In the early years of Grace Church there were
many things that were foundational, obviously. They are still foundational. Those things don't change. And as I have said through the years, there
are some pastors who pastor different churches in different places. My Dad was like that. He pastored here and there and hither and
yon, pastoring quite a number of churches in different places. I've had the privilege of pastoring different
churches in the same place. But there are vastly different churches that
have occupied the 35 years that I've been here. The congregation shifts and moves. I'm the fixed point which is a little bit
different than the normal pastoral experience moving from place to place. And if I were to move from place to place,
through the years I would feel like I needed to go back and lay the foundations that were
basic and important and God blessed in other places. And because I've stayed in the same place,
I've tended not to do that but being reminded again that the congregation has changed so
frequently through these years, particularly in the rapidly changing population of Southern
California, that it's good thing to go back and re-grasp some of the great sections of
Scripture that laid the foundation for all the work that God has done here. Now obviously, the most important element
in the ministry of Grace Community Church is our commitment to the Word of God. And I have battled for the truthfulness of
the Word of God, the priority of the Word of God, the centrality of the Word of God
all the years that I've been here. And the battle shifts and moves and the front
changes from time to time. But there is also the necessity of affirming
the truthfulness, the priority, the centrality and the glory of Scripture, nor as an end
to itself but as a means to an end. It is the means by which people are saved
and sanctified and equipped and trained and motivated and given the hope of glory. It is not the end but it is the single means
by which God does all His work. It is the Spirit using the Word of God, the
Word rightly understood and applied. And so, from the very beginning, back in February...February
9 th of 1969 when I came here, we have in every service opened up the Word of God. We want to hear God speak. We know that He does His work through His
Word. The Bible, the Word of the one true and living
God, is the truth and the only source of truth that convicts of sin, warns of judgment, saves
the sinner, purifies, cleanses, matures the believer and gives the hope of eternal glory. And because it is the revelation of God by
which God does His work to His own ever-lasting glory, it is the priority for the church and
for every believer. It is also always under attack, always under
assault by Satan and his demons and the people in the kingdom of darkness. Attacks on the Bible have never ceased, they've
only accumulated through the years. In the early years, the Bible was attacked
as to its veracity, its truthfulness, as to its inspiration, its inerrancy. It was attacked as to its completeness. Is it all the revelation we have? Or isn't God giving more? Aren't there more revelations in visions and
dreams and words of wisdom and words of knowledge? And is the Bible the singular inspired text
of God, or are there not other texts that are equally inspired of God? Is the Bible relevant? Is not the fact that it is an antiquated book,
an ancient book, if you will, written in another context in other languages in another time,
in another place, doesn't that set it on the shelf and make it virtually irrelevant to
this modern world? And is the Bible actually comprehensible? Is it clear? Can it be understood? Through the years we have gone to battle on
all these kinds of issues. The early part of my ministry here was directed
at the issue of inerrancy. Is the Bible inerrant? That is, in its original autograph without
error in all that it says and all that it affirms? That battleground launched a ten-year effort
by the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy to defend the inerrancy of Scripture. A hundred scholars were engaged in that formidable
effort, defending the inerrancy, the inspiration and thus the authority of Scripture down to
every inspired word. Then came another wave of attacks in the next
decade, coming from those people who didn't believe the Bible was all the revelation there
was. There was more revelation. There were dreams and visions and experiences
and the voice of God. And revelation was continuing as God was speaking. And that was very, very dominant in the Charismatic
Movement. There was associated with that a kind of spiritual
movement, a kind of an inner-voice movement where people began to develop the idea that
you could listen for the voice of God and He would speak to you quietly, privately in
your own heart in some kind of quasi-audible fashion, giving you verbal direction, by directing
your thoughts in a certain way. And this, too, was the revelation of God. And if you wanted to really live the Christian
life, you had to learn to listen for the voice of God apart from Scripture. In more recent years there's been an attack
on the clarity of Scripture, coming from the emerging church, telling us the Bible is not
clear in anything to speak of, and so we want to be open and generous and all-embracing
and have a conversation with everybody because we can't be sure about anything. But in the middle of those kinds of battles,
