[0:00] . . . .
[0:14] Let us now turn to the Old Testament Scriptures on the book of Psalms, on Psalm 119.
[0:34] I'm reading at verse 33, down to verse 64.
[0:49] Book of Psalms and Psalm 119, at verse 33. Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes, and I shall keep it unto the end.
[1:03] Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law. Yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. Make me to go in the path of thy commandments, for therein do I delight.
[1:18] Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness. Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity, and quicken thou me in thy way.
[1:30] Establish thy word unto thy servant, who is devoted to thy fear. Turn away my reproach, which I fear, for thy judgments are good.
[1:43] Behold, I have longed after thy precepts. Quicken me in thy righteousness. Let thy mercies come also unto me, O Lord, even thy salvation according to thy word.
[1:57] So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me, for I trust in thy word. And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, for I have hoped in thy judgments.
[2:11] So shall I keep thy law continually, for ever and ever. And I will walk at liberty, for I seek thy precepts. I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed.
[2:27] And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved.
[2:39] And I will meditate in thy statutes. Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope. This is my comfort in my affliction, for thy word hath quickened me.
[2:54] The proud have had me greatly in derision, yet have I not declined from thy law. I remembered thy judgments of old, O Lord, and have comforted myself.
[3:07] Horror hath taken hold upon me, because of the wicked that forsake thy law. Thy statutes have been my songs, in the house of my pilgrimage.
[3:18] I have remembered thy name, O Lord, in the night, and have kept thy law. This I had, because I kept thy precepts. Thou art my portion, O Lord.
[3:30] I have said that I would keep thy words. I entreated thy favour with my whole heart. Be merciful unto me according to thy word. I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies.
[3:44] I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments. The bands of the wicked have robbed me, but I have not forgotten thy law. At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee, because of thy righteous judgments.
[4:00] I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts. The earth, O Lord, is full of thy mercy.
[4:12] Teach me thy statutes. And so on. May God bless to us that reading from his word and to his name. Be all the praise.
[4:22] It is now turn to sing from Psalm number 90. The 90th Psalm. And verses 1 to 4.
[4:41] Four stanzas. Psalm 90. Coming également.
[5:05] These stanzas, verses 1 to 4 of Psalm 90.
[5:26] Lord, thou hast been no dwelling place. Lord, thou hast been no dwelling place in generations of, Before the heaven has brought forth, The mountains, big or small, And ever lives past on the earth, And all the world of God, In thou come everlasting heart,
[6:35] To everlasting God. Thou dost unto destruction, Man that is marked and turned, And unto them thou sittest again, These stanzas of men return, Because a thousand years shall hear, Nor before thy sight, Than yesterday,
[7:40] When it is past, All the man thou shalt, Now watch thy eyes.
[8:02] Now as the Lord enables us, Let us turn together to Psalm 119, Where we have read. And particularly focusing on verse 54 of the Psalm.
[8:22] Thy statutes have been my songs, In the house of my pilgrimage.
[8:35] Thy statutes have been my songs, In the house of my pilgrimage. Now this is the longest of all of the Psalms, As you can see.
[8:48] And it is wholly given, From beginning to end, To express the Psalmist's love for, And high estimation of, The word of God.
[9:04] And he uses different words, Throughout the Psalm, To describe the word of God to us.
[9:16] For example, he uses the word, Testimonies, And laws, And statutes, And judgements, And precepts.
[9:28] All of these words, Throughout the Psalm, Are references to the scriptures, The word of God. And commentators are of the view, That it is David who is the author of the Psalm, And also that, Rather than having, Had a particular, One circumstance in his life, That moved him to, Write the Psalm, That, That, These thoughts were, As a result of, A number of, Years, Maybe, Of meditating, On the word of God, And the time came, When David, Gathered all of these, Short meditations, On the scriptures together, And arranged them, In this, Form, Format.
