God's Word: Route to Revival

You're so good to us to allow us the opportunity to study the word of God. We thank you that you have placed your word into our hands. Thank you, Lord, that we can put your word in our hearts that we might be able to live a righteous and pure and holy life before you.

Tonight as we study your word, we pray that you would open our eyes that we might behold wonderful things out of thy law. That we might learn more of the statutes of God and thus follow you with a whole heart, deep commitment that serves Jesus only. In your name we pray. Amen.

Psalm 119, as we continue our study. We are in verse number 25. God's word is the route to revival. It's that one element that revives the life of an individual.

Revival literally means to bring back to life. So in other words, if someone is near death or unconscious and you revive them, you've brought them back to life. So technically, you can only revive something that is already alive.

And so we begin to understand that revival specifically is for those who have experienced life but need to embrace an aliveness about them. For instance, if you're growing up in the south like I did and you went from place to place in small towns, there are always revival meetings. I don't know if you have ever been to a revival meeting or not, but I've been to quite a few of them when I grew up as a kid.

And usually a preacher would come to your town or to your village or to wherever it is you lived, and there'd be these big signs out of the front: "Revival meetings." And people would come and hear the word of the Lord, and a lot of times they're very emotional times. And people would either recommit their life to Christ or they would get fired up for the Lord because they were designed for the believers to understand what true life in Christ really meant and to live that life on a regular basis.

And after that revival would take place, there'd be a week or two or three where people would be fired up. And then they kind of go off the scene for a while until the next year when the new preacher came or a different preacher came to do another revival meeting.

And yet revival is something that's supposed to take place in the heart of a man, in the heart of a woman, on a daily basis, on a regular basis. Revival is important to the life of the believer in order that they might live the life that God has designed for them to live.

And so revival is a biblical word. Nine times it's used in Psalm 119. It's used in the very first verse. We will talk about this evening when it says, "Revive me according to thy word." It's spoken of again in verse number 40: "Behold, I long for thy precepts; revive me through thy righteousness."

And then you turn over to Psalm 119, verse number 88: "Revive me according to thy loving kindness so that I may keep thy testimony," or "the testimony of thy mouth." Verse 93: "I will never forget thy precepts, for by them thou hast revived me." Verse 107: "I am exceedingly afflicted. Revive me, oh Lord, according to thy word."

Then of course over in verse 149: "Hear my voice according to thy loving kindness; revive me, oh Lord, according to thine ordinances." Verse 154: "Plead my cause and redeem me; revive me according to thy word." Verse 156: "Great are thy mercies. Oh Lord, revive me according to thine ordinances."

And then 159: "Consider how I love thy precepts. Revive me, oh Lord, according to thy loving kindness." The psalmist knew his need for revival. And so continually he would come before his God and plead with him that he would be revived according to the statutes, the ordinances, the law of almighty God.

So we know that revival is that one element that comes because of the word of God. So you don't have to wait once a year for some preacher to come to your town and do a set of revival meetings for you to experience revival. It comes when you understand what God's word says about revival and how God's word is that which is the route to a revived life. And that's what Psalm 119, verses 25 and following, is all about.

Here is a series of stanzas that deal with how the word of God influences a man to live, no matter what his circumstances are, for God. I'll read verse number 25. You read verse number 26. In other words, I read the odd ones, you read the even ones, as we have been doing. Okay, verse 25: "My soul cleaves to the dust; revive me according to thy word."

"Make me understand the way of thy precepts, so I will meditate on thy wonders. Remove the false way from me and graciously grant me thy law. I have chosen the faithful way; I have placed thine ordinances before me. I cleave to thy testimonies. Oh Lord, do not put me to shame."

The route to revival begins with the condition of the psalmist. That's verse number 25. The condition of the psalmist. Psalmist says, "My soul cleaves to the dust."

This psalmist, maybe it's David, maybe it's not—no one necessarily knows for sure—but the psalmist understands his humiliation. The psalmist is at a point in his life where he begins to bow down in mourning, in grief, in sorrow, so much so that he finds himself prostrate on the ground. "My soul cleaves to the dust."

He understands that his life is full of sorrow. He's at a point in his life where he is facing humiliation. Now maybe it's because of some sinfulness in his life. Maybe he's committed some sin. Maybe there is some guilt that's in his life because of that sin.

