It does turn again to God's Word
in the book of Psalms. I want to read in Psalm 119 and
the section beginning at verse 129. Reading 1, 2, 9 through to 1, 3, 6. Remember
how this Psalm, the longest of the Psalms is divided into 22
sections. At the head of each of the sections,
certainly in this Hobbit Bible, we have the letters of the Hebrew
alphabet. And here we have the letter Ha,
equivalent to our P. And of course, in the Hebrew,
each of the verses would begin with that particular letter. The whole of the psalm is built
around those 22 consonants of the Hebrew. It's an acrostic
poem in that sense. Interestingly, there's no vowels
in that alphabet. The vowels are indicated by the
pointing at the bottom of the words, but those who are proficient
in Hebrew can read apparently without the points, so they only
read from what they see in the consonants, but 22 sections,
the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet, and here we're reading
under the letter P. Thy testimonies are wonderful,
therefore doth my soul keep them. The entrance of thy words giveth
light, it giveth understanding under the simple. I open my mouth
and pant it, For I longed for thy commandments. Look thou upon
me, and be merciful unto me, as I used to do unto those that
love thy name. Order my steps in thy word, and
let not any iniquity have dominion over me. Deliver me from the
oppression of man, so will I keep thy precepts. Make thy face to
shine upon thy servants, and teach me thy statutes. Rivers
of waters run down my knives, because they keep not thy law. I want to take up the theme of
the entrance of God's words. The entrance of God's words.
as we have it here in the 130th verse, the entrance of thy words
giveth light. It giveth understanding unto
thee, simple. And dividing what I want to say
this morning into some three parts, first of all to say something
with regards to the Word of God, and then secondly to think about
the entrance of that Word of God, and then finally the effect
of that light. The entrance of thy words giveth
light. It giveth understanding unto
the simple. Now, this psalm in many ways,
like so many of the psalms, is in the form of a prayer to God. In the Psalms, of course, we
find the Psalmist time and again addressing himself to God, speaking
with God, praying to God, pleading with God. This is part of the
uniqueness of the book. It is God's revelation, it's
part of Holy Scripture, and all the Scriptures, of course, are
the Word of God, and in Scripture we have this special revelation. There is that general revelation
that we read of in the first part of the 19th Psalm, the heavens
declaring the glory of God and all the firmament in heaven showing
his handiwork and our day and night of speaking unto us. God
has spoken by his work of creation. He has revealed something of
his greatness and his glory He has revealed Himself also in
His government of the world, His providence, speaks to us
of His faithfulness, how we see Him as that One who is true and
good, who upholds His creatures, while the earth remaineth, seedtime
and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, do
not cease. There is that revelation on every
hand and so if men never hear the Word of God, yet they are
without excuse, they cannot say there is no God because God has
revealed himself those works of God declare the truth it is
the fool who says in his heart there is no God but in the scriptures
we have this this special revelation God speaks in his words but how
unique are the Psalms because here men speak to God And yet
as men are speaking to God, so God is speaking to men in and
through these words. And when we turn to the beginning
of the 119th Psalm, so quickly we see how the psalmist begins
to pry the opening verses of the psalm Blessed are the undefiled
in the way who walk in the Lord of the Lord. Blessed are they
that keep his testimonies and that seek him with the whole
hearts. They also do no iniquity. They walk in his ways. Now the psalmist is speaking
of those men who are seekers after God. But then all of a
sudden at verse 4 he begins to speak in the second person. He
doesn't speak about men, he doesn't speak about God, but he immediately
addresses God. He says at verse 4, Thou hast
commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently, O that my ways were
directed to keep thy statutes. Then shall I not be ashamed when
I have respect unto all thy commandments. So soon in the psalm then we
see the psalmist beginning to speak to God in prayer. The psalm
is principally then a prayer and yet it is not the word of
men, it's the word of God to us. And we're to remember how
all God's words are pure words. Here in the words that I've announced
as our text, we don't have the singular word, but we have the
plural words, the entrance of thy words. What is God's revelation? God's revelation to us is made
up of words. That's how God speaks. That's
how we communicate one with the other. And the wise man in Proverbs
reminds us every word of God is pure. We believe in the verbal
inspiration of Holy Scripture. What does that mean? We believe
that in the Hebrew of the Old Testament and the Greek of the
New Testament. It's not just men being inspired
in the way in which they're thinking and then seeking to express those
inspired thoughts in their own words. No. The very words that
they're employing are the words of God. And we're not to think,
therefore, that that verbal inspiration means that God just dictates
the words. And they write the words that
God dictates to them. It's not like that at all. God
does inspire them. And yet, in that inspiration,
they express themselves in their own particular and peculiar ways. And when we come to consider
the writings of the apostles in the New Testament, we see
that each have their own peculiar style and way of speaking, and
yet their very words are not their own words, they're all
the words of God. All scripture, says the Apostle
Paul, all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and I
think I've said this before, but that expression, by Inspiration
of God is just a single word that's being translated, but
it's one of those remarkable compound words. Literally, it
means all scripture is God's breath, God's breathing, given
by inspiration of God. when we come to speak there are
certain words that we we have to aspirate our breathing is
so necessary to our speaking and what is holy scripture it's
the breathings of God it is God himself who is speaking to us
and therefore that word of God is to be recognized by us and
we are to submit to its authority, we are to bow down before it.
