them there will be DELIGHTING in them, that is, trust in them.
You may understand what is meant here… All too often people reckon they KNOW what God wants, what He steadfastly promises…. BUT!
Think for example of some of the problems that tempt us from day to day. Troubles with faith… that feeling that you simply cannot believe it anymore, it is too much and God does not seem to be there to help anyone. You speak with such a person and venture to say: “But doesn’t GOD say in His word, that He is near to ALL who call upon him in truth?” “Don’t give me THAT. I KNOW all that…. but it doesn’t help me!”
It is like a man dying of thirst being offered water. He refuses it because somehow he has deluded himself into believing that the glass of water is merely a mirage. Drink man! IT IS real.
Turn to those treasured words, they ARE the words of life and comfort.
And FINDING these treasured words in times of doubt is indeed a matter of finding a well of living water! This the Psalmist knows: He drinks deeply and calls upon us all to do the same. He puts it into words with a series of resolutions, Spirit-inspired maxims as he gulps it down.
READ verses 14, 15, 16.
CONCLUDING REMARKS:
As all of us face the enormity of the implications of walking the road that leads to everlasting life, as we, like the pilgrim in John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress” embark on the road to the Holy City of God, after we have left our burden of sin at the cross, we find that the adversary is a terrible opponent. No holds are barred and no fouls are recognised by him. But as you walk the road, as you go the way of service, trust and obedience to God in Christ….! Take up the Word, treasure it in your heart, Use it as a shield and sword.
Amen.