McNeil, William: Psalm 119-02 Beth ~ Stanza 2-Vs. 8-16

And now today we continue with our meditations in the hundred and nineteenth Psalm. Yesterday we considered the first stanza, that is the first eight verses. Today we shall look at the second stanza from verse nine through verse sixteen, And you'll keep in mind that the whole of this Psalm is made up of twenty two stanzas with eight verses in each of them. I'm reading then the second stanza in Psalm one hundred and nineteen. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee. Oh, let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Blessed art thou, O Lord, teach me thy statutes. With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth. I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies as much as in all riches. I will meditate in thy precepts and have respect unto thy ways. I will delight myself in thy statutes. I will not forget thy word. And I'm sure the Lord will bless to us the reading of these verses. Now, I'm sure of this, that many of my listeners today, even if they didn't know where these words were found, that on many an occasion, you've either listened to someone quote these words, or you have learned to recite them. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. That used to be one of the verses that children were taught in the Sunday school. They had to memorize it. Or, at verse nine, wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? Now, throughout this particular stanza, it seems to be there is the concern of the exercised heart. You see, a person is exercised, and they have a concern to do the right thing. And then there is the course to be followed, and there is the chart to be examined. Now, one of the most important questions to be considered by any exercised young man is this: how can he cleanse his way? If a young man looks around in the world, he discovers that the ways of the world are defiled. I often tell young folks today that you only need to look around you and you discover you're living in a filthy world. And it's so easy to get yourself defiled. The Bible tells us we have to endeavor to keep our garments and keep them unspotted from the filth of the world. And so therefore, as you look around and you see the ways of the world, you see the world defiled. And to become involved in the sinful customs and conversations of the world will only bring vexation of soul and leave scars on the memory and blemishes on the character and a burning conviction on the conscience. If one takes time to look within and search the chambers of the soul, he will arrive at the conclusion that his heart simply reflects the character of the filthy world in which he lives. You'll also come to the conclusion that you have inherited a sinful nature, which is at enmity with the character and requirements of a holy God. When a sinner is convicted of his state and desires to be right with God, he will cry out in the language of the Psalm, wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his ways? You know, a young lad doesn't require to be very long mingling with other men of the world before he finds that his thoughts have become defiled. He is listening to defiling language. He listens to defiling suggestions, and before long these things, like the birds that come resting in the trees, they come and they find a resting place in his memory. And at some time or another, they make the presence felt, and he begins to discover that his mind is somewhat defiled, not only by what he hears, but sometimes the mind and the heart becomes defiled by what we see. That's the reason that so many people at the present time have an exercise about pornography. The youth of our land is being polluted. Their minds are being polluted and defiled by pornography. So it's not only what people read, but what they see and what they hear that can defile the mind. And so, when they become convicted of these things, they're crying out in this language, wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? In his concern for a pure life that will receive the approval of God, and may I stop here and ask, as it were, if there's a young man listening to my voice today, let me ask you, do you want to have the approval of God on your way of life? Are you seeking God's approval? For you know perfectly well God will not give you his approval if you're living in sin. But if you want to live a pure life, a life that will receive the approval of God, then as a young man, you must have the right direction and be ready to follow the correct course. And the Psalm tells us how that is done, by taking heed thereto. Remember, the dangers of life are so subtle and so destructive that a young man cannot afford to be thoughtless or careless, presumptuous or self-confident. If we should become careless, we'll fall into the trap. If we become presumptuous, we'll think we can do it and get off with it. If we become self-confident, well, we get to the point where there's no one going to stop me. There is a very special need for taking heed to one's ways in life, and this should be done according to God's word. The Bible, which is the word of God, is given to us like a chart to show us the true way, but it must be examined and obeyed and applied in all of its precepts. For instance, let me use the illustration again. Suppose you were going on a journey. Someone gave you a map, and