The Lord Jesus says verily, till heaven and earth pass one jot
or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be
fulfilled. Christ speaks of the jots and
the tittles. What is a jot? Well, it's the
smallest of all the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, a very small
letter. If you were to look at this pulpit
Bible, the jot or the jones, is that it stands at the head
of verse 73. And that section, verse 73 to
verse 80, each of the verses begins with that particular letter. And it's such a small letter,
it's little more than a dot really, just a little squiggle, a little
squiggle as it were. And the Lord says, One jot or
one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled. All God's work, how we are to
reverence it, to recognize the authority of it. How those holy
men of God, they spake as they were moved by the Spirit of God. That's quite a statement that
that Peter is making there in 2 Peter 1.21 they were moved
he says and the verb is such a strong verb it literally means
to be to be borne along to be driven along remember it's that
same word that is used in the Acts of the Apostles in Acts
chapter 27 where Paul is being taken from Jerusalem, he's appealed
to Caesar, he's being taken to Rome and there's a great storm,
Eurocladon, as they are travelling across the Mediterranean and
the mariners have no control over the ship and they have to
leave the ship to the elements, to the winds and to the waves.
We are told that they let that vessel drive, we let her drive,
we were driven And that's exactly the same verb that is used with
regards to those holy men. They spoke as they were moved,
as they were driven, as they were carried along by the Holy
Ghost Himself. He inspired them in all their
writings. And so here, in this psalm, this
119th psalm, we have this remarkable, as it were, celebration of the
Word of God. Remember that in all of the verses,
there's only two exceptions, verse 122 and verse 132, but
in all the other words you'll find some reference to Scripture
under various synonyms. Sometimes it might say, the Lord
of God, or the Word of God, or the Statutes of God, or the Judgements
of God, or the Precepts of God. But throughout all the verses
of the Psalm, bar those two, there is some reference to that
Word of God that He has given, wherein God has granted to us
this remarkable revelation He has spoken. And so we read there
in that 19th Psalm, and it's not just a reference that we
have there to that general revelation in the opening verses of Psalm
19. The heavens are declaring the
glory of God. Day and night speak to us of
those glories, but then he goes on to speak more specifically
of the works. Verse 7, the law of the Lord
is perfect, converting the soul, the testimony of the Lord. He's
sure making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are
right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is
pure. And he goes on to speak of the fear of the Lord. The
fear of the Lord is clean, And then the judgments of the Lord
are true and righteous altogether. But amongst these various names,
these synonyms, one strange word that is given to Holy Scripture
is that of the fear. The fear of the Lord is clean,
enduring for ever. And all this word more to be
desired, are they that is God's words? more to be desired than
gold jade and much fine gold sweeter also than honey and the
honeycomb moreover by them is our servant warned and in keeping
of them there is great reward. Oh God grant that we might be
those then who recognize what Holy Scripture is to have this
high doctrine and it's not something that we're dreaming up, it's
rooted in the Word of God itself we are to recognize what we have
before us and what a favor, what a blessing, what a privilege
that when we come together we have this Word and we can attend
to it in the reading and in the preaching and everything must
be brought to this testimony, to the law says Isaiah, to the
Lord and to the testimony if they speak not according to this
Word It is because there is no light in them. God grant to us
each that spirit of the Bereans to search all things. Don't just
believe it because I say it or anyone who occupies this pulpit
or any pulpit. But rather seek that spirit of
the Bereans that we read of in the Acts and search the Scriptures
for ourselves to see that these things are so. The Word then
of God. Now Peter, we've already made
some reference to Peter speaking of those holy men of God, speaking
as they were moved, carried along, borne along, driven along by
the Spirit of God. Peter also says this, we have
also a more sure word of prophecy, where unto you do well that you
take heed as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until
the day dawn and the day star arise in your hearts. in many ways of course that hymn
that we sang our opening praise this morning is one that might
be said to be based on that particular verse those lines by Charles
Wesley and look at the language that we have there speaks of the day spring and
the day star, Christ whose glory fills the skies, Christ the true,
