The Law of God, Part 1

As a preface to what we want to do in the Sermon on the Mount, I thought that we'd begin our time together in Psalm 19. We want to look first of all at what I call the brilliance of the law, the brilliance of the law.

From there we'll move to the importance of the law, and we'll cover those two points this evening. Psalm 19 verses 7 to 14, and let me just read through it with you, and then we'll kind of dissect it together.

It says in verse number 7, the law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precept of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true, they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them thy servant is warned, in keeping them there is great reward.

Who can discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. Also keep back thy servant from presumptuous sins. Let them not rule over me, then I shall be blameless, and I shall be acquitted of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. There's a phrase that's used over and over again, six times, the phrase of the Lord, of the Lord, of the Lord. David wants you to understand very clearly that the scripture proceeds from God himself.

The Bible addresses every problem known to man. Everything that pertains to life, everything that pertains to godliness, God spills forth in his word. When the Bible says in 2nd Timothy 3 that the word of God is profitable for all things, that's exactly what it means.

So when Paul would go on to say in 2nd Timothy 4, verse 2, preach the word, the emphasis is, Timothy, you've got to preach the word because it is the only thing that's profitable for all things. So if you've got something that needs to be fixed, it will do that. So it fixes those who hurt. It feeds those who hunger. It's like a big grocery store. It's like a big hardware store. Whatever needs to be fixed, the tools are there. Whatever needs to be fed, the food is there. It's profitable for all things.

So Timothy, make sure you preach the word. Make sure you give the word of God out to people. And so we see, first of all, the brilliance of the law.

And the first thing I want you to notice is how precious the law of God is. How precious the law of God is. It says in verse number 7, the law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul. The law of God is perfect. That means it has no flaws. It's errorless. It's whole. It's complete. It's a word that means sufficient. You got to like that, right? The word of God is so perfect, it's sufficient. But look what it says in the second part of verse number 7.

The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The word testimony speaks of Scripture as a divine witness. Scripture is God's sure testimony to who He is and what He requires of us. And that testimony is a sure testimony. It is an unwavering testimony. It is immovable. It is unmistakable. And what does it do? It makes the simple wise. That word simple is a word that comes from the expression open door. And it's used of a naive person who does not know when to shut his mind to falseness.

He doesn't know when to shut his mind to impure teaching. He's not discerning. He is ignorant. He is a simple person. But God's word is like a testimony that is absolutely sure. So when you feed on that testimony, no longer are you an open mind for falseness. No longer are you an open door for that which is immoral and untrue. Your mind is made wise to the understanding of the things of God. Not just facts, but wise in terms of godly living. The testimony of the Lord is a sure thing. Read on. Verse number eight.

It says the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The precepts, the divine principles for character and for conduct. The precepts of God tell us not only how to live, but tell us how to be the kind of person we ought to be. And it says that the precepts of the Lord are right. Right not so much as opposed to wrong, but right, so right they are straight as opposed to that which is crooked. It's so straight that you can you can cut a path with it. It's so straight that it rejoices your heart.

You have no question as to what God is saying. He makes it very clear to you. It's right. It shows you the true path. It gives you the right direction through through the maze of life. And because it is, it gives you joy. Joy because you know how to handle affliction. Joy because you know how to live. That's what God's Word does. Look what else it says, the latter part of verse number eight. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. That means these are not suggestions. These are mandates.

And what God says in His Word is is binding. And these commandments are are pure. That is they are they are lucid. It's not mystifying. It's not confusing. It's not puzzling. Sure there are some things in the Bible that we might not clearly fully grasp that might make us bewildered. But the overall emphasis of the Word of God is that it does not bring confusion but clarity to life. Why? Because it sheds light amidst darkness. And therefore the commandment of the Lord is so pure that it enlightens our eyes.

It shows us what is right and what is wrong. Verse number nine says the fear of the Lord is clean enduring forever. Now isn't that interesting that the fear of the Lord is a synonym for the law of God. The fear of the Lord it talks about God's scripture being God's manual on on how to how to worship Him and how His Word is used to worship Him and how His Word gives us the fear that we need to reverence and honor our God. The fear of the Lord is clean. That is it is absent from any kind of impurity.

Any kind of defilement. It's without evil. Without corruption. Without blemish. Without error. It's absolutely flawless. And because it is the text says it endures forever. Read on. It says that the judgments of the Lord are true. They are righteous all together. The judgments of the Lord. Speaking of the divine verdict of scripture. The ordinances of God. We have a verdict. We have a judgment on all things that pertain to life. God has given us the verdict on eternity. God has given us His verdict on man's destiny.

