1 00:00:05,065 --> 00:00:05,605 Speaker: We had a great time. 2 00:00:06,045 --> 00:00:09,725 Uh, well, uh, most of it, except for sleeping in a, in, in a tent 3 00:00:09,886 --> 00:00:11,685 outside in, in, in the heat. 4 00:00:12,305 --> 00:00:14,766 Um, I, I still am not there yet. 5 00:00:14,945 --> 00:00:16,905 Uh, but we had a great time aside from that at the camp out. 6 00:00:17,426 --> 00:00:20,426 And, uh, o- one of the things about the camp out that struck me this year was 7 00:00:20,506 --> 00:00:22,725 just how much preparation went into it. 8 00:00:23,325 --> 00:00:26,485 Uh, if you don't prepare for something, i- it's not gonna go well. 9 00:00:26,846 --> 00:00:29,366 Uh, preparation is gonna make or break any experience, and 10 00:00:29,385 --> 00:00:30,266 that was true of the camp out. 11 00:00:30,585 --> 00:00:33,006 We had to prepare by reserving the spots. 12 00:00:33,045 --> 00:00:34,665 We had to figure out where we were gonna have it. 13 00:00:34,705 --> 00:00:36,365 We had to, to plan the meal. 14 00:00:36,385 --> 00:00:38,225 We had to get all the food and all the snacks. 15 00:00:38,265 --> 00:00:39,465 We had to plan the activities. 16 00:00:39,485 --> 00:00:40,186 We had to, to… 17 00:00:40,285 --> 00:00:41,425 Pastor Marc did a devotion. 18 00:00:41,465 --> 00:00:42,506 He had to plan the devotion. 19 00:00:43,145 --> 00:00:46,105 In other words, we couldn't just show up at the event, all of us, and 20 00:00:46,145 --> 00:00:48,165 say, "Hey, we're gonna have a camp out," and everybody just show up. 21 00:00:48,425 --> 00:00:49,465 Okay, well, what's gonna happen? 22 00:00:49,686 --> 00:00:50,425 We're not sure. 23 00:00:50,645 --> 00:00:52,625 We're just gonna show up, and we're just gonna trust. 24 00:00:52,665 --> 00:00:55,525 We're gonna let go and let God make this the best camp out ever. 25 00:00:56,006 --> 00:00:57,686 It would not have been the best camp out ever. 26 00:00:58,245 --> 00:01:03,385 Uh, preparation can make or break an experience, and that's not just true with 27 00:01:03,465 --> 00:01:08,065 a camp out or with planning your vacation or with a, a big presentation at work. 28 00:01:08,425 --> 00:01:10,525 It's true when it comes to our, our time in the Word of God too. 29 00:01:11,465 --> 00:01:14,385 Preparation can make or break our experience in God's Word. 30 00:01:14,445 --> 00:01:17,625 But sometimes we can be like just showing up at the campground and expecting 31 00:01:17,625 --> 00:01:21,164 to have the best camp out ever when it comes to our time in the Word. 32 00:01:21,205 --> 00:01:22,545 We just show up. 33 00:01:22,605 --> 00:01:26,125 We just grab the Bible, open it up, and we're like, "Okay, this is gonna be great. 34 00:01:26,205 --> 00:01:26,906 I'm gonna learn a lot. 35 00:01:26,945 --> 00:01:29,105 I'm gonna be different after this, and, and I'm gonna, 36 00:01:29,145 --> 00:01:30,405 I'm gonna read my, my Bible." 37 00:01:32,158 --> 00:01:35,198 We talked about some of our mindset and, and discipline in our pursuit 38 00:01:35,218 --> 00:01:38,658 of the Word so far this summer in this Summer the Word series. 39 00:01:39,118 --> 00:01:41,808 Uh, but this morning I want us to think about how we prepare 40 00:01:42,798 --> 00:01:44,298 as we approach the Word of God. 41 00:01:44,358 --> 00:01:46,638 And, and what I'm gonna suggest to us is the way that we're gonna 42 00:01:46,658 --> 00:01:48,898 get more out of our time in the Word than we ever have before is 43 00:01:48,938 --> 00:01:50,838 if we come to the Word prayerfully. 44 00:01:52,068 --> 00:01:53,198 That we come to the Word prayerfully. 45 00:01:54,468 --> 00:01:57,958 Preparation is key to the success of anything that we do. 46 00:01:57,997 --> 00:02:01,188 And so before we open up God's Word, we wanna make sure that we prepare 47 00:02:01,218 --> 00:02:03,758 in prayer, that we prepare in prayer. 48 00:02:04,278 --> 00:02:08,217 Our passage, Psalm 119:33-40, is gonna give us at least three requests 49 00:02:08,758 --> 00:02:12,378 that the author makes of God before he gets into His Word that I think 50 00:02:12,398 --> 00:02:13,678 are, are good for us as well. 51 00:02:14,498 --> 00:02:15,918 And so let me read our passage for us. 52 00:02:15,978 --> 00:02:19,558 It says this: "Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I will walk… 53 00:02:19,578 --> 00:02:20,938 or I will keep it to the end. 54 00:02:21,678 --> 00:02:24,618 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe 55 00:02:24,658 --> 00:02:25,858 it with my whole heart. 56 00:02:26,518 --> 00:02:29,898 Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. 57 00:02:29,958 --> 00:02:33,317 Incline my heart to your testimonies and not to selfish gain. 58 00:02:33,938 --> 00:02:37,858 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things, and give me life in your ways. 59 00:02:38,418 --> 00:02:41,168 Confirm to your servant your promise, that you may be feared. 60 00:02:41,658 --> 00:02:44,558 Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good. 61 00:02:45,018 --> 00:02:49,498 Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life." 62 00:02:50,658 --> 00:02:53,678 Uh, so last week we talked about coming to the Word of God with a, a humility, 63 00:02:53,798 --> 00:02:57,738 with a, a teachable heart, hungry for God to, to teach us something in the Word. 64 00:02:57,798 --> 00:03:01,558 And, and that's about our responsibility, what we bring to the table. 65 00:03:02,118 --> 00:03:06,388 But as we get into these requests of God, what we're asking God to do, uh, 66 00:03:06,418 --> 00:03:09,858 the first thing that I want us to focus on asking God to do is not what we bring 67 00:03:09,898 --> 00:03:14,158 to the table, but what He brings to us, what He needs to do, what, what we 68 00:03:14,258 --> 00:03:18,418 need Him to do in our own lives, in our own minds, in our own hearts to get the 69 00:03:18,458 --> 00:03:21,438 most out of God's Word that we possibly can when we pick it up to read it. 70 00:03:21,468 --> 00:03:25,218 And so our first point this weekend is going to be that we need to ask 71 00:03:25,258 --> 00:03:27,198 God for transformative understanding. 72 00:03:27,978 --> 00:03:32,986 Ask the Lord for transformative understanding These first three verses, he 73 00:03:33,025 --> 00:03:36,426 says, "Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I will keep it to the end. 74 00:03:36,946 --> 00:03:39,585 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe 75 00:03:39,626 --> 00:03:40,446 it with my whole heart. 76 00:03:40,946 --> 00:03:44,386 Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it." 77 00:03:45,146 --> 00:03:48,305 There's three main verbs that show up in our, our text here that, 78 00:03:48,426 --> 00:03:51,576 uh, lead into this transformative understanding that we're talking about. 79 00:03:51,936 --> 00:03:53,066 He says, "Teach me. 80 00:03:53,826 --> 00:03:54,786 Give me understanding." 81 00:03:55,186 --> 00:03:56,106 And then he says, "Lead me." 82 00:03:56,866 --> 00:03:59,566 Those three verbs are actually in the command voice in 83 00:03:59,606 --> 00:04:00,686 the Hebrew, the imperative. 84 00:04:01,106 --> 00:04:04,386 And so as parents or grandparents or maybe just siblings, I'm sure this week 85 00:04:04,426 --> 00:04:07,966 at some point in time you have used the command voice with your family members. 86 00:04:08,546 --> 00:04:10,946 With my kids, it's, "Hey, you need to pick up your room. 87 00:04:11,226 --> 00:04:14,826 Hey, you need to pick up the stuff on the stairs before you go and play outside." 88 00:04:14,866 --> 00:04:17,435 Or maybe it's with one of your siblings, or maybe it's even with 89 00:04:17,486 --> 00:04:20,286 your, your spouse if things got a little bit tense at home this week. 90 00:04:21,486 --> 00:04:24,746 But rarely would we ever think about using the command voice with God. 91 00:04:25,385 --> 00:04:26,546 Think about that for a second. 92 00:04:27,646 --> 00:04:32,926 When would you ask in a command sense God to, to do something for you? 93 00:04:34,256 --> 00:04:36,806 Uh, that is, is bold, to say the least. 94 00:04:38,116 --> 00:04:41,846 But it's important to know that the author is not presuming an authority over God. 95 00:04:41,926 --> 00:04:44,366 He's not suggesting that God is beholden to him. 96 00:04:44,406 --> 00:04:47,336 He's not suggesting that he can command and God is gonna say, "Uh, 97 00:04:47,706 --> 00:04:48,706 how high do you want me to jump?" 98 00:04:49,406 --> 00:04:51,726 That's not why he uses the imperative. 99 00:04:51,765 --> 00:04:57,296 Rather, the psalmist, in his desperation for God to answer his prayer, uses a 100 00:04:57,326 --> 00:05:00,646 verb tense that is more intense than anything else he could have done. 101 00:05:00,676 --> 00:05:03,796 And so he, in other words, uses the, the most intense, most, uh, 102 00:05:03,846 --> 00:05:08,176 aggressive form of these requests that he possibly can because of his own 103 00:05:08,246 --> 00:05:11,226 desperation that God would respond. 104 00:05:11,246 --> 00:05:13,885 In fact, it's not just in these first three verses, it's all of the, 105 00:05:13,926 --> 00:05:15,406 the verbs that he's asking of God. 106 00:05:15,426 --> 00:05:17,885 They're all in the command voice throughout this entire passage. 107 00:05:18,826 --> 00:05:21,426 But here specifically in these first three, he says, "Lord, teach me." 108 00:05:21,486 --> 00:05:23,265 In other words, cause me to learn, God. 109 00:05:24,086 --> 00:05:25,286 He says, "Give me understanding. 