the only light, son of righteousness, arise, triumph over the shades
of night, day spring from on high, be near, day star in my
heart, appear. Ultimately, it is the Lord Jesus
Christ, the day star, arising in your heart. It's not enough
that we have God's word Before us on the page of Holy Scripture,
we need that that day star, as it were, arise in our hearts. And what do we read here in the
text this morning? We read the entrance. Mark those
words, the entrance of thy words giveth light, giveth understanding
unto the simple. Oh yes, we have God's words,
we thank God for that, the objective truth, everything brought to
that touchstone, but there must be some experience of the Word
of God, there must be some entrance of the Word of God, and I want
us to turn in the second place to that truth. We often sing
another hymn, the 31st hymn. I suppose we all have our five-ish
hymns, and I know sometimes I think I have this hymn too often, but
their heart says a form of words aware so sound can never save
a soul. The Holy Ghost must give the
wound and make the wound it hold and then he speaks of various
doctrines. that God's election is a truth
small comfort there I see till I am told by God's own mouth
that he has chosen me we want God to come and we want God to
address us and deal with us and speak to us we want God's word
as it were to enter into our very being to sink into the depths
of our soul are we not reminded by James of how important that
is we are to receive with meekness the engrafted Word all we have
the Word in Holy Scripture but now we need that Word to be taken
and brought home and applied sinking into our hearts receive
with meekness the engrafted Word says James that is able to save
your soul that really is the great promise of the New Covenant
When we think of the old covenant, the covenant at Mount Sinai,
it is God's law that is there written on tables of stone. Remember how the prophets speak
of the new covenant. They speak of that covenant of
grace, the language that we find, for example, in Jeremiah 31. and there at verse 31, Jeremiah
31 31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make
a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house
of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their
fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them
out of the land of Egypt, which my covenant they break, although
I was a husband unto them, saith the LORD, but This shall be the
covenant that I will make with the house of Israel. After those
days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts,
and write it in their hearts, and will be their gods, and they
shall be my people. And they shall teach no more
every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know
the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least of them
unto the greatest of them saith the Lord for I will forgive their
iniquity and I will remember their sin no more. It's a promise
of the gospel. It's a promise of the coming
of Christ and the accomplishment of that great work of salvation
and we know that. It's indisputable because when
we turn to Hebrews there in Hebrews chapter 8 at verse 7 following
the Apostle takes up those words we've just read and speaks in
terms of the Gospel. The old has gone and the new
has come. And what is that new Gospel? It's that word, that engrafted
word, that implanted word, that word that comes into the heart. And believe us then, as Paul
says when writing to the Corinthians, believers are as epistles, read
and known of all men. Look at the language there in
2 Corinthians 3, 3. For as much as you are manifestly,
he says, declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written
not with ink, but with the Spirit of the Living God, not in tables
of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart." That is the entrance. It's not enough to have God's
Word. Oh yes, we appreciate that, we appeal to that, the objective
truth, we need to recognize that, but how we need that that Word
should be brought home and applied, made real in our souls. It's the entrance. The entrance
of thy words giveth light. Isn't this what the Lord Jesus
Christ himself makes so plain? There in Luke 17, when the scribes
and the Pharisees come and they want to know about the coming
of the Kingdom of God, but they're looking for something. But Christ
says, look, it doesn't come with observation, it doesn't come
with outward show, it's no good saying, no it's here or no it's
there. No, Christ says the kingdom of God is within you. His kingdom
is not of this world, it's a spiritual kingdom. It is that that comes
into the souls of sinners. now we have to examine ourselves
and prove ourselves and know ourselves and can we say that
we've known and experienced something of that the entrance of the word
of God into our souls when the apostle writes to the Thessalonians
those lovely epistles those two epistles to the Thessalonians
and we see there how tender Paul is He's like a father, he's like
a nursing mother. He's concerned for them. They're
very tender epistles, those two epistles to the Thessalonians.
