WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:09.500 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, 00:00:09.880 --> 00:00:15.280 redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.660 --> 00:00:22.620 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:22.620 --> 00:00:37.200 Today's scripture reading is from Psalm 19, verses 1-14, Luke 24, verses 44-45, and Hebrews 4, verse 12, as printed in your liturgy. 00:00:38.280 --> 00:00:39.640 A reading from the Psalms. 00:00:40.340 --> 00:00:45.179 The heavens declare the glory of God. The skies proclaim the work of His hands. 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:49.400 Day after day they pour forth speech. Night after night they reveal knowledge. 00:00:49.399 --> 00:00:53.219 They have no speech, they use no words. No sound is heard from them. 00:00:53.799 --> 00:00:59.239 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. 00:00:59.899 --> 00:01:02.079 In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun. 00:01:02.379 --> 00:01:06.939 It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. 00:01:07.659 --> 00:01:10.539 It rises at one end of the heavens and makes a circuit to the other. 00:01:11.060 --> 00:01:12.439 Nothing is deprived of its warmth. 00:01:13.239 --> 00:01:15.819 The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. 00:01:15.980 --> 00:01:19.140 The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. 00:01:19.900 --> 00:01:22.359 The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. 00:01:22.460 --> 00:01:25.540 And the commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. 00:01:26.240 --> 00:01:28.280 The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. 00:01:28.680 --> 00:01:31.080 The decrees of the Lord are firm, all of them are righteous. 00:01:31.880 --> 00:01:34.440 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold. 00:01:34.719 --> 00:01:37.520 And they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the honeycomb. 00:01:38.540 --> 00:01:40.140 By them your servant is warned. 00:01:40.620 --> 00:01:42.620 In keeping them there is great reward. 00:01:43.060 --> 00:01:45.020 But who can discern their own errors? 00:01:45.360 --> 00:01:46.500 Forgive my hidden faults. 00:01:46.500 --> 00:01:49.420 Keep your servant also from willful sins. 00:01:49.620 --> 00:01:50.739 May they not rule over me. 00:01:51.239 --> 00:01:53.719 Then I will be blameless, innocent, of great transgression. 00:01:54.579 --> 00:01:58.540 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight. 00:01:58.780 --> 00:02:00.060 Lord, my rock and my redeemer. 00:02:00.560 --> 00:02:02.219 The grass withers and the flowers fall. 00:02:02.219 --> 00:02:05.060 The word of our God stands forever. 00:02:05.959 --> 00:02:08.080 A reading from the gospel according to Luke. 00:02:08.840 --> 00:02:12.039 He said to them, this is what I told you when I was still with you. 00:02:12.620 --> 00:02:17.900 Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the laws of Moses, the prophets, and the Psalms. 00:02:18.319 --> 00:02:20.819 He then opened their minds so that they could understand the scriptures. 00:02:21.579 --> 00:02:22.900 This is the gospel of the Lord. 00:02:23.419 --> 00:02:25.020 Praise to you, Lord Christ. 00:02:25.020 --> 00:02:27.520 A reading from the letter to the Hebrews. 00:02:28.400 --> 00:02:32.439 For the word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. 00:02:32.700 --> 00:02:36.020 It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. 00:02:36.340 --> 00:02:38.300 It judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 00:02:38.700 --> 00:02:39.780 This is the word of the Lord. 00:02:40.400 --> 00:02:41.879 Good morning, Christ Church. 00:02:42.180 --> 00:02:44.560 Let's be really clear up front. 00:02:44.620 --> 00:02:46.660 There's two things we're not going to talk about today. 00:02:46.800 --> 00:02:48.180 We're not going to talk about the game. 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:55.300 And it's more emotionally healthy just to repress your negative emotions and pain. 00:02:55.420 --> 00:02:56.620 I read that in a book somewhere. 00:02:56.939 --> 00:02:58.460 So we're not going to talk about that. 00:02:58.520 --> 00:02:59.460 We're not going to talk about the heat. 00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:03.340 And we're just going to quietly sweat it out today, okay? 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:07.280 And just remember, I'm hotter up here than you are in the pew, all right? 00:03:08.420 --> 00:03:11.100 So we're in the sixth week of this sermon series. 00:03:11.420 --> 00:03:16.300 And I just want to be a little bit more explicit about the big picture of what we're trying to do. 00:03:16.300 --> 00:03:21.120 And so we've got some fancy slides we're going to pull up here, hopefully. 00:03:22.020 --> 00:03:27.620 And slide number one, let's say you're a physician, and I come to you for my annual exam. 00:03:27.660 --> 00:03:31.240 And you say to me, Jonathan, how's your physical health and well-being? 00:03:31.500 --> 00:03:37.480 And you'd probably start with a standard checklist of diagnostics and say, you know, how's your sleeping? 00:03:37.760 --> 00:03:38.340 How's your eating? 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:39.360 How's your exercising? 00:03:40.180 --> 00:03:45.480 And how are you doing, like, avoiding all that harmful stuff you know you probably shouldn't be doing? 00:03:45.479 --> 00:03:50.560 And I answer you, I say, you know, honestly, I could probably use some work in all four of those areas. 00:03:50.759 --> 00:03:59.079 Like, I could probably get off of my screens earlier, put myself to bed with a book, and probably get more and better sleep that I really need. 00:04:00.379 --> 00:04:06.379 You know, to be honest, I could eat more vegetables, kind of reduce my portion sizes and not eat after 8 o'clock. 