We don't know. And that's a good thing. Because sometimes we like to pass judgment on the characters of the Bible because their situation is not like our situation. That somehow our situation is always worse than theirs. Their situation is not nearly as hard as mine.

So the psalmist doesn't tell us what it is that caused his soul to cleave to the dust. We don't know for sure. We do know that over in verse number 28 it says, "My soul weeps because of grief." And that tells us that there was some kind of pain, some kind of loss in the psalmist's life that would cause him to grieve.

Maybe he is clinging to the dust because he's made some wrong choices. You know, a lot of times we find ourselves prostrate before God because we made some bad choices. There have been people who have made a choice to get an abortion early on in life. And when they get older, their soul cleaves to the dust because they made the wrong choice.

There are some who want to get married and they do it hastily. And they choose somebody just to make sure they don't stay single for the rest of their life. And they've made some wrong choices.

There are some who like to experiment with drugs, and so they try to go that avenue and they find themselves experiencing the effects of wrong choices. You know, all of us make choices. Sometimes they're good. Sometimes they're bad. Hopefully we learn from our mistakes not to make the same one again.

But whatever it was in the psalmist's life, here was a man who found himself cleaving to the dust. Here was a man who found himself attached to the ground. This man was having a hard time because of choices he made, because of maybe sin he committed, or maybe because of some loss or pain in his life that caused him great sorrow and grief.

You know, I don't know what the condition of your soul is. God does, but I do not know that. And so we come to church and sometimes we put on a mask or put on a front that makes everybody think that everything's okay. But in reality, we go home and we find ourselves prostrate on the ground, cleaving to the dust because of bad choices or sinful choices that we have made.

The psalmist began to recognize his need for God to deal with him because his self-resources were all gone. There was nothing else he could do. A lot of times we make a bad choice and we try to rectify it. We try to fix it. You know, we're masters at fixing bad decisions. And usually we just make worse decisions.

This psalmist was at the end of his self-resources. He had nothing left. His soul would cleave to the dust. He had no answer. He needed lifting. He needed revival.

So he says, "My soul cleaves to the dust," and then he says, "Revive me according to thy word." Maybe your text says, "Quicken me." That's a good word. "Quicken me. Cause me to stand erect. Cause me to arise. Cause there to have something happen in my life where I am no longer in a position of prostration on the ground, that somehow, Lord, my life would be quickened."

And he pleads with God, "Revive me according to thy word." He was going to make known his problem, his situation, to his God. Now it's not like God didn't know his situation. God knew.

But I want you to notice something. He has a problem. We don't know what that problem is that caused him to be in the situation he was in in Psalm 119. But he calls out to God. He knows that God's word is his counselor. We learned about that last week in verse number 24. So he knows that God's word can counsel him. God's word can revive him. God's word can cause him to stand and stand erect. God's word can cause him to be strengthened. God's word can breathe life into a soul.

And so he knows that in order for that to happen, he will have to call out to God and talk to God about the situation. Now that's very important. Because he's not going to talk to anybody else about the situation. He's going to talk to God about the situation.

You see, something unique about the psalms—all 150 of them—you begin to learn that the psalmist cries out to God. That's usually the last thing we do. We cry to somebody on the phone, or we cry to somebody through a letter, or we cry to somebody nowadays through text messaging or through emails, whatever that is. And we try to do all those kinds of things. We cry out to everybody, but we don't cry out to God.

Listen to what the Bible says about that, just in case you didn't know. Proverbs 18, verse number 2, says, "A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in revealing his own heart." A fool is one who pours out his heart to someone else. That's not the wise man. The wise man wants understanding. The wise man wants to know what's going on.

But you know, the Bible never tells us to spill our guts to somebody. Now if you go to the psychologist or if you go to the psychotherapist, they're going to say, "Well, let it all hang out. Tell us how you're feeling. How does that make you feel? What's going on inside of you?" And the Bible says you're just a fool if you do that.

So you can choose to be a fool or you can save your money, come to church, talk to one of your elders, hear the word of God, and stay rich. Simple as that. I mean, how much easier can it be? What's so hard about that decision, right?

And the psalmist knows—and you read the psalms—the psalmist is always crying out to his God because he knows there's only one with the solution. And that's the Lord God of the universe. He's the only one. He's the one who gives life.