But what does Paul say when he writes in the opening chapter
of the first epistle? He reminds them of the coming
of the gospel to them. Our gospel came not unto you
in word only, he says. Oh, it comes in word. As I've
just said, this is how God has revealed Himself, this is the
special revelation that God has given us in Holy Scripture. It's verbal. But it's not just
in words. As those Thessalonians proved,
our Gospel came not unto you in word only, but in power, he
says, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance. that's how God's word has to
come to us it has to come as it were and take possession of
our hearts to change the figure it then becomes meat and drink
to the soul does it not? again when Paul writes to the
church at Rome in Romans 6.17 he speaks of that form of doctrine
which was delivered you speaking of the ministry that he had exercised
the truth that had come to them that form of doctrine he says
that was delivered you but it's interesting I do find this at
times quite instructive to to look at the margin because sometimes
we have an alternative reading in the margin sometimes the marginal
reading helps us best to understand exactly what the apostle, or
whoever he's writing, is really saying. And there in Romans 6.17,
the margin says, that form of doctrine, where to ye were delivered. Oh yes, it was delivered to them,
when Paul and the others are preaching, but as it is delivered
to them so they are also delivered over to that gospel to that doctrine
that form of doctrine where to ye were delivered now the interesting
thing is that that word form and it's the key word in that
text that form of doctrine That form of doctrine which was delivered
you, that form of doctrine where to you were delivered. Now the
word form, it's the word for type, it's the word tupos. Normally it is translated, simply
transliterated, it becomes type. That type of doctrine. But what
are we to understand by the word type there? Well, it's speaking
of a pattern. And it's helpful sometimes to
use the illustration. We can think of a foundry, we
can think of those men who are working in the pattern shop,
and they make the patterns out of fine sand oftentimes, and
then they take the molten metal and they pour it into that pattern,
and the shape that has been formed in the fine sand all the molten
metal fills that shape and so you have that that is to be produced
it's the reproduction of what is there in the pattern and that's
how it is with the word of God our souls as it were have to
be poured into that pattern And what is that pattern? It's the
Lord Jesus Christ. And so ultimately, it's Christ
in you, the hope of glory. When God's Word comes, remember
that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself is the Word of God. Oh yes, we
have the Word in Holy Scripture, but we also have the Word incarnate.
You know the language there at the beginning of John chapter
1 concerning Christ? In the beginning was the Word,
The Word was with God, the Word was God. The same was in the
beginning with God, all things were made by Him. Without Him
was not anything made that was made. Clearly John is declaring
the Deity, the Lord Jesus Christ is God, He is the eternal Son
of God. Now the Word was made flesh,
he says, and we beheld His glory. What was His glory? The glory
as of the only begotten. He is the only begotten of the
Father, the only begotten Son, full of grace and truth. He is that Word. And what is
to happen? Why, when the Word of God comes
to us, when Christ comes to us, it's not just us receiving Christ,
but it's us being formed and fashioned after the image of
the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ in us, the hope of glory. Oh how we need the entrance of
that Word of God, that Word to come to us, and to take hold
of us, and for Christ to be formed in us. This is that the psalmist
is speaking of here in our text, it's the entrance of the Word.
We have it objectively. in Holy Scripture, but it is
also to be subjective. We're to be receiving it. We're
to be formed and fashioned after it. Now, in the third place this
morning, what is the effect? What is the effect of this light? Well, we have parallel statements,
as is so often the case in these verses in the Psalms. We have
the same truth declared in each part of the verse. And so the second clause often
will throw further light upon the first clause. The clauses
interpret one another. The entrance of thy word giveth
light. What is it for it to give light? It giveth understanding
unto the simple. Or the entrance of the word brings
with it an understanding. and what is that understanding?
well we have to come to an understanding with regards to two things with
regards to ourselves and then also with regards to him who
is the only saviour of sinners the entrance of thy word giveth
light it's the sight of self in thy light we read in another
psalm, in thy light shall we see light. Who are we those who desire that
we might know the effect of that light? To be shown what we are,
to see ourselves in all the fullness of that light of the gospel.
Remember how James speaks of that man who beholds himself
in the glass, as it were, in the looking mirror. And then
he goes his way and forgets what manner of man he was. We want a different spirit to
that. As St. John Teller said in those
opening verses of the Gospel that bears his name, the light
shineth in the darkness. He says, and the darkness comprehendeth
it not. What does that mean? Here is
the light and it shines when we think of our own souls. What are we by nature? We are
those who are in darkness, having the understanding darkened. In
the language of Ephesians 4, having the understanding darkened,
alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is
in us because of the blindness of our hearts. The light shines
in the darkness. and the darkness comprehendeth
it not it's interesting it's the same word comprehendeth there
that is used in Philippians chapter 3 where it's rendered apprehend
remember how in that third chapter of Philippians Paul speaks of
being apprehended of the Lord Jesus Christ the basic meaning
of the word is to is to seize, to lay hold that helps us really when we
consider what is being said back in in John 1.5 the light shineth
in the darkness and the darkness comprehendeth, apprehendeth apprehendeth it not is not able
to seize it or to lay hold of it know that light has to come
and lay hold of us and that's what it does all things that
are reproved are made manifest by light for whatsoever does
make manifest is the light we cannot seize that or overcome
that when God comes by his spirit in his word When God comes in
all that convincing and convicting power, then we're made to see
what we are. Then we're not like that man
in James who sees himself and goes his way and forgets what
manner of man he is. No, then the Lord is dealing
with us. We have an understanding then of just what we are and
where we are. If we change the figure, remember
what we have in Hebrews 4, where God's Word is likened on to that
that two-edged sword that pierces the Word of God quick and powerful
sharper than the two-edged sword piercing to the dividing asunder
of soul and spirit of the joints and marrow a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart it's a different figure but it's
the same truth when God's Word enters, when God's Word comes
to us does it not trouble us? does it not bring conviction?