110 00:05:25,406 --> 00:05:26,826 Cause me to understand. 111 00:05:27,566 --> 00:05:27,926 Lead me. 112 00:05:28,086 --> 00:05:32,186 Cause me to walk in the way that you show me, the path that you show me." 113 00:05:33,702 --> 00:05:35,522 Verse 33, let's just tackle this first part. 114 00:05:35,542 --> 00:05:37,531 He says, "Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and 115 00:05:37,582 --> 00:05:38,441 I will keep it to the end." 116 00:05:39,222 --> 00:05:41,622 The transformative understanding that we're after here is going 117 00:05:41,662 --> 00:05:42,861 to do three things in our lives. 118 00:05:42,902 --> 00:05:45,642 The first thing that it's gonna do is it's going to lead us to obey Him. 119 00:05:47,022 --> 00:05:49,582 Understanding the Word of God and the understanding that He's gonna give 120 00:05:49,622 --> 00:05:51,082 to us is gonna cause us to obey Him. 121 00:05:51,962 --> 00:05:56,662 That's why he says, "Lord, teach me that I will be able to keep 122 00:05:56,722 --> 00:05:58,361 the, the, the statutes to the end. 123 00:05:59,192 --> 00:06:01,841 Teach me your way and, and I will keep these things." 124 00:06:01,882 --> 00:06:05,881 The, the teaching here is different than back in verse 12 when we 125 00:06:05,922 --> 00:06:08,402 looked at that, uh, last week, when he says, "Teach me" there. 126 00:06:08,741 --> 00:06:11,382 That's about internalizing, storing up the Word of God. 127 00:06:12,162 --> 00:06:15,272 This form of, of teach is about guidance. 128 00:06:15,682 --> 00:06:16,361 Point it out. 129 00:06:16,422 --> 00:06:17,562 Show me. 130 00:06:17,602 --> 00:06:19,822 It- it's a word that could be used for aiming as well. 131 00:06:20,442 --> 00:06:23,802 And so the psalmist is, is asking God, saying, "God, will you aim 132 00:06:23,842 --> 00:06:28,502 me towards your statutes in order that I can keep it to the end?" 133 00:06:29,351 --> 00:06:31,662 And so the understanding that the psalmist is after is an understanding 134 00:06:31,682 --> 00:06:33,182 that is going to result in obedience. 135 00:06:33,602 --> 00:06:36,302 It's gonna result in us not just hearing the Word of God or 136 00:06:36,442 --> 00:06:39,062 reading the Word of God, but doing something with the Word of God. 137 00:06:39,682 --> 00:06:41,142 That's why he says, "And I will keep it to the end." 138 00:06:41,982 --> 00:06:44,962 That "to the end" is, is from a word that suggested the end of a day when the 139 00:06:45,002 --> 00:06:46,412 wages would be given out to a worker. 140 00:06:47,241 --> 00:06:49,752 In other words, the psalmist is saying, "I, I want to obey this to the f- to 141 00:06:49,782 --> 00:06:51,121 the fullness of, of my whole life. 142 00:06:51,962 --> 00:06:54,802 I, I want to give everything I am towards pursuing and obeying your Word." 143 00:06:54,861 --> 00:06:57,282 But we ask the Lord, "Lord, give me this understanding." 144 00:06:57,342 --> 00:06:59,882 We prepare in prayer by coming to Him saying, "Lord, I, I need 145 00:06:59,922 --> 00:07:03,852 to understand your Word as I prepare to open it," because we 146 00:07:03,882 --> 00:07:05,162 want to be able to obey the Word. 147 00:07:06,302 --> 00:07:09,542 Th- the second thing our understanding does for us, though, is it not only 148 00:07:09,582 --> 00:07:12,522 helps us to obey, it helps us to surrender, and that we see in verse 34. 149 00:07:12,962 --> 00:07:16,882 He says, "Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and 150 00:07:16,922 --> 00:07:18,642 observe it with my whole heart." 151 00:07:19,642 --> 00:07:21,792 And so there it is again, "Give me understanding that I may keep your 152 00:07:21,882 --> 00:07:25,902 law," oh, the obedience portion of it, but, but to what degree? 153 00:07:26,442 --> 00:07:30,052 With everything that I am, with my whole heart, in full devotion, 154 00:07:30,102 --> 00:07:31,642 in full surrender before you. 155 00:07:32,741 --> 00:07:35,782 That's the other thing that we're asking of the Lord when we pick up the Bible and 156 00:07:35,861 --> 00:07:39,922 we say, "Lord, I, I need to understand this," we're asking to understand 157 00:07:39,962 --> 00:07:42,462 it so that we can obey it, but we're also asking to understand it so that 158 00:07:42,501 --> 00:07:46,241 God will get into our kitchen of our lives, so to speak, and meddle with us. 159 00:07:47,222 --> 00:07:50,982 Uh, sometimes we can come to God's Word and we can say, "Uh, okay, let me focus 160 00:07:51,042 --> 00:07:55,282 on the things that I, I'm already doing well," a- and, and I'm gonna say, "Okay, 161 00:07:55,342 --> 00:07:58,462 I'm, I'll keep that all day long," 'cause that's not hard for me to do. 162 00:07:59,121 --> 00:08:00,162 Thou shalt not steal? 163 00:08:00,822 --> 00:08:01,982 I don't really struggle with stealing. 164 00:08:02,842 --> 00:08:03,222 Awesome! 165 00:08:03,682 --> 00:08:04,642 I love that verse. 166 00:08:06,621 --> 00:08:07,981 But maybe there's another verse. 167 00:08:09,101 --> 00:08:11,621 Hey, y- you've heard it say, "Do not commit murder," but if you get 168 00:08:11,700 --> 00:08:14,981 angry with your brother, it's the same thing as committing murder. 169 00:08:15,042 --> 00:08:17,842 And, and I know what it's like to be on the road and have somebody cut me off. 170 00:08:17,941 --> 00:08:18,460 Oh, man, I… 171 00:08:19,542 --> 00:08:19,861 Lord, I… 172 00:08:20,400 --> 00:08:22,260 Don't give me understanding in that verse so much. 173 00:08:23,421 --> 00:08:24,520 And so it's about full surrender. 174 00:08:24,601 --> 00:08:26,561 It's saying, "God, I, I, I want you to meddle in my life. 175 00:08:26,741 --> 00:08:28,941 I, I, I'm climbing up on the operating table. 176 00:08:29,241 --> 00:08:31,780 Holy Spirit, take the scalpel of the Word of God and, and open me up." 177 00:08:33,040 --> 00:08:35,159 We're not sure if David is the author of Psalm 119. 178 00:08:35,280 --> 00:08:36,341 Many speculate that he is. 179 00:08:36,400 --> 00:08:40,299 If he is, then he likely also had in mind what he wrote in Psalm 180 00:08:40,400 --> 00:08:43,760 139 at the end of it when he said, "Lord, I want you to search me. 181 00:08:43,922 --> 00:08:46,201 I want you to try me, test me, know me. 182 00:08:46,300 --> 00:08:49,581 If there's any grievous way in me, let me know because I wanna get rid of it." 183 00:08:50,641 --> 00:08:51,821 That's the same idea here. 184 00:08:52,222 --> 00:08:56,562 Lord, give me understanding in order that I may keep your law and 185 00:08:56,661 --> 00:08:58,141 observe it with my whole heart. 186 00:08:58,161 --> 00:08:59,062 It's a full surrender. 187 00:08:59,121 --> 00:09:00,321 Understanding leads to obedience. 188 00:09:00,641 --> 00:09:02,121 Understanding also leads to surrender. 189 00:09:02,141 --> 00:09:05,562 And so we come and we prepare in prayer by asking the Lord, "Lord, 190 00:09:05,861 --> 00:09:08,581 I want to understand in a way that I'm gonna be able to surrender my 191 00:09:08,641 --> 00:09:10,942 whole life to you and say there's nothing off-limits to your Word, Lord. 192 00:09:11,601 --> 00:09:16,401 Take your Word, take the Spirit, and do the work of the Word through the Word." 193 00:09:17,841 --> 00:09:19,021 Understanding leads to obedience. 194 00:09:19,060 --> 00:09:19,941 Understanding leads to surrender. 195 00:09:19,981 --> 00:09:23,401 And then finally, understanding leads to a delight in the Word as well. 196 00:09:23,461 --> 00:09:25,601 Verse 35, he says this: "Lead me in the path of your 197 00:09:25,622 --> 00:09:27,560 commandments, for I delight in it." 198 00:09:29,842 --> 00:09:30,901 Cause me to walk in the way. 199 00:09:31,041 --> 00:09:31,582 Lead me. 200 00:09:33,322 --> 00:09:37,242 When we were camping, uh, we, uh, right before bed, took our whole crew, all of 201 00:09:37,281 --> 00:09:39,671 our, our kiddos with us up, up to where the bathrooms were, and the bathrooms 202 00:09:39,702 --> 00:09:42,141 were a little bit of a, a hike away, and you could cut through the middle 203 00:09:42,202 --> 00:09:44,232 of the, the brush and the dense forest. 204 00:09:44,322 --> 00:09:47,151 But, you know, I don't know if you guys have heard of the ticks and 205 00:09:47,202 --> 00:09:50,982 stuff, but, uh, if there's a conspiracy theory that I think might be real, I 206 00:09:51,002 --> 00:09:52,382 think the ticks are, are real, guys. 207 00:09:52,682 --> 00:09:55,202 We didn't get any, thankfully, partially because we didn't walk 208 00:09:55,222 --> 00:09:56,442 through the woods to get there. 209 00:09:56,482 --> 00:09:59,582 So we walked around the loop on the, the, the road to get to where we 210 00:09:59,602 --> 00:10:01,102 needed to get, but it was pitch black. 211 00:10:01,462 --> 00:10:04,041 And so we had flashlights, and a lot of people had their phones 212 00:10:04,082 --> 00:10:06,182 because we're that generation, and so they, they turned their phones on. 213 00:10:06,521 --> 00:10:08,562 But I brought a, a real flashlight from home. 214 00:10:08,622 --> 00:10:10,021 You know the ones that the Brits call a torch? 