Listen to Deuteronomy chapter 32. Deuteronomy 32, verse number 39, says, "See now that I, I am he, and there is no god beside me. It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, and there is no one who can deliver from my hand." The Lord God says, "I'm the one who gives life. I'm the one that can revive the soul. I'm the one that can enhance the soul because I am the life giver."

And God is the only one who can do that. He does it through his word. He does it through his word. And the psalmist realizes that in order for him to be revived, it's going to be done specifically through the word of almighty God. That's how it's going to happen. It's not going to happen to anybody else, but through the word of almighty God.

And so the psalmist pleads, "Lord, I'm going to expose myself to the scripture. Because that is the greatest therapy known to man—to expose myself to the scripture." He says, "Lord, I need you to revive me. I need you to put new life into me. I need you to give me a spiritual dose of scripture. I need your word to strengthen me."

Now listen, whatever your condition is this evening, I don't know what it is, but the only solution to your condition is the scripture, is the word of God. Maybe you're here tonight and your marriage needs revival. A lot of people find themselves in that boat. The marriage is kind of stale. It's kind of dull. It's kind of boring. It's just kind of this living together for the sake of the kids kind of thing.

Do you know how many people are in that boat? Most. Most marriages are in that boat. They kind of stay together because of the kids. And after all, the church looks down upon divorce, so we're not going to do that. We'll just kind of stick it out together.

And maybe your marriage needs revival. It only comes through the scriptures. It can only come because God strengthens you through the word of God. That's the only way.

And maybe your spiritual life, maybe your own personal life, is in the doldrums. Maybe it's stagnant. You know, for the life of me, I don't understand how a Christian can become stagnant in their walk with God. I don't understand why they want to do that. Why they just flounder in no man's land and just kind of go through the motions spiritually. Just kind of go through the motions by bringing their Bible to church, or going through the motions by doing things with people who are of the church, but really experience no revival in their lives.

After all, we are Christians. We are the ones who say we love the Lord Jesus Christ. And yet you think that nobody loved us by the way we acted sometimes. And yet we find ourselves in a stale condition in our marriage and our family and our personal lives.

Whatever your condition is, there is only one solution. And Jesus Christ is that solution, and his word is that which speaks to every situation that you encounter, every emotion that you have, every decision that you make. God's word is that which deals with it.

And once you begin to go outside God's word to find the answers, like the psalmist, you'll have the wrong choices. And you'll find your soul cleaving to the dust once again.

And so revival begins with the condition. Now some might say, "Well, you know, pastor, I know my condition, and my condition is not good. And I've been coming to church, and I've been memorizing scripture. In fact, I've memorized Psalm 119, verses 1-24, just like you've suggested, and I'm on verse 25 this week. And I'm memorizing the Bible, and I'm in church, and I'm teaching a Sunday school class. But my life is just one big bore. There is no revival in my life. And my marriage is in the tubes, and it's just not going good. And things are just not going well in my life. And I know my condition. My soul is cleaving to the dust, and I'm in the word, and things aren't changing."

Oh, there's an answer for that. That's point number two. And that's the confession. That's the confession. Listen to what the psalmist says: "I have told of my ways, and thou hast answered me."

"I have told of my ways, and thou hast answered me." You see, in order for there to be a restoration of the soul, there must be the confession of the sin. This is going to get real convicting here in a minute, so hold on to your seats. Make sure you're ready to hear what God's word asks of you tonight, because this is so important to your soul.

We want revival, but we don't want to go to the roots. The Bible says for revival to happen in my life. And the psalmist says very clearly, "I have told of my ways, and thou hast answered me."

He goes to the word of God and speaks to the Lord God of the universe. And when he goes to God's word, because the testimonies of God are his counselor, and he wants to be revived according to the word of God, he begins to expose himself to who God is. And he sees the grossness of his life and begins to pour his heart out and to explain his ways to God.

The Bible says in Proverbs 14, verse number 12, that "there is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death," not life. You know, we use that evangelistically, and that's a good verse to use evangelistically, because usually there are people who in their own way think that there's a certain way to get to heaven, and they trust in that way, not God's way.

But in reality, there is a way that "seemeth right to us" as believers. That's why the Bible says that we are to "trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not unto our own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths."

But the psalmist said, "I have confessed my ways to the Lord. I have poured out my ways to God, so he understands exactly where I am." Not that God needs any information. God's not looking for more information. He knows everything. You're not going to tell him something he doesn't know. He already knows.