[10:26] Format. And you see that, The sections are, Each, Successive section is headed by, A successive, Letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
[10:38] And, This was, Evidently to aid, Memory. People who would, Sit with the Psalm, They would be able to, Be able to, Be able to recall it, Much clearer, And much quicker, Because of the way, The Psalm was set out, In this particular way.
[11:01] And coming to, Verse 54 particularly, That I just want to say a few words on, There are three things, In that verse, That I want to say a few words about.
[11:13] First of all, I'll read the verse again, Thy statutes, And that's a reference to the word of God, The statutes of God, The law of God, Thy statutes have been my songs, In the house of my pilgrimage.
[11:30] And I'd like to focus for a few moments, First of all, On, His use of the word house. And secondly, The word pilgrimage.
[11:44] And thirdly, On the songs, That the Psalmist, Has been singing, In his house, During his pilgrimage. And thirdly, On the songs, That the Psalmist, Has been singing, In his house, During his pilgrimage.
[11:57] First of all, One or two thoughts on, The house, That he mentions. Well I wonder how far back, The house that he mentions. Well I wonder how far back, David's mind went, When he thought, In these terms, Of a house.
[12:22] Is he talking about, The house in Bethlehem, Where he was born, And brought up? I don't think so. Or is he talking about, The different places, Where he had to shelter, When he was being chased, And hounded by King Saul, Who sought to kill him, Over a long period of time.
[12:50] And one of these houses, Was a cave, The cave of Adelam, Where he wrote, Some of the Psalms. I don't think, That's the house either.
[13:03] Or is he thinking of, The grand houses, That he, Lived in, When he was king. In Jerusalem. And he had a house of cedar.
[13:16] And he had access, To many properties. Are these the houses, He's talking about? I don't think so either. When he here talks about, In the house of my pilgrimage.
[13:32] I believe he's talking about, His own person. His own human nature.
[13:45] His own mortal frame. As each one of us has. This is our house.
[13:56] This is where we are staying. Or you may have an address somewhere. But, This really, Is your address. This is you.
[14:07] This is where you dwell. This is me. That's you. And when he's here saying, The house. He is thinking particularly, Of the kind of house that he is.
[14:23] When you read in the book of Job, In chapter 4. And verse 19. He says there, That we are living in houses of clay.
[14:38] And when you go back to the scripture, You find, In Genesis chapter 2. That the Lord God formed man, Of the dust of the ground. And he breathed into his nostrils, The breath of life.
[14:53] And man became a living soul. But then of course, Dust thou art, He said to Adam.
[15:06] And to dust, Thou shalt return. When death comes, The bond that binds us together as individuals, Body and soul, Is opened.
[15:21] And the body goes back to the dust as it was. The soul goes on to God who gave it. And when David here is talking about the house, I believe he has very clear, In his mind, The kind of house that he is.
[15:41] Oh surely enough, When God created Adam. He created him, He created him, In a holy and a happy condition.
[15:52] He was in, Fellowship with God. He created him with dominion, Over the creatures.
[16:03] He was, A holy and a happy individual. But you know what happened. The wind of sin, Blew strongly, Into the experience of Adam and Eve.
[16:21] Because Satan came. And Satan posited, Satan put into her mind, Particularly first of all, Some measure of doubt, Some measure of doubt, As to whether the word of God was true.
[16:37] God said, You mustn't eat of this fruit, From this particular tree, In the midst of the garden. And Satan said, Did God say that? Surely you will not die.
[16:48] The wind of sin blew into her thought processes, And reversed the order of things.
[17:00] And that's what happens in the experience of every individual. Because we are all Adam's family.
[17:13] We all sinned in him, And fell with him, In his first transgression. And the wind of sin, Dealt with him at the very core of his being.
[17:29] It changed his will. It changed his affections. It changed the direction of his life. It changed the whole make-up of his nature.
