Sweeter Than Honey 8
Notes
Transcript
Text: Psalm 119.137-144
Text: Psalm 119.137-144
The Righteousness of God is one of the most prominent attributes of God. It is also one of the most illusive points of his person in that it is hard to distinguish between his righteousness, holiness, justice, and goodness. In fact the Word Righteouness is actually four different words that to English are translated Righteousness. But the Author is zooming in to demonstrate His righteousness.
Righteous
Vs 137 - 1) just, lawful, righteous
Vs 138 - 1) straight, upright, correct, right
Vs 142 - 1) justice, righteousness
The author accents the Righteousness of God based on God’s Purity and Faithfulness.
Which makes sense
Nothing can be righteous that is impure. 140
Righteousness comes from doing right and being right. Thoughts are rightegus because they are pure of any thing that is unrighteous. The word pure here means smelt. Litterally, the rightouesness of God is pure because it is tried by fire. They have been put to the test and every life it is tried in comes out clearer and clearer that his rightouesness can be trusted.
The words of the Lord are pure words:
As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
Thou shalt keep them, O Lord,
Thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
The Psalmist trusted the Word of God because he knew that the words were pure. How important is it that God’s Word is pure…
Understand that God not only is pure, His Words are pure, but God holds us to the standard of purity.
With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure;
And with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward.
It is these pure words that allow us to put confidence in God’s Word. IF half this book was polluted there would be no knowing which of the Words to trust but alas we find a God who himself is all pure and his words are all pure and therefore we know he will always be right, upright, and true.
But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.
Faithfulness is the standard measurement of Righteousness. 138
Righteousness gives its strength because it is always right.
So the author declares that the word is very faithful. It is a solid rock upon which the believer can build his life. He can trust that whether spoken in the first centUrey or 2023 the Word of God is right. Look at the measure in
Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness,
And thy law is the truth.
The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting:
Give me understanding, and I shall live.
I am thankful for a faithful God who has a faithful word. And that is the point of this passage isn’t it. You have listened to me use GOd’s character and his word interchageably through this message because that is the way the author intended it.
TZADDI.
Righteous art thou, O Lord, and upright are thy judgments.
God is equal to his Word.
God is righteous so is his Word.
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.
This is true whether you are GOd or man.
So if God is righteous, so then are his words. - God’s Word is solid because God’s character is solid.
Righteous Words come from a Righteous Source
Faithful Words come from a Faithful Source
Pure Words come from a Pure Source.
So then in response to this Value in the Word the Psalmist describes the correct reaction of those that want this kind of Word. What is the response of the Believer that fully accepts the righteousness of God. Who truly knows God’s word is right.
1. The Believer Keeps the Word of God.
The author makes a distinction between those that abandon God’s Word and those that keep God’s Word. We do not merely look at the Bible as an outdated way of living but rather as a blueprint for the life that Jesus wishes to produce in us through his Holy Spirit.
The work of the Spirit is to produce the Love, Joy Peace longsuffering gentleness goodness faith meekness and temperance that is foreign to unrighteous creatures.
All because we have followed our Saviors call to
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
2. The Believer Loves the Word of God.
The believer loves God’s Word and looks to it with devotion and adoration. You can tell me that you trust God and there are many today that want to treat the Word of God in a way that is discrespectful.
This desire to use the Bible to support LBTQ degeneracy is not love for GOd’s Word it is love for sin. And they are arguing to keep the sin. There are “scholars” today that try to redefine marriage, and support abortion, and Try to make Jesus sensitive to Trans agenda but simply declaring devotion does not make one devoted to the word.
If you told your spouse that you love them and then set out to change them they would rightful wonder who it is you love.
3. The Believer Remembers the Word of God.
The Author sees his ability to face down the big problems in life by seeing his remembering God’s Word.
Thy word have I hid in mine heart,
That I might not sin against thee.
4. The Believer Trusts the Word of God.
As we have watched stanza after stanza the author sings of his trust in the face of affliction. This is only because that Word will not fail him for it lasts forever.
Notice this…
God’s Word is Righteousness because he is righteous…
God’s Word produces Righteousness in the unrighteous…
Sometimes people are careless and speak disparagingly of all human righteousness, as if there were no such thing that pleased God. They often cite Isaiah 64:6 which says our righteousness is as filthy rags. It is true–gloriously true–that none of God’s people, before or after the cross, would be accepted by an immaculately holy God if the perfect righteousness of Christ were not imputed to us (Romans 5:19; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
But that does not mean that God does not produce in those “justified” people (before and after the cross) an experiential righteousness that is not “filthy rags.” In fact, he does; and this righteousness is precious to God and is required, not as the ground of our justification (which is the righteousness of Christ only), but as an evidence of our being truly justified children of God.
John Piper, Future Grace: The Purifying Power of the Promises of God, Multnomah.
This work of Continual transformation is noted by Paul in Romans 12:1-2.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.