they marked out on the map the roads you were to take, showed you exactly where you were to take a right hand turn or a left hand turn, and so on. And you took the map and you laid it in your car, but you never looked at it. And someone said to you, do you know where you're going? You said, oh yes, I know where I'm going, I've got a map. Well, have you looked at your map? No, I've got the map there, all right. May I ask you, my friend, what good was the map to you if you never examined it? All right. Might I ask you this? What good is a Bible to you if you never read it? You see, the Bible, which is the word of God, is given to us like a chart to show us the true way. If you never read it, you'll never understand the true way. You see, what the word says here is this: How shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. You see, we take heed to our way of life according to the standards laid down in the word of God. You see, the word must be examined and obeyed and applied in all of its precepts. At the commencement of life's voyage, we need to have the right direction. If we don't have the right direction, then we'll just become a drifter. And during the voyage, it is necessary to hold to the correct course if we expect to arrive at the right destination with joy. It's a very strange thing, you know, that when a certain sailor set out to sail the Atlantic Ocean, he came over here and discovered what is now known as the Western Hemisphere, but then when he set out from Europe, he was going to go to India, But he landed here. You see, he was going to find a new way to go to India, and he landed here in the American continent. You know, we've got to have our correct course. If we have the correct course and we have our chart, we can expect to arrive at the right destination, and we'll do so with joy. Now, the Bible makes it perfectly clear that sin is a defiling thing, and that God calls for the sinner to be cleansed and has provided the means of cleansing. Now, having decided that the way to live a Christian life is by careful watching and diligently applying the teachings of the Word of God, the psalmist then expresses his purpose in life when he says, with my whole heart have I sought thee. That's verse ten. With my whole heart have I sought thee. You know, there's such a thing as being half-hearted. Oh, there is such a thing also as being faint-hearted. But you know, i- if a man is playing at some game and he's one member of the team and he doesn't put his whole heart into it, he's not giving his best, and perhaps the team loses. It's expected that every member on the team will give his best, his whole heart, and you know as well as I do how that men who go in for sport, they put their whole heart into it. A lot of men who go in for business, they put their whole heart into business, and you admire them for these things. Then why don't we put our whole heart into the things of God? He says, with my whole heart have I sought thee. Oh, let me not wander from thy commandments. Plain words. Giving attention to God's word is good and profitable, but the sure mode of cleansing the life is to spend time in fellowship with God himself. Having stated his purpose in life, that is, to seek God's presence diligently with the whole heart. See, with my whole heart have I sought thee. Now, where do you seek God today? Surely it's by reading the scriptures, reading the word, God speaks to you, and then in prayer you speak to God. So to seek God's presence diligently with the whole heart should be our object in life. The psalmist then immediately realizes how prone he is to wander from the straight and narrow way. Now, if he was prone to do that, so are we. He says, oh, let me not wander from thy commandments. So he's crying this out as a prayer, and while he's in communion with God, he's saying, oh, let me not wander from thy commandments. And may I suggest the young man, or any Christian, who takes time to cry out that prayer in the presence of God, in reality, oh, let me not wander from thy commandments, that young man will be kept, he'll be preserved. The more a person is set upon pleasing God in all things, the more that person dreads falling into sin. Now, having positively sought the presence of God, the psalmist pours out his heart in prayer as he beseeches God to prevent him from leaving the path of righteousness. Is it possible that someone listening to this message is in a state of spiritual confusion, or should I say, soul depression, because of the consciousness of sin in the life, which is blasting and withering the moral fiber. Instead of turning to God and seeking his forgiveness and cleansing, you have been running away from God. Now, may I remind you this time, my friend, you cannot run from God, although you try it. And you try to run from God, you can't do it. Jonah tried to run away from God and had to pay an awful price. Don't try running away from God. But if you have been running away from God or trying to and seeking to hide from him, why not follow the example of the psalmist and seek the Lord, that is, turn back again. Seek the Lord with your whole heart, and in true confession, look to the Savior, who is both willing and able to cleanse you from all sin. The man who sets his desire on living a clean life, in accordance, of course, with the holy requirements of God, will learn how to value and apply the word of God, and he'll do so in a practical manner. Now, notice what verse eleven says. Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee. Here we have the best thing in the best place for the best purpose. It's the best thing. It's the word of God. It's the best place. It's hid in the heart for the best purpose to prevent us from sinning against God. Now, if bread is stored in the cupboard, it could become stale and useless, or of course, it could be eaten by rodents. But when it is fresh and taken into the body, it is the staff of life. And likewise, the word of God is food for the soul and must be gathered and assimilated as a daily portion and laid up in the heart. Seed is a very valuable thing, but in order to produce, it must be planted in suitable soil. And likewise, the seed of the Word must be received into the innermost recesses of the heart, in order to produce in the life the fruit that is answerable to the character of the Holy Word of the Holy God. The psalmist is storing the Word in his heart with this object in view, that the knowledge of God's will as revealed in the Word will prevent him from sinning against God. It seems to be a settled principle that if we keep God's Word in our heart, it will keep us from sin. We receive the Word with all readiness of heart and retain the Word as a valuable treasure and reproduce in the life that which is acceptable to God. During the temptation of the Lord Jesus by the devil, it is worthy of note that three times the Lord answered the tempter with these words, it is written, and then gave quotations from the Holy Scriptures. The man who hides the word of God in his heart is able to meet every emergency in life, and in his contemplation of God, he sees God in his true character and says, blessed art thou, O Lord, teach me thy statutes. Let it be observed how decisive are these brief statements, and they show us that we cannot perform God's commandments by human strength or efforts. When God blesses us, he confers something on us, but when we bless God, we simply acknowledge what he is. That means we can eulogize. Now, because God is the blessed God, the psalmist cries out, teach me thy statutes. The answer to that prayer may be found in the words of the Lord Jesus when he said, come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. Now, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh. And when the mind and the heart have been purified by God's word, and the precious truths of God have been stored in the clean heart, then the lips will begin to speak of the wonderful works of God, and testimony will be given concerning all the judgments which God has made known. As the psalmist tells of his testimony concerning the judgments of God, he immediately thinks of how these things have affected his own manner of life, and he says, I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies as much as in all riches. Now remember, the riches of this world may be acquired with great difficulty, and they may be retained with much trembling and with much anxiety. And if these riches become lost, they bring much sorrow. But to be obedient to the testimonies of God and walk in the way of the Lord is more valuable than silver or gold, and is counted as riches untold. In the light of these spiritual blessings, the psalmist looks to the future and declares four things he's determined to do. First, he will meditate in God's precepts. Have you noticed that? Verse fifteen: I will meditate in thy precepts. Meditation is a great thing, and if we learn how to meditate in his precepts, it will stand us in good stead. Second, he will have respect unto God's way. See what it says, I will meditate in thy precepts and have respect unto thy ways. It's a good thing when we can respect the ways of the Lord. Third, he will delight himself in God's statutes. That's verse sixteen. I will delight myself in thy statutes. Then there is the fourth thing, he will not forget God's word, which means his life will be controlled by the revealed will of God. He will receive God's word into his heart. He will respect God's word as the standard of holiness. He will rejoice in the keeping of God's statutes, and he will remember God's word at all times. You know, how often have some of you sung that old hymn? When we walk with the Lord in the light of his word, what a glory he sheds on our way. When we do his good will, he abides with us still and with all who will trust and obey. So therefore, my friend, as you look at the second stanza of this wonderful psalm, you will take note again of the great value that the psalmist places upon the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God. Not simply as a treasure to be valued in the sense of so much money, but as something that's going to control his life. He's going to make the word of God his own, as it were. And he says that I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies that brings them joy. Therefore, I'll take time to think of them. I'll meditate in thy precepts. I'll have respect unto thy ways. I will delight myself in thy statutes. I will not forget thy word. And I do trust to those who are listening to this broadcast that you've also come to that point in life where you realize the value of the Holy Scriptures, and that you'll read them, meditate upon them, and apply them in a very practical way to everyday living.