Confession is not to inform God of anything. Confession is to conform me to God. That I might understand who he is. Because confession is saying the same thing about my sin that God says about my sin. That's what confession is.

And folks, the reason there's not revival taking place in people's lives is because they're unwilling to admit that their ways are opposed to God's ways. Listen to what the Bible says, book of Proverbs. Book of Proverbs, the 12th chapter, in the 15th verse: "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel." The way of the fool is right in his own eyes.

Proverbs chapter 16, verse number 2, says it this way: "All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight, but the Lord weighs the motives."

You know, there's a lot of things that we can do that we think are just really good. "This way is the right way. This way sounds good." But God knows the motive. God knows the heart. God knows what's propelling you from the inside out. God knows what's going on inside. You can't fool God.

The way may look clean to you. You might be able to convince people that it's a clean way, it's the right way, but God knows the heart of an individual. The psalmist says, "I've told him my ways. I've confessed my ways to my God because my ways are opposed to God's ways."

See, there's only two ways. There's the worldly way and there's the word way. There are no other ways. You either do it God's way or you do it society's way. You do it heaven's way or you do it hell's way. There is no in-between. It's either God's way or it's your way.

And the psalmist knew he did things his way. That's why his soul was cleaving to the dust. He did it his way, like Frank Sinatra used to sing that song, "I did it my way." Well, he did it his way and ended up in hell's way.

And we need to understand that the psalmist is coming to realize something very important: that most of the time my ways are not God's ways. That's why the Lord says, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways. As far as the earth is from the heavens, so far are my thoughts from your thoughts and my ways from your ways."

God's way is so completely different than ours. And until we come to realize that, we can't take matters into our own hands. You know, "All we like sheep have gone astray; each has turned to his own way." Which way is that? It's not toward the Lord God. It's another way.

That's why the psalmist said in Psalm 1, verse number 6, these words: "For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish." The Bible says in Psalm 25, verse number 4, these words: "Make me know thy ways, O Lord. Teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth and teach me, for thou art the God of my salvation; for thee I wait all the day."

Here the psalmist was willing to wait as long as it took for God to show him the right way. And then you go over to Psalm 27. In Psalm 27, verse number 11, it records these words: "Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a level path because of my foes."

The psalmist wanted to know the way of the Lord God. That's why Psalm 18:30 says, "As for God, his way is perfect."

God's way is always perfect. But you know, is it not true that we always have another way? Is it not true that as parents we have another way to discipline our children rather than God's way of disciplining our children? You ever notice that? Happens all the time. We have a better way than God has.

You ever notice that we have a better way to fix our marriage than God's way to fix our marriage? We have a better way to handle our finances than God's way to handle our finances. We have a better way to witness rather than God's way to witness. We have a better way to run church rather than God's way to run church.

You see, there's only one way, and that's God's way. And so the only way you're going to find God's way is to be in God's word to know exactly what he says. And the psalmist is very open and says, "I have told of my ways to the Lord because my ways have not been his ways, and that's why my soul cleaves to the dust."

Listen to this: "And thou hast answered me." Now maybe your translation says, "And thou hast heard my cry." You know, God hears the heart of the one who cries to him. Remember Psalm 66:18: "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me."

It's not that God can't hear. He can hear. He's not dull of hearing. He's not hard of hearing. He hears everything. But because of the sin in my heart, God will not respond to the cry of my soul until there's been confession, until there's been that admission of my ways being opposed to God's ways.

I can't think of a better solution for your family than to sit down before God and say, "Lord, excuse me, Lord, I have led my family the wrong way." Could you imagine if the men of the church sat down with their family and said, "Listen, guys, I've led you the wrong way. I have not been the proper example to my children. I haven't been the proper lover of my wife. I haven't dealt with integrity in the workplace. I haven't been an example of purity to my children. I've led the wrong way. Now I want to do it God's way."

Do you imagine the revival that would take place in the homes and the hearts of people if just men would admit that their way was the wrong way? But we're just too arrogant to do that. We got too much pride to do that. We think we're just too good to do that.

But the psalmist wasn't. And that's why he experienced revival. And that's why we don't experience revival. It's because he knew that his way was opposed to God's way. And so he told his way to God.

And what did God do? God answered him. God answered him. God heard him.