00:04:06.399 --> 00:04:07.139 That would be helpful. 00:04:07.139 --> 00:04:12.959 And, you know, if I'm really honest, I love alcohol, and I love sugar. 00:04:13.259 --> 00:04:14.819 And those are harmful for me. 00:04:14.859 --> 00:04:19.339 I should probably do a better job and make more of an effort of avoiding those things. 00:04:19.379 --> 00:04:27.979 But what I'd really like to talk to you about today is my exercise, because I got injured back in May, and I haven't been able to run since then. 00:04:27.980 --> 00:04:36.860 And you say, okay, great, let's customize a personal plan to help you get healthy. 00:04:36.939 --> 00:04:40.660 And one of the things that you do is you send me off to a physical therapist. 00:04:40.780 --> 00:04:42.360 Now, this brings me to my next slide. 00:04:43.939 --> 00:04:47.819 This is my actual flow sheet for G Sports Physical Therapy. 00:04:47.920 --> 00:04:51.759 I don't know if you can see it, but it says patient Jonathan B. St. Clair. 00:04:51.759 --> 00:04:54.680 It says that I started on August the 2nd. 00:04:55.120 --> 00:04:59.719 It says that my diagnosis is a strained right Achilles tendon. 00:04:59.839 --> 00:05:04.259 And, yes, I'm 46 years old, so that kind of makes sense for where I'm at in life. 00:05:04.980 --> 00:05:07.560 And my physical therapist's name is Guadalupe. 00:05:07.639 --> 00:05:15.980 And she says, listen, I want you to come meet with me two times a week, and I want you to do these exercises at home every single day. 00:05:15.980 --> 00:05:26.700 And she looks in my eyes, she says, if you're serious about getting well, if you're serious about having this injury healed, you've got to invest your time coming to meet with me. 00:05:26.759 --> 00:05:30.720 We're going to do some stretching, some massage, some electrical stimulation. 00:05:31.540 --> 00:05:45.220 And you've got to invest your time and your energy at home doing these towel scrunches and these eccentric heel raises and these windshield wipers and all these different things that you probably would rather be doing something else, right? 00:05:45.980 --> 00:05:53.379 Well, fast forward two months, and I'm really glad to report to you, my church family, that I've made some progress. 00:05:53.740 --> 00:05:57.340 And I'm now doing some weight-bearing dynamic exercise. 00:05:59.840 --> 00:06:00.879 Thank you. 00:06:01.180 --> 00:06:01.860 Thank you. 00:06:02.080 --> 00:06:04.879 You're so kind to acknowledge that I just said that. 00:06:05.040 --> 00:06:05.800 Appreciate that. 00:06:06.319 --> 00:06:12.040 Now, my physical therapist at this point has kind of become my physical trainer. 00:06:12.160 --> 00:06:13.360 This comes to slide three. 00:06:13.360 --> 00:06:16.740 This is from Runner's World magazine. 00:06:17.500 --> 00:06:20.900 It's their plan for how to move from the couch to a 5K. 00:06:21.100 --> 00:06:22.199 So you're not running at all. 00:06:22.300 --> 00:06:23.020 You're on the couch. 00:06:23.400 --> 00:06:25.000 This is how you get to running a 5K. 00:06:25.080 --> 00:06:30.020 Now, my physical therapist has basically said, okay, I want you to run every other day. 00:06:30.780 --> 00:06:33.520 I want you to go run for two minutes and walk for one minute. 00:06:33.580 --> 00:06:35.020 I want you to do that for 20 minutes. 00:06:35.800 --> 00:06:36.620 Take a day of rest. 00:06:36.620 --> 00:06:43.000 And slowly but surely, we're going to work you up to 30 minutes at a time and 40 minutes at a time. 00:06:43.079 --> 00:06:50.220 Now, it doesn't matter what I ran, how fast I ran, how far I ran five years ago, how fast or far I ran 10 years ago. 00:06:50.759 --> 00:06:53.600 What matters is, can I even do a 5K today? 00:06:53.819 --> 00:06:56.040 And the answer is, unfortunately, no. 00:06:56.519 --> 00:06:57.420 I can't. 00:06:57.800 --> 00:06:59.080 I can't do it safely. 00:06:59.180 --> 00:07:00.340 I can't do it without injury. 00:07:01.060 --> 00:07:02.180 But I'm going to get there. 00:07:02.480 --> 00:07:02.580 Right? 00:07:02.640 --> 00:07:06.220 That's my goal if I keep working on it every day. 00:07:06.280 --> 00:07:09.400 Now, you're wondering at this point, like, I came for a sermon. 00:07:09.500 --> 00:07:11.520 I don't know why he's telling me all this stuff. 00:07:11.939 --> 00:07:13.500 And this brings me to slide number four. 00:07:14.540 --> 00:07:20.240 Because if I sat down with a doctor of the soul, and this doctor of the soul said to me, 00:07:20.300 --> 00:07:23.840 Jonathan, how's your spiritual health and well-being these days? 00:07:24.840 --> 00:07:28.420 They would probably run through a standard checklist of diagnostics. 00:07:28.460 --> 00:07:31.319 And they would say to me, you know, how are you doing with the Sabbath? 00:07:32.540 --> 00:07:33.960 How are you doing with solitude? 00:07:34.920 --> 00:07:42.840 How are you doing with scripture and prayer and fasting and community and generosity and service and witness? 00:07:42.920 --> 00:07:46.120 And I would sit there and say to this doctor of the soul, I would say, you know, honestly, 00:07:46.120 --> 00:07:51.060 I could use some work in all nine of those areas. 00:07:51.180 --> 00:07:59.379 And they would say to me, great, let's create a customized, personalized plan to help you get spiritually healthy. 00:08:00.180 --> 00:08:02.699 And that's what this sermon series is all about. 00:08:02.819 --> 00:08:06.899 It's about giving you a plan for your spiritual health and well-being. 00:08:07.800 --> 00:08:09.699 If you saw, you got a handout today. 00:08:10.399 --> 00:08:14.480 And on one side of that, it's name tag Sunday and handout Sunday and slide Sunday. 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:14.800 Okay? 00:08:15.000 --> 00:08:15.980 And this never happens. 