there has been another battle that just goes along all the time, and that is assaults on
the sufficiency of Scripture, as if somehow the Bible wasn't enough. You need more than the Bible to make the gospel
attractive. You need more than the Bible to solve your
marital problems. You need more than the Bible to get a grip
on your own life. You've got certain kinds of personality quirks
that can only be resolved through psychology. We have been embroiled in battles for the
sufficiency of Scripture throughout the years, it is an issue that is not only an issue in
our culture, but it's been an issue all over the world, everywhere I have gone. Of necessity I have preached on the sufficiency
of Scripture that the Word of God is true, it is inerrant, it is inspired, it is complete. It brings all revelation to an end. Nothing more is needed than the truth of the
of the Word of God applied by the Spirit of God. It is clear and it is sufficient...it is sufficient. Not all these attacks, by the way, come from
people outside Christianity, most of them come from people who call themselves Christians,
liberal theologians, experientialists, existentialists, pragmatists, occultists, cultists, etc., etc.,
all claiming to represent God and attacking Scripture's inspiration, inerrancy, historicity,
canonicity, uniqueness, power, clarity and sufficiency. And so we're always going to need to go back
and defend Scripture. How do we do that? Well there are two possibilities. You could defend Scripture from outside Scripture,
then you would make human reason the ultimate determiner of Scripture's truth. Far better to let Scripture defend itself
and then you let Scripture be the ultimate determiner of its own veracity. And so we take what is called a presuppositional
approach to the defense of Scripture, we presuppose the truthfulness of Scripture. We assume it to be so. And any faithful, diligent exercise in studying
Scripture will yield the fact that this is truly the Word of God, we let Scripture speak
for itself, not trying to defend Scripture from outside Scripture, but from inside Scripture. Let God speak in defense of the Word which
He has written. Tonight I want to talk to you about God's
own defense of Scripture's sufficiency from Psalm 19...Psalm 19. Along the way, as we talk about this, I want
to make a comparison with Psalm 119. Psalm 119, much longer, 176 verses. But basically built around the same theme
as Psalm 19. So we'll make some comparisons as we go with
Psalm 119. It goes without saying, and I think you're
very much aware of it, that through the centuries since the arrival of the revelation of God,
God's true people have been the protectors and preservers and the stewards of His truth. By God's providential care they have guarded
the truth to bring it down to us intact. We have been given an incalculable treasure
by those who were faithful to protect and preserve and fight for Scripture through the
centuries. Many of them gave their lives, martyred, bloodied
in defense of Scripture. Martyred for no other reason than that they
translated, printed, prepared the Word of God so that people could hear His truth. There's a high price that's been paid through
the centuries by many, many souls to get the Word of God into our hands. I am sort of a minor collector of old Bibles. I love Bibles, I love all Bibles. But old ones are specially a treasure to me. And I have been given by friends through the
years because they know I love them, many copies of very old Bibles going back a hundred
years, two hundred, three hundred, four hundred years. If you were to go into the interior of the
Master's Seminary, you need to do that some day, you will find pages of ancient Bibles
on the walls there, a reminder of the greatness of the gift of God in giving us His Word and
protecting and preserving it down through the centuries. I pick up those old Bibles and rummage through
them and read notes in the margins and sometimes notes written by the people who had those
Bibles in ancient days and am reminded of the price that was paid to get the Word of
God into our hands, and how precious it was. One of the men who gave me some of the most
prized Bibles that I have is a Bible collector now with the Lord. He had one Bible that was most notable. This is a Bible from the sixteenth century. This is a Bible that is a large Bible, a very
large in the way that they were first printed, and if you open it you notice that it has
been saturated with fluid up to about three quarters of the page all through the entire
Bible. Every single page has a waterline about three
quarters of the way up. The interesting thing about it is that waterline
is a faded red color or a pink color. The history of that one Bible is a remarkable
history. When in the sixteenth century Bloody Mary
was massacring Christians because of the Bible, because of the Word of God, one of the things
they liked to do was to take those believers and before they would burn them at the stake,
they would slit their wrists and they would bleed them and fill a bowl with their blood
and then take a Bible and dump it into the bowl of blood. One of such Bibles is in the hand of my friend
and now in a museum. Rummaging through the Bible, understanding
the price that was paid for that Bible, was a very, very moving experience which I had
on many occasions. This book has to be treated with a great amount
of sacredness. Listen to the testimony of God, Psalm 19 verse
7. "The Law of the Lord is perfect, restoring