do we not see what we are? If the Bible is truly a revelation
of God, and that's what it is, God is revealing himself here
in Holy Scripture, not just his majesty and his glory as we see
in creation, not just his faithfulness, His truthfulness as we see in
his works of providence but in scripture how God is revealing
himself as that one who is holy and righteous and just but also
gracious and good and merciful and kind and compassionate. Oh
what a revelation we have, we see in holy scripture God and we see something of the wonder
of all that God is and man of course initially made in God's
image created after God's likeness and oh when we look into this
world what do we see? we see how that image of God
in us has been so defaced we see how we have fallen short
of the glory of God what does God's word do? it shows us ourselves
The entrance of thy word give us light, it gives us an understanding.
We are such simple souls. We don't understand anything.
The light shineth in the darkness but the darkness cannot comprehend
it. Oh, this is what God does in
when he comes. There's that sight of self. But there's also this when we
come to Holy Scripture, there's that revelation of the Savior,
there's that sight of the Lord Jesus Christ. What does he say?
I am the light of the world. He that followeth me shall not
walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. It's the Lord
Jesus, you see, that gives light. The entrance of thy words giveth
light. As I said, it's the Lord Jesus
who is that One who is the Word of God. Our God has spoken in
these last times. And how has God spoken in these
last times? He has spoken by His Son. There
is the fullness of the revelation of God as we see in the opening
words of the epistle to the Hebrews. At sundry times, in diverse manner,
His spaking time passed unto the fathers by the prophets,
those holy men of God who spoke as they were moved by the Spirit
of God, but now He has spoken unto us by His Son. The brightness
of His image, or the brightness of His glory, the express image
of His person. It's the sight of the Lord Jesus
Christ that ultimately we are we're to be seeking after and
desiring that we might behold Him but behold Him not only in
Holy Scripture but know what it is for that revelation of
Christ to enter into our very souls. We'll remember the language
of the Apostle there in 2 Corinthians 4 and verse 6. He speaks of God
who commanded the light to shine out of darkness. And it was at
the beginning God said, let there be light and there was light.
In that great work of creation. But what of when God comes to
do a work in the soul of the sinner? That new creation. God who commanded the light to
shine out of darkness, says Paul, has shined in our hearts to give
the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face
of Jesus Christ. Oh, what a light is this. What
is it marked by? Simplicity and humility. It giveth understanding unto
the simple. These simple ones, these simple
souls, how they feel what they are, their ignorance and their
sin. Oh, how they grieve over these
things. They need the Lord Himself to
teach them. Is that how we come with that
meekness of spirit? We want the Lord to be our teacher. Show me thy ways, O Lord. Teach
me thy paths, says David in the psalm. And that promise, the
secret of the Lord, it is with them that fear Him. He will show
them His covenant. or we need the Lord to be our
teacher, we need the Lord himself to come and show us these things. How the light is to be seen then in the Lord
Jesus Christ when he declares himself to be that one who is
the light. I am the light of the world. those I AM statements. It's but
one of those many statements that we have in John's Gospel.
It's the Lord to come and to reveal Himself, to make Himself
known, to make Himself real to us. Why we read those words at
the end of the 97th Psalm, light is shown for the righteous and
gladness for the upright in heart. Or that that might be for us,
that that might be our portion, that light being sold, that light
entering into our very souls, the entrance of thy words, give
us light, give us understanding onto the simple, to come then
with all that simplicity of mind, all that singleness of mind,
to be those who would desire unto God to be godless, to be
taught of Him, to receive from Him that revelation, to be made
to see what we are, where we are. But more than that, to be
those who are shown that in Christ there is all that fullness, all
that blessing of salvation, or the Lord grant them, that are
coming under His Word. might have such a blessed effect
upon us. The Lord bless. His word to us.