Me and your copies of God's Word once again to Psalm 119 or of course just to listen along as I read Will be in section 161 through 168 we're almost done only one more section after this We'll meet it all the way through Psalm 119 But our sermon text this morning again will focus on verses 161 through 168 And so then people of God, this is the word of the living God. So give heed and hear the word of your Lord. Princes persecute me without a cause, but my heart stands in awe of your word. I rejoice at your word as one who finds great treasure. I hate and abhor lying, but I love your law. Seven times a day I praise you because of your righteous judgments. Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing causes them to stumble. Lord, I hope for your salvation, and I do your commandments. My soul keeps your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly. I keep your precepts and your testimonies, for all my ways are before you. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord is forever. Well, I have no doubt that as we are all gathered here today, that not a one of you doesn't have your own anxieties. That not a one of you doesn't have your own fears, your own things that make you restless or occupy your minds. Those things that disturb your peace. Peace is indeed a rare thing and a fleeting thing. As all of the difficulties of life surround us, whatever those difficulties may happen to be, whether it be our relationships within the church or opposition from outside the church, whether it be the difficulty of our circumstances, our health, our material situation, there is no shortage of things that cause us anxiety. And of course, one of the things that we yearn for most is that anxiety would be gone, and in its place would be peace, would be quietness, would be stillness, would be rest. And it's just that kind of rest that's promised to us in the gospel, the rest that we will one day obtain as part of God's promises to us, that there will be a day in which We have perfect, full, complete peace in which we can rest in stillness in the presence of our God. But we don't have to wait till that day to experience some of this peace and some of this rest. And that's what our text this morning is telling us. That there is a peace to be had now in this life. We look at 165. It's the central theme of this particular section when he says great peace. Have those who love your law. In other words, the Psalmist is telling us and calling to us that we ought to seek our peace in God's Word. And if you've been paying attention to Psalm 119, we understand that when the psalmist says God's word, what he means at the heart of that is to seek your peace in the God who is found in his word. And so then the call to all of us this morning is to seek God's peace in His Word. And we'll look at that along these two lines. First, we'll see peace obtained through the heart's disposition. And then secondly, peace worked out through the hand's disposition. Peace obtained through the heart's disposition and peace worked out through the hand's disposition. Turning to that first element of our text this morning, we'll find that before he gets into his idea of I keep your laws, I keep your testimonies, I love these things, he begins with a description of the disposition of his heart. How his heart is disposed towards God and towards God's word. And we'll find four dispositions here in the first four verses of the text. He says in verse 161 princes persecute me without a cause but my heart stands in awe of of your word. And that's the first disposition that we as believers ought to be seeking to cultivate in our hearts when it comes to the word of God and when it comes to God himself. And that is the idea of awe, the idea of reverence, the idea of admiration. That when we are coming to the Word of God and we're seeing who God is, we are filled with an awe, with an admiration, with a reverence towards who our God is. And there's a number of ways we can illustrate that concept. I'm sure everyone here has a person or many people in mind who have accomplished some feat or possess some skill that you are in awe of. that you look at and you admire that particular skill, that particular accomplishment, that particular temperament, whatever it may happen to be, all of us here have someone, when we look at them, when we think about them, when we interact with them, when we see them, there is an awe and an admiration involved in that. All too often, unfortunately, that awe and admiration is settled on the famous that are put before us, whether that be athletes who, by their particular feats of strength or whatever it may happen to be, leave us with our jaws dropping. Did you see the dunk that LeBron did the other day, right? That kind of an idea, and it leaves you with your jaw dropping. Some of us may admire the skill of particular actors. Whatever it may happen to be, there are people that when you look at them, there is an admiration that accompanies your disposition towards them. Your jaw drops and you are in silent admiration. That's the concept here. That part of what our hearts should be disposed towards as we come to God in his word, as we