215 00:10:10,122 --> 00:10:13,732 I brought one of those, and, uh, and I turned it on, and it had a, a huge 216 00:10:13,822 --> 00:10:15,762 beam, and it just lit up the path. 217 00:10:16,342 --> 00:10:19,592 And with the path illuminated like that, we were able to walk it and 218 00:10:19,622 --> 00:10:21,962 get safely to where we needed to get and get safely back to our tent. 219 00:10:22,842 --> 00:10:27,202 God's Word is, as we read earlier, as Lewis read, Psalm 119:105, 220 00:10:27,232 --> 00:10:29,862 "Your word is a light unto my path and a lamp unto my feet." 221 00:10:30,722 --> 00:10:34,962 And, and so we delight in that because i- if I had to walk the path 222 00:10:35,021 --> 00:10:38,352 in the pitch black, I would not have had nearly as much delight in that 223 00:10:38,362 --> 00:10:41,141 walk as I did with the light there. 224 00:10:41,172 --> 00:10:41,962 I felt good. 225 00:10:42,021 --> 00:10:42,641 I felt safe. 226 00:10:42,722 --> 00:10:43,281 I felt secure. 227 00:10:43,342 --> 00:10:44,281 I knew where I was going. 228 00:10:45,122 --> 00:10:49,082 And so I felt safe, and that led to a delight as I walked the path 229 00:10:49,092 --> 00:10:50,161 that was illuminated before me. 230 00:10:51,002 --> 00:10:54,702 And so the understanding that God gives us when we come to His Word is going to 231 00:10:54,762 --> 00:10:59,141 not only give us the desire to obey, it's not only going to cause us to surrender 232 00:10:59,242 --> 00:11:02,801 fully to Him, but it's also, in all of that, gonna cause us to delight in the 233 00:11:02,862 --> 00:11:04,781 work that He's gonna do in our life. 234 00:11:04,822 --> 00:11:07,572 He's gonna light the path and say, "Walk this way," and that 235 00:11:07,602 --> 00:11:11,002 is going to be something that we can indeed delight in it. 236 00:11:11,722 --> 00:11:14,082 And this is not just a delight that's a, a happiness. 237 00:11:14,141 --> 00:11:15,502 It's a delight that's a desire. 238 00:11:16,242 --> 00:11:19,901 It's something that we, we richly crave and long for 239 00:11:22,141 --> 00:11:23,641 But back to the ask, right? 240 00:11:24,161 --> 00:11:27,861 The reason why we have to ask, the reason why we have to prepare in prayer 241 00:11:27,901 --> 00:11:32,201 before we open up the Word is for this to happen, we need God's help. 242 00:11:32,942 --> 00:11:34,421 All of us need God's help in this. 243 00:11:35,421 --> 00:11:37,821 This doesn't come naturally to any of us. 244 00:11:38,781 --> 00:11:42,662 I said last week that God has spoken to us in our language, and indeed He has. 245 00:11:43,381 --> 00:11:47,121 In the Bible that you have either on your phone or in your laps, y- you have 246 00:11:47,402 --> 00:11:51,482 the Word of God written in English, and you can read it, and you can 247 00:11:51,601 --> 00:11:54,922 understand it, and it follows the rules of grammar, and you can put the pieces 248 00:11:54,961 --> 00:11:56,641 together, and it's in your language. 249 00:11:56,681 --> 00:12:01,062 You can comprehend what the God of creation wants you to know about Him. 250 00:12:02,781 --> 00:12:07,821 But to really truly understand it, to really truly know what He wants you to do 251 00:12:07,941 --> 00:12:13,381 with it, to really truly have this take a, a root in your life and, and do what God 252 00:12:13,441 --> 00:12:19,181 wants it to do in your life, then you need Him, through His Spirit, to do that work. 253 00:12:20,242 --> 00:12:24,121 In other words, you can read it and you can comprehend it, but to read 254 00:12:24,161 --> 00:12:27,142 it and to understand it in order to interpret and apply it to your 255 00:12:27,201 --> 00:12:29,341 life, that's a work of God in you. 256 00:12:30,181 --> 00:12:34,021 And so that's why we, just like the psalmist, we come to the L- the, the Lord 257 00:12:34,081 --> 00:12:37,602 before we ever open up the Word and we say, "Lord, I need you right now to help 258 00:12:37,642 --> 00:12:38,981 me understand what I'm about to read. 259 00:12:39,581 --> 00:12:43,161 'Cause without you," as the, the young ones say these days, "I'm cooked." 260 00:12:45,342 --> 00:12:47,021 We need God to help us interpret and apply. 261 00:12:47,452 --> 00:12:47,931 It, it, it, it's like this. 262 00:12:48,441 --> 00:12:49,801 I, I like a lot of sports. 263 00:12:49,862 --> 00:12:51,242 I'm not a huge basketball fan. 264 00:12:51,301 --> 00:12:54,921 I watched my first NBA game all season long last night because I, I'm not 265 00:12:55,002 --> 00:12:56,262 a huge Oklahoma fan 'cause the… 266 00:12:56,301 --> 00:13:00,452 it tried to kill me with tornadoes and, and freezing rain, and it was just… 267 00:13:00,931 --> 00:13:02,541 I l- if you're from Oklahoma, I love you. 268 00:13:02,602 --> 00:13:03,301 Don't love your state. 269 00:13:03,862 --> 00:13:07,242 So I was watching a little bit just to see if, if Texas was gonna win 270 00:13:07,281 --> 00:13:09,441 over Oklahoma, and, uh, and they did. 271 00:13:09,462 --> 00:13:12,821 The Spurs won, uh, newsflash, in case you're not aware. 272 00:13:12,962 --> 00:13:15,862 But I watched my f- I don't, I don't really l- I don't love basketball. 273 00:13:15,941 --> 00:13:19,401 So I can talk sports with most people, but when it comes to basketball, 274 00:13:19,781 --> 00:13:22,962 I can understand the cons- the, the, the words that are coming out 275 00:13:23,002 --> 00:13:25,342 of their mouth, but that doesn't understand the c- mean I understand the 276 00:13:25,382 --> 00:13:26,502 concepts that they're talking about. 277 00:13:27,102 --> 00:13:29,742 So I can walk up on a couple of guys talking basketball and, and I'll just 278 00:13:29,781 --> 00:13:33,132 kinda listen, and I'll realize very quickly that I'm out of my league, 279 00:13:33,181 --> 00:13:36,061 that I don't really know what's go- I understand the words they're saying. 280 00:13:36,540 --> 00:13:38,962 I don't really understand what they're talking about, though. 281 00:13:39,362 --> 00:13:42,232 And so I'll throw some words out that I know, like Cooper Flagg and 282 00:13:42,301 --> 00:13:46,401 three-pointer and, you know, hoop and things before I look for the nearest 283 00:13:46,521 --> 00:13:50,181 off-ramp to that conversation and go to talk about a better sport, like baseball. 284 00:13:50,661 --> 00:13:52,102 Um, I… 285 00:13:52,382 --> 00:13:53,362 Basketball, it, it's… 286 00:13:53,421 --> 00:13:57,411 I understand the words, but it doesn't hit the same way as somebody who loves 287 00:13:57,442 --> 00:14:00,342 the sport and understands the sport. 288 00:14:00,472 --> 00:14:03,122 That can be the Word of God without the Spirit's help in our lives. 289 00:14:03,781 --> 00:14:06,271 A- a- and so let me just say the uncomfortable thing. 290 00:14:06,982 --> 00:14:10,071 If, if you're not a believer, you shouldn't expect to get anything out 291 00:14:10,081 --> 00:14:14,041 of the Word of God other than a set of moral principles because you don't 292 00:14:14,081 --> 00:14:15,141 have the key to understanding it. 293 00:14:16,222 --> 00:14:20,021 A- and that may sound, like, mystical, and that may sound odd to you, and yet 294 00:14:20,081 --> 00:14:23,752 it's written by God, and He's given us His Spirit to help us understand, 295 00:14:24,041 --> 00:14:25,301 what does this have to do with me? 296 00:14:25,391 --> 00:14:26,821 And so let me just give you one example. 297 00:14:27,202 --> 00:14:28,862 Matthew 5:48. 298 00:14:28,931 --> 00:14:32,712 Therein, Jesus says this: "You shall be perfect as your 299 00:14:32,781 --> 00:14:34,962 heavenly Father is perfect." 300 00:14:35,081 --> 00:14:38,472 A Christian and a non-Christian can both read that verse and 301 00:14:38,561 --> 00:14:39,702 come to the same conclusion. 302 00:14:40,102 --> 00:14:41,122 That's not possible. 303 00:14:42,281 --> 00:14:43,202 Nobody's perfect. 304 00:14:43,882 --> 00:14:46,161 You don't need the Holy Spirit to understand that. 305 00:14:47,122 --> 00:14:50,781 Uh, we can read a verse that says, "You shall be perfect as your heavenly Father 306 00:14:50,801 --> 00:14:54,362 is perfect," and we can all, no matter whether you have Christ or don't have 307 00:14:54,421 --> 00:14:56,382 Christ, say, "That's not possible." 308 00:14:58,371 --> 00:15:00,921 The difference is, what do we do with it from there? 309 00:15:01,921 --> 00:15:04,301 See, the unbeliever may say, uh, "This just confirms what 310 00:15:04,362 --> 00:15:05,262 I think about Christians. 311 00:15:05,762 --> 00:15:07,301 Christians just think that they're better than us. 312 00:15:07,661 --> 00:15:09,281 Christians just think that they're holier than thou. 313 00:15:09,641 --> 00:15:11,681 Christians think that they're perfect when they're not. 314 00:15:11,692 --> 00:15:13,801 This confirms what I've always believed, and that is that the Church 315 00:15:13,821 --> 00:15:15,122 is just a bunch of hypocrites." 316 00:15:16,762 --> 00:15:19,222 Because they're gonna say, "You shall be perfect as your heavenly Father 317 00:15:19,242 --> 00:15:21,911 is perfect," and they claim to have a relationship with this heavenly Father, 318 00:15:22,242 --> 00:15:23,521 so they must think that they're perfect 319 00:15:25,854 --> 00:15:28,464 See, the Christian, on the other hand, is gonna come to a verse like this, 320 00:15:28,634 --> 00:15:34,994 and the Christian's gonna look at it and say, "I'm, I'm not perfect at all. 321 00:15:36,374 --> 00:15:40,514 A- And the only hope that I have of meeting the standard of the 322 00:15:40,534 --> 00:15:43,294 Heavenly Father is to have a perfection that exists outside of me. 323 00:15:44,944 --> 00:15:49,494 The only hope that I have of being considered perfect is if I have 324 00:15:49,514 --> 00:15:52,694 the perfection of the Son of God, if I have Jesus' perfection." 325 00:15:53,534 --> 00:15:58,314 And so this just reminds me when I come to Matthew 5:48 that my only hope is Christ. 