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Please turn in your Bibles to
Psalm 138. I've been assigned the topic,
God's Unchanging Word, and want to look at Psalm 138
in that light. Please listen as I read to you
the word of God. Of David, I give you thanks,
O Lord, with my whole heart. Before the gods I sing your praise.
I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name
for your steadfast love and your faithfulness. For you have exalted
above all things your name and your word. On the day I called
you, you answered me. My strength of soul you increased. All the kings of the earth shall
give you thanks, O Lord, for they have heard the words of
your mouth, and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord, for
great is the glory of the Lord. For though the Lord is high,
he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows from afar. Though
I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You stretch
out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right
hand delivers me. The Lord will fulfill his purpose
for me. Your steadfast love, O Lord,
endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your
hands." God's unchanging word. Well, last night we saw that
the Psalms are organized into clusters, and Psalm 138 is the
first of the final collection that is attributed to King David.
Psalms 138 through 145 are all said to be of David. Each of the songs in the groupings
throughout the book of Psalms are somehow related to each other,
oftentimes by the inscription. But we also need to notice that
frequently the clusters are related to each other as well. whether
it was Ezra or Nehemiah or someone else bringing together the book
of Psalms, they really paid attention to the relationship between these
Psalms. Let me give you an example. Turn back just a page to Psalm
134. This is the final of the 15 songs
of ascents. Now, let me read it to you. It's
very brief. Notice this language. a song of ascents. Come bless
the Lord, all you servants of the Lord, who stand by night
in the house of the Lord. Lift up your hands to the holy
place and bless the Lord. May the Lord bless you from Zion,
he who made heaven and earth. and the Songs of Ascent are done.
But if we immediately go into the next verse, notice how the
same language is repeated. Praise the Lord, praise the name
of the Lord, give praise, O servants of the Lord, who stand in the
house of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God. You
see the relationship between the two? The language is virtually
the same. So that even though these are
in separate groupings, there's a relationship between the groupings.
The Songs of Ascent may end at 134, But the idea that is present
in Psalm 134 is carried over into Psalm 135. Now, why do I
say that? Because Psalm 138 begins a new
grouping, but it picks up themes that we've already seen in Psalms
135, 136, and 137. For example, In Psalm 138 verse 1, David says
that he gives thanks. And he uses the same word, which
we saw last night, implies to give thanks as a confession. In fact, that's how Psalm 136
begins. Likewise, at the close of Psalm
138, maybe you noticed, we find an echo of the great refrain
of Psalm 136 in the final verse. Look at it again, verse 8. In
the middle, your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Eternally, O Lord, your love. That's exactly what we saw 26
times in Psalm 136 last evening. But there's even more here. When Charles Spurgeon contemplated
Psalm 138, he said this, Whoever edited and arranged these
sacred poems had an eye to apposition and contrast. For if in Psalm
137, verses 1 through 9, we see the need of silence before revilers,
here we see the excellence of a brave confession. There is
a time to be silent, lest we cast pearls before swine, and
there is a time to speak openly, lest we be found guilty of cowardly
not confessing. Spurgeon was exactly right. Psalm
138, even though it begins a new cluster of Psalms, carries forward
the great themes of the previous cluster. God is a great God and
he is greatly to be praised. Now I wish to focus your attention
on the first three verses of Psalm 138, for they serve us
well as we consider God's unchanging word. But in order to do so,
I want to summarize the entire psalm, give you the context,
and then we'll dig into these words of the first three verses.
As David worships, He confesses the greatness of his Lord. The
first stanza, verses one through three, tell us that David is
at the temple. Now that's language that is synonymous
for the tabernacle. The temple hadn't been built
when David was alive. It came to his son Solomon to
do that. But sometimes this word temple
is used to refer to the tabernacle. And he comes there to bow down
and to exalt in God. That's what the first three verses
are about. The second stanza, verses four through six, express
the hope that a day will come in which all the kings of the
earth and all their peoples, because as we saw last night,
the kings stand for their subjects, that everyone will join with
David in giving thanks to the Lord. And then finally, in verses
seven and eight, David returns to his own life, his own experience,
knowing that the Lord will accomplish his holy will because his steadfast
love, his merciful, gracious love, endures forever. This is a psalm of praise and
a psalm of worship. Now let's, having just looked
very briefly at the entire context, let's think through verses 1
through 3 a little bit more closely, and especially verse 2. In verse
1, David uses some very interesting language to speak about his confession
of thanksgiving. It comes from the depths of his
being, and it occupies his entire character. David's not exaggerating
here when he says that he gives thanks to the Lord, to Jehovah,
to Yahweh, with his whole heart. All that he is, his innermost
being, is taken up with the glory of God. With his whole heart
he expresses his thanks to God. And he defies the idols of the
nations by singing praise to God. Very similar to what we
saw last evening. David speaks, or the psalmist
there, speaks against the gods of the nations Here David picks
up that theme and says the same thing. It's a declaration to
say Yahweh is great. The Lord is great. The one who
exists by himself is great. He alone is God. David says,
I am the king of Israel, but my Lord is far greater than I. Now, this is really an amazing
scene. David acts publicly before the
tabernacle in reciting these words. Think about this. Try
to picture it with me. Imagine that there is the tabernacle
of God, and suddenly, as you stand by, You see movement, you
see a retinue, you see the court coming towards the tabernacle. And the center of attention would
be the king as he strides forward. Your eyes would be focused on
him. Maybe you've seen a motorcade of some kind. and you knew that
there was an important person there, and you pay attention
to the cars as they pass, but ultimately you want to see that
final car where the most important person is seated. You want to
see them because they have your attention. This is the King of
Israel, and every eye of the people of God in Israel would
have been upon him as he approaches the temple, the tabernacle. When
he comes close, this King, The greatest man in all of the land
falls down on the ground. He prostrates himself before
God, before the symbolic dwelling place of the Lord, as an act
of humility and reverence. And then he recites these words.