[17:40] Physically, Because when sin came into his experience, The seed of death was planted deep in his experience. And God said, Dust thou art, And to dust thou shalt return.
[17:59] And the apostle Paul knew this very well. When he's talking 2 Corinthians 5 verse 11, He's talking about this earthly house, This tabernacle, This tent, It's going to be dissolved, Or loosed, Or taken apart.
[18:21] And he anticipated that, When it says in 2 Timothy chapter 4, The time of my departure is at hand.
[18:32] The time of my being loosed, Taken apart. When my body will go back into the dust. As it was. And you see the same thing echoed by Peter, The apostle, 2 Peter 1.13.
[18:49] He says, I think, It meet as long as I am in this tabernacle, To stir you up by putting you in remembrance. Knowing that shortly, I must put off this my tabernacle, Even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me.
[19:07] He's talking about this house. This tabernacle. And he says, And he says, It's not long until I have, To be loosed.
[19:20] And my soul goes to God. And my body goes back into the dust. So David here, He's talking about, His human nature.
[19:32] This house. As I've explained. But then, The second thing he's talking about is, That he's on a pilgrimage.
[19:45] The house of my pilgrimage. In some of the newer translations, You find that it is, The house of my sojourn.
[19:57] And a sojourn is a, A short journey. A journey of short duration. And that's exactly what he has here.
[20:08] A pilgrimage. A journey, In this world. And this journey, However long, You think it might be.
[20:21] It's not long at all. That's at the very centre of the word, In the original. It is, A short time.
[20:32] Time. The psalmist, In a number of places, Reminds us, Of the shortness, Or the brevity of life.
[20:44] Psalm 39, verse 5. Remember what it says. You have made my days, As an handbreadth. A handbreadth. I always mention this, In connection to that particular verse.
[20:59] There was an old elder at Bach, And he used to be in his public prayers. He would quote this. You have made our days, As an handbreadth. Not even as a hand length.
[21:11] The breadth is narrower, Than the length. Reminding us, Of the brevity of our lives.
[21:22] You have made my days, As an handbreadth. Also in Psalm 102, verse 11. My days, Are like a shadow, That lengthens.
[21:34] When you see the sun going down, The shadows lengthen. And that's the way this man saw, His days. Like a shadow that lengthens.
[21:47] Psalm 103, you all know it. Man, frail man, His days are like the grass. As flower in field he grows. Over it the wind doth pass.
[22:00] And it away is gone. And of the place where once it was, It shall no more be known. And one more reference, From the epistle of James chapter 4.
[22:15] And he challenges us, With this question. What is your life? It is even a vapor, That appeareth for a little time, And then vanisheth away.
[22:30] Vanisheth away. So he's living in this house, That's starting to crumble.
[22:42] And he's on a short journey, Through this world. And the journey that he's on, Is a journey full of troubles.
[22:53] Job again says in chapter 14 of the book of Job, Man that is born of woman is short life, And full of trouble.
[23:06] A few days, And full of trouble. So David's life was full of troubles. From the time he comes on the scene. First of all he is faced with Goliath.
[23:19] That great Philistine warrior set up, To frighten the Israelite forces. But David, By God's grace, Rose to the challenge.
[23:32] And he was strengthened by God's grace, To do great things. But after that, Repeatedly Saul tried to slay him. And then he had problems in his own family.
[23:44] He had trouble upon trouble upon trouble. And it's not the way our lives are. The older we get, We feel the house crumbling.
[24:01] And troubles come our way. And that's the way David was. But then he says, Something very encouraging.
[24:15] In the midst of all that he is, And all that he knows that he is. As an individual passing through time into eternity.
[24:27] He says, Thy statutes have been my songs, In the house of my pilgrimage. It's as if, To counterbalance, Everything that we have said, With a, Sort of a, In a dark light.
[24:49] Regarding, The brevity of life. And regarding, The house that's falling down. In the midst of it all, He has a song. And what song does he have?
