The Secret of Steadfastness (Psalms 119:161-168)
The Secret to Steadfastness
Psalms 119:161-168
January 22, 2012
Back studying this wonderful Psalm,
We are really drawing near to a conclusion.
And tonight I want us to notice the source of our Psalmists strength.
And this really fits in well after the sermon this morning,
And learning that suffering is not only inevitable, but expected.
If we really do sign up to follow Jesus to death,
Then certainly it is of great interest to us to learn how to be steadfast.
We are continually learning that from our Psalmist.
• We already know him to be a very steadfast and strong person.
• We have seen in him affliction…
• We have seen in him in oppression…
And he has yet to ever waiver.
Even when the enemy was literally knocking on his door,
Pressing and squeezing him, he remained steadfast.
And we have even envied his steadfast spirit.
And certainly we should, the Bible has a lot to say about being steadfast.
• The Bible has a lot to say about standing strong.
• The Bible has a lot to say about endurance.
• The Bible has a lot to say about perseverance.
1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
Very clear that we are intended to stand.
Paul also said:
Ephesians 6:13 “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”
Again, we realize that retreat was not the objective of the Christian
When he puts on his armor.
Jesus said:
Matthew 10:22 “You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.”
And obviously there we learn that perseverance is vitally important.
Namely because it is those who are truly saved who will persevere.
James said:
James 1:2-4 “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
And perhaps my favorites come in the letter of 2 Timothy
As Paul encourages Timothy to stay the course and be steadfast.
And of course, not only to be steadfast,
But to be steadfast in his proclamation of the word of God.
(which is what our Psalmist has done)
2 Timothy 1:8 “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord or of me His prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God,”
2 Timothy 1:13-14 “Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.”
2 Timothy 2:3 “Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”
2 Timothy 3:12-17 “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”
2 Timothy 4:5 “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”
And that is just a few examples.
Perseverance, endurance, steadfastness;
Those are all valuable and necessary qualities for the man of God.
We know that a decision to stand upon the word of God
Will only bring hardship and shame from the world.
And the simple truth is that if you don’t plan to be committed through difficulty, then don’t proclaim the truth.
Steadfastness is required.
The Psalmist certainly has it.
And if you will remember for a moment how this Psalm began,
It is actually quite remarkable that he does have it.
When you channel through this Psalm somewhat chronologically
It is amazing the strides our Psalmist has taken.
• You will remember back in verses 1-8 he was a man who had not been obedient to God’s Word and he recognized that it resulted in a lack of blessing.
• Verses 9-16 continued with him asking how to achieve purity in his life, obviously because he wanted blessing.
• By the time we got to verses 33-40, it almost has the feel of salvation. As the Psalmist asks God to make a change in his life.
• Here were some of the requests.
• “Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes”
• “Give me understanding, that I may observe Your law”
• “Make me walk in the path of Your commandments”
• “Incline my heart to Your testimonies”
• “Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity”
• “Establish Your word to Your servant”
Those are all requests of a man who wants to be different,
Who wants to be obedient, who wants to be pleasing to God.
It almost resembles the cry of salvation.
But if you remember that Psalm ended with another type of request.
Psalms 119:39 “Turn away my reproach which I dread, For Your ordinances are good.”
The Psalmist not only asked for a more committed heart,
But he also asked that his obedience not land him in reproach.
He wanted what many of us want.
“An obedient life that the world doesn’t hate”
Now I only remind you of that because I want you to remember
That our Psalmist didn’t like controversy any more than the next guy.
Our Psalmist was not a glutton for punishment.
If you look at his steadfastness and pass it off
Simply because you find him to be a tough sort of man
Who doesn’t mind such things, then you are wrong.
He definitely minded such things.
He prayed that God would not let reproach find him.
And yet it did, and regardless, he continues to endure.
That is called being steadfast.
He’s a man with no desire of love for oppression,
And yet he refuses to let it derail him.
Tonight I want to show you why he has it.
I want to show you how he maintains it.
I want you to see the secret to achieving it,
And how to be steadfast in your own life.
3 things the Psalmist did in order to be steadfast.
#1 HE CHERISHED TRUTH
Psalms 119:161-165
Right off the bat in our Psalm we recognize
What has become a rather reoccurring theme.
“Princes persecute me without cause,”
There have been very few stanzas in this Psalm
Where the Psalmist did not mention the presence of some type of hardship.
But even at that, we have to admit that this hardship is extremely difficult.