00:08:16.120 --> 00:08:19.680 This has never happened in the history of Christchurch that all three of these things came together. 00:08:19.740 --> 00:08:27.420 But that handout says on one side, how can we be a countercultural community of grace through these biblical practices 00:08:27.420 --> 00:08:34.500 to be different than the way that everything in our culture is going, which isn't necessarily super great. 00:08:35.659 --> 00:08:43.759 And then the backside of that handout says, how can I, how can you be countercultural individuals of grace through these biblical practices? 00:08:43.759 --> 00:08:51.080 And what we want to do is equip you with a plan to intentionally and deliberately structure your time. 00:08:51.080 --> 00:09:05.379 To give you a schedule and to give you a blueprint for how to invest your time and your energy daily, weekly, and monthly so that you can grow in the grace of God, in these habits of grace. 00:09:05.379 --> 00:09:08.620 Does that make sense why we're doing this sermon series? 00:09:09.200 --> 00:09:12.259 Some of you are like, I'm just sweating right now and trying really hard to pay attention. 00:09:12.439 --> 00:09:14.179 So, good job so far. 00:09:14.879 --> 00:09:17.620 This is what we're doing in this sermon series. 00:09:17.620 --> 00:09:23.419 And today we're going to come back to this theme of Scripture where we left off last week. 00:09:23.460 --> 00:09:26.560 And we're giving two weeks of this because it's so vital. 00:09:26.860 --> 00:09:31.600 Like, of all these different practices, this one is vital to your spiritual health. 00:09:31.639 --> 00:09:37.759 And we're going to look at Psalm 19 and we're going to talk about the written word, the perfect word, and the redeeming word. 00:09:38.279 --> 00:09:41.680 Okay, the written word, the perfect word, and the redeeming word. 00:09:41.759 --> 00:09:44.100 First of all, the written word. 00:09:44.100 --> 00:09:47.240 If you look at Psalm 19, verse 1, it says, 00:09:47.399 --> 00:09:52.019 The heavens declare the glory of God and the skies proclaim the work of His hands. 00:09:53.399 --> 00:10:02.840 Why do the sun and the moon and the stars, why do the mountains and the oceans move us at the depths of our being the way that we're moved by a great piece of art? 00:10:03.960 --> 00:10:10.040 And the answer is because the stars and the sun and the mountains and the ocean, they are great works of art. 00:10:10.039 --> 00:10:17.379 God is revealing His glory through these works of His hands. 00:10:18.459 --> 00:10:19.819 And so the psalmist says in verse 2, 00:10:19.820 --> 00:10:44.920 The psalmist delights in God's wordless declaration in the universe, God's nonverbal eloquence in nature. 00:10:44.919 --> 00:10:58.899 And he says each day, each night is pouring forth with this irrepressible, unfailing variety that's flowing out of the infinite mind of our maker. 00:10:59.899 --> 00:11:08.539 And it's showing us the craft and the artistry of our creator and giving us a glimpse into the beauty of our God. 00:11:08.539 --> 00:11:14.679 And the psalmist says the creation is not only adoring its creator as it was made to do, 00:11:14.740 --> 00:11:21.899 but it's also providing a testimony to the human community, to all people, without audible words, 00:11:21.980 --> 00:11:26.279 this nonverbal communication that there is a God. 00:11:27.279 --> 00:11:31.099 And that the world is not an accidental collocation of molecules, 00:11:31.100 --> 00:11:38.100 but rather it's this meaningful work of this all-knowing, all-powerful artist. 00:11:38.860 --> 00:11:42.740 And that all people at some level, they know about God. 00:11:43.320 --> 00:11:48.379 Because everywhere they look, within their own heart and out into the world, 00:11:48.500 --> 00:11:55.480 everywhere they look, they see something of the truth and the meaning and the wisdom and the beauty of God. 00:11:55.480 --> 00:11:58.940 Even if they suppress that knowledge, even if they ignore and neglect that knowledge, 00:11:59.539 --> 00:12:02.659 everybody knows, says the psalmist. 00:12:03.700 --> 00:12:06.720 And then he shifts the focus of his meditation to the sun. 00:12:06.779 --> 00:12:08.700 And he says this in verse 4. 00:12:08.820 --> 00:12:09.120 He says, 00:12:09.820 --> 00:12:12.100 In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun, 00:12:12.879 --> 00:12:15.000 which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, 00:12:15.080 --> 00:12:17.920 like a champion rejoicing to run his course. 00:12:18.399 --> 00:12:21.580 It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other. 00:12:21.580 --> 00:12:24.320 Nothing is deprived of its warmth. 00:12:25.480 --> 00:12:29.800 See, he paints this unforgettable scene of the horizon at dawn 00:12:29.800 --> 00:12:34.000 that's exploding with this radiant sunrise. 00:12:34.340 --> 00:12:38.659 And then the sun is just dashing across the ceiling of the world. 00:12:40.139 --> 00:12:40.539 And he says, 00:12:40.600 --> 00:12:45.920 When you look at the sun, the sun is like a bridegroom at his wedding when he sees his bride. 00:12:47.060 --> 00:12:50.159 It is radiant with joy and wonder. 00:12:50.159 --> 00:12:51.699 He says, 00:12:51.740 --> 00:12:55.860 When you look at the sun, it's like an athlete that runs his course with unflagging energy. 00:12:55.939 --> 00:13:00.980 The sun is just shining with an enduring kind of power and strength. 00:13:01.879 --> 00:13:02.419 The psalmist says, 00:13:02.659 --> 00:13:03.679 Look at it all. 00:13:04.860 --> 00:13:06.000 Isn't it glorious? 00:13:06.719 --> 00:13:07.559 Isn't it amazing? 00:13:08.860 --> 00:13:10.039 But, the psalmist says, 00:13:10.079 --> 00:13:10.399 He says, 00:13:10.399 --> 00:13:12.620 This wordless revelation of God, 00:13:13.199 --> 00:13:14.019 It's not enough. 