[25:06] What songs do you have? What songs do our people listen to? When you turn on the radio? Or when you turn on your iPad?
[25:18] Or whatever it is you listen to? Well, A lot of songs, Really are very, Unspiritual, If I can leave it at that.
[25:31] But this man sings songs, And they are, The statutes, Of the Lord. It's a very interesting word, Used here for statutes.
[25:48] It has this, Aspect to it. That it's an engraving. Something that has been, Written, With such permanence.
[26:00] That it stands, Always. Something, Like you would see, In the cemetery, A stone, A stone, With names, Cut right into the granite.
[26:16] That's the kind of, Thought he has here. For statutes. Words, That have a permanence. Words, That have a constant, Bearing, On the life that we're living.
[26:31] And a bearing upon, The eternity to which we're going. Words, That are like a benchmark, To which we ought always to refer, In our comings and goings, In our thinkings, And in our musings, That we think about, The statutes, Of God.
[26:52] And of course, When you read that, Verse 47, For example, I will delight myself, In thy commandments, Which I loved. This man's song, As he journeys through life, Is a song, In relation to the commandments of God.
[27:05] And also it goes on, Verse 48, My hands also will I lift up, Unto thy commandments which I loved, And I will meditate in thy statutes. And verse 49, Remember the word, Unto thy servant upon which thou hast caused me, To hope, To hope, In the word of God.
[27:19] And he has given him, In relation to the commandments of God. In relation to the commandments of God. And also it goes on, Verse 48, My hands also will I lift up, Unto thy commandments which I loved, And I will meditate in thy statutes.
[27:33] And verse 49, Remember the word, Unto thy servant upon which thou hast caused me, To hope. He has found hope in the word of God.
[27:44] And he has given himself to its study, And he meditates upon it day and night, Because he loves the word, Because God is speaking to him, Through the word.
[28:00] One more reference, Verse 50, This is my comfort in my affliction, For thy word has quickened me. He has found in his difficult times, And in his dark days, That the word of God has spoken into his experience, And the word of God has given him strength to go on, Strength to go on.
[28:24] Little wonder then, That he says, Your statutes have been my songs, In the house of my pilgrimage.
[28:35] God's word has brought light into his life. The entrance of thy words gives light.
[28:48] How many here this morning are able to follow that statement? That the word of God has brought light into their experience.
[29:00] Oh, the light, first of all, maybe shows you, How sinful you are, And how unready you are to meet your God. Nevertheless, Nevertheless, that light also focuses upon Jesus, Who is the only Saviour, And who looks the altogether lovely one, As you see him with the eye of faith.
[29:26] And you begin to sing, In praise of him. You certainly sing, The mourning, Of confession of sin.
[29:38] But you also sing, With thankfulness, For the Saviour of sinners, Even the Lord Jesus. And when David, As it were, Would think back, Over the scripture references, To the God he now knows, And the God he loves.
[30:04] He would discover from the book of Genesis, And of course, David would have had in his possession, The first five books of the Old Testament. He would have had that in his possession. And he would be able to refer, Even to Genesis chapter 1, In the beginning God created, The heavens and the earth.
[30:26] It's in that material for praise, For singing and for a song, That this whole universe, Is created by our God, And that he holds it together, By the word of his power, Upholding all things, By the word of his power.
[30:44] Isn't that material for praise? And he would read about the fall of man. But immediately after the fall of man, There is this marvelous promise given, In the garden of Eden, That of the seed of the woman would come, The one who was going to bruise the head of the serpent.
[31:08] The coming Messiah has promised. And isn't that a reason for praise, In the life of David? And then going through the whole of the, Law shall we say, The book of Leviticus, Which not many people nowadays read.
[31:28] Nevertheless it's full, Of pointers to the Lord Jesus Christ. Each one of the sacrifices mentioned there, Is a type of Christ. Type, Showing, What Christ was going to do, By his sufferings and death.
