Well let's turn then once again
to Psalm 119 and this evening we'll read from verses 73 to
76. Psalm 119 from verse 73 to 76. Thy hands have made me and
fashioned me. Give me understanding that I
may learn thy commandments. They that fear thee will be glad
when they see me, because I have hoped in thy word. I know, O
Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness
hast afflicted me. Let, I pray thee, thy merciful
kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant." Well, we may be perhaps surprised
that the Sami should write such words as this when he commences
acknowledging the greatness of God and saying, thy hands have
made me and fashioned me. And of course that's so true
of everyone who is born into this world. It is God who has
made us. It is God that has given us life. Without God, we would not be
formed. Without God, we would not have
life. So it's good indeed for us to
acknowledge the greatness of God and understand what Job says,
sorry, what the Psalmist says, thy hands have made me and fashioned
me. And because of that, he comes
and he prays. Give me understanding that I
may learn thy commandments. Well, it's a great blessing if
God instructs us and gives us an understanding of his word,
an understanding of his truth, so that he asks that he might
know and learn God's truth, And what a blessing it is if we have
that same desire, not to just recognize that the Bible is the
Word of God, to be able to study it and to follow the teaching
which it contains, and have that desire to give us a spiritual
understanding that we may learn thy commandments. The Word of
God has many very interesting and wonderful accounts. But the
great need, of course, is to realize that God gives us that
spiritual understanding to learn about him and learn about his
way. And he comes, therefore, and
tells us these things. And as we read in Job, just referring
to a couple of verses, in Job 10, verses 8 to 9, thy hands have made me and fashioned me
together round about, yet thou dost destroy me. Remember, I
beseech thee, that thou hast made me as the clay, and wilt
thou bring me into dust again. He comes to God, doesn't he,
desiring that God may not pass him by and he may realize that
he's only a poor sinner indeed one effectively made of clay
and then he goes on they that fear thee will be glad when they
see me because i have hoped in thy word Well, it's a blessing
if you and I hope in thy Word, the Word of God. And of course,
the Word is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. So it's good
to ask ourselves, is that our hope? He tells us, I have hoped
in thy Word. Do we hope in God's promises? Do we hope in the Word? the Lord Jesus Christ. What a
great blessing if it is. And then we're able to join and
say, they that fear thee will be glad when they see me. And
surely the church of God are glad when, by faith, they see
the Saviour. Well, what a blessing if you
and I, by faith, have viewed the Saviour. and view the Saviour
as the only begotten Son of God, and view Him as that One who
has come into this world to redeem our souls. Will we have a view
of the Saviour like that? What a great blessing it is,
and how wonderful to know that the Lord is gracious and mindful
of us. May we amongst those then who
truly hope in the Word, hope in the Saviour and in no one
else. There's no one else that can
save our souls. It's in Christ and Christ alone. O Lord, I know, O Lord, that
thy judgments are right and that thou, in faithfulness, hast afflicted
me. Again really that picks up the
comments that we read in that chapter in Job and how good it
is to realize that God's judgments are right. Sometimes we find
God's judgments in our life. We may wonder why we have to
walk a certain path, why we have to come in certain ways. But the psalmist says, I know,
O Lord, that thy judgments are right, and God in love instructs
us, in love brings us into judgments, and that thou in faithfulness
hast afflicted me. You see, he really doesn't afflict
willingly. He afflicts for our benefit. He brings us into times of affliction,
so that we are able to recognize the mercy of God and be able
to say, it is good that I have been afflicted. We don't say
that naturally. Man never wants to be afflicted.
But if God afflicts us, so that perhaps we have to consider our
way perhaps we have to ponder the steps of our feet and that
thou in faithfulness God is faithful he deals with his people in love
to their souls and what a mercy if he deals with us in love to
our soul and in order to bring us near to himself he brings
us in that pathway of affliction let I pray thee thy merciful
kindness be for my comfort according to thy word and to thy servant in psalm 89 we read words which
are very similar really and the psalmist there says if his children
forsake my law and walk not in my judgments if they break my
statutes and keep not my commandments, then will I visit their transgression
with the rod and their iniquity with stripes. We perhaps think
that applies to everybody else. We don't think it applies to
us, but it's good when the Lord shows us the need we have of
God to deal with us. And we're told as he continues,
nevertheless, my loving kindness will I not utterly take from
him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not
break, nor after the thing that has gone out of my lip. So what
do we observe? We observe God's love toward
us. He's dealing with us in love
to our souls to make us conformable unto his image. These things
don't occur unless the Lord works in our hearts, but it is a pathway
of blessing and a pathway of favour. So may we recognise the
great truth, let I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for
my comfort. This is God's merciful kindness
and it is for our comfort according to thy word unto thy servant. Well may the Lord bless to us
his word and these few comments for his great namesake.