Psalm 119 Lesson 8 - Fairhaven Baptist Church

Psalm 119

Lesson 8

Text: Psalm 119:57-64 “CHETH. Thou art my portion, O LORD: I have said that I would keep thy words. 58 I intreated thy favour with my whole heart: be merciful unto me according to thy word. 59 I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies. 60 I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments. 61 The bands of the wicked have robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law. 62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments. 63 I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts. 64 The earth, O LORD, is full of thy mercy: teach me thy statutes.”

Last Weeks Words:

1. Chet Noon, (fence life) 1.Grace

2. Chet Tet Alef (fence surround power) 2.Sin

3. Chet Noon Pey (Fence life speak) 3. Hypocrite

4. Chet Sheen Bet (fence consume home) 4. Think

5. Chet Mem Lamed (fence chaos control) 5. Compassion

Chet- The fence
1. Fence or inner room,
  1. the 8^th letter of the Hebrew language,
    1. it does stand in for the number 8,
    2. it also carries the idea of “Separate, to cut off from, or to protect”
      - think of putting cattle in a court, separated from the world, danger, or other cattle
      - or even the idea of grasping your hand after you hit it, “protecting” it
    3. This section of the Psalm will look at the idea of being separate of the people of the world, and enclosed with the things of God…
2. For the people of God, there is a call to separation,
  1. A Separated Person, vs.57&58
    1. Thou Art My Portion,
    2. the first word in this section begins with the letter, (sounds like, hate) Chet
      - it is translated to portion,
        
        it has the idea of “allotment”
      - but following the idea of the word picture of a fence, Chet, Lamed, Qoof
        
        fence controlled behind,
      - Giving the picture, that just as the cattle were separated to their field by a fence, so is the psalmist,
    3. But this was not because the Lord, forced him, there, this was a conscious choice.
      - The second part of vs.57 points to the covenant he made with the Lord,
        
        I said that I would keep your word,
    4. Ecclesiastics 5:4&5 “When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. 5 Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.”
      - it warns us in vs.2 just before this, to not be rash in what comes our of our mouth,
        
        Ever heard of Jephthah’s vow?
        
        Found in the 11 chapter of Judges, Jephthah went to battle with the children of Ammon. He vowed to the Lord, that if He would deliver the children of Ammon into His hands, when He returned home he would sacrifice what ever he saw first that would come out of his house.
        
        Vs.34, tells us that when he got home, the first thing out was his daughter. His only daughter, and he rent his clothes in sorrow. After telling his daughter, she said, you have to keep your vow, so after two months of grief, she allowed her father to sacrifice her.
      - Numbers 30:2 “If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.”
    5. We have seen throughout this psalm, and we will see as we go further into it, the psalmist tried to keep the word of God.
      - This doesn’t mean he didn’t fail, and it doesn’t mean we wont fall,
        
        but what it does say, is we know where we are suppose to be, and it is our duty and obligation to be in the field.
        
        But, being there physically is a lot easier when we are there with our mind first.
  2. A Separated Mind, Vs.58-62,
    1. I entreat thy favor with my whole heart,
      - remember for the people of this time, the heart was what was the power within them.
        
        It was the heart they heard thumping away, not the brain.
        
        So for him to give his “heart” is was his way of saying, I give you my power,
      - As I said, this doesn’t mean we wont fail, otherwise, there would be no need for mercy.
        
        The psalmist knew he had need of mercy. For God to withhold that which we do deserve.
    2. But, he goes on in vs.59 to identify where his thoughts were at,
      - it is virtually impossible to have to thoughts at a time.
      - I have seen videos explaining how the body follows the attention of the mind.
        
        A good example is BMX bikes in the woods, when they are ridding the trails, and there is a rock in the middle, they try not to look at it, and focus on the trail around it. If they focus on it, they hit it.
    3. More often than not, it is a lot easier to d avoid problems, simply by striving to continue to do the right thing.
      - This is why we are told:
        
        Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
    4. Notice in vs.60 how closely the body follows the mind,
      - I made hast, and didn’t delay in keeping the commandments,
        
        this goes back to what we have said a number of times in this study,

God is under no obligation to reveal more spiritual truth if we haven’t acted on the truth we already know.

The word here ”robbed” comes form the root to mean encompass.
Even when the wicked were trying to do him harm, he still remembered the word of God.
- He can take solace in the knowledge that the word of God is true, as well as his judgments.

Having our mind in the right place is crucial to having our actions in the right place.
- One of the ways we can keep our mind, and our actions in the right place is….

A Separated Life, Vs.63&64,
1. Hebrew 10:22-25 “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) 24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”
  - You want to know one of the things that made the early church so successful?
    - Their unity, they spent time with one another.
    - They were interested in the advancement of the individual to what God purposed in their life.
  - If you look at Hebrews 10:25, not forsaking yourself together, the very next words are “ For if we sin wilfully”
2. an old proverb says “When the character of a man is not clear to you, look at his friends”
  - I Corinthians 15:33 “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.”
  - Proverbs 22:24&25 “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go: 25 Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.”
  - Proverbs 13:20 “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.”
    - we could go on,
3. But there is benefit to having godly friends,
  - Proverbs 27:17 “ Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend ”
    - we can make one another better.
  - This is what is going on in vs.63, the psalmist is maintaining a good relationship with other believers,
    - the bible warns us in several places to avoid the company of people who are not like minded,
      - II Corinthians 6:14 “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?”
        
        we have seen it time and time again, where one christian will fall for someone who is not saved, and their reasoning is, perhaps I can win them to the Lord, but more often than not, the unsaved draws the christian away from their walk with the Lord.
4. It is good to keep godly counsel, but the last verse here, brings it back home,
  - it is God that teaches us, Spiritual understanding only comes form God,
    - friends can help, and point the way, but our ultimate authority comes from God, not man.

Next Weeks Words: Tet- to surround, coil, snake,

Bet Tet Noon (House Surround Life) 1.Defiled
Sheen Tet Noon (Devour Surround Life) 2.Clean- Pure
Tet Hey Reysh (Surround Behold Person) 3. Womb- Belly
Tet Mem Alef (Surround Chaos Power) 4. Seduce- Lead astray
Tet Ayin Hey (Surround See Behold) 5. Satan

Answer: 1-3, 2-5, 3-2, 4-1, 5-4