God has given us His verdict on morality. God has given us His verdict on security. On dignity. On all things that pertain to life and death. God has said I am the judge of all those things. And the judgments of the Lord are true. They are righteous all together. Its truthfulness produces a a comprehensive righteousness in those who accept it because it's complete. It's exhaustive. It is the source of truth. That's why God's word is precious. And I wonder this evening if if when you open the word of God you see how precious it really is.

The brilliance of the law. How precious it is. But another reason it's so brilliant is because it's it's pleasurable. It's pleasurable. That's verse number 10. It says they are more desirable than gold. Yes than much fine gold. Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. God's word is pleasurable. Why? Because someone who really knows the word of God desires it more than than fine gold. That is the refined gold. And I wonder how much you you desire the scriptures. He goes on to say that it's sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.

That is it's it's able to satisfy all of all of man's spiritual appetite. Nothing like the taste of honey. Nothing that works as quick as honey once it gets into the system. And nothing so readily given as the word of God like honey. And so we need to understand that God's word is precious and God's word is pleasurable. And number three God's word is that which is protective.

Verse number 11. Moreover by them thy servant is warned in keeping them there is great reward. It's the word of God that protects us. It's the word of God that warns us. It was John Bunyan who said that that this book will keep you from sin or or sin will keep you from this book. Right? Those are the only two options in life. And in keeping these words in keeping this book the text says there is great reward. Great reward. You've heard that the the the verse quoted many times uh in Proverbs 29 verse number 18 that without a vision the people perish.

Right? Do you know what the rest of the verse says? Happy is he who keeps the law. You know we quote all the time without a vision the people perish. Without revelation, without the revelation of God the people are unrestrained. It's literally what the text says. Without the revelation of God people are unrestrained. They're uncontrolled. But the latter part of the verse clarifies it for you. But happy is he who keeps the law. You're not out of control if you keep the law. Why? Because you have been warned.

You have been sufficiently warned. You have been protected by the words of God because he tells you what's right. He tells you what's wrong. There are no excuses. And so we need to understand how how brilliant God's law is. It protects us. And lastly understand this that God's word is that which is powerful. Who can discern his errors? Verse number 12. Acquit me from hidden faults. Also keep back thy servant from presumptuous sins. Let them not rule over me. Then I shall be blameless and I shall be acquitted of great transgression.

God's word is powerful to not only cleanse my life but to correct my life. God's word cleanses us from presumptuous sin. Presumptuous sin is what kind of sin. Presumptuous sin is the is the kind of sin that is known sin. That is evident sin. That is deliberate kind of sin. It's the kind of sin that David committed when he killed Uriah. It was a deliberate kind of sin. He planned it. He mapped it out. He had stolen Uriah's wife. He had to figure out a way to get rid of Uriah so he could have his wife.

So he did a presumptuous sin. He deliberately planned the death of the man so he could have his wife. But God's word is that what keeps you from presumptuous sin. It's God's word that cleanses us. God's word does a radical kind of cleansing and God's word does a recurrent kind of cleansing. Jesus said in John 15 or John 15 verse 3, yeah, now are you clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. God's word cleans you up. It does you a does a radical kind of cleansing. But as you read the word of God, as you digest the word of God, there is a recurrent cleansing that happens.

Why? Because the more you read the word of God, the more he reveals your sin to you. And the more he reveals it to you, the more he removes it from you because you are in the word of God, which is the comet, the cleansing agent, the Ajax of the soul. You see? That's why the psalmist goes on to say, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my deliverer, my redeemer. You see that? God's word keeps us from falling and keeps us in fellowship with the Lord God.

The brilliance of the law of God. Over in Psalm 119, turn there with me if you would for a moment. It says in verse number 89, forever O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. Emphasizing once again the brilliance of the law of God. Verse number 128, therefore I esteem right all thy precepts concerning everything. I hate every false way. Verse number 137, the psalmist says, righteous art thou O Lord and upright are thy judgments. Thou has commanded thy testimonies in righteousness and exceeding faithfulness.

God, you have given us your word because you are righteous. You have given us your word because you are faithful. And therefore Lord, I love your law. Psalm 119 verse 142 says this, thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness and thy law is truth. Psalm 119 verse number 160 says, I rejoice at thy word as one who finds great spoil. 165, those who love thy law have great peace and nothing causes them to stumble. You see the brilliance of the law of God? There's nothing on earth that can match God's holy word.

It's adequate. It's authoritative. It's comprehensive. It protects your life. It gives you pleasure in life. It is the most precious thing known to man. And of course some will say, well that's the Old Testament. This is the New Covenant. We should be in the New Testament. And to some degree that's true. That's why we need to talk about Matthew 5 verses 17 to 20 to understand the importance of the law. So turn with me to Matthew chapter 5.

Matthew chapter 5. This is important. The reason we spent the first half of this sermon in Psalm 119 and to help you understand the brilliance of the law of God is to help you understand that when we get to Matthew chapter 5, Jesus Christ is upholding the brilliance of that law.

