The Word is Right - Part 2 of 2

Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer's praise, The worries of my God and King, the triumphs of His grace. This is LeSary Braley Jr. welcoming you to another broadcast of the Baptist Bible Hour. We continue our study in Psalm 119, our subject, The Word is Right. And that's reassuring to know that we can go someplace and find that which is absolutely true. And that is, of course, God's Word.

If the broadcasts are a blessing to you, we'd love to hear from you. Our address is Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. Well, then we look at the sixth chapter. Same message, Sermon on the Mount.

This is the longest discourse recorded that Jesus delivered. And in verse 14 of chapter 6, he says, For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. We've been taught in this model prayer to pray, Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. The lesson is, you cannot come before God saying, Lord, forgive me while you refuse to forgive others. If you refuse to forgive, your Father will not forgive you.

What's that mean? Obviously, it's not suggesting that someone who is a child of grace would lose his standing the family of God, that someone who was saved would lose his salvation, but it certainly indicates that it's going to disrupt and terribly mar the fellowship that you would have with your heavenly Father. I think as a matter of fact, it may convey the thought that's presented to us in the 18th chapter of the book of Matthew, when we read about that man who owed such a tremendous debt that he could not pay it. But even he did not grasp the magnitude of the debt and the impossibility of paying it back because he said, if you'll give me time, I will pay it.

But his Lord recognized the impossibility of it. He could never have paid it back. He couldn't have lived long enough to pay back this tremendous debt.

So he said, I forgive you. The debt is canceled. And then to the amazement of all who witnessed this, the man who has just been forgiven turns around to one of his fellow servants who owes him, by comparison, a terribly small debt, something that could have indeed been paid off in time, but the man doesn't have the resources to do it. And the man who had just been forgiven begins to choke his fellow servant and saying, I demand payment now.

And all who are observing it think, how can this be? A man has just had his terribly large debt wiped out, canceled, and he is not patient with one that owes him but a small sum. Now, he says that this man who had the unforgiving spirit was delivered to the tormentors. I believe then that if we fail to forgive, the Lord may deliver us to the tormentors. In other words, you're not going to have peace in your own mind and heart when you're holding a grudge against other people.

Oh, I know somebody may say, well, you know, they just haven't adequately repented. Now, there is a certain restoration in a relationship when there is repentance, because Luke chapter 17 says that if you rebuke that one who has sinned and you repent, then you forgive him. But forgiveness is something that must be in the heart of the child of grace, no matter what the circumstances, even if the person has not repented, you're not entitled to hold malice and resentment and bitterness in your heart.

Be ye kind one to another. We read in Ephesians chapter 4, be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. When you understand what has been forgiven you, how merciful and gracious God was to forgive your sin, you had incurred a debt that you could not have paid. You might have been at some time in such darkness as was this man in the lesson, to say, given enough time, I'll make things right. I'll turn over a new leaf.

I'll change my life. I'll make up for all of the things of the past that have been wrong, but the debt that you owe, you could never pay, and Jesus Christ paid the debt and he canceled it for you and he's forgiven you. How can you then, as a forgiven soul, refuse to forgive others? It should be the delight and joy of people that have been forgiven to forgive others, to forgive them on the basis that God for Christ's sake has forgiven us.

When we consider that, when we consider the great debt that has been canceled on our behalf, then forgiveness should become easy. God's Word is right. You say, well, I have trouble forgiving.

You may have it. You may have some trouble. Or you may say, it just doesn't seem fair to me, but God's Word is right. See, no matter how you may feel about it and what others may tell you, God's Word is right. God's Word is right.

Let me think about some other practical matters. When it comes to the relationship of husbands and wives, the fifth chapter of the book of Ephesians, verse 25, Paul says, husbands love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it. I've had men tell me that I just don't love my wife anymore. There's been so much tension between us.

We've had so many hard words. She's such a difficult person. If she had a different attitude, things would be different, but she's not a submissive wife. And just to tell you the truth, I don't love her anymore. And that being the case, I know that God would not want me to be unhappy, so I think it's time to end this marriage. I think it's a justifiable thing for me to walk away from it.