the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making
wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing
the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening
the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true, they are
righteous all together. They are more desirable than gold, yes than
much fine gold. Sweeter also than honey and the drippings
of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Thy servant is warned. In keeping them there is great reward. Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Thy servant from presumptuous
sins, let them not rule over me. Then I shall be blameless and I shall be acquitted
of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation
of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer." In Psalm 19, starting in verse 7 and running
to the end of the chapter, I want to call your attention to three specific emphases. One, the sufficiency of Scripture. Two, the value of Scripture. And three, the right response. That's what we're going to look at. Now just backing up a little bit, you say,
"What about the opening six verses?" The opening six verses of Psalm 19 are also
about God's revelation, but not His written revelation. The opening six verses are about God revealing
Himself in creation. "The heavens are telling of the glory of God. Their expanse is declaring the work of His
hands. Day to day pours forth speech and night to
night reveals knowledge. There's no speech nor are there words, their
voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth
and their utterances to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun which
is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, it rejoices as a strong man to run his course. Its rising is from one end of the heavens
and its circuit to the other end of them and there is nothing hidden from its heat." What is that talking about? That is talking about the fact that God has
revealed Himself in creation. The heavens tell of the glory of God. Who would not conclude that God is all glorious
who looks into the heavens? The expanse of the universe declares the work
of His hands. Every day, every night is a declaration of
the mighty power of God. He is revealed in His creation. And it runs all through the conscious life
that exists on this earth that God is a great Creator and has told us a lot about Himself
in His creation, about His power and His design and His order, His intelligence, etc. He uses an illustration of the sun. The sun literally rising from one end of the
heavens and its circuit to the other end of them, nothing being hidden from its heat. What he's talking about is something inside
that's now known to be true, that the sun has a massive orbit from one end of the infinite
universe to the other and it drags our entire solar system with it. These kinds of discoveries that we make clearly
indicate the greatness and the power of our God. God has then exalted Himself in nature. He has revealed Himself in nature. As Romans 1 says, we can know His eternal
power and Godhead. That is that He is the sovereign God and that
He is powerful. But more importantly and savingly, God has
revealed Himself in Scripture. There is His unwritten revelation and His
written revelation. And when you come to verse 7, the transition
is made from God revealing Himself in nature to God revealing Himself in Scripture...in
Scripture. The structure of these verses from verse 7
through 9, notice it there, is a series of parallel statements, verses 7, 8 and 9. Here there are six titles for Scripture...the
Law of the Lord, the testimony of the Lord in verse 7. In verse 8, the precepts of the Lord and the
commandment of the Lord. In verse 9, the fear of the Lord and the judgments
of the Lord. Six titles for Scripture. Scripture is Law, testimony, precepts, commandment,
fear and judgments. There are also six characteristics of Scripture. Notice, it is perfect, sure, right, pure,
clean and true. And there are six benefits of Scripture. It restores the soul, makes wise the simple,
rejoices the heart, enlightens the eyes, endures forever and a final one, produces comprehensive
righteousness. That's what it means when it says righteous
all together. It converts, it makes wise, it brings joy,
it enlightens, it purifies, it is relevant in every time, it endures forever and it produces
comprehensive righteousness. This is magnificent. Here you have God in His inimitable way speaking
the vast glories of Scripture in brief sentences. In a few words He captures the magnitude of
the full sufficiency of Scripture. Please notice one other component here. Six times is repeated this phrase "of the
Lord, of the Lord, of the Lord, of the Lord, of the Lord, of the Lord." Lest there be some confusion about who is
the author. It is redundant. Six times the covenant name of Yahweh, the
covenant name of the Creator/God is used. Here then is God's own testimony to God's
own revelation in Scripture, God's witness to the sufficiency and the adequacy of His
Word which restores the soul, makes wise the simple, rejoices the heart, enlightens the
eyes, endures forever and produces comprehensive righteousness. This is sweeping even in just a few statements. Let's take them one at a time. First of all, the Law of the Lord is perfect,
restoring the soul. It is called the Law, torah , favorite biblical
word for Scripture. It identifies the Scripture as divine law,
divine teaching, divine instruction. The term means teaching. That is to say it is God giving instruction