He is not trying to nullify the brilliance of the law in all that's there. Scripture is his authority. Scripture is his standard for righteousness. And so when we come to the New Testament in Matthew chapter 5, we got to ask, how is that Old Testament law binding to the Christian? How much of the Old Testament is binding to the Christian? Do we have to fulfill all the commands of God? And how important are those commands that are giving in the Old Testament? And hopefully we can help you understand that in Matthew chapter 5 verses 17 to 20.

So as we look at the importance of the law of God, let's look at verse number 17 together this evening and we'll get to verse 18, Lord willing, next week.

But it says, do not think that I came to abolish the law or the prophets. I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. You see, Christ had to put that statement in there because as he began to speak the beatitudes and talk about the inner character of a man, the people were probably beginning to talk among themselves and whisper among themselves in the audience. So he wanted to make sure that he clarified from the very outside before he got any further into a sermon, exactly what he was about and what he came to do.

And maybe as they began to talk among themselves, I don't know, I wasn't there, the text doesn't say, so I'm just speculating. He wanted to make sure that they understood that he did not come to abolish anything that had been written. Instead, he came to fulfill the law of God. It shows how the law of God is prominent, how it's absolute, unchanging, unequal. The word abolish, kataluo, means to nullify, to destroy. He says, I didn't come to destroy the law of God. I didn't come to annul the law of God.

It's a word that means to, in a physical sense, to pull down and smash to the ground, like the pulling down of a wall and obliterating that wall. Christ says, I didn't come to destroy the law, to rip it up and throw it away and start all over again.

That's not why I came. No, I came to fulfill the law of God. So what he is doing is raising the standard. He is emphasizing the importance of the law of God. You see, in our society today, we want to downplay God's law. But when Jesus came, he put God's law on a pedestal, because it was the standard. And the reason we have so much mediocrity today in evangelical churches is because we downplay the law of God. And whenever you downplay God's law, you downplay God, because God is the author of his law that he himself established.

Make sense? And now you get to this crucial point, and that is, what law are we talking about here? Not always is going to be a question, and next week we'll discuss it even further. But the law of God can be divided into three categories, right? The moral law, the judicial law, and the ceremonial law. All these things are very important to understand. The moral law was given to all men to govern the morality of man. The judicial law was given to the nation of Israel, principles that were given to function that would make them unique from the rest of the world.

And then there is, of course, the ceremonial law, laws designated on how the temple ritual and worship of God should be performed. And so people come and say, okay, now which law is God speaking about? The moral law, the judicial law, or the ceremonial law? Well, I believe he's speaking about all three, not just one aspect of the law. The law is preeminent. The law is paramount because it was established by God. All the principles, all the prophecies, all the types, all the symbols, everything in the Old Testament was authored by God and is fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

And understand this, when we get to Acts 21 and Paul finishes his missionary journey, he goes back and reports all that had taken place. And people were ecstatic as to what happened. And it's a major transition in Paul's life because as he goes back to Jerusalem and upon reporting all that had taken place, the elders of the Jerusalem church informed him that there was a rumor that has taken place. And that rumor is that there are Jewish Christians new in the faith who still tied into the ceremonial rituals of Judaism.

And they were being told that Paul had said something about the Mosaic law and was against the Mosaic law. And so there was this big rumor that had been stirring in Jerusalem. And a rumor had to be squelched. And so the elders there in Jerusalem said, Paul, this is what we want you to do. We want you to perform some of the ceremonial duties of the law. We want you to purify yourself. And then we want you to pay the expenses of specifically four men who are involved in taking a Nazarite vow. And Paul says, okay, I'll do that.

Now I share this illustration with you for this purpose. It's important to understand that nowhere in the New Testament are Jews condemned for keeping the ceremonial law. Nowhere. And nowhere in the New Testament are people condemned for wanting to take part in the ceremonial law. It's only when those people trust that ceremonial law for their salvation, there's a problem. You see, Paul would even go on to write 1 Corinthians chapter 9 as a result of performing these duties in Acts 21 to preserve the unity of the body and to make sure that people understood his humility.

You see, way back in Acts chapter 15 of the Jerusalem council, they never said that Jewish people could not be involved in ceremonial rituals. They never said that. They just said that you couldn't impose those ceremonial rituals upon Gentile people. You follow me so far? The reason I'm saying that is because we live in a society today where people in evangelicalism want to totally throw out the law of God because we live in the age of grace. And I want to let you know that God never threw out the law of God.

Never did. And whenever you throw out the law of God in the age of grace, you have disgrace. That's important to understand. Because God established his law. If God established something, it's not a bad thing. It's a good thing, right? Would God ever establish something that was wrong? Would God ever establish something that was bad for you? Never. Never. God established his law. That's why it's so important.