• We see the SOURCE “Princes”
• We see the DEGREE “persecute”
• We see the CAUSE “without cause”
I suppose the opposite statement would sound like this:
“Meaningless people don’t like me because I did something wrong”
But it is no insignificant man who is persecuting him.
THIS IS THE PRINCE, and he has the ability to inflict harm.
And the harm is SEVERE, for the Psalmist uses the word “persecute”
And to add to the sting, it is done PURELY OUT OF HATRED,
For the Psalmist has done nothing to deserve it.
We could easily have heard these very words come off the lips of our Lord
After being condemned by Pilate.
This is no small dilemma, this is a major problem.
• It is an attack meant to shake the Psalmist to his core.
• It is an attack meant to turn the Psalmist toward a different direction.
• It is meant to wreck his faith.
• It is meant to stop his witness.
This is major pressure.
And yet, there he is once again standing strong.
“But my heart stands in awe of Your words.”
It just really doesn’t seem to matter how stiff the adversity is in his life,
His love of the word of God is too great to rattle him.
He “stands in awe” of the word of God.
Now there is a phrase.
• How many times have you stood in awe in your life?
• How many times have you been focused on something so grand that everything else just seemed to fade into oblivion?
The word used here literally means “to be in dread or in awe”
Job actually used it of God.
Job 23:15 “Therefore, I would be dismayed at His presence; When I consider, I am terrified of Him.”
And while it does mean “dread” it is NOT here necessarily a negative thing.
He just understands the magnitude of what he is reading.
It is reverential awe.
He doesn’t fear the persecution of man because he is in awe of God’s word.
I suppose the New Testament equivalent would be:
Matthew 10:28 “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
The Psalmist just has a proper discernment and understanding.
He sees God in His rightful place and knows it is far better
To break the words of man than to break the words of God.
He is “in awe” of God’s word.
AND THEN HE SAYS WHY.
Four reasons.
1) THE VALUE OF GOD’S WORD (162)
Here he paints a great word picture.
Let me call your mind to an Old Testament story
Turn to: 2 Kings 7:8-16
You may remember from our study of Kings,
• When Jehoram was king of Israel, they were heavily oppressed by Aram, so
much so that two women actually got in a fight over eating their own sons.
• Scripture actually said that “a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of
silver, and a fourth of a kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver.”
• It was then that Elisha promised God would deliver with a great deliverance.
• In the meantime God routed the Arameans and there were some lepers who
had decided to go to the Arameans camp (not knowing they had been
routed) and beg for food.
• When they got there they found the place deserted and full of spoil.
(READ IT)
Now here is my question.
After starving for a time, what do you think the mood of the people was?
DID THEY REJOICE?
You know they did.
Now listen to what the Psalmist said:
“I rejoice at Your word, As one who finds great spoil.”
The Psalmist is saying, “I rejoiced like those lepers”
He has learned God’s Word has great value.
• More value than bread.
• More value than clothes.
• More value than a donkey’s head or dove’s dung (obviously)
He stands in awe of God’s word because of its tremendous value.
It is worth more than great spoil.
2) THE TRUTH OF GOD’S WORD (163)
Again this is a familiar statement.
“I hate and despise falsehood”
That no longer shocks us.
This is coming from the man who loathes the wicked.
Certainly we are familiar with his hatred for “falsehood”
And very simply put, if it isn’t true he not only disregards it, he hates it.
This man is a stickler for accuracy.
So when he endorses the word of God, we know it must be true,
For if it wasn’t, this man would hate it.
“I hate and despise falsehood, but I love Your law.”
That indicates it is true.
He stands in awe of it because it is valuable, it is true
3) THE PERFECTION OF GOD’S WORD (164)
“Seven times a day I praise You,”
I wonder how many can say today
That they read God’s Word seven times in one day.
Spurgeon asked, “Do we praise seven times a day, do we praise once in seven days?”
The indication here is one of frequency.
You could ask a man who never reads God’s word if it is perfect
And he can say, “Yes it is.”
But if he never reads it, he is hardly qualified to give the answer.
Here we have an evaluation from a man who not only has read God’s Word,
But reads it seven times a day.
He is an expert on his dissertation.
And notice why he praises
“Because of Your righteous ordinances.”
He reads seven times and every time he praises
Because he is amazed at how righteous the word of God actually is.
It is perfect.
It is flawless.
In it he finds a standard unmatched by human morality.
In it he finds a standard far above what man can conceive.
The word of God doesn’t just reveal morality, but righteousness.
• God’s Word has the authority to call a coward a murderer because of
the hatred in his heart.