to His creature. Divine instruction, relative to man's life
and conduct. It is a complete explanation of God's will
for man's life. When you buy an appliance or you buy an automobile,
or anything that is at all technical, you get a manual along with it, you get an operator's
manual so that the manufacturer can direct you and instruct you in the proper use of
what it is that you now possess. The Bible is the manufacturer's manual for
the proper operation of humanity. It is God's instruction for how man is to
live. It is God's law for man's life. That is one way to view Scripture. It is that. It is not only that, there are six descriptions
of Scripture, but this is true of Scripture. Scripture is like a many faceted diamond,
we're going to look at six of those facets as we examine this Psalm. It is God's manual for man's life. If man is to be everything that God wants
him to be, if man is to reach the fulfillment of God's intended creation for him, if man
is to enjoy the fullness of God's blessing, he must then abide by the instructions given
by the manufacturer. And this is the only manual...the law of the
Lord. As such, notice please, this characteristic,
it is perfect, it is perfect. James calls it the perfect law. So he uses this same idea. It is perfect. I remember the first time I studied Psalm
19, many, many years ago, I wanted to really know what perfect meant. So I went back and I got all the Hebrew lexicons
off my shelf and I remember spending several hours chasing this word "perfect" all over
the place, trying to wring out of it everything that I could so I would have a grasp of it. And after many hours of study, I came to the
conclusion that what it means is perfect. A bit disappointing after all the effort,
but that's exactly what it means...perfect. But, let me take you one step further. Not perfect as opposed to imperfect, but perfect
as opposed to incomplete. Not perfect as opposed to imperfect, though
it is that, but the primary thrust of this Hebrew word is not about perfect as opposed
to imperfect, but it's about perfect as opposed to incomplete. The best Old Testament scholarship gives this
meaning, this Hebrew word means all sided...s-i-d-e-d, all sided so as to cover completely all aspects
of life. It is comprehensive. It is sufficient. It leaves nothing out. Yes, that is a feature of being flawless,
but it says much more. To say something has no flaws doesn't say
that it's complete. Yes the Scripture has no flaws but the issue
here is that it lacks nothing. Here is the manual for man's operation written
by the manufacturer which leaves nothing needed out. And as the all-sided, fully sufficient, comprehensive,
complete law of the Lord, it has the power, here's the last phrase, verse 7, "to restore
the soul." This is the effect, the impact, or converting
the soul...some of your texts may say. The Hebrew term can be translated restoring,
reviving, refreshing, or converting. What the world really means is a total transformation...total
transformation. So, we're starting to build a really interesting
case here. We've got the Scripture which is God's instruction
for man's life. Nothing is left out. It is comprehensive. So comprehensive that it can totally transform...what?...the
soul. Now this introduces us to a Hebrew word nephesh...nephesh
. What does it mean? Probably in your Bible, if you have a New
American Standard or New King James or one of those more contemporary translations, probably
if you were to look at a Hebrew Bible and compare it with your English version, you
might find that the translators have translated nephesh about twenty different ways in the
Old Testament...person, self, heart, mind, soul. They translate it all kinds of ways but it
always means one thing, the inner person...the inner person...the inner person. So what do we learn in this first statement? The law of the Lord, Scripture, is sufficient
to totally transform the whole inner person. Powerful statement...powerful, powerful statement. It's able to save. It's able to regenerate. It's able to convert. It's able to transform. And that gets repeated all through Scripture. The sacred Scripture, 2 Timothy 3:15, the
Scripture, the sacred writings, able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation. It is able to convert you. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, Hebrews
4:12 and 13, and it can cut you wide open and unbare your sin. And then it can regenerate and redeem and
restore you. The Scripture then is utterly sufficient for
the conversion, transformation, restoration, spiritual birth of the soul. Peter puts it this way, 1 Peter 1:23, "Being
born again not of corruptible seed but by incorruptible by the Word of God." We are regenerated, born again, given life
by the Word of God which lives and abides forever. And this is the Word by which the gospel is
preached to you. That's why Paul says in Romans 1, "Not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ, it is the power of God unto salvation." It gives life. It's powerful. It gives life. Let me give you an illustration of this in
Romans 10...Romans 10. If you're thinking how we're going to get
through six, we're not. Romans 10. When I first did it, I did it in two messages
and so I'll do that this time as well. Romans chapter 10, really just an incredible
chapter. Paul says at the beginning of the chapter