read his word, as who he is and his nature and his character, his divine attributes are put on display before us in the word that he has given us. There should be a growing sense of awe and admiration at who God is. So when we read of the creation of the world, we are in awe of the God who in power and in beauty and in wisdom and in strength and in goodness creates the world that he does. When we read of his taking his people out of the land of Egypt, as we read the plagues poured out upon the enemies of his people, as we read the splitting of the sea, as we read these feats of strength from the right hand of God, there should be an awe and an admiration. As we watch them walk through the wilderness complaining over and over again, yet he's patient, yet he's good, yet he provides even when they spurn his provision. We should be in awe and admiration at the goodness and the patience of God. And as we walk through The text of scripture from Genesis all the way to Revelation, there is no shortage of things that are awe-inspiring about who God is and what he has done. And so we, as the people of God, should be seeking to grow in our awe and our admiration of who our God is as we see him revealed to us in his word. But my heart stands in awe of your word. And along with that idea of an awe and admiration of God as he's revealed in his word comes also a joy, a rejoicing. Verse 162. I rejoice at your word as one who finds great treasure. And again, it's not something that's hard for us to understand. Little ones, there's been some sort of toy in your life that you have been looking at and you've desired. You've wanted it and your parents have gotten it for you and you were filled with joy at the great treasure they've given to you in that child in that toy, right? And adults, we do the same thing. We have our shiny things that we seek and pursue and we get them. There's great joy at the treasure that we have laid hold of, whatever it may happen to be. That's the idea here. that this word, that God's self-revelation, that God's making himself known to us through what he has done and through who he is and through what he says should be something that we treasure, that we hold dear, that we rejoice at the fact that we possess the very word of the God that we admire. The Word of God should be to us a treasure. It should be to us a source of joy that we have opportunity to sit down and to read His Word and to, with the people of God, discuss His Word and to the world outside of us to proclaim His Word of the good God worthy of admiration that is found in there and seen in the world itself. so that we should have joy in the fact that God has given us his word and great treasure. Because remember what this word is and what this word does. It's the word of God and it is in and through this word that he makes himself known and calls us and bids us to enter into relationship with him. The greatest joy that there can be for the people of God. We have, by the Word of Jesus Christ, been restored to right relationship with our God. And He gives Himself to us in His Word. And that for us should be a great source of joy day after day after day. The treasure that is God's Word. Thirdly, we find that the disposition of the heart is love. Verse 163, I hate and abhor lying. That is all falsehood, all untruth. But I love your law. Now, as we know anything about what the psalmist has said and what scripture says when it comes to the Word of God is that the Word of God is truth. It is something that is trustworthy, something that we can lay hold of and know that it has no deceit within it, that it tells us what is true, that it lays before us the true path for us to walk, that it tells us who the true God is. And so for the people of God, there should be within us and growing within us a love for the truth of God and God himself as found in his word. It's one of those things we ought to admire about God is his loveliness. And so we are in awe of our God. We rejoice at his word. We love his word and verse 164 necessarily should issue into the fourth thing, and that is the idea of of praise. Seven times a day I praise you because of your righteous judgments. He finds his God to be praiseworthy as he looks in his word. Praise and admiration tend to go together. We tend to speak well of those whom we admire, don't we? We sing the praises of those that we are in awe of to other people. And so it should be with God that if we are in awe of this God who is awe-inspiring, That if we rejoice at the treasure of His Word, of His self-revelation, of His entering into relationship with us, that if we love Him and we love His Word, then naturally our heart should be filled with a praise toward Him for all that He is and for all that He has done. Seven times a day I praise You. Now, He's not putting before you a model to follow. He's not saying, well, you know what, pick seven hours during the day. And at that point in time, those seven times sit there and praise God. If we know anything about the number seven, it's the idea of wholeness and completeness. So basically what he is saying is that my day is filled with the praise of you. so that the disposition of our