326 00:15:59,134 --> 00:16:03,514 My only hope is His perfect righteousness that He gave to me when 327 00:16:03,554 --> 00:16:05,974 He died on the cross for my sins. 328 00:16:08,014 --> 00:16:11,543 And so you see, we can both come to the same verse, Matthew 5:48, 329 00:16:11,654 --> 00:16:13,014 and the English is not difficult. 330 00:16:13,924 --> 00:16:16,494 "You shall be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect." 331 00:16:17,494 --> 00:16:20,254 But the difference comes in the work that the Holy Spirit does to give 332 00:16:20,294 --> 00:16:23,014 us an understanding of what that verse is meant to do in our lives. 333 00:16:24,754 --> 00:16:29,574 And so this is why we have to come and prepare in prayer and ask the Lord, "Lord, 334 00:16:29,954 --> 00:16:31,394 give me a transformative understanding. 335 00:16:31,934 --> 00:16:34,214 Give me an understanding that's gonna get into my life. 336 00:16:34,634 --> 00:16:37,994 Give me an understanding that's gonna show me what you want me to do with this text. 337 00:16:38,434 --> 00:16:41,174 Give me an understanding so that I don't walk away missing the 338 00:16:41,274 --> 00:16:43,594 point, and I need you to do that." 339 00:16:44,794 --> 00:16:45,374 And here's the thing. 340 00:16:45,694 --> 00:16:50,374 I, I believe with my whole heart that if you pray that, genuinely meaning 341 00:16:50,394 --> 00:16:54,014 that, that God will answer that prayer so that when you pick up 2 Chronicles, 342 00:16:54,094 --> 00:16:56,714 you can pray, "Lord, I don't often get a lot out of 2 Chronicles. 343 00:16:57,034 --> 00:17:00,534 It's hard for me, but I'm asking you, will you give me an understanding? 344 00:17:00,614 --> 00:17:01,374 Will you teach me? 345 00:17:01,874 --> 00:17:02,634 Will you lead me? 346 00:17:02,854 --> 00:17:04,374 I wanna follow you with my whole heart. 347 00:17:04,454 --> 00:17:06,654 You say, 'All scripture is breathed out by God.' 348 00:17:06,694 --> 00:17:07,914 That includes 2 Chronicles. 349 00:17:08,214 --> 00:17:11,454 Lord, I want to take away from this what you would have me take away from it today. 350 00:17:11,554 --> 00:17:12,614 Please give me understanding." 351 00:17:14,414 --> 00:17:16,814 Rather than, "Oh, man, 2 Chronicles again? 352 00:17:18,794 --> 00:17:19,814 Okay, here it goes." 353 00:17:22,127 --> 00:17:26,729 S- do you see how preparation can make or break any experience, 354 00:17:27,430 --> 00:17:28,649 including our time in the Word of God? 355 00:17:30,832 --> 00:17:33,553 Or maybe it's Galatians or Ephesians, whatever your favorite book of the 356 00:17:33,572 --> 00:17:37,674 Bible is, the book that you've read 100 times before, and you go to 357 00:17:37,714 --> 00:17:40,713 that every time and you're g- you, you could quote it from memory. 358 00:17:41,053 --> 00:17:44,332 And so your prayer at that time is, "Lord, I'm coming to a passage right 359 00:17:44,372 --> 00:17:47,453 now that I've read so many times I know it backwards and forwards, and 360 00:17:47,553 --> 00:17:51,333 I love it, but Lord, I, I just wanna ask you, keep teaching me right now. 361 00:17:52,933 --> 00:17:55,553 Give me an, an even deeper understanding for what I'm about 362 00:17:55,573 --> 00:17:56,953 to read than I've ever had before. 363 00:17:57,933 --> 00:18:01,693 Show me the blind spots in my life that I need to bring into submission 364 00:18:01,734 --> 00:18:02,993 to your Word right now as I read this." 365 00:18:05,117 --> 00:18:06,717 And so we wanna prepare in prayer. 366 00:18:06,757 --> 00:18:08,038 We wanna come to the Lord. 367 00:18:08,117 --> 00:18:09,038 We wanna seek Him. 368 00:18:09,117 --> 00:18:11,677 We wanna ask Him, "Lord, will you teach me?" 369 00:18:12,377 --> 00:18:15,017 If we're not doing this, we are leaving so much on the table. 370 00:18:16,838 --> 00:18:19,597 I, I don't know if you're like me or you're willing to admit that you're like 371 00:18:19,657 --> 00:18:23,038 me in this, but oftentimes when I come up to a stoplight, if I'm the first one 372 00:18:23,077 --> 00:18:26,237 on the line, whatever car comes up next to me, I wanna beat it off the line. 373 00:18:27,777 --> 00:18:29,417 And if you're not like that, then you're lying. 374 00:18:31,218 --> 00:18:31,697 I'm just kidding. 375 00:18:32,017 --> 00:18:32,457 Maybe you're not. 376 00:18:32,538 --> 00:18:34,017 Maybe you're not nearly as competitive as I am. 377 00:18:34,497 --> 00:18:38,038 I … and for the longest time, y'all, I, I, I drove Corollas, and I, I love 378 00:18:38,137 --> 00:18:40,917 Corollas, but there's nothing that's gonna beat anything off the line. 379 00:18:41,657 --> 00:18:44,297 Uh, uh, nothing about a Corolla that's gonna beat anything else off the line. 380 00:18:44,817 --> 00:18:47,117 Uh, when I wanted to, I had to pull up to the, the s- the 381 00:18:47,197 --> 00:18:48,697 stop sign or the stoplight. 382 00:18:49,517 --> 00:18:50,697 I had to turn off my air conditioning. 383 00:18:51,197 --> 00:18:52,097 You guys know that trick, right? 384 00:18:53,157 --> 00:18:55,177 The throttle feels a little bit more response- responsive 385 00:18:55,177 --> 00:18:55,977 when you turn off your air. 386 00:18:56,517 --> 00:18:57,537 Man, I was turning off my air. 387 00:18:57,797 --> 00:18:59,398 I was turning off my, my, my radio. 388 00:18:59,417 --> 00:19:00,737 I was turning off my windshield wipers. 389 00:19:01,097 --> 00:19:04,558 I was turning off everything, and I was still getting beat off the line. 390 00:19:04,878 --> 00:19:08,077 Now, I drive a car that I can beat most things off the line, and it took me 391 00:19:08,218 --> 00:19:11,297 41 years to, to get there, but God was finally like, "Here, have some fun." 392 00:19:11,697 --> 00:19:12,957 Um, not everything. 393 00:19:13,038 --> 00:19:14,377 I can't beat everything, but most things. 394 00:19:14,917 --> 00:19:17,337 And so I'll come up to the stoplight and I, and I'll look over 395 00:19:17,377 --> 00:19:18,538 there, and I'll make a decision. 396 00:19:18,618 --> 00:19:21,457 I'll see what's next to me, and I'll decide whether or not I have to take it 397 00:19:21,538 --> 00:19:25,777 out of eco mode- … into sport mode. 398 00:19:25,817 --> 00:19:27,817 And not only do I sometimes put it into sport mode, but 399 00:19:27,857 --> 00:19:28,657 then I'm like, you know what? 400 00:19:28,977 --> 00:19:33,157 I'm also gonna take off my regenerative braking so that there's as l- least 401 00:19:33,218 --> 00:19:36,177 amount of friction on my tires as possible because I wanna beat this 402 00:19:36,237 --> 00:19:37,817 mom in her minivan off the line. 403 00:19:41,681 --> 00:19:41,841 Ja 404 00:19:44,078 --> 00:19:48,517 When, when you come to God's Word, if you're not praying before you 405 00:19:48,558 --> 00:19:52,247 get into the Word of God, you're trying to beat a car off the line and 406 00:19:52,298 --> 00:19:54,618 you're not using all the power that you've got to be able to do that. 407 00:19:56,277 --> 00:19:58,578 Y- y- you're trying to beat the car next to you, a- and, and yet 408 00:19:58,658 --> 00:20:01,578 you're in eco mode and, and, and regen braking is all the way up. 409 00:20:02,398 --> 00:20:04,957 A- a- and so you're, you're playing with y- a hand tied 410 00:20:04,997 --> 00:20:06,037 behind your back, in other words. 411 00:20:07,818 --> 00:20:10,237 Prayer is so vital to us when we come to the Word of God. 412 00:20:11,277 --> 00:20:15,098 A- and when we don't pray before we pick up the Bible, when we don't prepare in 413 00:20:15,178 --> 00:20:19,098 prayer, we're leaving on the table so much more than we could be getting out of it 414 00:20:19,217 --> 00:20:23,338 if we went to the Lord and said, "Lord, humbly, submissively, I'm, I'm, I'm, 415 00:20:23,517 --> 00:20:25,078 I'm pleading with you, please teach me. 416 00:20:25,158 --> 00:20:27,277 C- under-- help me understand these things. 417 00:20:27,717 --> 00:20:30,437 I wanna obey, I wanna delight, I wanna surrender before you. 418 00:20:30,777 --> 00:20:31,618 Help me to do this." 419 00:20:31,658 --> 00:20:35,178 And so I- I'm, I'm just gonna encourage you, Church, to, to, to do this. 420 00:20:35,227 --> 00:20:37,237 And then the other thing that I wanna encourage you with on that 421 00:20:37,318 --> 00:20:40,078 as, as I follow up with that is, is to persist in doing this. 422 00:20:41,757 --> 00:20:44,957 Uh, uh, this is not a magic formula, okay? 423 00:20:45,638 --> 00:20:48,296 This is not three steps to get rich in the Word of God. 424 00:20:49,717 --> 00:20:50,697 It doesn't work that way. 425 00:20:51,638 --> 00:20:54,838 Eugene Peterson wrote a book called A Long Obedience in the Same Direction. 426 00:20:54,898 --> 00:20:55,418 It, it's… 427 00:20:55,437 --> 00:20:59,437 That's his dis- uh, definition of discipleship, a long 428 00:20:59,477 --> 00:21:00,858 obedience in the same direction. 429 00:21:02,217 --> 00:21:04,957 And one of the things that he wrote in there is, is a bit of an indictment on 430 00:21:04,997 --> 00:21:06,558 our culture, and I, I think he's right. 431 00:21:06,618 --> 00:21:07,197 He says this. 432 00:21:07,237 --> 00:21:10,737 He says, "There's a, a great market for religious experience in our world. 433 00:21:11,497 --> 00:21:15,038 There's little enthusiasm for patient acquisition of virtue, 434 00:21:15,697 --> 00:21:19,388 little inclination to sign up for a long apprenticeship in what earlier 435 00:21:19,457 --> 00:21:21,838 generations of Christians called holiness. 