00:13:15.059 --> 00:13:16.179 It's not enough. 00:13:17.279 --> 00:13:23.939 The scientific study of God's wordless creation cannot answer the deeper questions of our human existence. 00:13:24.199 --> 00:13:31.120 It cannot reveal to us God's plans and his purposes for human life and human history and human salvation. 00:13:31.120 --> 00:13:32.639 He says, 00:13:32.779 --> 00:13:33.980 We need something more. 00:13:34.700 --> 00:13:35.980 We need something better. 00:13:37.259 --> 00:13:44.500 And so, he moves from the starry sky at night and the sunshine in the morning to what he calls in verse 7, 00:13:44.580 --> 00:13:47.460 The law of the Lord, which is perfect. 00:13:48.840 --> 00:13:50.820 And what's his point in telling us this? 00:13:50.879 --> 00:13:55.080 He's saying that, look, nature tells us all about God's reality and God's power. 00:13:55.899 --> 00:13:59.980 But it does not tell us about God's covenant love and his saving grace. 00:13:59.980 --> 00:14:03.440 And so, the Lord has spoken to us. 00:14:04.220 --> 00:14:05.720 He's spoken to us verbally. 00:14:05.920 --> 00:14:10.080 He's spoken to us directly in his written word. 00:14:11.139 --> 00:14:12.639 And follow the logic here. 00:14:12.759 --> 00:14:18.639 He's saying, look, just as the sun's light and the sun's warmth is essential for all of life, 00:14:18.779 --> 00:14:27.899 so God's self-revelation in his written word is essential for giving us his light and his life and his love. 00:14:27.899 --> 00:14:33.939 And so, the question the psalmist is asking us to consider today is, 00:14:33.940 --> 00:14:43.660 How would your life look different than it does now if God's written word became the sun of your soul? 00:14:45.580 --> 00:14:46.060 Right? 00:14:46.140 --> 00:14:51.000 How would your life look different than it does today if your time and your energy and your attention 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:56.560 orbited around and depended upon the sun of the scriptures? 00:14:56.559 --> 00:15:04.379 How would your life look different than it did yesterday if the first thing you did tomorrow morning 00:15:04.379 --> 00:15:09.699 was that you woke up looking for that sunrise of God's written word, 00:15:09.879 --> 00:15:13.259 filling your soul with God's light and life and love? 00:15:13.259 --> 00:15:17.539 That's the question the psalmist wants us to consider today. 00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:20.980 So, he's talking about the written word of God. 00:15:21.039 --> 00:15:21.740 You with me so far? 00:15:21.799 --> 00:15:22.659 The written word of God? 00:15:22.939 --> 00:15:28.779 But then he moves from talking about the written word of God to talking about the perfect word of God. 00:15:29.500 --> 00:15:31.019 The perfect word of God. 00:15:32.139 --> 00:15:37.340 In verses 7 through 11, he's not talking anymore about the soundless word of God 00:15:37.340 --> 00:15:39.340 that comes to us through the natural world, 00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:43.340 but he's talking about the perfect word of God that comes to us through the scriptures. 00:15:44.940 --> 00:15:50.280 You see, he starts with the general revelation of our creator God that he gives to all humanity, 00:15:50.399 --> 00:15:56.440 to all people, but then he moves to that special revelation of Israel's covenant-keeping Lord 00:15:56.440 --> 00:15:59.899 that he gives only to his people. 00:16:01.080 --> 00:16:02.820 And he says, let's think about that for a minute. 00:16:02.820 --> 00:16:07.019 Let's think about the benefits of scripture step by step. 00:16:07.019 --> 00:16:11.179 He says the first step in verse 7 is that the Lord, 00:16:12.639 --> 00:16:16.179 the God who revealed himself at the burning bush to Moses as, 00:16:16.460 --> 00:16:18.960 I am who I am and I will be who I will be. 00:16:19.039 --> 00:16:23.399 That Lord who delivered his people from their bondage in Egypt, 00:16:23.860 --> 00:16:27.659 the Lord gave his law, the Lord gave his Torah, his teaching. 00:16:28.559 --> 00:16:31.620 The Lord has given us these foundational stories. 00:16:31.620 --> 00:16:38.440 He's given us this framework of doctrines and ethics in Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. 00:16:39.279 --> 00:16:42.659 And he's expounded upon that through the prophets and through the Psalms. 00:16:42.740 --> 00:16:47.320 And he says, the Lord who's given us those scriptures, those scriptures he gave us, 00:16:47.779 --> 00:16:49.279 they're perfect. 00:16:51.159 --> 00:16:52.679 They are complete. 00:16:52.679 --> 00:16:55.639 They are flawless. 00:16:56.599 --> 00:16:59.019 They are an integrated whole. 00:17:00.139 --> 00:17:07.539 And then he says, he says, the most basic benefit of all people who go and they spend time meditating 00:17:07.539 --> 00:17:11.799 on that flawless written word of the Lord. 00:17:12.059 --> 00:17:13.759 You know what happens to them when they do that? 00:17:14.480 --> 00:17:17.399 Their soul is refreshed. 00:17:17.400 --> 00:17:23.120 Their vitality is renewed. 00:17:23.360 --> 00:17:26.100 Their liveliness is restored. 00:17:26.580 --> 00:17:34.320 They become a people who are revived when they sit with that flawless word of God. 00:17:35.440 --> 00:17:42.220 He says, the word has power in it to make you who you were really made to be. 00:17:43.060 --> 00:17:44.460 Nature can't do that. 00:17:44.460 --> 00:17:48.579 The sunrise, as amazing as it is, cannot do that. 00:17:48.840 --> 00:17:55.039 Only the word of God can really, truly, deeply refresh your soul. 00:17:56.539 --> 00:17:58.160 And then that's step one, okay? 00:17:58.200 --> 00:17:59.059 You ready to go to step two? 00:18:00.039 --> 00:18:05.220 Step two, he says in verse seven, he says, the law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. 