Psalm 119_9-16 — Phil Beach Jr.

God's Word as the Source of Victory

Psalm 119, we're going to look at verses 9 through 16. Psalm 119, 9 through 16. And what we're going to do is begin to discover that God has not left us powerless in this struggle in the world. He's not left us powerless.

And as we learn how to utilize what God has made available for us, then that which God has made available becomes our victory. I believe that the cause, the main cause of why we see so much struggle is because we have failed to understand the source of our victory and therefore have sought to find victory apart from the only place that we can find it.

The Living Word and the Written Word

Now, you keep your fingers, if you would please, in Psalm 119, and I'd like to bring you, first of all, to 1 Peter. And we want to lay a New Testament foundation before we go into the Old Testament, which will help us to see that the New Testament itself, the spirit of the new covenant, is one that honors and one that confirms the validity that God's Word, it confirms that God's Word, the living Word who is Christ Himself, and the written Word, which is the Word of God, which cannot and will not lie.

The New Testament confirms that as believers, our source of strength comes from both the living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, and that is by abiding in the vine, or relationship with Jesus Christ, and through the Word of God, the written Word of God.

For by the Word of God we discover and learn about God and become nourished spiritually by the Word of God. Now, let's look at a few verses in the New Testament, then we'll go to Psalm 119, and we're going to discover a very incredible statement that the psalmist makes.

And may I say tonight that if we would but believe Psalm 119, verses 9 through 16, we would find our victory certain as a Christian in all areas of our life. How many here seek to be victorious in Christ?

We all do. Okay, now we're going to discover right from God's Word exactly where our victory lies. 1 Peter chapter 2, beginning in verse, or let's begin in verse chapter 1, beginning in verse number 22.

Chapter 1, verse number 22. Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently. So, purification of the soul comes through obeying the truth.

The truth is in Jesus Christ. As we obey Jesus Christ, respond to the Holy Spirit, a purifying process occurs. We are purified from our sins the moment we believe, and we then grow and are purged from the works of the flesh as we continue to respond to the Spirit of God.

So, there's a two-fold work constantly going on as the soul learns obedience to God's Word being prompted by the Holy Spirit. Verse 23, being born again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by the Word of God which liveth and abideth forever.

Now, here's the first mention of the Word of God. Now, in John chapter 1, verse number 1, John the Apostle said, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. So, we discover that the Word of God here in the Scripture refers to both the person of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Himself.

He is the living Word of God. And it also refers to the written Word of God, which is the Bible that you and I have. Jesus, listen carefully, because this is a very important aspect of our Christian life.

Jesus' Use of Scripture in Spiritual Warfare

Jesus, who was the Son of God, who was the living Word, when battling the devil, He quoted the written Word. Jesus, in quoting the written Word of God, put His divine approval upon its authenticity and genuinity.

For if Jesus didn't quote the written Word of God, then we may have questioned whether or not the New Covenant still honors the Bible. But there's no question. If the living Word of God quoted the written Word of God, it is written, get behind me, Satan, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

He did it three times. Not only did He quote the written Word of God when He was battling the devil in the wilderness, but He constantly, constantly referred to the Scriptures while He was teaching and instructing His apostles, and while He was trying to teach the Pharisees and the lawyers of the law.

He constantly referred to the Word of God. So, again, I want you to see the focus of this whole portion of Scripture is you're purified by obeying the truth. Let me tell you something. It's not our obedience that purifies us.

It is the truth that purifies us. Our obedience simply affords the truth an opportunity to cleanse us. Our obedience does not purify us. You see, if our obedience purified us, then we would be playing a part in the salvation that is God's alone.

But we can't neglect obedience then and say it's not important then to obey since God's the one that does it. Not so. Not so. Because if we refuse to obey, then the truth will not purge us. See, obedience opens the door so that truth can come and purge us.

The focus of this Scripture is on God. It is on the Word of God. It is on the living Word of God. It is on the divine influence of God in our life. Not ourself. Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible seed, by the Word of God which liveth and abideth forever.

For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away. But the Word of the Lord endureth forever. Beloved, you never have to worry about getting too much of God's Word in your soul.

You might have to worry about getting too much of the world in your soul, but never God's Word. Beloved, the Word of God liveth and abideth forever. The Word of God cannot fail. The Word of God cannot be corrupted.

The Word of God cannot shake while everything else is shaking. Guess what remains the same in you when you go through all your trials and all your tribulations? God's Word. You are shaken, but that's what God wants to do.

The Unshakable Word and the Kingdom of God

The Bible says, and you may turn there if you like, in the book of Hebrews very quickly, just so that we can confirm this by the Word of God. Hebrews chapter 12, beginning in verse number 25. See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh.

Ah, God is constantly speaking. God is constantly speaking by His Word. See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh. For if they escape not who refused Him that spoke on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven.

Now watch this. Whose voice, that is His Word, shook the earth. But now He hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this Word, that is the previous Scripture, yet once more signifying the removing, listen, of those things that are shaken as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

Wherefore, we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. Beloved, do you see that the Bible says in verse 25 of 1 Peter chapter 1, The Word of the Lord endureth forever, and this is the Word which by the gospel was preached unto you.

The most secure thing that you can have living in your soul to prepare you for the present trouble and the future tribulation that we will all have to go through as Christians, yea, they that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

If you want something secure to hold on to, so that when your whole world begins to shake and you begin to feel the very depths of your soul begin to shake and your body and your mind begin to shake and you feel troubled and despair and despondency on every side you turn.

Beloved, may I encourage you to look to the Word of God which cannot be shaken. The Word of God cannot be shaken. And as you allow God to put into your spirit His Word, then you begin to draw your strength from that unshakable, unmovable fire that lives in your soul.