436 00:21:22,618 --> 00:21:25,937 Religion in our time has been captured by the tourist mindset. 437 00:21:26,338 --> 00:21:30,038 Religion is understood as a visit to an attractive site to be made 438 00:21:30,078 --> 00:21:32,497 when we have adequate leisure." 439 00:21:33,838 --> 00:21:35,767 In other words, Peterson's putting a finger on something that I 440 00:21:35,777 --> 00:21:38,777 think we struggle with, and that is, uh, we, we, we are such an 441 00:21:38,838 --> 00:21:40,158 immediate gratification people. 442 00:21:41,977 --> 00:21:44,878 A- a- and so what we're talking about here, again, this is not gonna radically 443 00:21:44,918 --> 00:21:49,558 transform things overnight, but if you will commit to and persist in preparing 444 00:21:49,578 --> 00:21:53,197 in prayer before you come to the Word of God, when you look back at where you are 445 00:21:53,257 --> 00:21:57,227 at the end of this year, let alone five years from now, 10 years from now, should 446 00:21:57,257 --> 00:22:02,038 the Lord tarry, you are gonna see that He has done so much in your life in answer 447 00:22:02,078 --> 00:22:03,217 to these prayers that you're making. 448 00:22:05,138 --> 00:22:06,098 And so persist. 449 00:22:06,538 --> 00:22:08,098 Sign up for the patient acquisition. 450 00:22:08,477 --> 00:22:11,838 Sign up for the long apprenticeship at the feet of Jesus, like we 451 00:22:11,898 --> 00:22:13,277 talked about last week with Mary. 452 00:22:14,418 --> 00:22:18,767 And come and prepare in prayer and ask the Lord for transformative understanding 453 00:22:22,908 --> 00:22:24,809 Maybe one of the other things that you struggle with is not just 454 00:22:24,869 --> 00:22:26,869 understanding, but, but a want to. 455 00:22:28,730 --> 00:22:31,069 D- do you have the desire to pick up the Bible? 456 00:22:31,228 --> 00:22:33,089 Do you have the desire to get in God's Word? 457 00:22:33,309 --> 00:22:36,049 Do you have the desire after you pick up the Bible to then obey the Word 458 00:22:36,089 --> 00:22:38,049 of God, to, to apply the Word of God? 459 00:22:40,049 --> 00:22:40,908 That's where he goes next. 460 00:22:40,929 --> 00:22:43,948 In verses 36 through 37, the psalmist says this, "Incline my heart to your 461 00:22:44,010 --> 00:22:46,609 testimonies and not to selfish gain. 462 00:22:47,149 --> 00:22:53,069 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things and give me life in your ways." 463 00:22:54,728 --> 00:22:58,109 Uh, these are, are requests that could be made before you read the Word, 464 00:22:58,269 --> 00:23:01,529 could be made after you read the Word, could be made while you read the Word. 465 00:23:01,989 --> 00:23:04,928 In fact, these are, are prayers that we could just offer up day after 466 00:23:04,989 --> 00:23:06,889 day after day after day after day. 467 00:23:07,289 --> 00:23:10,448 We need to always have this mindset, just asking God to increase, to 468 00:23:10,530 --> 00:23:13,649 fan into flame the desires that we have in our hearts for Him. 469 00:23:13,948 --> 00:23:16,769 And when we come to the Word of God, another prayer that we should make 470 00:23:16,809 --> 00:23:21,269 as we seek to prepare in prayer is to ask the Lord, "Lord, deepen my desire 471 00:23:21,369 --> 00:23:23,350 for you through my time in your Word. 472 00:23:23,389 --> 00:23:26,749 In what I'm about to read, cause me to love Jesus more, cause me to 473 00:23:26,809 --> 00:23:30,689 hate sin more, cause me to desire godliness and holiness m- m- more. 474 00:23:30,730 --> 00:23:35,849 Lord, I, I need your work in my life," as point number two is about to say here, 475 00:23:35,909 --> 00:23:38,569 to instill in me transformative desires. 476 00:23:38,629 --> 00:23:41,109 Point number two, ask for transformative desires 477 00:23:43,677 --> 00:23:44,797 Transformative desires. 478 00:23:44,838 --> 00:23:47,517 I, I, I think this is another area where we, we don't take advantage 479 00:23:47,578 --> 00:23:49,456 enough of what God has to offer us. 480 00:23:51,657 --> 00:23:54,437 God wants to fan into flame your desire for Christ. 481 00:23:56,018 --> 00:23:59,837 A-and, and I think we, we don't go to Him and, and expect Him to really do that. 482 00:24:01,736 --> 00:24:05,358 He wants for, for your desire to be such that it is a delight for 483 00:24:05,456 --> 00:24:08,417 you to obey the Word of God, to spend time in the Word of God. 484 00:24:09,358 --> 00:24:13,098 A-a-and part of it is, again, we're an independent people, aren't we? 485 00:24:13,236 --> 00:24:15,996 We're a, a pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps kind of a people. 486 00:24:16,337 --> 00:24:19,357 We like, we like Philippians 2:12, "Work out your salvation 487 00:24:19,417 --> 00:24:20,456 with fear and trembling." 488 00:24:20,517 --> 00:24:22,377 Yes, I, uh, that's what I need to do. 489 00:24:22,417 --> 00:24:22,657 I don't… 490 00:24:22,857 --> 00:24:25,037 Doesn't matter how I feel about it, I just need to do it 491 00:24:27,473 --> 00:24:30,493 Yeah, th-th-there's a, a measure, a modicum of truth to that. 492 00:24:31,233 --> 00:24:34,413 Our obedience to the Lord is not based on our feelings about whether or not we want 493 00:24:34,453 --> 00:24:39,073 to, but that doesn't mean that He doesn't want to increase your desire to do that. 494 00:24:40,413 --> 00:24:43,693 Philippians 2:12 is followed by, by Philippians 2:13, which says 495 00:24:43,753 --> 00:24:48,974 this, "For it is God who is at work in you as you work out your 496 00:24:49,054 --> 00:24:50,374 salvation with fear and trembling." 497 00:24:50,413 --> 00:24:55,493 It's God who's at work in you, and notice this, both to will and 498 00:24:55,613 --> 00:24:57,953 to work for His good pleasure. 499 00:24:59,113 --> 00:25:02,074 So the, the God who commanded you saying, "Work out your salvation 500 00:25:02,113 --> 00:25:04,333 with fear and trembling," in other words, "Obey me, do the things that 501 00:25:04,374 --> 00:25:07,633 a Christian should do," is the same God that's saying, "And, and I want to 502 00:25:07,714 --> 00:25:09,833 create in you the desire to do that. 503 00:25:10,933 --> 00:25:15,173 I want to help you will yourself to do those things. 504 00:25:15,793 --> 00:25:18,153 And so come to me and ask me for these things. 505 00:25:18,253 --> 00:25:19,853 Ask for a transformative desire." 506 00:25:19,874 --> 00:25:20,773 And here's the thing, y'all. 507 00:25:21,214 --> 00:25:25,394 I believe if you have this holy resolve combined with this dependent plea that 508 00:25:25,453 --> 00:25:30,273 says, "Lord, I need you to create in me a more deep desire for your, your Word 509 00:25:30,313 --> 00:25:34,374 and for you," I believe that God is going to delight to answer that request. 510 00:25:36,073 --> 00:25:39,353 He's, He's not a cruel despot up there that's like, "Well, wouldn't that be nice 511 00:25:39,414 --> 00:25:41,073 if you could just love being a Christian?" 512 00:25:41,113 --> 00:25:43,113 I think God wants you to love being a Christian. 513 00:25:44,153 --> 00:25:46,953 I think God wants you to love being in the Word. 514 00:25:47,013 --> 00:25:49,833 I think God wants you to love treasuring up the Scriptures in, 515 00:25:49,874 --> 00:25:51,753 in reading and understanding. 516 00:25:51,833 --> 00:25:54,513 God is not up there saying, "I just want this to be miserable for you." 517 00:25:56,585 --> 00:25:57,985 And so don't leave it on the shelf. 518 00:25:58,565 --> 00:26:01,205 Be like the psalmist and, and, and pray with the psalmist, 519 00:26:01,265 --> 00:26:06,465 "Lord, incline my heart to your testimonies and not to selfish gain. 520 00:26:07,845 --> 00:26:12,326 Lord, give me desires, Lord, that are greater for your Word, your testimonies, 521 00:26:12,365 --> 00:26:15,265 the things that you have set in, in stone and said, 'This is what's true.' 522 00:26:16,225 --> 00:26:20,325 Lord, in- incline my heart towards that and not to selfish gain." 523 00:26:20,725 --> 00:26:22,245 Why does he identify selfish gain? 524 00:26:22,485 --> 00:26:26,045 Well, because that is the, that's the default of every single person in this 525 00:26:26,085 --> 00:26:27,925 room, myself in- included in that. 526 00:26:28,985 --> 00:26:33,085 If we go through our day in neutral, we're gonna veer towards selfish gain. 527 00:26:34,345 --> 00:26:38,365 And so the psalmist is saying, "Lord, do in me what's not natural in me. 528 00:26:39,465 --> 00:26:43,245 A- a- as I spend time in your Word, Lord, cause my desire to be more for the God 529 00:26:43,285 --> 00:26:45,765 of the Word as I read the Word of God. 530 00:26:47,825 --> 00:26:51,465 Cause me to, to want less that's, that's about me and more, Lord, 531 00:26:51,505 --> 00:26:52,505 that's, that's about you." 532 00:26:55,377 --> 00:26:56,897 Ha- have you ever driven a car that's out of alignment? 533 00:26:58,317 --> 00:27:00,437 Or started to realize that your car is getting out of alignment? 534 00:27:01,558 --> 00:27:02,118 How do you know that? 535 00:27:02,197 --> 00:27:04,817 Well, well you know because when you let go of the steering wheel 536 00:27:04,857 --> 00:27:07,598 for a second, it begins to, to, to veer one way or the other 537 00:27:10,205 --> 00:27:13,185 Our lives are naturally out of alignment when it comes to 538 00:27:13,205 --> 00:27:14,345 what God is calling us to do. 539 00:27:15,825 --> 00:27:19,046 Our lives are naturally going to veer towards selfishness. 