A Right Choice - Part 1 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 LeSaire Braley, Jr. welcoming you to another broadcast of the Baptist Bible Hour. A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing. Our helper, he amid the flood, a mortal is prevailing. For still our ancient foe, does seek to work us woe. His craft and power are great, and armed with cruel hate. All earth is not his equal.

Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing. We're not the right one on our side, the man of God's own choosing. Just as good that may be, Christ Jesus, it is He.

Lord Sabbath is His name, from age to age the same. And He must win the battle. And though this world with me they'll fear, should threaten to undo us. We will not fear, for God hath with His truth to triumph through us. The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for Him. His grace we can endure, for love is to be sure.

One little word shall fail Him. That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them abideth. The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him who with us sideth. Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also. The body they may give, cause truth abideth still. His kingdom is forever. If the program is a blessing to you, we certainly would appreciate hearing from you.

We do depend on our listeners for support. You can make a donation by going to our website at BaptistBibleHour.org. Blessed are the poor in spirit, seeking riches in the Lord. They possess the greatest treasure, kingdom's citizens with their Lord. Blessed are the saints who mourn, who have seen their load of sin. Christ is come in spirit power, for to comfort grieving them.

Blessed are they who do hunger, after God's pure righteousness. He will pour out without measure, praise to fill their souls to bless. Blessed are those full of mercy, kindly treating all with praise. They shall soon receive true mercy, for the Lord their soul did save. Blessed are the pure in heart, sanctified by sovereign grace. Offspring of the Holy Spirit, they shall soon behold God's grace. Blessed are they who make peace, breaking down the walls of strife.

Working to unite their brothers, they are called the sons of life. Blessed are they who do suffer, for the cause of Christ the Lord. Shall pour joy for your found worthy, and possess the kingdom of God. Now we continue in Psalm 119, this section entitled, A Right Choice. As we continue with our series of messages, messages from the Psalms, I hope that you have been made to realize anew what a marvelous portion of Scripture the Psalms really are. And in particular, this 119th Psalm, which we are looking at presently.

Let's read again, verses 25 to 32, this being the third division of this Psalm. My soul cleaveth unto the dust, quicken thou me according to thy word. I have declared my ways, and thou hurtest me, teach me thy statutes. Make me to understand the way of thy precepts, so shall I talk of thy wondrous works. My soul melteth for heaviness, strengthen thou me according unto thy word. Remove from me the way of lying, and grant me thy law graciously. I have chosen the way of truth, thy judgments have I laid before me. I have stuck unto thy testimonies, O Lord, put me not to shame. I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart. We first notice in verse 25 a plea for help. The Psalmist acknowledges my soul cleaves to the dust.

I have a tendency to fall short, to be contaminated with the influences of the world. I need God's blessing. I need Him to quicken me, enliven me, that I may overcome this downward inclination. Then in verses 26 to 27 we see a clear declaration.

I've declared my ways. He had made an honest confession before God. He acknowledged his need. He laid bare his heart. He admitted his own weakness, and he's praying, Lord, teach me thy statutes.

Give me the understanding that I so desperately need. In verse 28 he makes reference to a heavy heart. He's saying, I'm deeply grieved. My soul melteth in heaviness, and prays that God will give him the strength that he needs according unto my word. And now verse 29, a needed prayer.

He's praying that God will remove him from the way of lying and grant to him the law graciously. Previously we pointed out the fact that Satan is the author of lies. Jesus made reference to that in the eighth chapter of the Gospel of John, the 44th verse, that he is the father of lies. And then one additional verse that we did not refer to previously is in Revelation chapter 12, verse 9. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent called the devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world.

He was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. So in the Gospel of John, Jesus says that Satan is the father of lies. And in the book of Revelation, we see that the devil or Satan deceiveth the whole world. Surely then there is need always to pray as did David remove me from the way of lying. We talked previously about the need to be delivered from false doctrine, from false humility, from false counsel.

But then would further emphasize the point that he's talking about his own personal situation. Deliver me from the dishonesty of my own heart. Psalm 51 verse 6, he says, Thou desirest truth in the inward parts. As he came before God in that Psalm confessing his great sin, he wasn't trying to make any excuses, he wasn't trying to hide anything. Acknowledged against thee, thee only have I sinned and none this evil in thy sight. He knew that God would have him to be truthful as he made this acknowledgement for his Maker. And so it is that God would have us in our dealings with him always to be truthful, to be delivered from the tendency of our own nature to lie, to deceive others or to deceive ourselves.

In the book of Isaiah chapter 44 verse 20, he's talking about people who are giving themselves to the worship of false gods, which he describes as being an abomination. It says, He feedeth on ashes, a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand? He's talking about a people with a deceived heart. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, who can know it?

Seeing them that that's the weakness we have in human nature. To think better of ourselves than we ought, to try to defend and justify situations which are not in harmony with God's Word, not pleasing in his sight. But Satan will gladly assist us to think up a variety of reasons why something we really want to do seems to be the thing to do anyway. In fact, sometimes that deception is of such a nature that a person can look at the Word of God itself and say, Well, I know that's what it says, but I think maybe in this situation there's to be a different application.

Oh, how easy it is to be deceived and even to deceive ourselves. In the book of Jonah chapter 2 verse 8, it says, They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. Those that follow lying vanities follow that which is deceitful, that which is untrue, are forsaking, turning away from their own mercy, the very place where they can find help and grace that they so desperately need.

In the book of Hebrews chapter 11 verse 25, it speaks of the fact that Moses had chosen to be identified with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Sin is a dreadful thing. Sin is an affront to a holy God. Sin is vile. Sin makes that one that commits it to be unclean. And yet, how appealing it can be when Satan is calling one in the wrong direction.