Craving the Word for Spiritual Growth

Oh my. Verse number 1 chapter 2, 1 Peter. Wherefore, laying aside all malice, that is evil thinking. Malice means evil thinking, evil thoughts about anyone and all guile. The word guile there means craftiness, deceitfulness, manipulation, laid aside, and hypocrisies, envies, and all evil speaking.

Now watch. As newborn babes desire, the Greek word there means to crave intently. Do you see what Peter's doing? He just got done explaining the glory of the Word of God and how by it we've been saved, by it we've been redeemed, by it we've been translated out of the kingdom of darkness into God's kingdom and now he's giving a second command.

As newborn babes crave intensely the sincere, that word sincere means pure, undefiled, without reproach, the sincere milk of the Word. There you go. Once we're saved by the Word of God which liveth and abideth forever, we are encouraged, listen carefully, to then begin to feed upon that Word.

It's not good enough to be saved by the Word. It's not good enough. Now don't think I'm minimizing salvation, I am not. But Jesus said, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word. Beloved, the Holy Spirit is basically saying this by the Scripture tonight.

You have become acquainted with the Word of God. It saved your soul if you're a believer. If you're born again, the eternal incorruptible Word of God has changed you. But now that it has changed you, crave it that you might grow by it.

The Word of God is the source of our growth tonight. If so be, verse 3, ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. One more Scripture in the New Testament, Colossians. Oh, how wonderful the Word of God is.

Colossians chapter 3, Colossians chapter 3, verse 16. Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

I want to point your attention to 16, the beginning. Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. Beloved, the Word of God is our source of strength tonight. Now there's two out of many, many more Scriptures in the New Testament that admonish the believer to allow the Word of God to become their meditation, the milk by which they nurse from and grow in their salvation.

Cleansing Through the Word in Psalm 119

Seeing this as a New Testament concept, let us go then to Psalm 119 and let us see one of the many, now the many functions of the Word of God. Here's my question, what will happen to you when the Word of God begins to find its place in your life more and more and more?

Now, it's through hearing the Word of God being preached, but not exclusively by that manner. We are not in the dark ages. It is no longer necessary to go to church as the only means to hear the Word of God.

The Reformation has come. Gutenberg's press has successfully broke the barriers of the Bible being limited. Now the Word of God is circulated in all the world. So the Word of God is available. And what happens when the Word of God finds a lodging place within the heart of a man?

Well, we're going to just look at one of the many, many results that occur. Verse number 9, 119 Psalm, Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? So immediately we look at the question, how with what?

What means shall a man, By what means shall a man use to cleanse his way? Now watch this. By taking heed thereto according to thy word. Beloved, the source of cleansing in our life, the source of purging in our life, comes from the active living presence of God's Word in us.

Moving in us. Finding a lodging place in us. Now you can stay right there, but there's another scripture in Ephesians that I was just reminded of as I was reading that. Ephesians chapter 5. Ephesians chapter 5.

Beginning in verse number 25. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it. Now watch this. That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word.

See that? By the Word. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. Being brought into conformity to God's Word through the dynamic power of the Holy Ghost working in your life is the means by which God continues that process of purging and cleansing.

And it's the blood that makes us worthy. With my whole heart have I sought thee. Oh, let me not wander from thy commandments. The word wander there is a word that means to stray from. To stray from. Oh, that God would keep us in his Word in fellowship with him.

Now watch this now. Verse 11. Thy word have I hid in mine heart that I might not sin against thee. Beloved, can you see that the secret in this verse that the psalmist is showing us is the Word of God.

It's the Word of God that keeps us from sinning against God. Listen. It is the power of God's Word working in your soul that keeps you from the sin that is in your own flesh and that is in the world. It's the power of God's Word.

Rejoicing, Meditating on, and Delighting in God's Word

Blessed art thou, O Lord, teach me thy statutes. With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth. I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies as much as in all riches. Now, here we find that the psalmist is suggesting that to rejoice in God's Word is to be something that is present in our life as if or at least as much as worldly people rejoice in riches.

You ask any person that's not a Christian or some Christians whose heart has not yet been delivered from covetousness. You ask, but we'll just use unregenerate people. Anyone who could sit down and be guaranteed in five steps how to become a millionaire, they'd be pretty happy about it.

Wouldn't they? Because to them, riches is the answer. It's the means by which they can get anything they want. There's a rejoicing that would occur in their heart. But the Word of God tells us tonight that as Christians, we ought to consider Christ and knowing Him has greater treasure than all the money in the world.

And the mention of His name ought to thrill and cause rejoicing to rise up in our hearts more so than the rejoicing that would occur when unbelievers can learn of a quick gimmick to get rich. All that God's Word and the Lord Jesus Himself could become that precious to us tonight.

Then verse 15, as we close out, I will meditate in thy precepts and have respect unto thy ways. To meditate in God's precepts is to think about them, to ponder them, to consider them. As the cow chews the cud, as the cow chews the grass, over and over and over and over again, getting from it all the nourishment that's in it.

Even so, ought the Christian, meditate and think and ponder upon the Word of God and through the Holy Ghost, drawing out of it all the nourishment and all the power and all the direction and all the food that it could give us as Christians.

That's why it's so important to meditate upon the Word of God. And then lastly, I will delight myself in thy statutes. I will not forget thy Word. To delight oneself in God's Word is to experience pleasure in turning to His Word.

Pleasure. It is God's will that you and I delight ourselves in His Word, find pleasure in His Word, find strength in His Word. Be instructed and guided by His Word. May I encourage you tonight to consider that God's Word is the source of your strength.

And by a relationship with Jesus Christ, God's Word can become life to you. God's Word can become a source, the source of your strength in Him.