PSALM 119:41-48 VAU

The theme of these eight verses is very clearly dependence upon Gods
Word. It is of course a theme the psalmist re-emphasises many times
not simply for the sake of his readers, but for the sake of his own walk
with God. We can never stress enough the importance of the study of
Gods Word for the believer. Where you find a lack of study you find
ignorance and where you find ignorance you find arrogance and
where you find arrogance you find resistance to the preaching of the
Word of God. The psalmist is very concerned to hold on to Scripture and
cherish its teachings and live according to them.

Lets consider this section from three similar/overlapping points of view:
1. Standing Upon Gods Word
2. Standing By Gods Word
3. Standing With Gods Word

STANDING UPON GODS WORD
It is a matter of fact that the Church has always been strongest when
it has been faithful to the Scriptures. God rewards obedience.
J ohn the Baptist was controlled by the Word of God and he preached
faithfully and fearlessly. The Lord J esus preached and taught
uncompromisingly. Peter and Paul followed His example and preached
courageously.
Martin Luther preached against the full force of Romanism armed
only with the Word of God.
J ohn Knox said to Mary, Queen of Scots, Without the preaching
place, Madam, I think few have occasion to be offended at me, but there,
Madam, I am not master of myself, but must obey Him Who commands
me to speak plain and to flatter no flesh upon the face of the earth.
A.W. Tozer said, I preach to my congregation week after week. And
I pray that I may be able to preach with such convicting power that my
people will sweat! I do not want them to leave my services feeling good.
The last thing I want to do is to give them some kind of religious
tranquilizer and let them go to hell in their relaxation.
If God is once again to breathe through this land His people require a
fresh view of His Word. In the hands of the believer the Holy Spirit
makes it the most formidable weapon for God Himself said, Zech. 4:6
Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
2
This Book confronts me about my relationship with God and how I
live my life. It not only confronts me, it also gives me hope; I can look
into this Book and see how God restored great men like King David and
the Apostle Peter. I can see how God used them despite their weaknesses.
I can see in this Book the only means whereby a sinner can be
accepted by God and this Book tells me it is by forsaking sin and
believing in the Lord J esus Christ to be saved.
I see that the Gospel this Book teaches saved a righteous Pharisee
like Nicodemus, a man hardened against Christianity like Saul of Tarsus,
a corrupted man like Zacchaeus, a loose woman from Samaria, a
prostitute named Mary Magdalene, a blind beggar called Batimaeus
When I hear people saying that Christ is only one way to God (i.e.
there are others) I know they are wrong, - not just wrong a little bit,
but wrong completely, - because this Book says that outside of Christ
there is no salvation. Jesus is the only way!
The teaching this Book gives me is unique because the Author of
this Book is like none other. There is no one like God. What this Book
says is 100% true.
And I can stand confidently upon Gods Word because I know Im in
good company. I have read about the men who travelled the length and
breadth of the country preaching the Word of God. The same doctrines
they preached, I preach they discovered them by searching into the
Word of God, as I did.
When someone comes along and says, I dont agree with you
well, Im sad for them, because Im in better company than they are!
There is no other Book like the Word of God. God speaks to us
through it in mercy and in love. He has never changed the way He deals
with people, - He uses the same principles and truths in 2006AD as He
used in 2006BC. His Word doesnt change because He doesnt change.
When they come to us and tell us we need to adapt Gods Word for
todays people I honestly cannot understand that because it is not mine
or theirs to adapt, - its Gods, and if it is Gods it is perfect and it doesnt
need to be updated.
We are privileged to have this Book. Build you faith upon it. What
you believe make sure the Bible teaches it. This Book is the only Book
you need in the Christian life, yes, I know the value of other sound
books but none of them come close to this one. The Bible comes
entirely from God! Make sure the Christian literature you read correlates
faithfully with the Word of God. Stand upon Gods Word.
3