540 00:27:20,626 --> 00:27:22,726 We are going to look out for number one before we're gonna look 541 00:27:22,745 --> 00:27:24,146 out for anyone else in our lives 542 00:27:26,601 --> 00:27:31,461 So much so that in the Old Testament Isaiah even said the, the good works that 543 00:27:31,481 --> 00:27:34,421 an unbeliever does is repulsive to God 544 00:27:36,538 --> 00:27:41,137 Not because they weren't good objectively from the outside, but 545 00:27:41,157 --> 00:27:44,296 because they were done with the motive of, of the self-centeredness 546 00:27:44,317 --> 00:27:45,578 of the individual doing the good work 547 00:27:48,132 --> 00:27:50,592 We are naturally selfish people, and so the psalmist is coming to the word 548 00:27:50,612 --> 00:27:51,994 of God saying, "God, I need you again. 549 00:27:52,152 --> 00:27:52,474 It's me. 550 00:27:52,553 --> 00:27:56,514 I, I, I need you again, and I need you to direct my heart away from myself 551 00:27:56,553 --> 00:28:00,332 'cause it's gonna veer that way, and I need you instead, Lord, to align me 552 00:28:01,832 --> 00:28:03,533 towards you, towards your testimonies. 553 00:28:04,514 --> 00:28:09,453 Incline my heart, Lord, towards your word and not towards selfish gain." 554 00:28:10,632 --> 00:28:14,812 Uh, wh- when we try to do that on our own, when we try to muster up the desire 555 00:28:14,853 --> 00:28:18,892 on our own, when we try to muster up our, our willpower to say, "Okay, I, I don't 556 00:28:19,072 --> 00:28:21,493 feel like it, but I'm gonna just read it because I know I'm supposed to and this is 557 00:28:21,493 --> 00:28:24,214 what I'm, uh, I, I have to do this because this is what a good Christian does. 558 00:28:24,233 --> 00:28:26,753 I'm just gonna read the word of God, and then I read it and, and 559 00:28:26,773 --> 00:28:30,913 I'm done, and now let me go and, and get about the rest of my day." 560 00:28:30,973 --> 00:28:34,173 And that's like trying to take a car severely out of alignment and just hold 561 00:28:34,214 --> 00:28:37,832 it straight and, and steady down the, the, the, the lane as much as you can. 562 00:28:37,873 --> 00:28:39,434 It gets exhausting real fast 563 00:28:41,737 --> 00:28:43,457 But again, y'all, that's not what God wants for you. 564 00:28:45,158 --> 00:28:50,117 And so if you will come to Him and you will ask Him to align your hearts, incline 565 00:28:50,178 --> 00:28:53,978 your heart towards His testimonies, then, then you will find that He'll 566 00:28:54,037 --> 00:28:56,618 fix that alignment problem through the Spirit's work in your heart, and 567 00:28:56,657 --> 00:29:00,537 you will be able to find great joy and contentment and delight, not in 568 00:29:00,598 --> 00:29:05,098 pursuing self, but in pursuing Him such that it will become even life-giving. 569 00:29:05,678 --> 00:29:07,057 That's where he goes in verse 37. 570 00:29:07,117 --> 00:29:09,018 He says, "Turn my eyes away from these things." 571 00:29:09,678 --> 00:29:12,077 There's parallelism between verses 36 and 37. 572 00:29:12,497 --> 00:29:14,157 "Incline my heart to your testimonies. 573 00:29:14,378 --> 00:29:16,397 Uh, Lord, give me life in your ways. 574 00:29:17,018 --> 00:29:19,477 Tu- uh, turn my eyes from looking at worthless things." 575 00:29:19,777 --> 00:29:22,937 That's, that's the selfish gain that he was talking about back in verse 36. 576 00:29:24,178 --> 00:29:27,997 A- a- and so here it's, it's not, "Lord, just, just incline my heart towards 577 00:29:28,038 --> 00:29:31,437 your testimonies and not to selfish gain, but replace the, the desire for 578 00:29:31,538 --> 00:29:33,997 selfish gain with a satisfaction in you. 579 00:29:35,018 --> 00:29:39,217 Lord, I wanna find life and joy in following you." 580 00:29:41,337 --> 00:29:43,957 Where you look is often where your feet will follow 581 00:29:46,276 --> 00:29:48,677 Or when you're teaching a, a teenager to drive, right? 582 00:29:48,736 --> 00:29:51,357 You, you wanna teach their eyes when they're in the car to be up 583 00:29:51,397 --> 00:29:52,996 in, in that way, ahead of them. 584 00:29:53,098 --> 00:29:53,216 Why? 585 00:29:53,296 --> 00:29:56,296 Because if they're down here, then it's, it's too easy to, to start 586 00:29:56,437 --> 00:29:57,838 losing si- and, and you're veering. 587 00:29:57,976 --> 00:29:58,078 Why? 588 00:29:58,137 --> 00:30:00,697 Because where the eyes go, the rest follows 589 00:30:03,549 --> 00:30:06,769 As Christians, it's so easy for our fleshly appetites to cause 590 00:30:06,829 --> 00:30:11,629 our eyes to leave the Word of God and the statutes of God and the 591 00:30:11,709 --> 00:30:15,729 testimonies of God and to alight instead on the, the worthless things. 592 00:30:17,669 --> 00:30:22,629 And, and they're worthless things because sometimes they're sinful things, but 593 00:30:22,650 --> 00:30:25,449 they're also worthless things because they're things that claim to be more 594 00:30:25,509 --> 00:30:28,029 important to you than the Word of God is. 595 00:30:29,409 --> 00:30:33,589 And so sometimes our eyes are, are prone to wander and land on a person or land 596 00:30:33,669 --> 00:30:39,629 on a house or land on a possession or a thing or a promotion or a career or a 597 00:30:39,769 --> 00:30:43,949 different life that I wish I had or a, a dream and a fantasy about something 598 00:30:44,010 --> 00:30:46,470 or what I hope my reality will be like. 599 00:30:46,510 --> 00:30:50,369 And, and these become worthless things because they grab our heart and they 600 00:30:50,429 --> 00:30:52,629 pull our heart away from the Lord 601 00:30:54,889 --> 00:30:58,609 And so the psalmist is saying, "Lord, I, I, I want you to fix my 602 00:30:58,649 --> 00:31:00,889 eyes back on you and turn my eyes away from the worthless things." 603 00:31:02,369 --> 00:31:06,269 Remember King David's eyes wandered before his heart wandered after Bathsheba 604 00:31:08,829 --> 00:31:12,029 And so for us, y'all, we, we need to come to the Lord and, and 605 00:31:12,089 --> 00:31:15,789 prepare in prayer and say, "Lord, I, I, I need you not just for the 606 00:31:15,849 --> 00:31:18,289 understanding, but also for my desires. 607 00:31:19,289 --> 00:31:21,429 I trust that you want me to delight in your Word. 608 00:31:21,509 --> 00:31:23,869 You say it far too often for this not to be the case. 609 00:31:24,729 --> 00:31:26,689 You want me to love the Word of God. 610 00:31:27,229 --> 00:31:30,670 And so, God, I'm asking, as I pick up the Word of God, help me love the Word of God. 611 00:31:30,930 --> 00:31:33,689 I- i- if I've got sin in my heart right now, Lord, I want you to reveal 612 00:31:33,729 --> 00:31:36,869 that to me so I can turn my eyes away from the worthless things and put 613 00:31:36,909 --> 00:31:38,449 it on you and put it on your Word. 614 00:31:38,929 --> 00:31:44,709 I don't want anything competing with you, Lord, for first place in my life." 615 00:31:46,229 --> 00:31:48,790 Whatever those things are that our eyes are tempted to land on instead 616 00:31:48,829 --> 00:31:53,090 of the Lord, it, it will lead us to a, a sense of, of, "If I get this, 617 00:31:53,129 --> 00:31:54,709 then I will be truly satisfied." 618 00:31:56,270 --> 00:31:59,069 But if you've lived enough life in this room, you know that that's not the case. 619 00:32:00,649 --> 00:32:02,849 Because some of those things your eyes have gone after, you've gotten, 620 00:32:02,909 --> 00:32:04,329 and what have they left you wanting? 621 00:32:05,189 --> 00:32:05,569 More. 622 00:32:06,869 --> 00:32:07,869 They haven't satisfied. 623 00:32:09,009 --> 00:32:11,329 They haven't lived up to what you hoped they would be. 624 00:32:12,590 --> 00:32:15,429 And if they're sinful things, well, then they've left you feeling despair, and 625 00:32:15,449 --> 00:32:18,249 they've left you feeling hopelessness, and they've left you feeling guilt, 626 00:32:18,290 --> 00:32:21,769 and they've left you feeling shame, and they've left you feeling condemnation. 627 00:32:22,010 --> 00:32:25,389 And, and here's the thing, y'all, the Word of God is different. 628 00:32:26,489 --> 00:32:30,189 If you turn from selfish gain and let the Word of God do the work of God in your 629 00:32:30,250 --> 00:32:34,930 heart, you will find not shame and guilt and condemnation and, and disappointment. 630 00:32:35,009 --> 00:32:38,669 You will find life, and you will find joy, and you will find satisfaction, 631 00:32:38,729 --> 00:32:41,609 and you will find contentment, and you will find hope, and you will 632 00:32:41,729 --> 00:32:44,069 find more than you ever knew possible 633 00:32:46,173 --> 00:32:47,893 And it's not as though God is hiding it from you 634 00:32:50,985 --> 00:32:51,545 Prepare in prayer. 635 00:32:51,685 --> 00:32:52,865 Come and ask him for these things. 636 00:32:53,784 --> 00:32:57,365 Ask the Lord for transformative desires 637 00:33:00,784 --> 00:33:01,906 Ask them to increase your hunger 638 00:33:04,253 --> 00:33:05,493 To make you want it more and more. 639 00:33:06,753 --> 00:33:10,812 There's one more area though that we have to come before Him, depending on Him for. 640 00:33:12,013 --> 00:33:16,293 It's not only our understanding, it's in, in our desires, but we also, when 641 00:33:16,312 --> 00:33:18,854 we come to the Word of God, we want to find that after our time in the Word of 642 00:33:18,933 --> 00:33:22,033 God, our confidence in God is leveled up. 643 00:33:23,893 --> 00:33:26,594 Look at verses 38 through 40 in Psalm 119. 