hearts ought to be one of continuous praise that every time we encounter God in his word praise flows forth from our hearts that every time we encounter God in his people. Praise should flow forward from our hearts that every time we encounter God in his world, in his creation, praise should come forth from our hearts. There's no point in aspect of life that should not produce within us a praise for God. because of who he is, what he has done, the promises that he's made, everything that is encapsulated in this word. And as these disposition grow and take root in the heart, as they become more and more of who we are, then necessarily peace will follow. That's what the psalmist says in 165. Great peace have those who love your law and nothing causes them to stumble, nothing causes them to fall. We might ask ourselves, well how is that the case? How is it that if our hearts are disposed towards God this way, we find peace? How is it that if I am in awe of my God, that if I rejoice in my God, that if I love my God, that if I praise my God, then I will find peace and that peace will grow and I can have great peace here and now. And think about who's saying this. Look at verse 161. How does it begin? Princes persecute me without cause. The psalmist isn't in a peaceful situation here, but he can say in the midst of that, Great peace have those who love your law. Your word is the idea there. He can have great peace because regardless of the circumstances that he finds himself in, regardless of who stands opposed to him. His God is still a God worthy of admiration for who He is. His God is still a good God. His God is still a loving God. His God is still a patient God, a merciful God, a forgiving God, a powerful God, a just God, a righteous God, and His circumstances will never change. those realities about his God. In other words, because he admires his God and is in awe of all that his God is, he can rest in that God and there find peace. Even in the midst of the conflict, even in the midst of the struggle that is the world fallen in sin. And he can rejoice because his God has given himself to him. Because he can seek his God in his word and see the awe-inspiring God in his word. And that word also teaches him to call out to that awe-inspiring God. And that word also teaches him that God has given him a people that he can rely on as well as the expressions of his care and his love for his people. One another. All of the truths contained within the Word of God, the treasures and richness of the Word of God become to us a source of rejoicing even in the midst of difficulty, even in the midst of trial. And indeed, if our frame of heart is right, especially in the moments of difficulty and trial. Saints, all of you have dear loved ones. And when your heart is breaking, You go to, you lean upon, you rest in, you find strength in, and there's a joy in having a person like that, isn't there? To know that there is at least one, if not more than one person that we can rest in. That's a treasure. That's a valuable thing. So that the idea of even in the midst of the struggles of life, there is someone that we can lay hold of brings joy. Even as we lay our heads upon their shoulder and we weep together and mourn, yet in the midst of that, there still is joy. If we rejoice in our God and who He is, we will find that even in mourning, that even in suffering, even in anxiety and fear, there is joy to be had. If we love our God, there is great peace there. Just as with those whom we love as we are in their company, though the world swirls around us, nonetheless, for that moment as we're with them, with those that we love, we have that sense of peace and rest and safety. That's the idea here, that the God who is awe-inspiring and worthy of being admired is the object of our love because of everything that makes him awe-inspiring and worthy of being admired, including that idea that he is our rock and our fortress in whom we find shelter. And as we grow in our love for Him, we grow in our laying hold of Him, and we grow in our running into Him for who He is and what He's promised. all of this then issuing forth in praise so that in those moments of anxiety as we turn our hearts away from the circumstances and to God as he reeled himself to be rather than mourn our circumstances, rather than be swallowed up by them, we begin to praise our God. And in praising Him, find peace. Find rest. It was the problem with those Israelites whom God showed such goodness and patience and mercy, wasn't it? But ultimately, they ran everywhere and anywhere but to Him despite what He provided for them. And instead of finding peace then, they found trouble. Their bodies lay strewn in the wilderness. But God is a God worth running to. and finding peace within. And so we begin to understand why it is that the psalmist says, great peace have those who love Your law and nothing causes them to stumble. Why? Because they're laying hold of the rock. The One who gives security and peace and joy regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in. It's that truth that maps on to what Paul is saying in Philippians. Philippians 4. We won't turn there. We've read it already