And we, as men, we go around trying to lead our families, we wonder why God doesn't answer us, why God doesn't hear us. It's because we're trying to do things our way. We're trying to lead our family our way. We're trying to work in the marketplace our way. And then God doesn't answer because our sins have separated us from our God.

And then we become stale. We become stagnant in our walk with God. And we carry our Bible to church and we sit in the pew and just kind of go through the motions. And then we begin to wonder, "Is this Christian thing really all worth it? It's not really what it's cracked up to be."

It's because there was no realization of the condition that would cause man to repent of his sin and enter into confession. The psalmist knew that, though. See why? Because he was willing to look into the word of God.

And let me tell you something. The closer you get to God, the clearer your sin is to you. The closer you get to God, the clearer your sin is to you. Ever met somebody who's really critical of somebody else's sin? Ever met people like that? They're quick to criticize somebody else's sin.

Those people are not very close to God, because they didn't see their own sin. Listen to me, if you're close to God, you see your sins so much you don't have time to see anybody else's sin. But those people who are critical of somebody else's sin, it's because they're so far away from God that they can't even see their own lives. Because the closer you get to God, the clearer your sin is to you, because the more you see God, the more wretched you see yourself.

That was the psalmist. "My soul cleaves to the dust. What humiliation. Oh God, revive me according to your word. I made known my ways to God, and God answered me. God heard me."

You ever wonder if God hears you or not? I love the story of Hagar and Ishmael and Sarah and Abraham. Go back to Genesis 16 with me for a second. This is a great story. You need to understand the implications of Genesis 16. This is so profound.

You know the story. If you were with us in our study of Genesis—it took us, you know, seven years to get through it—so I imagine most of you were here at that time. Maybe you weren't, but you know the story about Sarah and Hagar. You remember it says in verse number 1: "Now Sarah, Abraham's wife, bore him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar."

Now where did they get an Egyptian maid? Well, you got to go back to Genesis 12 and realize that when a famine came in the promised land, the land that God led Abraham to, Abraham never sought the Lord. He fled to Egypt. And while he was in Egypt, he got this handmaid named Hagar. That's one of those wrong choices kind of things. But God, because of his sovereignty, would work everything out after the council of his own will. And you begin to see the plan of God at work, and what God does here is very profound to Abraham's faith.

So Sarah couldn't have any children, but she had a handmaid named Hagar. So Sarah said to Abraham, "Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go into my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children through her." And Abraham listened to the voice of Sarah.

"And Abraham had lived 10 years in the land of Canaan. Abraham's wife Sarah took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to her husband Abraham as his wife. And he went into Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight."

"Sarah said to Abraham, 'May the wrong done be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the Lord judge between you and me.' But Abraham said to Sarah, 'Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.' So Sarah treated her harshly, and she fled from her presence."

Sarah had a way. It wasn't God's way, but she had a way. It was a legal way, but it wasn't a moral way. Just because it's legal doesn't mean it's moral. She had a legal way that was to give her handmaid Hagar to Abraham. It was Sarah's idea. Hagar conceived. Sarah was bitter. She became angry, almost as if her soul would cleave to the dust, because her way was not God's way. She despised Hagar.

But God had a plan. Listen to this: "Now the angel of the Lord"—first time the phrase is used in the Bible; it's the appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ—"found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. And he said, 'Hagar, Sarah's maid, where have you come from and where are you going?' And she said, 'I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarah.'"

"Then the angel of the Lord said to her, 'Return to your mistress and submit yourself to her authority.' Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, 'I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they shall be too many to count.' The angel of the Lord said to her further, 'Behold, you are with child, and you shall bear a son, and you shall call his name Ishmael'"—which means "God hears"—"'and he will be a wild donkey of a man, and his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand will be against him, and he will live to the east of all of his brothers.'"

"Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, 'Thou art a God who sees,' for she said, 'Have I even remained alive here after seeing him?' Therefore the well was called Beelaharoi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son whom Hagar bore Ishmael. And Abram was 86 years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him."

Now what you don't understand by just reading the story is this: God says, "You name your son 'God hears,' and you go back to your mistress, you submit to her authority, because your mistress Sarah and her husband Abraham need to know that God hears. Because evidently they have missed the boat. They have forgotten that God hears."

"All they have been in the land for 10 years. God promised them a son. They haven't had it yet. So God must not be listening. God must not hear." But God hears. God listens. He hears all.