• God’s Word has the authority to call a virgin an adulterer because of
the lust in his heart.
• God’s Word has the authority to call a poor man a glutton because of
his worry, and a rich man a thief because of his greed.
• God’s Word has the authority to call a chief priest a hypocrite and a
tax collector forgiven.
God’s Word doesn’t just reveal morality
It reveals perfect righteousness.
Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
And the Psalmist praises God’s seven times a day
Because His word is so righteous.
No wonder he stands in awe.
God’s word is valuable, it is true, it is righteous
4) THE BENEFIT OF GOD’S WORD (165)
And how important this is to our main point
Of why the Psalmist is steadfast.
“Those who love Your law have great peace, and nothing causes them to stumble.”
We really could have made a whole sermon on that one phrase.
They have “great peace” in part because through the word of God
They are put in right relation to God.
There is great comfort in walking in obedience.
But that is not the main peace our Psalmist refers to.
Those who “love” God’s law have great peace
Because through it they find themselves secure.
“and nothing causes them to stumble.”
To “stumble” is to fall away.
It is become apostate.
It is to fall away totally and finally.
But those who love God’s law don’t fear such a fate,
For God’s law will not let them fall away neither totally, nor finally.
We have often quoted that great 19th Psalm
About how the Law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul.
But listen to this statement in that same passage:
Psalms 19:11-13 “Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; In keeping them there is great reward. Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; Let them not rule over me; Then I will be blameless, And I shall be acquitted of great transgression.”
Notice the Psalmist had a fear of unknown errors and hidden faults.
He was afraid of committing presumptuous sins, (just seemed right)
And he was afraid they would take hold of him and lead him astray.
• How do you protect yourself from unknown errors?
• How do you protect yourself from hidden faults?
• How do you protect yourself from actions that feel right?
The answer:
God’s Word.
It protects men from stumbling, by warning them of things
They would not otherwise be concerned about.
Peter said:
2 Peter 1:19 “So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.”
God’s word has great benefit, it protects us from our own falling away.
It grants the request of the hymn writer:
“O to grace how great a debtor, daily I’m constrained to be! Let Thy grace, Lord, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee. Prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love. Here’s my heart, Lord take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.”
He understood the danger of falling away.
After all, even Peter denied
And John the Baptist was on the brink of apostasy.
How does a person protect himself from it? God’s Word.
And that is why the Psalmist stands in awe of it.
He loves it.
So the first secret to our Psalmist’s steadfastness is that He Cherished Truth
#2 HE CHOSE OBEDIENCE
Psalms 119:166
Here is another great verse
That could easily stand alone as a singular theme.
It gives a perfect picture of the great Christian mindset
While in the midst of trying times.
We have both what we hope for and what we do in the meantime.
“I hope for Your salvation, O Lord, And do Your commandments.”
I’ve told you before about a book I love called “Knowing God” by J.I. Packer, in it he talks about a Christian in the midst of his suffering.
“If you stand at the end of a platform at York Station, you can watch a constant succession of engine and train movements which, if you are a railway enthusiast, will greatly fascinate you. But you will only be able to form a very rough and general idea of the overall plan in terms of which all these movements are being determined (the operational pattern set out in the working timetable, modified if need be on a minute-to-minute basis according to the actually running of the trains.)
If, however, you are privileged enough to be taken by one of the higher-ups into the magnificent electrical signal-box that lies athwart platforms 7 and 8, you will see on the longest wall a diagram of the entire track layout for five miles on either side of the station, with little glowing worm lights moving or stationary on the different tracks to show the signalmen at a glance exactly where every engine and train is. At once you will be able to look at the whole situation through the eyes of those who control it: you will see from the diagram why it was that this train had to be signaled to a halt, and that one diverted from its normal running line, and that one parked temporarily in a siding. The why and the wherefore of all these movements becomes plain once you can see the overall position.
Now, the mistake that is commonly made is to suppose that this is an illustration of what God does when he bestows wisdom: to suppose, in other words, that the gift of wisdom consists in a deepened insight into the providential meaning and purpose of events going on around us, an ability to see why God has done what he has done in a particular case, and what he is going to do next. People feel that if they were really walking close to God, so that he could impart wisdom to them freely, then they would, so to speak, find themselves in the signal-box; they would discern the real purpose of everything that happened to them, and it would be clear to them every moment how God was making all things work together for good. Such people spend much time poring over the book of providence, wondering why God should have allowed this or that to take place, whether they should take it as a sign to stop doing one thing and start doing another, or what they should deduce from it. If they end up baffled, they put it down to their own lack of spirituality.