this morning. Philippians 4. For some of you, you've heard this from me before. But now for the rest of you, Philippians 4 is something that all of us are familiar with. Those verses, right? Be anxious for nothing, but in all things, right? Through prayer, right? Reach out to God. And the God of peace will keep you. Right? Will give you peace. And so we know that prayer, that calling out to God, that laying our anxieties at His feet is a means that God uses to give us peace in the midst of our anxiety. But we don't take the passage beyond that. Because He also gives to us something else as a means by which we find peace. And perhaps I'll read those portions since we're not as familiar with them. Beginning in verse 8, he says, finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do. the God of peace will be with you." The point on thinking of those virtuous praiseworthy things isn't simply because it's a good exercise to do but in doing so we find the God of peace there and thus peace itself because really what Paul is saying is think upon your God. and all of the virtuous and praiseworthy things that he has done and that he is. And as you think upon God, as you meditate upon the admirable treasure that God is, there you will find peace. so that He provides both the option, the ability to call out to Him and lay our anxieties before Him and there find peace, but also to focus and center our minds upon Him and who He is and there find peace as well. And in finding peace, then begin to live the life of peace. Verse 166 through 168. Now the language of keeping the commandments of God, the language of keeping his testimonies in his precepts come into view because his heart's disposition is this way and he finds great peace in his God. Now he is able to go out and to to keep the commandments of His God, to keep His precepts and His testimonies, to walk along the path that God has laid for Him in His love for God and His love for neighbor. His hands are informed by, grounded in, guided by God Himself. The heart always precedes the hands. We always flip that around and wonder why we don't have peace. We think that if we do enough, then we'll have peace. That if we strive hard enough, then we'll have peace. That if we do what God has said well enough, then we'll have peace. It's the other way around. That as we love God more, and we trust God more, and we rest in God more, and we believe in God more, then we will do more. from the position of peace, not the position of anxiety and striving and toil and struggle, but the position of rest and trust and faith and belief. And then he says, Lord, I hope for your salvation and I do your commandments. His hoping for salvation, if you know anything, if you've been listening, isn't the idea that he's just like, I hope I get it. It's an eager expectation. I expect Your salvation. And from that position, I do Your commandments. I keep Your testimonies because I love them. Because I know they're good for me. Because I know You're good and You desire my good. And resting in that and having the peace from that, then I do Your testimonies and I love them exceedingly. I keep your precepts and your testimonies, for all my ways are before you." There's two ways to understand that, saints. One, a fear of, well, everything that I do is front of God's eyes, and if I don't do it just right, well, I'm in trouble. Or there is, everything that I do is before you. You have me in your hand. We read that this morning, saints. Psalm 139. All of our ways are before God. They're known by Him. He is with us in everything we do. There is nowhere we can go to get away from God, and that's not a bad thing. It's the best thing ever. Because it means that wherever I go and whatever I do, there my God of my salvation is. that wherever I go and whatever I do, my rock is with me. My source of rest and peace and safety is there. Even when I don't follow his precepts, nonetheless, he's before me and he is with me. And when I'm following after him because of the Spirit's work in my heart, he's there and he's with me. I love you God because you're always with me. All my ways are before you. I'm never separated from you. Nothing will separate me from you. Nothing will take your presence from me. I am always with you for all my ways are before you. Saints, I hope you're beginning to get a sense of the value of God's Word. Because this is the God that it reveals to you. And it is so contrary to the God that we create for ourselves. A God that is always angry. A God that is always just waiting to knock us over the head. A God that doesn't have our good in mind but just wants us to do arbitrary things for no reason whatsoever. A God who we do the things that we do so that we don't face His wrath. But if you're in Christ Jesus, there is no condemnation. There is no wrath. And the path that He places before us is the good path. And this is what the Word of God reveals to you. That you have a God who loves you. who has done everything to ensure that you will be in right relationship with Him forever. and who has given you His Spirit to do what you can't do. To work within you that awe and admiration. To work within you that