that his heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is for their salvation. All right? So you want Israel to be saved. They're not saved. The Jews are not saved. They don't have their own special way of salvation
apart from the gospel. Their problem is not that they're not religious. They're religious. In fact, verse 2 says, "I bear them witness,
they have a zeal for God, it's just not in accordance with knowledge." So having a zeal for God but not having the
right knowledge doesn't save you. What don't they know? Well they don't understand God's righteousness. They don't know how righteous God is. They seek to establish their own righteousness. So they don't know how righteous God is and
they don't know how sinful they are. That's a problem. They didn't think God is as righteous as He
is, so righteous that no one could ever earn salvation. They thought God was less righteous than He
is, they thought they were more righteous than they were, and so they could earn their
salvation. Therefore they did not subject themselves
to the righteousness of God. Furthermore, they didn't understand that Christ
is an end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes. They didn't understand that salvation doesn't
come by earning your salvation with God, it comes only through Christ who brings an end
to the law and provides the righteousness that we could never earn if we only believed. So they had their view of God wrong, their
view of themselves wrong, their view of Christ and his provision completely wrong. They've got a problem. They've got it all wrong. They needed to believe in Jesus Christ. They needed to believe in Jesus Christ. Down in verse 9, "If you confess with your
mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you'll
be saved." You have to believe in Jesus Christ, His resurrection,
death and resurrection, confess Him as Lord. Verse 10, "For with the heart man believes
resulting in righteousness, with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation." The Scripture says, "Whoever believes in Him
will not be disappointed. There's no distinction between Jew and Greek,
the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him." Here it comes, "Whoever will call on the name
of the Lord will be saved." You can't be saved unless you call upon the
name of the Lord. You can't be saved unless you believe in the
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and confess Him as Lord. You can't be saved unless you know that God
is too righteous to accept your works and you're too sinful to earn salvation and that
your salvation can only come through faith in Christ who provided a righteousness for
you through His sacrifice. So we need people to call upon the name of
the Lord. So what are we going to do? How are we going to get them to do that? Verse 14, "How shall they call upon Him in
whom they haven't believed? How shall they believe in Him whom they haven't
heard? How shall they hear without a preacher?" They're going to have to hear the truth to
believe the truth. And to hear the truth, they're going to have
to have somebody proclaim the truth. And how are they going to proclaim the truth,
verse 15, unless they're sent? Just as it is written, "How beautiful are
the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good things." Somebody has to go. Somebody has to tell them the truth. Why? Go to verse 17, "Because faith, a faith that
saves, comes from hearing and hearing by...what?...the Word of Christ." It comes by the Word of Christ. There's only one way to be saved and that's
to believe the truth. The only way you can believe the truth is
to hear the truth. The only way you can hear the truth is for
someone to declare that true Word. Is Scripture powerful enough? Is it the power of God unto salvation? Is it powerful enough? Is it enough to come here week after week
after week and hear the Word of God? Does that Word have the saving power of God
in it? According to the Scripture it does. According to the testimony of God, the law
of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. Does the Word of God have to be helped along
because its somehow inept, inadequate, irrelevant, antiquated? Do we need somehow to package it in some culturally
sensitive way to make it feel like everything else in this culture feels to gain an entrance? Do we have to beef it up by making it seem
to promise health, wealth, prosperity, riches, healing, as if God was some divine Mary Kay
passing out pink Cadilacs? Do we need to make syrupy, schmaltzy appeals
to the emotions of people based on their feelings, bruised egos, need for self-esteem, desire
for trinkets and goodies and somehow alter the hard gospel so people will buy it? Does it have to be polluted with promises
of material prosperity, material success? Is it insufficient on its own? I don't think so. I think the testimony of God is unmistakably
clear. The Word itself is the sea where Christ the
pearl rests. The Word itself is the field where Christ
the treasure is hidden. Listen to the testimony of Psalm 119 and I'm
only going to be able to read without comment a few verses that support this point. It is Psalm 119 that reiterates again and
again these same truths concerning the Word of God. Verse 41, "May Thy lovingkindness also come
to me, O Lord," listen, "Thy salvation according to Thy Word." Verse 50, "This is my comfort and my affliction,
that Thy Word has literally given me life." Verse 81, "My soul languishes for Thy salvation. I wait for Thy Word." Again the Word is linked to salvation. "I cried to Thee," verse 146, "save me. I shall keep Thy testimonies." Verse 155, "Salvation is far from the wicked