00:18:05.299 --> 00:18:09.620 The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. 00:18:09.619 --> 00:18:18.459 And you see, he escalates here from reviving our life to making wise people who are otherwise simple. 00:18:18.679 --> 00:18:20.099 That is kind of dull. 00:18:22.000 --> 00:18:24.039 And how does that work? 00:18:24.119 --> 00:18:32.919 How do we change from being people who are unwise to people who have understanding and self-mastery 00:18:32.919 --> 00:18:35.019 and skills to live well? 00:18:35.019 --> 00:18:42.420 Well, the psalmist says, well, it's because the statutes of the Lord, they're unlike all the other words out there. 00:18:43.400 --> 00:18:48.079 The statutes of the Lord are unlike all the words that are coming at you constantly through your screen. 00:18:48.359 --> 00:18:52.139 And they're unlike all the other words that are coming at you constantly through your AirPods. 00:18:52.140 --> 00:18:57.440 Because these words don't have a human origin. 00:18:58.600 --> 00:18:58.820 Right? 00:18:58.860 --> 00:19:00.860 These words are not AI generated. 00:19:01.740 --> 00:19:03.780 These words are not fake news. 00:19:04.620 --> 00:19:05.660 What does the psalmist say? 00:19:05.720 --> 00:19:08.240 He says, these words are trustworthy. 00:19:09.380 --> 00:19:15.940 These words are words that you can build upon like a building a house upon a strong foundation. 00:19:15.940 --> 00:19:23.600 And he says, not only does this word, this flawless word of God, revive our life and make us wise. 00:19:24.539 --> 00:19:25.620 He says in verse 8, 00:19:25.740 --> 00:19:29.000 The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. 00:19:29.100 --> 00:19:31.900 The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes. 00:19:32.539 --> 00:19:34.920 The fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever. 00:19:35.160 --> 00:19:39.120 The ordinances of the Lord are sure, and all of them are righteous. 00:19:39.119 --> 00:19:46.019 Literally in the Hebrew, he says, the precepts of the Lord are straight-edged. 00:19:47.259 --> 00:19:53.339 Which is to say, they are a standard by which you can measure all other truth claims. 00:19:54.719 --> 00:19:58.219 And he says, all the decrees of the Lord are righteous. 00:19:58.339 --> 00:20:01.219 Not most of the decrees or some of the decrees. 00:20:02.099 --> 00:20:07.279 And then the rest of them we just move past and we've gotten beyond and we've caught up with the times. 00:20:07.279 --> 00:20:10.839 No, he says, all the commands of the Lord are righteous. 00:20:10.960 --> 00:20:12.680 And think about the Ten Commandments for a second. 00:20:14.139 --> 00:20:15.480 You know, when the Ten Commandments say, 00:20:16.339 --> 00:20:20.539 You should have no other gods and no other priorities before the living God. 00:20:21.779 --> 00:20:23.779 That you shouldn't take the things that aren't yours. 00:20:23.879 --> 00:20:25.359 You shouldn't say the things that aren't true. 00:20:25.460 --> 00:20:28.859 You shouldn't engage in non-marital sex and on and on and on. 00:20:30.079 --> 00:20:36.500 He says, all those decrees, they reveal how we're to live in a right relationship with God. 00:20:37.279 --> 00:20:38.180 And with each other. 00:20:39.139 --> 00:20:43.180 And he says, listen, if you would submit yourself to these decrees. 00:20:43.700 --> 00:20:46.920 He says, they have such incredible power. 00:20:47.740 --> 00:20:49.839 That if you would live by God's word. 00:20:49.920 --> 00:20:51.700 If you would live by God's truth. 00:20:51.700 --> 00:20:59.940 It has the power to cause your heart to overflow with joy on the inside. 00:20:59.940 --> 00:21:05.880 So much so that your eyes would begin to sparkle on the outside. 00:21:06.900 --> 00:21:13.720 And the psalmist is saying to us, don't you want that kind of power of God operating in your life? 00:21:14.440 --> 00:21:16.680 Anybody here want a little more joy in your life? 00:21:17.340 --> 00:21:20.740 Anybody here want your eyes to be a little bit enlivened and sparkling? 00:21:20.740 --> 00:21:27.779 Why, the psalmist says, wouldn't you want that power to be unleashed within you? 00:21:29.299 --> 00:21:33.079 And what he's trying to do is change our motivational structure. 00:21:33.940 --> 00:21:35.960 At the very depth of our being. 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:39.880 From one of engaging God's word as a sense of duty. 00:21:40.859 --> 00:21:42.920 To having a sense of delight. 00:21:43.839 --> 00:21:44.000 Right? 00:21:44.000 --> 00:21:45.819 And this is why he goes on in verse 10. 00:21:45.900 --> 00:21:49.500 And he says, they, God's words are more precious than gold. 00:21:50.019 --> 00:21:51.180 Than much pure gold. 00:21:51.299 --> 00:21:52.359 They're sweeter than honey. 00:21:52.819 --> 00:21:55.599 Than honey from the honeycomb. 00:21:57.059 --> 00:21:59.579 He says, here are two different philosophies of life. 00:21:59.680 --> 00:22:00.880 Two different approaches to life. 00:22:00.960 --> 00:22:02.579 A materialist desires money. 00:22:03.140 --> 00:22:05.099 And a hedonist craves pleasure. 00:22:05.440 --> 00:22:06.900 And you can go after that. 00:22:06.900 --> 00:22:13.160 You can spend the best years of your life filling up your bank account with more gold and desirable wealth. 00:22:14.000 --> 00:22:20.799 Or you can spend the best years of your life, you know, satisfying your palates with more honey and desirable pleasures. 00:22:22.420 --> 00:22:24.180 But he says, you know what's even better? 