"You go back to tell them that God hears. And the way that will be implemented in their life is that this boy will be in that house. And every time they see Ishmael, they will be reminded that I hear them every single day."

You know, I just think it's amazing how God works. You know, when you name your children, you name your kid. But let me tell you something: God is naming your kid. Because in that name is a reminder of some lessons that God wants to teach you that you sometimes forget.

And Abraham and Sarah needed to be reminded that God hears. Because now you see, Abraham is 86 years old. He's not going to have his kid until he's 100 years old. So he's still going to have to wait quite a few years, believing that God hears, right?

So how does Abraham have a soul revived? Romans 4, verse number 18: "In hope against hope, Abraham believed in order that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken: 'So shall your descendants be.' And without becoming weak in faith, he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about 100 years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb. Yet with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what he had promised, he was also able to perform."

Abraham learned a lesson: that God hears. If Abraham would have learned that lesson in Genesis 12, he would have never fled to Egypt, had Hagar as a handmaid. If he would have cried out to God, knowing that God would hear.

So you come to Genesis chapter 16. Sarah has trouble believing that God hears because she's getting older, she's not having any kids. So she makes this wacky idea that it would all work out if they had the child through her handmaid Hagar. She gets pregnant. Doesn't work that way.

God says, "Listen, you're gonna have a boy. This is the name: 'God hears.' Because evidently Abraham doesn't understand that, and Sarah doesn't understand that." And you know what? We have a hard time understanding that, don't we?

But the psalmist, not him. "God answered me. God answered me." Because he believed that God could hear. But he heard because of his confession. He heard because of his admission of sin. God heard and responded and answered because he was willing to relinquish his way and follow God's way.

Folks, that's the key to revival. You got to forget about your way and just do what God says and follow his word. And that's where the psalmist was. He began to realize that God would answer his prayer.

"I have told of my ways, and thou hast answered me." What's the next phrase? "Teach me thy statutes." "Teach me, Lord, teach me the right way."

You see, how do you know you have truly confessed your sin? How do you know you're willing to relinquish your way and follow God's way? The answer is simple. Once you confess your sin and realize that your way is opposed to God's way, you now say, "God, my way was wrong. Now teach me the right way. Teach me your statutes, because whatever your statutes say, I will do."

That's how you know you've confessed your sin. That's how you know you've sought to get right with God. That's how you know your heart is right with God. "Lord, I have sinned against you. My way is wrong. Okay, Lord, now teach me your statutes. Show me your way, that I might follow your way and obey your word, because now I know that my way is wrong and your way is right."

See, that the confession comes because of the man's condition, which leads us to number three: the compulsion of the psalmist. Once he recognizes his condition and once he begins his confession, there then lies a compulsion in the heart and soul of the psalmist.

He says, "Make me understand the way of thy precepts." See the compulsion there? "Make me understand. Make me, Lord, you make me understand your ways, because evidently I don't get them. And I want to know, Lord, what it is you want me to do. I want your ways."

He has to adjust his thinking because his thinking has always been centered on him following his ways. But now he says, "Lord, I want you to make me understand your way. That's the cry of the heart that's truly repentant. Lord, make me know you. Make me understand your ways so I can follow you. Lord, I need to know your precepts. They need to be a part of my life."

And then he says, "So I will meditate on thy wonders." And maybe your text says, "So I will talk of thy wonders." Listen, you can't have one without the other. If you truly meditate, you will truly communicate. How do you know somebody is meditating upon God's word? That's all they talk about. Because you always talk about that which you think about the most, right? The more you think about it, the more it consumes you. The more you want to talk about it.

So they go hand in hand. Like over in Psalm 105—I think it's Psalm 105, verse number 2—it says this: "Verse 1: Oh, give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people. Sing to him, sing praises to him, speak of all his wonders." And some texts say, "Meditate on all his wonders."

You see, when you meditate, you communicate, because you are—what's the word I want to use?—you are enveloped with God so much so that you want to be able to communicate those things that you have learned.

"Lord, make me understand the ways of your precepts, and I will meditate upon your wonders. And upon meditating upon your wonders, I will communicate your word so everybody will know exactly the way that you have led me."

This was the compulsion of the psalmist. This is what moved him, because he knew that it was the word of God that would revive his soul. And when he studied God's word, he would learn about his God. He learned about his God. He learned about his sin-infested life and felt compelled for God to make him understand his ways.