rejoicing and that joy. To work within you that growing love. To work within you that praise. To work within you the ability then to do from the place of peace. He gives you everything. He gives you Himself and He gives you Himself here in His Word. Would you have peace, saint? Would you have release from your anxiety? Would you find rest for your soul? Would you find comfort? Then run to God in his word. Great peace have those who love your law. That itself is the application, saint. I hope that you'll take that seriously. Let me close just with these admonitions. Saint, if you're not spending time in the Word of God, then you're missing out on a really marvelous promise. And I know that all of us find so often reading and spending time in God's Word drudgery. It's hard to do. There are so many other things that are so much more exciting and so much more awe-inspiring and so much more to be treasured, aren't there? Than reading the Word or listening to the Word. And that's when we call out to the Spirit of God that He would work within us a greater admiration for God, a greater joy in God and in His Word. Read His Word, saint. But don't just read His Word. Take His Word with you and talk about His Word. Oftentimes we think that it begins and ends with our closet time in the Scriptures and then we set it aside and we think that it will just go with us and it will. But, talk about His Word. That's why He's given you brothers and sisters. So that you have people who have the same root, who have the same ground, who have the same foundation, who should have the same admiration and the same joy and the same love and the same praise. Saints, if we want this peace, we can't just think that we'll get it only by ourselves when God has given us one another to foment that peace, to stir it up. so that we can have joy in talking with one another about the great God that we serve, that we can praise Him together, that together we can tell the world about our great God. And I've said it before and I'll say it again. All of us, when we love something and we're excited about something, we tell people about it. We can't help it. We want to talk to people about this wonderful thing that we have. Let's do that, saints. Sure, it's fine to talk about the various aspects and elements of life that we go through and that we're experiencing. That's fine to talk about the things that bring us joy, that are our hobbies, those sorts of things. But so often that's all we talk about. Let's begin to talk about God. and His Word to share with each other what we have learned about this wonderful God. How this wonderful God is working and moving within us so that we all together can share in the same common joy, the same common awe from the same common God through the same common Word. And let's take this Word and hold it out for the world as well. Because this peace isn't for us to hog and to hoard. It's to share with the world. Look at this God-world. He's so much different than what you think you know about Him. And unfortunately for how often we misportray Him, This is a good God world. This is a loving God world. This is an awe-inspiring God world. A powerful God. A truthful God. A faithful God. A merciful God. A righteous God. You say it and you declare it to the world as we live that out. So that on our own, we strive for that peace. Together as the body. We move towards that peace and drive into that peace. And tell the world about it as well. Tell them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Great peace have those who love Your law. Great peace have those who know You. Let's pray together. Our Heavenly Father, thank you for the peace that you have promised. Father, the promise lays there before us. You've declared it and you've made it. Yet it remains for us to lay hold of that promise. We know it's there, but we are weak. We're thankful that you've made it, but it is so hard to lay hold of it and to believe it and to trust it. Father, You tell us great peace have those who love Your law. We ask that You would give us what is necessary to lay hold of that peace. You have given us Your Spirit precisely because in our own spirit, in our own strength, we would never be able to lay hold of this peace We would never admire you for who you are. We would never rejoice to know you and to have the treasure of your word. We would never love you. We would never praise you. But you've given us your spirit to awaken these things within us and beyond that to grow them in us. And so we ask that you would give what we need in order to lay hold of your promise and then find the peace that you've promised. Father, grow our desire to be in your word, in our closets, but in our fellowship. Grow us in our desire to speak of you to one another and to the world that has yet to know your peace, to know your goodness, to know your truth, and to have good relationship with you. Grow us in our admiration for all that you are as you have shown yourself to be. Grow us in our rejoicing at who you are. Grow us in our love for you. Grow us in our praise. Grow us in our peace. so that we might live the life of peace. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.