for they do not seek Thy statutes." Salvation comes through the Word. "I long for Thy salvation," verse 174, "O
Lord. And Thy law is my delight." The Scripture, the law of the Lord, statutes
of the Lord inseparable from salvation. No wonder Paul said, "Preach the Word in season,
out of season." The law of the Lord is perfect, comprehensive,
sufficient for the total transformation of the whole inner person. Whenever I preach this, I always think of
this one man named Tim Evalina(?). I was preaching in Sebring, Florida, many
years ago. And at the end of the message that I gave
in this church, he came up and introduced himself. He said, "I have to tell you my story." He said, "My entire family are Jehovah's Witnesses. In fact, my family is responsible for the
leadership of the Jehovah's Witnesses throughout the state of Florida. My job...he says...has been for years is to
train all the Jehovah's Witness leaders, I go from location to location to location training
them." But he said, "I have to tell you what's happened
to me." He said, "I was driving across Florida listening
to the radio in a rental car. And I turned on the radio and you came on. I didn't know who you were. And you made one statement. You said Jesus is God. And I said that's a lie and turned it off. And then I turned it right back on again cause
I was curious. And you went on to show from the Bible that
Jesus is God. That was on a Monday." And Grace To You happens to be all over Florida
so if you keep moving you can find us. He said, "I listened for five days that week
to your program. And all week you were showing that Jesus is
God. By Friday I was seriously grappling with that
issue because Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe that. Monday was the second week of the series,
I listened five more days. Friday I knelt down beside a bed and I said,
'O God, Jehovah, whom I thought I served, if indeed Jesus is God the Son, show me.' That night my head was cleared, my heart was
cleared, my soul was transformed and I embraced Jesus Christ as my Savior." And then he said, "I have a problem because
I was going around training the Jehovah's Witness leaders." So he said, "I had to do some retraining." So he said, "I started back trying to tell
them all Jesus is God. I was in odds with my wife, three sons and
my parents and extended family and everybody in my whole world. I was called on the carpet, tried as a heretic
and excommunicated from the movement." He said, "My life is transformed." He asked the question, "How do you reach a
leader in the Jehovah's Witness Movement?" Just let the truth of Scripture do its mighty
work. There's no subtle way to do that. I can't orchestrate that. He said, "Pray for my family, please pray
for my family." This has only been a few weeks. I got a letter from him some months later
telling me his wife and all three sons were in Christ. They were redeemed, serious dent in the J.W.
system in Florida. This is only an anecdote but it illustrates
the amazing power of the truth to do its own work energized by the Spirit in the heart. I always think of him when I think of that
statement in verse 7. Number two...number two, Psalm 19, "The law
of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul," listen to this one, "the testimony of the
Lord is sure, making wise the simple." Testimony, this looks at Scripture not as
God's divine law, but as God's own personal testimony. It is His self-revelation, it is His own witness. It is God disclosing His character and His
will. So you look at Scripture not just as a manual
for life, but as that which is a perfect reflection of the nature of God. This is God's own testimony to what is true
concerning Himself and everything else. When you read Scripture, you're getting to
know God. This is God's own testimony, His own self-disclosure. And as such, it is sure. Unlike other books, the Bible is perfect,
comprehensive, complete, needs nothing. Unlike other books, it is sure...what does
that mean? Unwavering, unmistakable, reliable, in a word,
trustworthy...trustworthy. I called the L.A. Public Library one time and asked them how
many books they had there. And I think they told me something like 25
million books or something ridiculous that were either there or accessible, several million
there and accessible through other library connections. And I just said, kind of a funny thing to
the lady I was talking to, I said, "How many of them are always and only absolutely true?" She said, "That's a strange question." Well you just don't want to work through 25
million to try to find one that's always true. And I suggested the answer was only one, that
was the Bible, the Word of the living God. It's always true. It is Peter who says it's a more sure Word,
right? Second Peter 1, it's a more sure Word, more
sure than signs, wonders, miracles. The world by wisdom knew not God, 1 Corinthians
1, can't get to divine truth, spiritual truth, eternal truth, you can't get to the way it
really is apart from the Bible. So, here is this wonderful self-disclosure,
God's own testimony absolutely trustworthy. You can trust all its statements, all its
insights, all its promises. And so it makes wise the simple. I love the word "simple" in Hebrew. The Hebrew language is a concrete language,
not abstract. The Greek language, a lot of abstractions. But in the Hebrew language everything is sort