00:22:25.319 --> 00:22:28.720 What's even better than that is finding your delight in God. 00:22:29.660 --> 00:22:31.900 It's finding your delight in the word of God. 00:22:31.900 --> 00:22:33.400 And the covenants of God. 00:22:33.400 --> 00:22:35.140 And the promises of God. 00:22:35.140 --> 00:22:37.240 That are never going to fail you. 00:22:37.740 --> 00:22:44.920 In the way that your portfolio and your pleasures are eventually going to fail you. 00:22:46.380 --> 00:22:55.680 He says, investing your time in this more satisfying reward is so precious, he says. 00:22:55.700 --> 00:22:56.940 It's so sweet. 00:22:56.940 --> 00:22:59.320 But here's the thing. 00:22:59.440 --> 00:23:02.920 I want to do a little bit of application for those of you who are still with me. 00:23:03.500 --> 00:23:09.700 I want to do a little bit of application because you can have a very high view of your gym membership. 00:23:10.580 --> 00:23:11.960 But never go and exercise. 00:23:13.220 --> 00:23:17.140 And you can also have a very high view of scripture like Psalm 19. 00:23:17.140 --> 00:23:19.220 Which I hope that all of us here will adopt. 00:23:19.220 --> 00:23:26.819 But you can have a very low engagement with the preciousness and the sweetness of scripture in your daily life. 00:23:26.900 --> 00:23:29.920 Which makes your high view of scripture completely worthless. 00:23:30.799 --> 00:23:31.579 Does that make sense? 00:23:32.200 --> 00:23:39.819 So as your pastor, as your doctor of your soul, as sort of your spiritual therapist and your spiritual trainer. 00:23:40.279 --> 00:23:43.299 I'm just going to get super practical and super prescriptive for a minute. 00:23:43.360 --> 00:23:43.880 You okay with that? 00:23:43.880 --> 00:23:49.880 So when we're talking about the habits of God's grace, we're not trying to earn God's grace. 00:23:50.060 --> 00:23:52.680 God's grace is just something that he freely gives to us. 00:23:52.720 --> 00:23:55.680 But what we're trying to do is respond to his grace. 00:23:55.780 --> 00:24:03.320 We're trying to put ourselves in a position where we could actually receive and experience more of his grace. 00:24:03.320 --> 00:24:06.120 And so what we're giving you, it's not busy work. 00:24:06.480 --> 00:24:09.700 It's not because we want you to go like be miserable. 00:24:09.920 --> 00:24:11.600 It's because we want you to be well. 00:24:11.599 --> 00:24:15.539 And so here's some practical things that you need to know. 00:24:16.139 --> 00:24:20.939 You need a daily time and place to meet with God through his word. 00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:28.099 And if you don't have that in your schedule, you are not going to grow spiritually, period, full stop. 00:24:29.319 --> 00:24:29.579 Amen? 00:24:30.599 --> 00:24:33.740 You need, secondly, a Bible reading plan. 00:24:35.019 --> 00:24:37.399 And if you don't have one, here's a beginner plan. 00:24:37.839 --> 00:24:40.119 A beginner plan, I've got a handout at the end. 00:24:40.179 --> 00:24:40.899 I can give it to you. 00:24:40.900 --> 00:24:42.840 It's called the Essential 100 Plan. 00:24:43.560 --> 00:24:51.060 It's 50 readings from the Old Testament, 50 readings from the New Testament, five days a week, one-ish chapters of the Bible per day. 00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:53.920 And it's an amazing plan. 00:24:54.180 --> 00:24:59.360 And our youth, it's definitely something that our youth, our middle schoolers, our high schoolers can do. 00:24:59.359 --> 00:25:07.059 And parents, it's something that if you're looking to read Scripture around your dinner table at home, I encourage you to start with that beginner plan. 00:25:07.179 --> 00:25:18.379 An intermediate plan, a step up from that, is to read one gospel a day, one chapter of the Psalms a day, and one chapter of a New Testament letter a day. 00:25:18.380 --> 00:25:24.500 And you can just get three bookmarks, put it in the Psalms, put it in the Gospels, put it in the letters, and just pick up where you left off the day before. 00:25:24.760 --> 00:25:25.740 An advanced plan. 00:25:25.800 --> 00:25:27.200 This is your pastor's plan, right? 00:25:27.240 --> 00:25:28.680 This is what Pastor Andrew and I do. 00:25:28.880 --> 00:25:31.340 You would hope that we do something more advanced, right? 00:25:31.560 --> 00:25:32.640 Not at the beginner level. 00:25:32.640 --> 00:25:35.180 If you want to join us, it's called the McShane Plan. 00:25:35.320 --> 00:25:37.259 It's four chapters of the Bible a day. 00:25:37.700 --> 00:25:39.520 It takes you, it's every day of the week. 00:25:39.680 --> 00:25:46.660 And if you do it over the course of the year, you read the Old Testament in the year, and you read the New Testament and the Psalms twice in the year. 00:25:48.580 --> 00:25:55.180 Now, I don't recommend you use apps because if your phone is in the same room, even if it's turned off, it's screaming at you, look at me. 00:25:55.259 --> 00:25:56.120 Don't look at the Bible. 00:25:56.720 --> 00:25:59.440 So don't do a Bible reading app, please. 00:25:59.440 --> 00:26:12.880 That said, I use a daily Bible reading app, and it enables me to hear with my ears this Zambian pastor named Conrad Mabewe. 00:26:12.960 --> 00:26:14.019 He's got an amazing accent. 00:26:14.240 --> 00:26:19.759 He reads the McShane Plan, and I read along with my eyes, and I find that hearing and that seeing really helps me. 00:26:19.820 --> 00:26:26.940 But whatever you do, pick a plan today, tell a friend, tell a group, and say, will you help me read this plan? 00:26:26.940 --> 00:26:29.500 Can I keep going? 00:26:29.920 --> 00:26:33.680 I'm kind of, I'm kind of, I'm hot up here, and I'm sweating, so I'm on fire, right? 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:37.320 Number three, you need some tools to help you read Scripture. 00:26:38.259 --> 00:26:41.940 Because what we want to do is read not just the what, but the who. 00:26:42.980 --> 00:26:45.420 Not just for information, but for relationship. 00:26:45.660 --> 00:26:50.940 Not just to know more about the Bible, but to enjoy a deeper relationship with the God of the Bible. 