[31:46] That he was going to pay the price, Of sin, In the experience of his people. And when you go forward, To the book of Isaiah.
[32:01] I'm not saying that David had reference, To Isaiah as it's written, Because Isaiah came after David. Nevertheless, The book of Isaiah, Talks about how sinful the people were, In Isaiah's day.
[32:16] But then the Lord says, Come now, Let us reason together, Says the Lord. Although your sins be as scarlet, They shall be as white as snow.
[32:27] Though they be red like crimson, They shall be as wool. And isn't this an amazing, Theme, For a song of praise, In the life of every one of ourselves?
[32:43] Oh, all sins, Sins of omission, And sins of commission. Even sins against light. Although they be red like crimson, Deeply ingrained into our very being.
[32:58] Nevertheless, When the blood of Jesus, Is sprinkled upon them, In conversion. These sins become as white as snow.
[33:09] There is therefore now no condemnation, To them who are in Christ Jesus, Who walked not after the flesh, But after the spirit. And think also of David himself, In Psalm 130, When he expresses his horror at sin.
[33:30] And he says, If you Lord were to mark iniquity, Who would stand? I wouldn't stand. None of us would stand. But yet he says, With thee there is forgiveness, That thou mayest be feared.
[33:45] And in the house of his pilgrimage, His pace getting slower, And his pilgrimage getting shorter.
[33:57] Is in that matter for a real song. Praise the Lord, O my soul. What about ourselves?
[34:11] As we journey on. What songs are we singing? Well, The apostle John could say, Says this.
[34:24] That if we confess our sin. He is faithful and just, To forgive us our sin. And cleans us. From all unrighteousness. It's in that.
[34:36] An encouraging word from the Lord. It's in that matter for praise. Also, When you think of the journey of faith.
[34:54] And the promise of God is this. That he gives grace. Grace. And he will give glory. And he will withhold no good from them.
[35:06] Who live uprightly. He giveth grace and glory. What an amazing God we have. Our creator.
[35:19] Who made us. Who sustains us. And in his providence provides all that we stand in need of. Isn't that an amazing text in the catechism.
[35:32] What are God's works of providence? God's works of providence are his most holy, wise and powerful, Preserving and governing all his creatures and all their actions.
[35:47] I mean he knows you where you are. And he provides for all of your needs. Isn't that a matter for praise?
[35:59] And when you think of the wider church. Rather than just the individuals of whom I've just been speaking. The wider church.
[36:10] What does it say? In the Old Testament. That God assures us. That no instrument. Formed against the church.
[36:23] Will prosper. No instrument. Against. Formed against the church will prosper. We see instruments. We see instruments.
[36:34] On the left hand and on the right hand. Rising up as it were to try. And demolish the church. And demolish Christian thinking from our society.
[36:46] Demolish the Christian framework of thinking. That people have had down through the years. And we sometimes fear where the whole thing is going. But this is our benchmark.
[37:00] That the Lord says that no instrument. Formed against you. Will ever prosper. It may seem to have a momentary advance.
[37:12] And prosperity. But at the end of the day it will fail. Because Jesus says. That he himself is the rock. And he says upon this rock.
[37:26] I will build my church. And the gates of hell. Shall not prevail against it. The gates of hell. I read somewhere.
[37:39] A graphic picture of. The armies of hell as it were. Issuing out through the gates. Ready for battle. Fully armed with.
[37:51] All the dark implements. That they are able to wield. But you know. They will not make it. Because Jesus.
[38:03] Is the rock. And the devil will not win. At the end of the day. He may seem. He may seem. To win a battle. From time to time.
[38:14] When. Sometimes we are tempted to sin. And the tempter comes. And tries. In one way or another. To.
[38:27] Take your feet from us. To us. To us. To us. But you know. The Lord is stronger than the evil one.
[38:39] And he knows the temptations of his people. He knows the weakness of his people. He knows the burdens of his people. Who was burdened.