And that seems perfectly reasonable. You can find a lot of people who will agree with you and say, if love has died, give up, walk away. But God's Word is right. And here's God's Word says, husbands love your wives. Well, how am I going to hit the magic button and make love come back? Well, there is no such button, but the Lord says you must love her. So even though you may not have the emotional feeling at the moment, you treat her right. You support her. You encourage her. You try to help her. Husbands love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church.

See, it's sad today that so many Christians become consumed with worldly thinking and are ready to give unsound advice. I remember one of our radio listeners calling me one day. The young man was distraught because his wife had left him very unexpectedly, came in and found a note, and she was gone and had taken the two children with her. For over a month, they didn't know where she was. Finally discovered she was right in the same town and that some Christian friends had taken her in, and he called and knowing the people, they had been friends, and said, can't you do something to encourage my wife to come home? I grieve so over her being gone. I'm willing to sit down and talk about whatever may be troubling her.

I'm willing to try to make things right. And this woman who held a prominent position in her church said, well, I think you've got to come to grips with the fact that your wife is no longer happy in that marriage. And you must know that God would not want her to be unhappy.

So it is totally out of place for you even to ask her to come back. Her happiness is of greatest importance. And all of this, the Word of God is totally ignored. It's a matter of saying, here's how I feel.

Here's how I look at it. My feeling, my emotion, my happiness takes precedence over everything else. But you come to God's Word and you see that God's glory takes the precedence.

What's right before God? God's Word is right. And then, of course, there are wives that have great difficulty with the biblical teaching that wives are to be submissive to their husbands.

But here's what the Word says. In this particular passage, 1 Peter chapter 3, the lesson concerns a woman that has an unbelieving husband. And she may indeed be greatly perplexed and finding it extremely difficult to occupy the right role in that marriage. But he says, but let it be the hidden man of the heart in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit which is in the sight of God of great price. He tells us that in this case, the unbelieving husband may be influenced and won, not by what the wife says, but by what she does, by maintaining the right spirit. Let this be the hidden man of the heart, the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit. Because this is of great price in the sight of God. How many times do you hear people today saying a meek and a quiet spirit is tremendously valuable? I've read about seminars, which women are encouraged to be a part of, to teach them how to be self-assertive.

I've never heard of one to teach them to maintain a meek and a quiet spirit. What is right? The philosophy of the world, the inclination of human nature, the advice you've gotten from some talk show host who doesn't believe in the true and living God, or the Word? The Word of God is right. What about the sins of the flesh that are so prominent in the day in which we live? For the general attitude is, if my actions are not harming someone else, then really it doesn't make any difference, and it's no one's business what I do and how I conduct myself.

But the Word is right. 1 Thessalonians, chapter 4, verse 2. 2 For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus, for this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication, that everyone should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor, not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles, which know not God.

Even among professed Christians, there are those that set the example of the Gentiles or the pagans as being an acceptable code of conduct. Well, this is what many people are doing today. We don't see that it's necessary to be married in order to live together, and some will make excuses on the basis, well, there are financial implications. If we were to get married, there would be some things that would be a financial burden to us, and so we believe that in this case, it's all right for us to live together without the benefit of being married. Actually, I was counseling with a man one time who was struggling with depression and a variety of other emotional problems. It took a while for the facts of the case to surface. He was telling me what a dedicated Christian he was, how faithfully he read God's Word, how he wanted to please God and honor God in his life.

It finally became evident that he and his girlfriend had been living together for some time. I said, well, it's no wonder to me that you're struggling with depression and that you've got a lot of doubts and fears and various other things that are plaguing you because if indeed you're one of God's children, he's putting the rod of correction upon you to chasten you because you're wrong. Oh, no, he says, not in this case. He said, we prayed about this earnestly. We took it to the Lord and we just laid out the circumstances and the Lord just put it on our heart that in our situation it would be all right. I said, you can pray about this from now till you die and it will not make it right. God's Word is right.