00:26:50.940 --> 00:27:00.640 We want to move beyond just reading mere words on the page to listening to the voice of God in our hearts and responding to Him by faith. 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:05.240 And so, again, I have two tools, two handouts. 00:27:06.080 --> 00:27:14.820 If no one's ever taught you how to do an inductive Bible study, I would be privileged to be the first person to teach you how to do that. 00:27:14.819 --> 00:27:17.500 And I can teach you in five minutes, and you can do it tomorrow morning. 00:27:17.579 --> 00:27:19.179 Come talk to me after the service. 00:27:19.240 --> 00:27:21.099 We'll sweat it out up here up front. 00:27:22.319 --> 00:27:26.279 The fourth thing you need to do is you need to read the Scripture as a grand story. 00:27:27.399 --> 00:27:30.759 The Bible is not an encyclopedia of facts about history. 00:27:31.480 --> 00:27:34.159 It's not an almanac of tidbits of moral guidance. 00:27:34.339 --> 00:27:36.159 It's not a spiritual reference manual. 00:27:36.160 --> 00:27:37.980 It's this epic narrative. 00:27:38.180 --> 00:27:51.900 It's this grand six-act play from creation to fall to Israel to Christ to church to new creation that frames all of our little stories and all of our smaller dramas in this larger cosmic drama. 00:27:53.420 --> 00:27:57.640 And if you don't know much about that, I've got two recommendations for you. 00:27:57.700 --> 00:27:58.540 I'm not going to tell you now. 00:27:58.620 --> 00:28:00.320 You've got to come up and ask me after the service. 00:28:00.400 --> 00:28:04.440 A pastor in Oxford, he's written a book that our middle schoolers could understand. 00:28:04.440 --> 00:28:09.980 And there's a professor at Oxford who's written a children's book that our children can understand. 00:28:10.080 --> 00:28:15.240 And I would love to tell you about these books, and you can learn how to read Scripture as a grand story. 00:28:18.360 --> 00:28:27.299 I've got more suggestions, but I'm going to pause here and just summarize that all I'm trying to do is give you a couch to 5K plan. 00:28:30.740 --> 00:28:33.779 But only you can do something with that plan. 00:28:34.440 --> 00:28:41.100 A gym membership and a personal trainer is completely worthless if you don't exercise. 00:28:42.539 --> 00:28:50.600 And all that I've just recommended to you is completely worthless unless you make changes in your daily routine to engage with God in His Word. 00:28:50.660 --> 00:28:52.519 And here's the question the psalmist puts to us. 00:28:52.519 --> 00:29:22.500 He says, 00:29:22.519 --> 00:29:29.440 And why would we settle for cheap, soul-sucking, soul-destroying substitutes? 00:29:31.440 --> 00:29:31.920 Amen? 00:29:33.819 --> 00:29:37.539 I'd be failing you as a pastor if I didn't get kind of fired up about this. 00:29:37.779 --> 00:29:41.099 Because there are things that are destroying your souls. 00:29:42.119 --> 00:29:45.680 And this is the thing that will restore and refresh your soul. 00:29:45.680 --> 00:29:48.340 It's the written Word of God. 00:29:48.460 --> 00:29:50.180 It's the perfect Word of God. 00:29:50.220 --> 00:29:52.900 And the last thing I want to say is it's the redeeming Word of God. 00:29:56.240 --> 00:30:01.680 The psalm starts with the heavens, but as you notice, he ends with the heart. 00:30:03.460 --> 00:30:03.880 Right? 00:30:03.940 --> 00:30:07.140 The psalmist has this person-to-person encounter with the living God. 00:30:07.140 --> 00:30:13.380 Through His beautiful and beneficial Word that orders and restores the lives of His servants. 00:30:14.680 --> 00:30:17.660 And as he's drawn close to the Lord through His Word, 00:30:18.700 --> 00:30:24.759 the nearness of the Lord and the presence of the Lord and the holiness of the Lord is causing the psalmist to feel what? 00:30:26.060 --> 00:30:28.480 It's causing him to feel unworthy. 00:30:28.480 --> 00:30:32.440 It's causing him to do some heart-searching. 00:30:33.819 --> 00:30:40.279 And friends, you know that you've actually read your Bible when it leads you to do some heart-searching. 00:30:41.779 --> 00:30:43.279 Just as the psalmist says, 00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:45.500 Nothing is deprived from the sun's warmth. 00:30:46.019 --> 00:30:46.319 Amen? 00:30:47.240 --> 00:30:49.299 Nothing is hidden from the sun's heat. 00:30:50.360 --> 00:30:54.240 Just as the physical light of the sun exposes everything that's hidden in the shadows, 00:30:54.240 --> 00:30:59.019 so the spiritual light of God's perfect, flawless, written Word, 00:30:59.120 --> 00:31:01.640 it exposes everything that's hidden in our hearts. 00:31:02.900 --> 00:31:04.940 And this is why the psalmist says in verse 12, 00:31:05.039 --> 00:31:07.220 Who can discern their own errors? 00:31:08.579 --> 00:31:09.900 Forgive my hidden faults. 00:31:10.940 --> 00:31:12.920 Keep your servant also from willful sins. 00:31:13.039 --> 00:31:14.299 May they not rule over me. 00:31:14.680 --> 00:31:17.779 Then I will be blameless, innocent of great transgression. 00:31:18.980 --> 00:31:19.660 He says, 00:31:19.660 --> 00:31:23.339 Oh Lord, there are these willful sins that want to rule over me. 00:31:24.139 --> 00:31:30.199 And I need you to keep me from all of those deliberate offenses that are so easily committed 00:31:30.199 --> 00:31:34.699 in those unwatchful, heat of the moment kind of situations. 00:31:36.419 --> 00:31:41.359 But he says also there are all these indiscernible errors in myself that I cannot see. 00:31:41.459 --> 00:31:45.079 There are all these hidden faults that are lurking in my blind spots 00:31:45.079 --> 00:31:51.039 that are trying to lure me away and cause me to depart from your design for my life. 00:31:51.039 --> 00:31:52.039 And so the psalmist says, 00:31:52.200 --> 00:31:55.019 Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner. 00:31:57.000 --> 00:31:57.579 He says, 00:31:57.579 --> 00:32:00.659 If you do not come, Lord, and forgive me my faults, 00:32:01.500 --> 00:32:04.480 and if you do not come, Lord, and keep me from my sins, 00:32:04.639 --> 00:32:09.259 then I will not be able to dwell in your most holy presence. 