Surely it's very wonderful and
very beautiful actually to be able to read such a psalm as
this which records in detail the desires and the soul's condition
of David as he journeyed on through life. And as we are therefore
privileged to read such an account may it be that you and I are
able to trace out our spiritual experience alongside that of
David and therefore have the evidence that we indeed are with
David and indeed are born again of the same blessed eternal Spirit
of God. And so he commences this section
by saying, thy testimony is are wonderful. Really he's telling
us the Word of God is wonderful. And so it is, from beginning
to end, it's so coherent and it's so glorious in the way that
the words are formulated, the sentences are formulated, and
how we see in so many places God's honour and glory set before
us. And so David here comes and tells
us, thy testimonies are wonderful. Won't it be a great blessing
for you and me as we look into our own hearts and look into
our own lives and are able to find there God's work, God's
favour, God's blessing to us, to our very souls and therefore
are able to join hand in hand with David and agree, thy testimonies
are wonderful. Well, they are. And it's a great
mercy to realise that we have a God who's given us his word,
who's given us so much to be thankful for, so many glorious
descriptions of our God. God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Holy Spirit. And to be able to trace out their
work, a wonderful work, and all unites together. There's no schism
in the things of God. They're all wonderful, and they
all are in unity. And then he goes on to say, therefore
doth my soul keep them. they're so wonderful he doesn't
want to depart from them he doesn't want to leave them untouched
he wants his innermost soul his spiritual being to keep hold
of the great and glorious truths of God well may that be our desire
and our concern if God has spoken to us may we hang on to those
words may we keep them May we rejoice in them and may we truly
bless God for them. He now moves on and tells us,
the entrance of thy words giveth light. I wonder if you and I
can both agree with such a statement. What it really means is, as you
and I read the Bible and read the words of God, that the light
from heaven shines onto those words and it gives us spiritual
light indeed it gives us that light which is eternal and it
gives us the light of God and especially as we think it shines
and sets forth the glory of the Saviour who tells us I am the
light of the world. And what a blessing if the glorious
Saviour is our light, that light which shines upon the road, shines
upon our path, so that we can go back and remember the earlier
words in the 105th verse of this same psalm, Thy word is a lamp
unto my feet and a light unto my path. Well may it be so. And if it is so, we will rejoice
in it the entrance when God's word comes into our hearts it
giveth light it giveth understanding unto the simple that's an amazing
statement isn't it? we don't have to have a great
natural knowledge we don't have to be a very academic person
because the word of God is simple Praise God for it. And it gives
to us, to us simple beings, that spiritual understanding which
leads us and guides us and directs us along through life. Oh, it's a great blessing, isn't
it? To think that God, in his mercy, has given us his word. We're blessed to have it in our
own language. We're able to read it. We don't
have to fear people coming and taking the Bibles from us, like
that which occurred centuries ago. And so how we can rejoice
in it. And so he tells us, for I open
my mouth. and panted, for I longed for
thy commandments.' We read tonight that 42nd Psalm where again David
tells us in wonderfully simple terms, he says, as the heart
panted after the water brook, so panteth my soul after Thee,
O God. So we have a very gracious and
simple illustration. He tells us here, I opened my
mouth and panted. He tells us here in this 42nd
Psalm, as the heart panteth after the water brooks, after running,
the heart's thirsty, needed water, and it panted after the water
brooks. And so, he tells us, so panteth my soul after thee,
O God. Well, what a blessing it is if
we do pant after God, pant after the knowledge of God, pant after
the revelation of God, pant after the truth that is to be found
in Jesus. I opened my mouth, he says, and
panted For I longed for thy commandments. We may think with regard to this
description when he tells us, I open my mouth, surely that
is in prayer to his God. He was praying that his God would
indeed be with him. His God would indeed bless him.
He was hungry and thirsty for spiritual revelations. For I
longed for thy commandments. What a good thing it is when
you and I have a longing after the things of God they're the
cheapest good in our lives the things that we look forward to
the things that we long for for I longed for thy commandments
and then he comes and tells us look thou upon me yes look thou
upon me he wanted God to look upon him just like that dying
thief who said Lord remember me when thou comest into thy
kingdom. And the true believer desires
that God would remember us and God would look upon us and God
would remember us with that favour he bears unto his people. Lord, look thou upon me and be
merciful unto me. He needed the mercy of God and
so do we continually. We're sinners, aren't we? We're
not free from sin. We sin and we need God's mercy
to be toward us and be merciful unto me. And then he brings this
final statement, as thou us'st to do unto those that love thy
name. And really you and I can search
the scriptures and find there so many glorious evidences of
God's love to unworthy sinners. and those who rejoiced in His
goodness, who rejoiced in His favour, and recognise this great
truth, we love Him because He first loved us. You see, it's all of God's mercy. It's all of God's favour. to think he looked upon us, he
saw me ruined in the fall, yet loved me notwithstanding all. What a great God we have. May
we tonight rejoice in his love and be able to testify of the
truth of these words in our own soul's personal experience. Well, may God bless these few
thoughts and help us now.