of concrete, everything is tied down to something tangible. And the word simple, the root of the Hebrew
word means an open door...an open door, because an open door doesn't discriminate, right? If the door is open, everything comes in,
everything goes out, no discrimination. That's a great word. Do you ever hear anybody say, "Well, I have
an open mind." Well shut it because you've got to decide
what to let in and what to keep out. Having an open mind is not a virtue. That's one step above being a moron. Render a judgment on something. It's like the people who say, "I am an agnostic,"
proudly, from the Greek, one who doesn't know. They do, "I'm an agnostic." You hear people say that. You know what the Latin word for agnostic
is? Ignoramus. You hear anybody say, "I'm an ignoramus?" Really? You have a door on your house and the reason
you have a door on your house is to keep some things in and some things out. You want to keep the cool air in, the children
and everything else that belongs to you. And you shut the door to keep those things
in. You make a judgment as to when you open it
and when you don't. That's why you have a hole in it, right? You don't live in your neighborhood with your
door wide open and welcome everybody. You'd be a fool. Too much danger. You make a discerning decision when you shut
the door and that's a great analogy for the mind. The word "simple" meant naive, undiscerning,
uninformed. But the testimony of the Lord, the Scripture,
is trustworthy and makes the simple wise. Hebrew, chakam ...again very different than
the Greek word, sophia , which is kind of an esoteric word referring to wisdom. Chakam is a word that means skilled in practical
aspects of living. You see, wisdom to the Hebrew mind was not
some ethereal kind of thing. Wisdom was living life in the right way, to
produce the best and most beneficial results. The art of living, mastering the art of living,
living life to its fullest and best. The Word of God is trustworthy, it can take
the naive, inexperienced, undiscerning, uninformed, ignoramus and make him skilled in the art
of living. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 2, there's a verse
in that chapter that defines the response of the Thessalonians to the gospel, it's verse
13. "For this reason we also constantly thank
God that when you received from us the Word of God's message, you accepted it not as the
Word of men, but for what it really is, the Word of God," I love this, "which also energeia,
energizes its work in you who believe." The Word of God takes over and shapes your
life and makes you skilled in the art of living. This is the ability to make right choices. This is the ability to see things the way
they really are. This is the ability to seize the moments in
life on earth and to act with heavenly insight and heavenly wisdom to apply the Word of God
to every aspect of life. Like babes desire the pure milk of the Word
that you may grow, and as you feed on the Word of God, you grow. You grow in your discernment. You grow in your mastery of the issues of
life. Do we somehow believe the Word of God doesn't
do this? This is what God says it does do. Do we question that? Do we need to put our trust in psychology,
or sociology, or human wisdom for what it takes to live our lives? Do we need to learn some silly gimmicks, manipulating
our own minds and the minds of others around us? Isn't the Word of God enough? Again I call you to God's extended testimony
in Psalm 119 in which He embellishes this same truth. Look at verse 27, maybe as a starting point,
Psalm 119, "Make me understand the way of Thy precepts so I will meditate on Thy wonders." God, help me understand, give me understanding. And of course, it comes through His precepts,
another way to refer to the Word of God. Verse 34, "Give me understanding that I may
observe Thy law and keep it with all my heart." Verse 66, "Teach me good discernment and knowledge
for I believe in Thy commandments." You can't separate knowledge, discernment,
wisdom from Scripture. Verse 98, "Thy commandments make me wiser
than my enemies, they are ever mine. I have more insight than all my teachers for
Thy testimonies are my meditation." That's true of a Christian in a university
setting or any other setting with very sophisticated intellectuals. You know more than they do about the things
that matter everlastingly. Verse 104, "From Thy precepts I get understanding." Verse 125, "I am Thy servant, give me understanding
that I may know Thy testimonies." God's testimony, God's Word, an understanding
go together. Well there are more. Verse 169, "Give me understanding according
to Thy Word." Again, God's testimony is that if you want
to be saved, you turn to the Word. If you want to be wise, you turn to the Word. Sufficient is the Word then, to give us salvation
and skilled living in the wisdom of God. Let me give you the third one tonight, okay? Verse 8, "The precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart." Where do you go to find joy? Where do you go to find happiness? Where do you go to find relief from sorrow,
relief from depression, relief from anxiety? Where do you go? The Psalmist says, the voice of God says,
"Go to the Word." Verse 8, "The precepts of the Lord..." Precepts...what are those? Principles, doctrines. Here is the manual for man's living. Here is God's self-revelation, His own testimony
and here are doctrines, truths, absolutes that are the guidelines, the requirements