[38:50] Like he was. None. None. Who was tempted like he was. None. Who was. Suffering pain.
[39:04] Like he was. None of us. And he has promised. To supply all the grace that we need. In every situation of life.
[39:17] What an amazing promise that is. And that's written. In his statute book. And it's engraved.
[39:29] With an everlasting engraving. I will never leave you. I will never ever forsake you. What a.
[39:41] Subject for a song that is. Even the very hairs of your head.
[39:52] He says. Are all numbered. Fear ye not. Therefore. Ye are of more value. Than many sparrows. He's talking.
[40:04] In that context. In Matthew's Gospel. Chapter 10. About the way the sparrows. They avail themselves of. Rooftops. And they make their houses there. And Jesus says.
[40:16] You are of more value. Than many sparrows. I know you. Every detail concerning you. Are we like David today. In love with the word of God.
[40:30] Is the word of God. The rule by which we live our lives. Is it. The word that we go to. First of all. Rather than go to your mobile phone.
[40:42] Rather than go to the internet. Go to the word of God. This is all the answers. Maybe the answers aren't as immediate. You have to pray for an answer.
[40:56] And that proves. Whether you're serious or not. If you're. Willing to wait. Prayerfully. For an answer. From the one who's got all the answers.
[41:08] And whose answer is right. And whose advice is always true. And whose advice is always true. Thy statutes. Have been my songs. In the house of my pilgrimage.
[41:22] And as we journey on together. May this be. Real and true. In the life of every one of us. That the statutes. The word of God.
[41:33] In the old and the new testaments. Be our rule of life. And may it be. The rule by which we live. To the glory of God.
[41:46] Let's pray. Help us Lord. Help us Lord. To be. Always prayerful. Seeking.
[42:00] Your grace. And seeking your direction. In every step of the way. Give us not to be sidetracked. Or sidelined. By the.
[42:11] Philosophies of the world. The world. But give us. To stand upon the scripture. And may your lives be full. Of the blessing of the Lord.
[42:26] Bless your servant who is. Coming here the. In the evening. We ask that you would lead him and guide him. In every detail of the service. And may he be a blessing. To the congregation here.
[42:40] Go before us now. And forgive our sin. In Jesus name. Amen. And we'll bring your worship to our conclusion.
[42:56] At this time. Singing from Psalm. A hundred and forty five. And there's a second version of the Psalm. The long meter version.
[43:07] Psalm one four five. Verses one to six. Four stanzas. O Lord thou art my God and King.
[43:19] Thee will I magnify and praise. I will thee bless and gladly sing. Unto thy holy name always. Each day I rise I will thee bless. And praise thy name time without end.
[43:31] Much to be praised and great God is. His greatness none can comprehend. Race shall thy works praise unto race. The mighty acts show done by thee.
[43:43] I will speak of the glorious grace. And honor of thy majesty. Thy wondrous works I will record. By men the might shall be extolled. Of all thy dreadful acts O Lord.
[43:56] And I thy greatness will unfold. These stanzas verses one to six. O Lord thou art my God and King. O Lord thou art my God and King.
[44:16] He will thy love with thy own praise. And praise the glory of God and King. He will thy grace. And love thee sing. And love thee sing.
[44:27] God do thy hope in him for Christ. Each day I rise I will thee bless. Sing, come to thy holy name, what place?
[44:43] Each day I rise, I will be blessed, and praise thy name, time without end.
[44:59] But to be praised and faithful is, this sickness none can call me end.
[45:16] Praise shall thy words listen to this, the life he has shown by thee.
[45:33] I will speak of the glorious grace, and honor of thy majesty.
[45:50] Thy wondrous words I will record, and then the night shall be yet stole.
[46:09] Come, O thy great, O Lord, and I thy greatness will unfold.
[46:26] Amen. Now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, rest upon and abide with you all, now and forevermore. Amen.
[46:41] Amen.