STANDING BY GODS WORD
Gods Word shares Gods promises, and promises always imply
future hope. In I Kings 8 Solomon stands in front of the altar in the new
Temple, he stretches his hands up towards Heaven and he calls out with a
loud voice, v.56 Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people
Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his
good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.
I love reading the old sermons of faithful preachers for I know that
time has not rendered them out-of-date; in fact they have a reverence for
God that we need to recapture again. Yes, some folk nowadays might
consider them heavy and it takes quite a lot of attention to read them but
these were the messages they preached in their day to ordinary people.
What has gone wrong? In their day people longed for meat, nowadays
many Christians only want a quick snack.
And if you dont feed on the right food you start looking haggard and
you become unfit so unfit you neither notice nor care anymore. We
need a good diet and we need to maintain a good diet through feeding
on Gods Word.
That is what the psalmist emphasises over and over again throughout
this psalm.
And then Ps. 119:42 tells us something we are all too aware of
that when the voice of God is speaking so also is the voice of the enemy,
So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me.
It becomes almost inevitable that where God is working so is the
devil. The writer of this psalm had enemies among his own people, - the
J ews, - who lied about him, slandered his name and even threatened his
life how does the Bible tell you to stand up against the enemy? The
Bible tells you, Eph. 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with
truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod
with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of
faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17
And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word
of God. In other words, you stand in Gods strength by Gods Word.
When you join the army one of the first things you do is go and get
your uniform, - each part of that uniform has been designed with army
life in mind and then you are given your weapon. Its yours, you oil it
and keep it clean, it has your identification on it, you know how to use it.
How much more important to know how to use the weapon of the
believer, the Word of God.
4
I remember on one particular occasion emptying the weapon as we
always had to do when we returned to our base from patrol, the first place
you went to was the unloading bay, took the magazine off, pulled back
your breach, and pulled the trigger to make sure your weapon was safe, -
there was no bullets in it. One day, one of our men pulled the trigger
and there was a round/bullet in the gun and he fired it when it should
have been empty. That was a dangerous high velocity weapon and he
wasnt treating it with the care he ought to have treated it with it is far
more dangerous when a Christian does not handle the Word of God
correctly because it can have eternal consequences.
Gods Word is of such great importance to Gods people for it is
what we stand by.
We need Gods truth in our hearts, not only to keep us from sin, but
also to equip us to repel the fiery darts of the enemy and we find His
truth supremely in His Word. The psalmist said, 119:11 Thy word have I
hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
Standing upon Gods Word, ... Standing by Gods Word ...

The psalmist here is dealing with issues that are fundamental to the
continuance/progression of his faith.

STANDING WITH GODS WORD
We are what we believe v.47 And I will delight myself in thy
commandments, which I have loved.
Throughout this psalm mention of the Word of God is in every verse.
In fact, if you read it quickly you would think the whole psalm is
repetition but if you read it carefully you see that it is instead the
psalmist applying what he has learned to his differing circumstances.
I have some friends who can tell you all about the end times and it
seems every passage they read has something to say about Christs
Second Coming.
I have some friends and they see the social responsibilities that are to
the fore in the Scriptures and they relate everything to that.
Basically it is very true that you are what you believe, and since
the church is made up of individuals it follows that the church is what it
believes.
The psalmist here has a strong faith, - a strong belief, - in the majesty
of God; God is everything to Him; He wonders at God; He marvels at
God. He is so privileged to be counted amongst the children of God.
5
He takes with great love the words of God. Away back in
J eremiahs day he declared, 2:8 The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and
they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors also transgressed against me,
and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit.
8:20 To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word,
it is because there is no light in them.
You see, Ps. 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my
path. I need the word for direction, without it I would become lost not
knowing where to go. When people bring up beliefs contrary to Gods
Word I need to know it sufficiently to repel those errors.
Its a beautiful picture the psalmist draws in the final verse of the
section, v.48 my hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have
loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes.
The Bible is his standard, the roadmap for his life, and his ultimate
truth. You want to find out what he believes consult the Book.

Conclusion
We do not worship the Bible but we do treat it with the respect that
becomes the precious gift of the Word of the Almighty God.
If we didnt have the Bible we would have to depend upon the
writings of fallible men and we would only choose to read those
whom we agreed with and we would end up in confusion; but we have
Gods Word, for which there is no substitute.
It is the true believers only authority, - it is a gift from God. You can
even see here the three basic virtues of the believer:
Faith, v.42 I trust in thy word.
Hope, v.43 I have hoped in thy judgments
and the greatest of these is Charity/love, v.41 Let thy mercies
come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation, according to thy word
47 And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. 48
My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved.
May the Lord encourage us and lead us to even greater dependence
upon Gods Word.