for blessing and for joy. Divine statutes or precepts, same idea, principles,
doctrines and they are right. I love that word right, it doesn't mean right
as opposed to wrong. It means right in the sense of a right path. Okay? And there are some nuances in the Hebrew here,
but it means the right path. That is to say, the doctrines that the Lord
has given are going to send you in the right path. Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light
to my path, more than that, the Word is the path here. The Word is the guide that shows the straight
path to the divine end. We're not left without principles for life. People say, "Doctrine doesn't matter." Oh it matters. What does it mean to have a Bible and not
understand its principles? You don't want to wander around in a fog of
human opinion. You have a true Word to follow. And what is the product of this if you go
on the right path? Rejoicing the heart. True joy, true joy. Jeremiah 15:16, Jeremiah said this, "Your
Word was found, Your words were found and did eat them and Your Word was in me, the
joy and rejoicing of my heart." Now understand Jeremiah's situation. He's trying to proclaim the Word of God to
a recalcitrant, rebellious, obstinate people. They don't want it. They don't want to hear it. They resent it. They hate him. They finally throw him in a pit. And what does he say? If nobody listens, Your Word was found, I
ate it and it is the joy and rejoicing of my heart in the worst of circumstances where
he's trying to deliver a ministry that nobody wants, he has no popularity, no interest in
what he's saying. He ends up in a horrible situation and yet
he's filled with joy because that's what the Word does. My joy comes from what I know to be true about
God and His purposes. When you have anxiety, when you have fear,
when you have sorrow, when you have difficulty in life, you go to the things that the Word
of God affirms. And you stand on those great promises and
principles and doctrines. They show you the right path, you walk in
that path and it produces joy. John writes, 1 John 1:4, "I write these things
unto you that your joy may be full." Joy, not a superficial giddy kind of thing,
but a deep down settled confident peaceful satisfaction that the goodness of God is unfolding
in my life in good and bad circumstances, that's the kind of deep joy. I don't need voices from heaven. I don't need miracles. I don't need to talk to angels. I don't need supernatural experiences, neither
do you. We don't need visions. I don't need to have some kind of vision to
boost up my faltering faith. I know from the Word of God what is true,
I know the path of truth in which I walk and in that path of truth I find my heart rejoices. Depression, anxiety, fear, doubt comes from
not knowing, not believing, not trusting the truth revealed in Scripture. Follow the Word. Walk in its precepts and you will know complete
joy. All our true pleasure, all our true delight
comes from following the path laid out in the Word of God, not from seeking self-fulfillment,
self-esteem, personal purpose, self-indulgence, self-satisfaction, not from getting miracles
and things happening in your life that bring you money, prosperity, health...no. True joy, true pleasure, true delight comes
by walking confidently in the path of biblical doctrine and resting in the things that are
true because God has declared them so. Again, Psalm 19, one more time for tonight,
affirms this, verse 14, "I have rejoiced in the way of Thy testimonies as much as in all
riches." I rejoice in the way, the path that Your testimonies
have led me as much as in all riches. Verse 54, "Thy statutes," I love this, "are
my songs in the house of my pilgrimage." We come here on the Lord's day, we sing with
all our hearts, great doctrinal truths, don't we? Because they are our joy. They transcend all the petty issues of life. Verse 76, "O may Thy lovingkindness comfort
me according to Thy Word to Thy servant." We all need comfort, they are always those
times when life is very difficult for us, we need comfort, he says, very simply, "My
Thy lovingkindness according to Thy Word comfort me." I'm comforted in the loving kindness of God,
that's a principle, that's a precept revealed in Scripture. Verse 111, "I have inherited Thy testimonies
forever, for they are the joy of my heart." They are the joy of my heart. And 114 he says that the Word is his hiding
place and his shield. So the Scripture, source of true joy, true
wisdom, and true transformation. That is God's own testimony to His glorious
Word. Three more next time. And then we'll see their value and our proper
response. Lord, it's been refreshing tonight to go back
and wash ourselves again in the Word, to feel the richness and the sweetness of these great
statements in Psalm 19 and Psalm 119. Thank You, Lord, for the fact that we can
rest in these truths and we have, some of us for a long, long years. And we thank You that by this Word many, many
are being saved and all who are saved are being made skilled in the manner of holy living
and being given joy as they walk in these precepts. What a gift Your Word is to us, to save, to
sanctify and to direct and guide us toward real deep abiding settled confident joy. We find our life, our wisdom, our joy in Your
Word. It is enough, it is enough. What more could we ask for? Eternal life, true wisdom, everlasting joy,
and that comes from Your Word. Thank You, O God, for this great gift in Your
Son's name. Amen.