God's Word says you are to abstain from fornication. God's Word is right. And then seeing that God is right, God's Word is right, God and his Word are always right. God is from everlasting to everlasting and does not change. So this isn't something that's just true for the time being.

True in certain isolated circumstances, but it's not true across the board. God and his Word are always right. We look at Psalm 45 verse 6. Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever.

The scepter of thy kingdom is a right scepter. Thy throne is forever and ever. God has always occupied the throne and will always do it in this 119th Psalm from which our text is taken. Verse 89 says, forever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. Forever, thy word is settled. Verse 144, the righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting.

Give me understanding and I shall live. Thy testimonies are from everlasting. Thy truth is enduring. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

God and his Word are always right, not just at certain intervals, not just at certain periods of time, not just when it suits our thinking, not just when it's convenient for us to comply, but he is always right. Hebrews chapter 1 verse 8. But unto the Son, he saith, thy throne, O God, is forever and ever. O God, is forever and ever, a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thy throne is forever and ever. And he speaks this to the Son, Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords.

He is always right. He is right, he says, even when the enemies forget his Word, when his Word is ignored. Verse 139 of our passage says, My zeal hath consumed me because mine enemies have forgotten thy words. I've been stirred up with a holy zeal because mine enemies have rejected your Word.

They've forgotten it. Now, what is your response when you see multitudes in our society today rejecting the Word of the Lord? What is your response?

Do you become concerned about it? Does it stir you up with a holy zeal to want to contend for that which is right, to want to be bold in speaking the truth of God and ministering to others as you have opportunity? The psalmist says, When my enemies rejected his Word, when they opposed it, I was stirred. His great love for the Word of God caused him to stand firm and bold, not being consumed with a vicious anger, not because he was taking personal offense at something that might have harmed him, but he was concerned about the honor of God. If God's Word is going to be forgotten, God's Word is going to be rejected, then I am consumed with deep concern for the matter.

And yet, we have to be cautious and not cross the line where we become full of bitterness and with a revengeful spirit toward those that disagree with us. The words of Jesus as recorded in Luke chapter 19 verse 41 say, And when he was come near, he beheld the city and wept over it. When Jesus saw the city made up of people who were rejecting his Word and rejecting his person as he came here, despised and rejected of men, what was his attitude? Oh, the disciples had urged him to rain down fire on some people that didn't walk with them, but that wasn't the spirit of Jesus.

He said, He came into the world not to condemn it to the world, for he might be saved. Verse 42, Saying, If thou hadst known even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace, but now they are hid from thine eyes. He wept over the city.

He wept over the city. If you had known the things that belong to your peace, what a difference it would have made. Do we weep when we see those who reject the Word of the Lord and have compassion for those who in darkness and pray that God might enlighten them and bring them to repentance? God's Word is right when you are despised.

The psalmist speaks of the fact that though we ourselves are small, I see myself to be small and insignificant, and others may take up the course and say hurtful things to you, discouraging things to you, looking down on you, despising you, considering that you are ignorant because you embrace God's Word. Some will say, How can you possibly govern your life by a book that was written so long ago, and generally they'll add to it, that's full of error, as though they are capable of sitting in judgment and determining what's right and what's good and what's acceptable. God is right. His Word is right. When you are rejected, when you are despised, when you are looked down upon, His Word is right. God and His Word are right when trouble comes. Verse 143, trouble and anguish have taken hold on me, yet thy commandments are my delights. In spite of the fact that trouble has come, anguish has come, great difficulties are mine, I still delight in thy Word.

Can we say that? Oh, some troubles are terribly painful, extremely difficult for us to bear. Look at 2 Corinthians chapter 7, verse 5. For when we were coming to Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side. Without were fightings, within were fears.

Now that's just about as much trouble as you could possibly imagine. Trouble on every side. There were fightings around us, conflicts, difficulties, and there were fears within. But what was the response of the beloved apostle? Nevertheless, God that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus. God is the one that comforts those that are cast down. He recognized God as being the source of the comfort. Titus was the channel of it.