He points to what seems to be an immediate advantage. Yes, there can be momentary satisfaction to this flesh, to this carnal nature. And so the pleasures that sin seems to offer become so attractive that little thought is given to the ultimate consequences. Oh, he's praying, remove me from the way of lying.

I don't want to be taken in. I don't want to turn to the pleasures of sin for a season and miss the great joy, the genuine joy that I can have in communion and fellowship with my God. How sad when the Lord's own people are deceived and turn from the fountain of living waters as is described in Jeremiah chapter 2 verse 13, hewing out to themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water. Now if we were able to have a clear photograph to present to you this evening and can show you on one side, here is a fountain of clear flowing water. It not only will be satisfying to drink of that water, it's beautiful to look upon. And over here is a broken cistern. Murky, what little water remains in it does not fit to drink because it's broken and the water's been running out.

Nobody would choose to drink from the broken cistern. And yet how often that very choice has been made in our lives when we have become discontent as far as our communion and fellowship with God is concerned. Many frustrations may bring it about. Discouragement can sometimes enter in until one says, well I've tried to read the Word and I don't seem to be getting that much from it. Yes, I've had an interest in growing in grace, but I don't seem to be moving forward as I ought. I'm going to go over here and dig me out of cistern.

I'm going over here to another source that seems at the present time to be so inviting. And so if we're going to be delivered from the way of lying, we need always to have a clear perception of the great distinction between the fountain of living waters, drawing with joy from the wells of salvation as Isaiah depicts it, or turning to the broken cisterns that we ourselves have helped to dig. He says, grant me thy law graciously. Keep me from sin by graciously teaching me.

This is a request repeatedly made. Lord, I need to be taught. There is an inward teaching that's necessary. We looked in an earlier message about the fact that the Spirit of God must reveal to us the things that are of God because the natural eye has not seen it and the mind has not been able to perceive it. So we must have the blessing and revealing work of the Holy Spirit. Let's look at the book of Hebrews chapter 8. Here we find a description of one of the great blessings of the new covenant, the covenant of the grace of God. Hebrews chapter 8 verse 10 says, For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel. After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their mind and write them in their hearts. And I will be to them a God and they shall be to me a people. Oh, how necessary that the laws of God be written in our heart. It's good to memorize them. It's good to be knowledgeable of what they say. But as long as it's just a mental assent, an intellectual acknowledgement that this is what the book says, there is not that pursuit of living in harmony with them.

There's often a terrible failure of walking in the light that we have. There must be that inward teaching. As he said in the 27th verse of this 119th Psalm, Make me to understand the way of thy precepts, so shall I talk of thy wondrous works. Lord, I want to have understanding. I want to know what's said, but I want to know what is meant when I read it. How often do you pray that prayer?

Frequently, here people complain, Well, I have difficulty understanding the Bible. But if you inquire, how often have you prayed that you might be able to understand it? There usually is an acknowledgement that I haven't really prayed that much about it. Now I'm not claiming that as you pray that every question that ever comes in your mind is going to be immediately answered. There are going to be a lot of things about this amazing book that we will not understand when we come to the end of the journey. But if we're praying that the Lord will give us understanding and particularly to understand that which we're going to apply and use in our life, I believe His promise is that He will hear us. The psalmist not only recognizes that there is a need of inward teaching, he not only prays that God might be his teacher and work within him, but he's repeatedly recognizing the need of being involved with the Word. So he's not saying, I'm just going to never look at God's Word.

I'm never going to take any time to read it. I'm just going to pray that God will put it in my heart. No, he is praying that God will bless him with understanding.

But look at his language. Verse 11, Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Now somebody may say, well that seems to be contradictory. If God is going to write His law in our heart, what's David talking about when he says, I have hid thy word in my heart? But it's one of those areas of scripture where there are two concepts brought together, that concerning our own responsibility and that which is wrought in us with the grace of God. We are to apply ourselves. We are to hide His Word in our heart.

We are to read it. We are to meditate on it. We are to hear it preached, hiding it in our heart, but recognizing that to have the full grasp and understanding of it, it must be written in our heart by God himself. In verse 15, I will meditate in thy precepts and have respect unto thy ways. Verse 16, I will delight myself in thy statutes. I will not forget thy word.

In each of these expressions, he's talking about something that he's going to do. I'm going to hide it in my heart. I'm going to meditate on it.

I'm going to delight in it. Verse 24 says, Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counselers. So when I need counsel, that's where I'm going to go. Not just making it a matter of prayer, I'm doing something about it.

I'm hiding it in my heart. I'm meditating on thy precepts and delighting myself in thy statutes. I'm turning to your testimonies, not only delighting in them, but resorting to them as my source of counsel. A repeated involvement with the Word of God. A continuous reading and studying of it and meditating upon it is what is necessary for us to have the spiritual growth that we so desperately need. In the book of Ephesians, chapter 5, verse 26, after speaking of the fact that husbands are to love their wives, even as Christ also loved the church, gave himself for it, he says that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word.

How is this cleansing going to take place? By the Word. Jesus, how I love to hear the sound. Whose name is filled with music may I in thy love be found. Oh, dear Jesus, my Lord Jesus, how I love to speak thy name. Thou art lovely on our mountains, in our valleys you're the same. Precious Jesus, my dear Savior, loud thy college darlin' song, how we hope one day to see thee when our race down here is won. Well, I'm glad you've been with us today. Hope you'll come back at the same time tomorrow. If you would like to write, let us know. You've been there listening today. Our address is Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. Now until this same time tomorrow, this is LeSaire Bradley Jr. bidding you goodbye and may God bless you. Praising my Savior, praising my Savior, praising my Savior, all the day long.