Christians suffering from depression, physical, mental or spiritual (not, these are three different things!) may drive themselves almost crazy with this kind of futile inquiry. For it is futile: make no mistake about that.”
(Packer, J.I. “Knowing God” [IVP Books, Downers Grove, IL; 1973] pg. 102-103)
From there Packer turns to Ecclesiastes and listens to the old realist preacher who warns us against trying to make sense of everything.
If you do, it all becomes “meaningless”
He mentions how the preacher tells us to be practical in life
And a realist in the way we look at circumstances.
(Take off our “rose-colored glasses” so to speak.)
And at the end of the book, he answers what true wisdom is.
It is not understanding of your events, it is obedience to God
Even when you don’t understand.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
It is true that a Christian may be in adversity, and may not understand why,
But that is no excuse to stop obeying.
• Do we hope for deliverance? Yes
• Do we hope for salvation? Yes
• Do we hope for redemption? Yes
But we don’t wait until we have it to obey God.
That was the focus of the Psalmist.
He wasn’t letting his life be put on hold
Simply because hardship was present, he chose to obey anyway.
In fact, this may sound absurd, but often times
It is the presence of hardship that denotes God is most at work.
1 Corinthians 16:8-9 “But I will remain in Ephesus until Pentecost; for a wide door for effective service has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.”
Remember Paul’s 2nd missionary journey?
• First Paul was confronted by an adversary named Elymas the magician whom he
had to deal with.
• Next John Mark deserted them.
• Then in Pisidian Antioch Paul faced detractors and arguers and ended up having
to shake the dust off of his feet.
• He was run out of Iconium, and in Lystra the wicked Jews from Iconium caught
him and stoned him.
And when Paul finally finished the trip, I want you to hear his summary
Acts 14:26-28 “From there they sailed to Antioch, from which they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had accomplished. When they had arrived and gathered the church together, they began to report all things that God had done with them and how He had opened a door of faith to the Gentiles. And they spent a long time with the disciples.”
To Paul opposition was only a sign that God was working, it would have been tragic if Paul had let his opposition stop his obedience.
If you want to be steadfast then keep obeying
Even when salvation isn’t coming as fast as you would like.
We actually have a hymn for this as well.
It is called “Trust and Obey”
(For there’s not other way, to be happy in Jesus than to trust and obey)
That is what the Psalmist did.
Even when it is hard…
Even when all he can do is hope for salvation…
He continues to obey.
And because of that he remains steadfast.
He Cherished Truth He Chose Obedience
#3 HE CHASED THE PRIZE
Psalms 119:167-168
He begins with a familiar declaration of his love for God’s Word.
“My soul keeps Your testimonies, And I love them exceedingly.”
It is amazing, the Psalmist just can’t stop declaring his love for God’s word.
He loves it and here he says he loves it “exceedingly”
And this love naturally culminates in obedience.
“I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies”
Love that doesn’t manifest itself in action isn’t actually love.
We know we love Christ when we keep His commandments.
The Psalmist loves so he keeps.
BUT HERE IS WHY
“For all my ways are before You.”
In other words, he knows that God is watching all that he does.
He keeps an eye on the end when all the rewards will be given.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”
And of course that sounds negative, but it is also a positive thing.
Revelation 22:12 “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.”
And the idea is that he knows if he stays the course
And continues to obey God’s word
That the prize at the end will far outweigh the present cost.
It is very similar to the advice that the writer of Hebrews
Gave to those struggling Jews.
Hebrews 12:1-3 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”
He wanted people to focus on the prize.
AND THAT IS THE SECRET TO STEADFASTNESS.
Focus on the prize.
God has great reward in store for those who persevere through adversity and persecution to keep His word.
Remember the church at Philadelphia?
Revelation 3:10-12 “Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. ‘I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown. ‘He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name.”
God blesses and rewards those who are faithful.
And the Psalmist knows this.
So, if you want to be steadfast like the Psalmist then do what he did.
He Cherished Truth
He Chose Obedience
He Chased the Prize
It is all about decisions and perspective
And it is the secret to being faithful.
Let me encourage you to do the same.
• Cherish God’s Word, read it and love it.
• Choose to obey it even if circumstances make obedience difficult.
• And when you need motivation focus on the reward that comes to the righteous, for God never gets scrimpy when He rewards the faithful.
Focus on that and you will be protected from stumbling as well.
Psalms 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”