Too many times we get our eyes off the source and on the channel. And we began to think, I've got to have this particular person with me. I've got to have this individual's fellowship.

I've got to have their support or I can't make it. The Lord would have us to be focused on Him. He is the source of our comfort. So in spite of the fact that there were fightings and fears, He found comfort in the God of comfort. And that's reassuring just to know that God is described as the God of comfort and is the source of it. Back in chapter 1, the 8th verse of this same epistle, He says, For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble, which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life.

Whatever your trouble is, it surely could have been the same. It surely could not have been more significant than that which the apostle here describes. Trouble on every side, we despaired even of life. But we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead. This is the ultimate purpose in view to bring us to the point that we do not trust in ourselves, but trust in Him who delivered us from so great a death and doth deliver in whom we trust that He will yet deliver us. God and His Word are right when trouble comes.

Painful as it may be, perplexing as it may be, beyond our ability to comprehend and understand what God may be doing in the midst of it, we're going to trust Him. Our feelings may waver. If we were to rely on our emotions and our feelings, we could be in a terrible state of confusion much of the time. Some people seem to live on the end of a yo-yo.

They're constantly up and down. You may start out the day feeling cheerful and something discouraging happens and before long you're down in the very pit. And if you're going to react according to how you felt, you might come to some terribly wrong conclusions and resulting in actions that would not be pleasing to God or to the glory of His name. But when you remember this truth that God is right, God is righteous, therefore He is right, Jesus says, I am the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus Christ is described as being then the truth.

He is right. And in the book of 1 John chapter 5, we read verse 6, that is, He that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ, not by water only, but by water and blood, and it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. We learn then from Scripture that God Himself is righteous, He's truth. Jesus Christ is the truth. The Holy Spirit is truth. God then is right.

God and His Word are always right. No matter what changing opinions there may be around us in the world, no matter what new philosophies may be advanced, no matter what popular TV talk show host or hostess may be advocating the New Age concept that would deny every fundamental principle of the Word of God, God is right, His Word is right, He is always right. We need then to remember at all times, God is on the throne. Things may appear to be chaotic in the world around me, they may be disrupted in my own life, but the Lord is in His holy temple and all the earth keeps silence before Him.

We must learn to commit our way to Him. My times are in Thy hand. Yes, as I look ahead, I may have many doubts, fears, and apprehensions, but I can find peace and contentment because my times are in His hand. My good times are my bad times, my times of peace, blessing, and prosperity, my times of challenge and trouble, they're in His hand. Aren't you glad to know that's the truth?

If it was all in your hand, how comfortable would you feel about the present or the future? But to know they're in His hand gives us courage and strength. God teaches us in our trials.

It was good for me that I've been afflicted, the psalmist has declared. Trials turn our thoughts toward heaven. You know, if everything was constantly peaceful and comfortable here, we'd probably have very few thoughts about heaven, but when we begin to see the vanity of much that's in this old world and see the weaknesses and failures in our own lives, disappointed sometimes in the lives of those that are around us, it makes us long for that day that we will ultimately be with the Lord and desire that happy time when we'll be at rest with Him. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 17 says, For our light affliction, which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we look not at the things which are seen, but the things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

When you start looking at some things that other people can't see, you're going to be a misfit. This world is caught up with worldly things. You can only expect that the world is going to be worldly and all of the focus and all of the emphasis is upon the here and now and the trials and troubles of this life cause us to look then not at the things of this present life, but to those things that are eternal, knowing that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God and house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. We are confident, I say, willing rather to be present, to be absent from the body, to be present with the Lord. Understanding then that the best things are yet to come will change our point of view.

It will change our point of view about how we're dealing with things at this present time in life, anticipating that happy and glorious day when we'll ultimately be at home with the Lord. God is right. God's word is right.

God and his word are always right. I'm glad you've been with us today. If you'd like to help with the support of the program to keep it on your station, you can make a donation by going to our website at baptispivalhour.org. Till we greet you tomorrow, this is LeSary Bradley, Jr. Begging you goodbye and may God bless you.