644 00:33:26,993 --> 00:33:30,953 Verses 38 through 40, it, it reads this, it says this: "Confirm to your servant 645 00:33:31,014 --> 00:33:32,913 your promise that you may be feared. 646 00:33:33,514 --> 00:33:36,533 Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good. 647 00:33:37,033 --> 00:33:41,433 Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life." 648 00:33:42,493 --> 00:33:45,194 We don't know where the, the psalmist was in, in his circumstances as he 649 00:33:45,233 --> 00:33:48,033 was writing this, 'cause we're not exactly sure the identity of the author. 650 00:33:48,433 --> 00:33:52,453 Uh, but he was facing some difficulty, facing some opposition, and so he's 651 00:33:52,514 --> 00:33:55,473 longing for confidence from the Lord, and so he's gonna pray and ask 652 00:33:55,553 --> 00:33:57,393 God, "God, confirm your promises. 653 00:33:57,413 --> 00:33:59,293 Remind me of how true your Word is. 654 00:33:59,613 --> 00:34:03,873 Lord, turn away the reproach that I, I'm fearing right now a- and remind me how 655 00:34:03,973 --> 00:34:06,133 good your precepts and your rules are. 656 00:34:06,473 --> 00:34:09,413 A- and Lord, I'm gonna ask you ultimately that, that you would create 657 00:34:09,434 --> 00:34:12,572 in me such a longing for your precepts because I, I want such a confidence 658 00:34:12,632 --> 00:34:16,933 in, in, in certainty that your righteousness is gonna give me life." 659 00:34:18,513 --> 00:34:19,293 And so he's pleading. 660 00:34:19,333 --> 00:34:22,612 He's looking for that confidence and that security, and that's something that 661 00:34:22,652 --> 00:34:25,574 we should do as we pick up the Word of God as well as we prepare in prayer. 662 00:34:25,612 --> 00:34:29,592 Final point this morning is this: Ask for transformative confidence. 663 00:34:30,333 --> 00:34:32,592 Ask the Lord for transformative confidence. 664 00:34:34,074 --> 00:34:37,652 We all long for security, don't we? 665 00:34:37,693 --> 00:34:40,313 You may have an app on your phone like Experian or LifeLock or something 666 00:34:40,353 --> 00:34:43,553 like that that i- is meant to give you protection and a sense of, of 667 00:34:43,853 --> 00:34:45,753 confidence that your identity is secure. 668 00:34:45,833 --> 00:34:49,092 Except you'll get an alert, like I do sometimes, "Hey, your, uh, phone 669 00:34:49,112 --> 00:34:50,233 number was found on the dark web." 670 00:34:50,253 --> 00:34:51,893 And it's like, well, great, what do I do with that? 671 00:34:51,933 --> 00:34:52,214 Nothing. 672 00:34:52,233 --> 00:34:53,453 We just wanted you to be anxious about it 673 00:34:55,741 --> 00:34:55,980 Great. 674 00:34:57,180 --> 00:34:57,560 Super. 675 00:34:58,000 --> 00:35:00,701 Um, thank you, I think, and I pay you for that. 676 00:35:02,481 --> 00:35:04,520 We, we are a security obsessed culture and society. 677 00:35:04,941 --> 00:35:08,540 The, the home security industry is, is valued at somewhere between 678 00:35:08,560 --> 00:35:10,261 $70 to $80 billion annually. 679 00:35:11,861 --> 00:35:14,721 So if you're looking to get into a new business, home security 680 00:35:14,741 --> 00:35:15,680 is not a bad one to get into. 681 00:35:16,481 --> 00:35:17,721 We want to feel safe. 682 00:35:18,461 --> 00:35:19,221 We want to feel safe. 683 00:35:19,441 --> 00:35:22,060 A- a- and not just physically safe, I would say we want 684 00:35:22,100 --> 00:35:23,361 to feel spiritually safe. 685 00:35:24,841 --> 00:35:26,020 That's certainly true of Christians. 686 00:35:26,841 --> 00:35:29,941 Christians wrestle with the, the question of, "Am I really saved?" 687 00:35:30,002 --> 00:35:32,421 I mean, I'm su- I'm sure at some point, if you've been a believer for any 688 00:35:32,502 --> 00:35:35,261 period of time, that you've probably at some point in time had a doubt 689 00:35:35,341 --> 00:35:39,281 cross your mind and looked for the security, looked for the confidence. 690 00:35:40,941 --> 00:35:43,241 But it's not just believers, I think unbelievers are in the same boat. 691 00:35:45,120 --> 00:35:47,401 Solomon in Ecclesiastes says that God has put eternity in 692 00:35:47,441 --> 00:35:48,741 the heart of every single man 693 00:35:51,241 --> 00:35:56,602 And so a, a lot of, of this world, the lost world, is, is trying to wrestle 694 00:35:56,622 --> 00:36:00,022 with how can I have some sort of security in what's gonna happen after I die? 695 00:36:02,985 --> 00:36:04,645 That's really the, the confidence that we want. 696 00:36:04,745 --> 00:36:06,105 That's the confidence that we desire. 697 00:36:07,426 --> 00:36:10,986 And as Christians, when we pick up the Word of God, we're coming to a, a book 698 00:36:11,465 --> 00:36:13,805 that has some answers for us there. 699 00:36:13,865 --> 00:36:16,866 A- and we're not just coming to a book that has some answers there, but a 700 00:36:16,985 --> 00:36:22,485 lot of those answers can ultimately be found in the promises of God therein. 701 00:36:22,526 --> 00:36:25,725 And the psalmist says for us in verse 38, "Lord, confirm your 702 00:36:25,745 --> 00:36:28,805 promises that you may be feared." 703 00:36:31,197 --> 00:36:32,357 Confirm these promises. 704 00:36:32,478 --> 00:36:34,598 Promises like, hey, you know what? 705 00:36:34,837 --> 00:36:37,837 Uh, you've been sealed with the promised Holy Spirit in Ephesians chapter 1, 706 00:36:37,917 --> 00:36:40,797 who's the guarantee of your inheritance until you acquire possession of it. 707 00:36:41,437 --> 00:36:44,437 Or a promise like 1 Peter chapter 1, you're being guarded by God's power 708 00:36:44,517 --> 00:36:47,057 through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 709 00:36:47,417 --> 00:36:50,817 Or a promise like Romans 8:28, that God is causing all things to work together 710 00:36:50,857 --> 00:36:53,497 for good for those who love Him, right? 711 00:36:54,277 --> 00:36:58,458 Or a promise like Acts 1 that says that, that Jesus who ascended 712 00:36:58,497 --> 00:37:00,737 is coming back for His church. 713 00:37:02,177 --> 00:37:03,577 Those are, are good promises. 714 00:37:03,638 --> 00:37:07,596 Those are promises that we're p- praying and asking when we pick up the Word of 715 00:37:07,658 --> 00:37:10,077 God, "God, confirm your promises to me. 716 00:37:11,138 --> 00:37:14,478 Remind me that these things are true, and they are steadfast, and they are, 717 00:37:14,517 --> 00:37:16,977 are sure, and I can trust in them. 718 00:37:17,357 --> 00:37:19,417 Lord, give me confidence in these promises." 719 00:37:19,596 --> 00:37:21,397 And then he says, "That you may be feared." 720 00:37:23,057 --> 00:37:24,337 Well, why that he may be feared? 721 00:37:24,377 --> 00:37:25,557 That seems at odds. 722 00:37:27,057 --> 00:37:28,937 Confidence and fear don't often go together 723 00:37:31,401 --> 00:37:33,661 Well, the fear that we're talking about is the, the fear of God, 724 00:37:33,961 --> 00:37:34,861 and the fear of God is this. 725 00:37:34,941 --> 00:37:38,921 The fear of God is a, a reverence, it's an awe, it's a carefulness, 726 00:37:39,081 --> 00:37:40,521 it's a respect of who He is. 727 00:37:42,441 --> 00:37:46,482 And so when we fear God, we remember who He is as we pick up 728 00:37:46,521 --> 00:37:48,161 the Word of God to, to approach Him. 729 00:37:49,182 --> 00:37:52,621 We remember that He is not a big man upstairs. 730 00:37:54,481 --> 00:37:55,641 He's not daddy God. 731 00:37:57,641 --> 00:37:58,721 He is the Lord of all lords. 732 00:37:58,741 --> 00:37:59,641 He is the King of kings. 733 00:37:59,682 --> 00:38:02,821 He's the God of the universe, the Lord of creation, and He is coming back again. 734 00:38:04,501 --> 00:38:07,461 He's the God that split the Red Sea, the God that shook Mount Sinai 735 00:38:09,821 --> 00:38:11,222 He's the Lord that walked on water. 736 00:38:11,681 --> 00:38:13,581 He's the God that raised Lazarus from the dead. 737 00:38:14,821 --> 00:38:17,121 He's the God who raised himself from the dead. 738 00:38:18,462 --> 00:38:21,721 And so when we come to the Word of God and we say, "God, confirm your promises 739 00:38:21,761 --> 00:38:25,042 to me that you may be feared," it's us picking up the Word of God saying, "God, 740 00:38:25,281 --> 00:38:27,061 remind me of who you are and who I am." 741 00:38:27,082 --> 00:38:28,721 And in, in turn, what's that gonna do? 742 00:38:28,762 --> 00:38:34,041 That's gonna cause me to trust you all the more, and my confidence 743 00:38:34,082 --> 00:38:35,721 in you is gonna go sky high. 744 00:38:37,181 --> 00:38:41,621 And so Lord, confirm your promises so that I will fear you more, because fearing 745 00:38:41,701 --> 00:38:45,422 you is where it's safe, remembering that you are the sovereign Lord of 746 00:38:45,501 --> 00:38:49,681 lords and King of kings, and that you have loved me so much that you gave 747 00:38:49,762 --> 00:38:53,061 Jesus for me so that I might have a hope that one day I will be with you. 748 00:38:53,762 --> 00:38:55,721 Lord, confirm your promises to me. 749 00:38:55,742 --> 00:38:57,981 When I pick up your Word today, I wanna be reminded of who you are. 750 00:38:58,021 --> 00:39:00,721 Lord, I'm asking you, increase my confidence by reminding me 751 00:39:00,781 --> 00:39:03,221 who you are and who I am and what you did about that through Jesus 752 00:39:06,345 --> 00:39:08,305 Confirm to your servant your promise that you may be feared. 