MAKING EACH DAY COUNT
Wisdom for Life from God’s Word
PSALM 119
Part 1: LIFE
Introduction: Today I want to begin a series of messages called "Making Each Day Count: Wisdom for Life from God’s Word." Our focus is on the important part that the Bible plays in being a follower of Jesus Christ.
When we were cleaning out the teller’s room a few weeks back I saw some old Sunday School attendance forms in the office. They were the kind of forms that I remember from when I was a kid. Each person had there own card for the year, and not only were they marked "present" or "absent" there were several other criteria that were checked each week.
When I was growing up as we came into Sunday School we were handed an offering envelope that had the same criteria on it as was on the attendance card. We marked on our envelopes which of those things we had actually done during the week. I don’t remember thinking that it was intrusive or legalistic on the part of the church to ask me that. What I remember is that as I looked through the list of things on the envelope: Giving...Worship Attendance...Bible Read Daily...Lesson Studied...Contacts Made...I realized there was a lot more to being a Christian than just coming to church.
My fear is that in our attempt to not offend or pressure anyone, and in-line with the advent of political correctness, there is next to NO accountability among church people today. That should change. We need to be more serious about our faith, and that won’t happen without accountability. The problem is, many don’t want to be accountable; don’t want to be asked, "Did you read your Bible everyday?" "Did you study your lesson?" "Did you call anyone and encourage them this week?"
Well, I can’t address all those at once, but if we want to "Make Each Day Count" we need a renewed commitment to read and study the Bible. It must be our guide for life. Let’s begin by reading together the first three verses of Psalm 119:
1 How happy are those whose way is blameless, who live according to the law of the LORD!
2 Happy are those who keep His decrees and seek Him with all their heart.
3 They do nothing wrong; they follow His ways.
Prayer
When you look at those first three verses of Psalm 119 there is a something that jumps right out at me--being happy! I think all of us want to be happy, but so many of us are not. Why? Well there are lots of reasons, but instead of focusing on all the things that make us "unhappy" I want us to look at how God’s Word can lead us to a life of true happiness in Christ.
Did you notice that those who are "happy" are those whose "way is blameless" and that they are those who "do nothing wrong," and "follow God’s ways." It would seem to say that if you want to experience true happiness you must begin to do the things God wants instead of what you want.
1. We are called to "live" the way He wants us to live.
2. We are called to "keep" the things He wants us to keep. (And by the way that means we are also supposed to get rid of the things that He doesn’t want us to keep!)
3. We are called to "seek" after the things He wants us to seek.
4. We are called to "follow" Him wherever He leads.
I believe that God’s Word can help us accomplish these challenges, and I see some important principles about the value of God’s Word in Psalm 119. Over the next few weeks I want to share some of them with you. We will call them "wisdom principles" because I believe they are key components to a growing relationship with Jesus Christ. I like to define wisdom as:
The practical application of Godly knowledge.
It is to put into practice that which God reveals to us. I want us to see some straight forward principles on why God’s Word is His primary source of information for living a life that honors Him.
Wisdom Principle # 1
There is LIFE in the Word
Go down to verse 25 in Psalm 119. Here we see the Psalmist asking the Lord to allow His Word to bring "life" to his life.
Psalm 119:25-26
25 My life is down in the dust; give me life through Your word.
26 I told You about my life, and You listened to me; teach me Your statutes.
There are two great contrasts in these verses. You have the hopelessness that is characterized by a life that is "down in the dust," and then you have a picture of great hope when the Psalmist said that he told God about his life and God listened.
When we are willing to get into God’s Word and let it teach us how to live we can experience the LIFE that He wants us to experience. There isn’t any better way to discover the "right" way to live than through a relationship with Jesus Christ the Living Word, and consistent study of the Bible, God’s written Word.
Go down a few more verses until you come to verse 40. Look at the heart of the Psalmist:
Psalm 119:40
40 How I long for Your precepts! Give me life through Your righteousness.
Is it possible that God knows more about life than we do? Of course He does! And His knowledge isn’t just general knowledge, it is specific knowledge. In other words, not only does He know more about life than we do, He knows more about OUR life than we do. So you might ask, "What does that have to do with the Bible?" It has everything to do with the Bible! God can help you understand life through His life-changing Word, but you have to been "in" the Word for the Word to be "in" you.
Turn in your Bibles to the book of Deuteronomy and go to chapter 8. I want us to hear what Moses told the Israelites as they prepared to enter the Promised Land:
Deuteronomy 8:1-3 (HCSB)
1 "You must carefully follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase, and may enter and take possession of the land the Lord swore to your fathers. 2 Remember that the Lord your God led you on the entire journey these 40 years in the wilderness, so that He might humble you and test you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands.
3 He humbled you by letting you go hungry; then He gave you manna to eat, which you and your fathers had not known, so that you might learn that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
In the wilderness the Israelites learned that their lives were dependent on Him. God’s provision of manna in the wilderness was a daily reminder that life came from Him. But real life is defined by more than the provision of physical bread. Real life is an intimate relationship with God--which is of greater value than physical survival. God said that His Word is the source of spiritual life.
Jesus quoted this verse when Satan tempted Him to turn stones into bread--revealing that our spiritual life will always be more important than our physical life. If we are willing to see the value of God’s Word spiritually then we will be able to apply in practically in our daily lives.
Conclusion to Part 1: Is God’s Word a part of your daily life? That question really begins with your relationship with Jesus who is God’s LIVING WORD. You can read the Bible from the time you get up in the morning until the time you go to bed but if you have not surrendered your heart to Jesus His Word will never accomplish its purpose in you. There are many people who are "experts" in the Bible who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. That is why I wanted us to start with this "wisdom principle" that there is LIFE in the Word.
I want us to look at one more passage of scripture today and then we are going to close. Turn with me to Colossians 3.
We spent several weeks last year studying from Colossians 3 and I think that there is a powerful message that will help us wrap up our study today.
Colossians 3:15-16 (HCSB)
15And let the peace of the Messiah, to which you were also called in one body, control your hearts. Be thankful. 16Let the message about the Messiah dwell richly among you, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, and singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with gratitude in your hearts to God.
Until we are at peace with God through Jesus Christ, until He has control of our hearts, we really can’t make the most out of every day, and we certainly can’t live wisely if wisdom begins with knowing Him.
Today you and I have the opportunity to find LIFE in God’s Word. If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior then today you can make that choice and receive the gift of eternal life. If you already know Christ I simply want to challenge you to ask yourself: "Is my life controlled by the Lord, or me?" If its "you" then you need to realize that you aren’t living wisely, and turn your life back over to the one who knows what is best.