Which leads to the third point—of the fourth point—and that is the contrition of the psalmist. "My soul weeps because of grief; strengthen me according to thy word."

Now, how does that fit? Wait a minute. I thought his soul already would cleave to the dust, and now he's confessed his sin. He is being strengthened through the word of God. He is being revived through the word of God. He wants God to make him know his ways. And now he says, "My soul weeps because of grief." Why is that?

It's simple. The closer you walk with God, the more dissatisfied you are spiritually with your life. And you grieve over how far you are away from God. That's the psalmist. He is grieving once again because he says, "Lord, show me your ways." And God begins to show his ways, and he says, "Oh man, I am not even there yet."

God forbid that we should have any semblance of arrogance in our lives, thinking that we have arrived spiritually or that we are better than somebody else, because we're not. And the psalmist recognizes that he says, "Man, my soul is just grieved deeply because the more I see the ways of God, the more I see how far short I fall from accomplishing what he asks me to do—literally, what he commands me to do. I'm not even there. Oh God, strengthen me. Strengthen me with your word."

Again, there's that contrition, that contrite heart. The broken and contrite heart God will not despise. But if you read the psalms, the psalmist lives in a state of contrition because he's always crying out to God and realizing how far short he falls of God's standard and begs for God to strengthen him through his word.

That's why Paul said in Acts 20, verse number 32, to the Ephesian elders, "I commend you to God and the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all the saints." He knew that it was God's word that would build his people.

Over in First John chapter 2, verse number 14, it says this: "I have written to you, fathers, because you know him who has been from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one."

It's God's word that gives you strength. It's God's word that causes you to overcome the evil one. And the psalmist says, "Lord, strengthen me according to your word."

The cry of a contrite heart is a cry that longs for God to give him strength. And the only way that strength will come is one way, and that's the word of God. There is no other way. If there was, I tell you, I would—I promise, I crossed my heart, hope to die, stick a needle in my eye—I mean, I would. If there was another way, I'd tell you. There is no other way. That's it.

And Satan does everything he can to keep you out of the word of God, doesn't he? The alarm clock goes off late. You're too busy, can't make it. Got family in town, can't come to church. Gotta make the meal. All kinds of excuses we give to God. All kinds of things we say that we just don't have time to memorize the word of God, to study the law of God, to be strengthened by the word of God. And we have every kind of excuse.

And you know what that is? Our way. That's just the American way. There's always an excuse as to why I can't do something, instead of just admitting that I truly don't want to do it to begin with. Because there's always enough time to do what you want to do, right? Come on, let's be honest. There's always enough time to do what you want to do.

If you want to be in the word of God, you make time. If you want to study the word of God, you make time. If you want to be with the people of God, you make the time to be there. If you want to go to church, you go to church. If you don't want to go to church, you don't go. There's always enough time to do what you want to do.

And the psalmist knew that it was God's word that would revive him and cause him to be strengthened. Then you have verse number 29, the consecration. It says this: "Remove the false way from me and graciously grant me thy law."

So in other words, there was something about his way that was the false way. And his cry was that somehow it would be completely removed. Have you ever done that? Have you ever said, "God, remove from me the false way. Remove from me the way of lying. Remove from me the way of deceit. Remove from me the way of hypocrisy. Lord, remove it from me."

That's the heart of a person who truly confesses their sin. They want nothing to do with the false way. He says, "And graciously grant me thy law." You see, he knows that it's the law of God that will help him walk in truth. Because God's word is a truthful way. It's the right way.

His way was the false way. It was the wrong way. And you know, it's almost as if he lived a lie. Whenever you go the wrong way, you live a lie. When you go God's way, you live the truth. But when you go your way, you live a lie.

Let's know what First John says. Chapter 1, verse number 6: "If we say that we have fellowship with him and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth." If we say we have fellowship with him, if we say we're a believer and we walk in darkness, we're liars.

First John 2, verse number 4, says this: "The one who says, 'I have come to know him' and does not keep his commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him."

That's pretty clear, right? He's a liar. Just a liar. And so the psalmist recognizes that his way is the false way. It's living a lie. That's not the truth. And so he is asking God to graciously grant him his law, because by his law he will be made alive. He will be strengthened and walk accordingly.

Which leads us to our last point, and that is the conviction. Listen to what he says: "I have chosen the faithful way." This is a conviction. The word of God has taken effect in his soul, and this is what he says: "I have chosen the faithful way. I have chosen the truthful way. I have chosen the way that honors God."