753 00:39:08,986 --> 00:39:09,725 Behold, I long… 754 00:39:09,786 --> 00:39:14,145 Or verse 39: Turn away the, the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good. 755 00:39:15,626 --> 00:39:17,405 Lord, I, I, I, in other words, I wanna fear you. 756 00:39:17,465 --> 00:39:18,325 I don't wanna fear man. 757 00:39:19,746 --> 00:39:24,685 The reproach that comes when I do fear you, Lord, turn that away from me and 758 00:39:24,726 --> 00:39:26,265 remind me that your rules are good. 759 00:39:27,505 --> 00:39:30,005 When I pick up your Word, remind me that this is what's good, not 760 00:39:30,005 --> 00:39:31,305 what the world says is what's good. 761 00:39:33,225 --> 00:39:37,765 Remind me that, that, that I have to fight to ignore the lies of the world out there 762 00:39:37,786 --> 00:39:39,405 and remember that this is what's truth 763 00:39:41,662 --> 00:39:44,801 What's true is not set by an agenda of any group. 764 00:39:44,842 --> 00:39:47,162 It's set by the God of the universe, and it's recorded here. 765 00:39:48,042 --> 00:39:50,281 So Lord, when I come, turn away the reproach of others. 766 00:39:50,522 --> 00:39:51,702 Help me to fear who I should fear. 767 00:39:51,721 --> 00:39:54,622 That's you and not them, and remind me that your Word is true. 768 00:39:54,682 --> 00:39:55,922 Give me confidence therein. 769 00:39:56,212 --> 00:39:58,592 And then finally, Lord, I, I long for your precepts. 770 00:39:58,721 --> 00:40:00,362 In your righteousness, give me life. 771 00:40:00,702 --> 00:40:02,982 Remind me that this is where life is found. 772 00:40:03,422 --> 00:40:04,342 Life is found here. 773 00:40:04,402 --> 00:40:05,902 It's found in the Word of God. 774 00:40:06,321 --> 00:40:07,522 It's not found anywhere else. 775 00:40:08,202 --> 00:40:08,741 It's found here. 776 00:40:09,842 --> 00:40:11,741 He's the source of life, eternal life. 777 00:40:12,162 --> 00:40:13,202 He's the source of life. 778 00:40:13,241 --> 00:40:16,462 He's the source of life right now, not just in eternity, but 779 00:40:16,502 --> 00:40:18,402 that begins right now even. 780 00:40:19,642 --> 00:40:21,522 So Lord, increase my confidence. 781 00:40:21,892 --> 00:40:23,711 And here's the, the, the awesome thing through this, y'all. 782 00:40:24,182 --> 00:40:26,781 If we will do this, what we'll find is we'll get into this cyclical pattern. 783 00:40:28,301 --> 00:40:32,412 W- we're gonna go to the Word of God, and we're gonna ask for God to do these things 784 00:40:32,442 --> 00:40:35,301 in us through our time in the Word, and what that's gonna do is we're gonna find 785 00:40:35,342 --> 00:40:36,942 that there is truly life in the Word. 786 00:40:37,362 --> 00:40:41,082 A- a- and so the Word is gonna produce in us a desire for, for more 787 00:40:41,142 --> 00:40:44,692 of the Word 'cause the Word is gonna result in us feeling the, the great 788 00:40:44,741 --> 00:40:47,442 satisfaction and the joy and the contentment and going, "I love the Word 789 00:40:47,482 --> 00:40:48,602 of God for what it does in my life." 790 00:40:48,622 --> 00:40:50,301 Well, what do you do with something that you love? 791 00:40:50,382 --> 00:40:50,632 You what? 792 00:40:50,702 --> 00:40:53,582 You go back to it, and you want more of it. 793 00:40:54,301 --> 00:40:55,062 And then what that's… 794 00:40:55,102 --> 00:40:55,652 what's that gonna do? 795 00:40:55,702 --> 00:40:57,261 Well, it's gonna produce more confidence in your life. 796 00:40:57,702 --> 00:40:59,882 It's gonna give you more joy, more, more satisfaction. 797 00:41:00,321 --> 00:41:03,272 You, you're gonna find that, that you love Jesus even more, and what's that gonna do? 798 00:41:03,272 --> 00:41:04,602 Well, I wanna get back into His Word again. 799 00:41:05,442 --> 00:41:07,642 And then that's just gonna make you more hungry for the Word as well. 800 00:41:08,962 --> 00:41:12,082 And so if we'll do this, then, then we'll find that there's a, a cyclical 801 00:41:12,162 --> 00:41:17,221 pattern to our time that is going to pay dividends over the long haul. 802 00:41:18,502 --> 00:41:20,522 Ask the Lord for transformative confidence in the Word. 803 00:41:22,142 --> 00:41:24,202 These are three prayers that, that are not exhaustive, okay? 804 00:41:24,422 --> 00:41:27,022 This is not a message about three quick ways to get rich in the Word. 805 00:41:27,062 --> 00:41:28,422 That, that's not what this is. 806 00:41:28,462 --> 00:41:29,102 Th- this is not… 807 00:41:29,142 --> 00:41:31,902 I'm not saying you have to pray these things and you can't pray anything else. 808 00:41:32,321 --> 00:41:34,962 I'm not saying you have to pray these things and you should pray th- I'm just 809 00:41:34,982 --> 00:41:38,162 saying I think when we look at Psalm 119, these are three things that we 810 00:41:38,202 --> 00:41:39,702 see here that are good for us to pray. 811 00:41:41,002 --> 00:41:43,221 What I am saying is I think we d- we all need to prepare in 812 00:41:43,241 --> 00:41:44,362 prayer before we come to the Word. 813 00:41:46,221 --> 00:41:46,962 We all need to do that. 814 00:41:47,062 --> 00:41:48,382 I think this is a great place to start. 815 00:41:49,602 --> 00:41:52,432 A- and i- if you're not doing any of it right now, I think these three things 816 00:41:52,482 --> 00:41:55,312 are just good for, for you to bring next time you sit down with the Word of 817 00:41:55,322 --> 00:41:58,372 God, just you and Him, your quiet time, just opening it up saying, "Lord, I'm 818 00:41:58,372 --> 00:42:02,071 gonna ask you for this understanding, this transformative understanding that's 819 00:42:02,082 --> 00:42:03,562 gonna change the way that I live my life. 820 00:42:04,102 --> 00:42:07,102 Lord, I- I'm gonna ask you that you would give me a, a different 821 00:42:07,182 --> 00:42:10,982 desire for you, a greater desire for you as I read your Word right now. 822 00:42:11,602 --> 00:42:14,761 Lord, I'm, I'm gonna ask you that you increase my confidence in you as a 823 00:42:14,801 --> 00:42:17,602 result of my, my time that I'm about to spend in your Word right now. 824 00:42:18,662 --> 00:42:20,142 I'm asking that you're doing these things, Lord. 825 00:42:20,301 --> 00:42:22,642 I, I want to prepare well for what you have for me in this 826 00:42:22,702 --> 00:42:24,281 meal that I'm about to enjoy." 827 00:42:25,522 --> 00:42:27,902 If you're not praying at all, those are, uh, it's a great place to start. 828 00:42:28,002 --> 00:42:30,241 If you've got a routine of prayer down, maybe you wanna 829 00:42:30,281 --> 00:42:31,221 sprinkle some of this in here. 830 00:42:31,261 --> 00:42:32,622 Maybe you're already doing some of these things. 831 00:42:32,642 --> 00:42:33,462 That, that's great too. 832 00:42:35,709 --> 00:42:39,969 But just again, preparation can make or break an experience, and that's 833 00:42:40,010 --> 00:42:41,029 true of the Word of God as well. 834 00:42:42,070 --> 00:42:45,449 And because God is there, He's given us His Spirit, and He's invited us 835 00:42:45,489 --> 00:42:49,269 into His presence to pray to Him at any time, then I think it makes 836 00:42:49,369 --> 00:42:53,089 all the sense in the world that we would prepare in prayer every single 837 00:42:53,150 --> 00:42:54,310 time before we pick up the Word. 838 00:42:55,089 --> 00:42:56,050 Let's go to prayer right now. 839 00:42:57,550 --> 00:42:59,769 Lord God, we are, are so thankful for your work in our lives. 840 00:43:00,029 --> 00:43:03,709 We are thankful for, as I was just saying, the fact that we have your Spirit 841 00:43:03,789 --> 00:43:07,429 dwelling within us, and your Spirit gives us access to you at any moment. 842 00:43:08,029 --> 00:43:12,609 Even as I was reading this morning in John 17, Jesus prays there for his followers, 843 00:43:12,670 --> 00:43:16,269 and it struck me this morning as, as your Spirit was helping me to understand the 844 00:43:16,349 --> 00:43:20,389 passage, Lord, that you are doing that right now, that Jesus is right now at your 845 00:43:20,449 --> 00:43:24,669 right hand, that He is, as Hebrews 7 says, always living to make intercession for us. 846 00:43:25,970 --> 00:43:28,650 Lord, we know that Paul wrote that we can pray without ceasing. 847 00:43:29,609 --> 00:43:31,269 What an amazing reality that is. 848 00:43:32,509 --> 00:43:36,729 So God, I, I just ask this week for all of us, myself included, Lord, that, that 849 00:43:36,749 --> 00:43:40,529 we wouldn't leave prayer on the shelf, that we wouldn't only pull it off before 850 00:43:40,630 --> 00:43:43,489 meals, that we wouldn't only pull it off at the end of the day or when we're 851 00:43:43,509 --> 00:43:46,829 putting kids to bed, that we wouldn't only pull it off a- as we're getting in 852 00:43:46,850 --> 00:43:50,809 the car for a vacation, Lord, but that we would be people that pray regularly, and 853 00:43:50,829 --> 00:43:54,169 that part of that regular prayer would be preparing for our time in the Word 854 00:43:54,249 --> 00:43:58,549 every single day by first coming before you and asking you to do in the Word what 855 00:43:58,609 --> 00:44:00,909 you've promised us you will do in it. 856 00:44:00,949 --> 00:44:03,349 And so God, we thank you for the promises that we have. 857 00:44:03,369 --> 00:44:05,929 We thank you for your Word, and we pray that we'd grow in it 858 00:44:05,949 --> 00:44:07,149 and in our love for it as well. 859 00:44:07,229 --> 00:44:08,609 We pray this all in Jesus' name. 860 00:44:08,789 --> 00:44:09,329 Amen. 861 00:44:09,530 --> 00:44:09,909 Amen.