00:32:10.879 --> 00:32:15.480 Unless you save me, unless you pardon me, unless you preserve me, 00:32:15.480 --> 00:32:19.879 not only from all that stuff that I'm thinking and saying and doing wrong, 00:32:19.880 --> 00:32:23.360 but from all that stuff I'm not thinking and not saying and not doing right, 00:32:23.360 --> 00:32:28.980 if you don't come and equip me and clear me of all my guilt, the psalmist says, 00:32:29.180 --> 00:32:33.040 I will be helpless and I will be hopeless in my sin. 00:32:34.640 --> 00:32:38.500 And friends, if we're reading our Bible and it doesn't lead us to say that, 00:32:39.040 --> 00:32:40.820 then again, we're not reading our Bible. 00:32:40.819 --> 00:32:47.220 But notice where he ends up at this incredible word of hope at the end. 00:32:47.299 --> 00:32:47.599 He says, 00:32:47.980 --> 00:32:51.619 Lord, you are my rock and you are my salvation. 00:32:53.119 --> 00:32:56.220 Lord, it's only if you show up with your rock-solid mercy 00:32:56.220 --> 00:33:02.379 and your redeeming grace do I have any hope of being purified and made whole. 00:33:02.720 --> 00:33:05.639 And it's only you, if you purify me and make me whole, 00:33:05.740 --> 00:33:07.960 then I can join in with all the sun and the stars, 00:33:07.960 --> 00:33:10.819 all the mountains and the oceans to do what I was made to do, 00:33:10.900 --> 00:33:13.840 which is to declare and to proclaim your glory. 00:33:15.680 --> 00:33:21.079 And friends, the Bible is a signpost that's pointing us the whole time on every page 00:33:21.079 --> 00:33:26.759 to what the psalmist calls our rock and our redeemer, which is Jesus. 00:33:28.200 --> 00:33:28.539 Right? 00:33:28.600 --> 00:33:33.059 The same God who orders the cosmos, he came and he took on flesh. 00:33:33.140 --> 00:33:34.440 The word became flesh. 00:33:34.440 --> 00:33:39.120 And he intervened as our redeemer to save us from our sins. 00:33:40.380 --> 00:33:45.240 Jesus came as a servant who delighted in the perfect law of God completely. 00:33:46.299 --> 00:33:46.620 Right? 00:33:46.660 --> 00:33:49.340 When Satan tempted him, he answered with Scripture. 00:33:49.460 --> 00:33:51.180 When his opponents accused him, he said, 00:33:51.580 --> 00:33:53.840 Is it not written and have you not heard? 00:33:54.220 --> 00:33:57.539 When he was on the cross, Jesus is quoting the Psalms. 00:33:57.820 --> 00:34:00.220 This guy is saturated with Scripture. 00:34:00.220 --> 00:34:03.460 And notice that in verse 11 it says, 00:34:03.680 --> 00:34:06.440 In keeping God's word there is great reward. 00:34:06.440 --> 00:34:12.380 But also in not keeping God's word there is great punishment. 00:34:13.619 --> 00:34:17.059 And what we see in Jesus, what we see in Jesus on his cross, 00:34:17.119 --> 00:34:22.139 is here is the only servant of God who kept all of God's words completely 00:34:22.139 --> 00:34:24.260 and so earned the reward of God. 00:34:24.559 --> 00:34:28.320 And here he is on the cross taking all of our punishment 00:34:28.320 --> 00:34:31.240 for our indiscernible errors 00:34:31.240 --> 00:34:34.420 and our hidden faults and our willful sins 00:34:34.420 --> 00:34:38.240 so that he could give us the reward that he earned. 00:34:40.480 --> 00:34:43.200 He takes the punishment and we get his reward. 00:34:45.480 --> 00:34:47.720 Friends, Jesus is our merciful rock. 00:34:48.760 --> 00:34:50.280 He's our gracious redeemer. 00:34:51.400 --> 00:34:54.539 He's the one who forgives us with his cleansing blood. 00:34:54.640 --> 00:34:57.680 He's the one who covers us and makes us blameless and innocent. 00:34:57.679 --> 00:34:59.699 He's the one who covers us with his perfect righteousness. 00:35:00.980 --> 00:35:03.259 And if that is who Jesus is for you, 00:35:03.299 --> 00:35:05.639 if that is what Jesus has done for you, 00:35:06.019 --> 00:35:08.980 then the question the psalmist is asking us is, 00:35:09.199 --> 00:35:12.119 don't you want everything you are and everything you do 00:35:12.119 --> 00:35:14.399 to be pleasing in his sight? 00:35:15.940 --> 00:35:17.980 Don't you want the words of your mouth 00:35:17.980 --> 00:35:20.659 and all your outward expressions? 00:35:20.799 --> 00:35:22.759 Don't you want the meditations of your heart 00:35:22.759 --> 00:35:24.279 and all of your inward dispositions? 00:35:24.419 --> 00:35:26.799 Don't you want your daily life and your daily time 00:35:26.800 --> 00:35:30.320 and your daily energy and priorities and habits and attention 00:35:30.320 --> 00:35:34.539 to be pleasing in the sight of your rock and your redeemer? 00:35:36.900 --> 00:35:41.320 He says, don't you want to join in this great wordless hymn of creation? 00:35:41.320 --> 00:35:45.559 This great anthem of the life-giving word of the scriptures, 00:35:45.680 --> 00:35:51.980 this great song that became enfleshed in the word of Jesus Christ, our redeemer? 00:35:52.940 --> 00:35:55.780 Don't you want to add your voice and add your life 00:35:55.780 --> 00:35:58.360 to this never-ending chorus of praise? 00:35:58.360 --> 00:36:01.300 And that's why the psalmist says, 00:36:01.519 --> 00:36:05.079 oh Lord, may the words of my mouth 00:36:05.079 --> 00:36:07.940 and may the meditations of my heart 00:36:07.940 --> 00:36:10.480 be pleasing and be acceptable in your sight. 00:36:11.240 --> 00:36:14.820 Oh Lord, my rock and my redeemer. 00:36:15.500 --> 00:36:18.420 In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 00:36:18.980 --> 00:36:19.220 Amen.