It's not the compromising way. It's the uncompromising way. That's the faithful way. And based on the fact that God has graciously granted his law to this man and that God has strengthened him according to his word and that he's going to revive according to the word of God, he says, "This is my choice. This is what I've chosen to do. I've chosen to walk the faithful way."

Listen to what Charles Spurgeon says about this. This is really good. He says, "Men do not drop into the right way by chance. They must choose it and continue to choose it, or they will soon wander from it. Those whom God has chosen in due time choose his way. There is a doctrinal way of truth, which we ought to choose, rejecting every dogma of man's devising. There is a ceremonial way of truth, which we should follow, detesting all the forms which apostate churches have invented. And then there is a practical way of truth, the way of holiness, to which we must adhere, whatever may be our temptation to forsake it. Let our election be made and made irrevocably. Let us answer to all seducers, 'I have chosen.' And what I have chosen, I have chosen. O Lord, by thy grace lead us, or by thy grace lead us, with a hearty, free will to choose to do thy will. Thus shall thine eternal choice of us bring forth the end which it designs."

We need to choose the faithful way. This was his commitment. This was his conviction. "I am going to choose the faithful way." Listen to Proverbs chapter 28, verse number 20. It says these words: "Proverbs 28, verse number 20: 'A faithful man will abound with blessings.'"

The psalmist says, "I want that. I am choosing that way. I chose the faithful way." And then he says this: "I have placed thine ordinances before me."

"I have placed thine ordinances before me." Verse 31: "I cleave to thy testimonies."

And when we began the psalm, where was he cleaving to? The dust, right? He was prostrate on the ground. And now what is he cleaving to? The testimonies of God. Why? Because he knows that that is where his strength is. That is where revival comes. That is where restoration comes. That is where life begins.

And so he says, "Now I am just cleaving. I am hanging on for dear life to the testimonies of God. Because he knows there is nothing else to hold on to. There is nothing else."

And then he says, "O Lord, do not put me to shame." Folks, if you don't cling to the testimonies of God, you will be put to shame. That is why the Bible says, "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

You study the word of God. You rightly divide the word of God so you are not ashamed. But if you don't cling and cleave to the testimonies of God, your life will become a shame. As the psalmist knew, as he would cleave to the dust because he chose the wrong way.

He says, "I want the faithful way. I choose that way. I place your ordinances before me." That's good, isn't it? "They're right before me. I place them before me because I'm going to follow them, because you've taught me, you've made me understand your precepts, and they're right there. I'm going to follow them day after day after day. And therefore, Lord, I'm going to hold on to them and cleave to them."

And then he says in verse 32, "I shall run the way of thy commandments, for thou wilt enlarge my heart." Folks, let me tell you something. That's a revived life. The revived life is a life that runs after the commandments of God.

How do you know someone's experienced revival? They want to be in the word. They want to be under the word. They want to study the word. All they can think about is the word of God. That's a person who's experienced revival, because they know that that's what they've got to hold on to. They cleave to it. They cling to it. They latch themselves onto it. They put the testimonies of God before them and choose to follow the faithful way, because they've learned that their way is not successful. Their way does not bring happiness and joy. It brings sorrow. It brings defeat. It brings grief. It brings mourning. It brings heartache and pain.

That's why his soul was cleaving to the dust and was in desperate need of revival. And once the word of God began to take effect in his life, he was alive, so much so that he would run the way of the commandments of God. He would run those ways. And as he ran the ways of God's commandments, his heart would become enlarged. His heart would fill up with the word of God and fill up with the love of God, because he continually ran the way of God's commandments, God's word.

It is the route to revival. Let's pray. Father, thank you once again for this night and the chance we have to study the word of God. What a joy it is to know the truth of the word that you have given to us.

Lord, I pray for the condition of every soul in this room, the condition of every soul that one day will listen by way of radio or by way of CD or tape. You know that condition. There needs to be a confession. There needs to be a confession of their ways, that they are away, truly away from the truth and the faithful way of God. And there needs to be a compulsion to follow your word.

And there, Lord, there needs to be a broken and contrite heart, so they can make that consecration that says, "I have chosen this way, the faithful way," and have a conviction that they will run after the commandments of God, and you will enlarge their heart for the things of truth. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.