Think about that. The king! Everybody bows to the
king, but the king bows before the Lord. And in doing so, he
symbolically brings all of the people with him to worship the
Lord, his God. It's actually a very dramatic
scene. His actions and his words convey the depth of his thankfulness. Everyone watching would have
understood the significance of both what he said and what he
did. He tells us that there's an appropriate
demeanor when approaching God. He demonstrates it for us here.
And what does he say? Look at verse 2. It tells us
what he says. I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your
faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and
your word." He repeats his first words, but now speaks about the
name of God. The eternal, self-sufficient
Lord, the one we contemplated last night from Psalm 135, is
the object of worship. And the King of Israel confesses
his eternal love and his truthfulness. These two words together are
very important. Steadfast love and faithfulness. One scholar teaches us that these
are not merely concepts, but they're actually words of action. These two words occur together
many times in the Old Testament, linked in concert to teach us
how to think about the God who eternally acts in merciful, gracious
love and in truth. It would be fruitful to spend
time to notice the many places where the inspired authors link
together these concepts, his steadfast love and his faithfulness,
his truthfulness. But if we were to do that, it
would distract us from our main purpose. But I want you to keep
these ideas in mind as we move forward. Steadfast love or mercy,
gracious love, and faithfulness or truth. Remember those things
because they will bring significance to us a little bit later on.
Now, why does David praise the Lord for his gracious love and
his truthfulness? Well, the rest of verse two tells
us why. David says, you have exalted
above all things your name and your word. If you're using an
English Bible that differs from the ESV, which is what I've been
reading to you, it probably has a divergent translation. If you
have the NKJV in front of you, it says this, you have magnified
your word above all your name. If you're using the New American
Standard Bible, it says this, you have magnified your word
according to all your name. And if you were to read the commentaries
on Psalm 138, you'll find that nearly everyone agrees that this
is an exceedingly difficult clause to translate and to understand. In fact, one Puritan-era author
called it a dark sentence at first view. Because in that older
rendering, for example, in the NKJV, you've magnified your word
above all your name. This seems to teach us that God's
word has been lifted up even over his name. But this is difficult
in the context because immediately prior, David has offered praise
to God through his name. Why is it that the word would
be exalted above the name? It is the name of God that expresses
his being. His is his word made even greater
than his own being. You see, the ESV translation
is helpful, for it better fits the context of David's thought. God's name is exalted, and His
word is exalted. Who He is and what He says have
been raised to the highest level. His eternal love and his truth
are together presented to us. Give thanks to him for his being.
Give thanks to him for his revelation. That's what David says. We trust
him for who he is by means of the things that he says. The
world around us can tell us some things about God. Only the scriptures
can tell us what he reveals to us about himself. But there is
a question that we must ask when we come to this place. And the
question is this, what is the word to which David refers? Now, we understand what the word
name means. We thought about that last night.
It speaks to us about the glorious God, the God who is, the God
who is self-sustaining, self-existent, who has his being in and of himself.
But what does David mean, to what does he refer when he speaks
about the word that has been exalted? Well, I want to suggest
to you that David has in mind a threefold reference when he
presents to us this term, word. In the first place, this refers
to the words that God spoke to David through his prophet. Consider
the context here. David speaks of the Lord's answer
to him. The Lord answered me. In verse
3, on the day I called, you answered me. My strength of soul you increased. This would seem to indicate that
as David pens these words, he has something spoken to him in
his mind. David called, and the Lord responded
to him. And for this response, David
is thankful. Now, maybe the best example of
this is found in 2 Samuel 7. Do you remember what happened
there? David was contemplating the fact that he lived in a luxurious
house, and yet the dwelling of God was simply a portable tent. And he reasons, if I live as
the king of Israel in a glorious house, shouldn't the Lord have
a grand place to dwell among his people here on earth? And
so he sets his mind to bring together that which is necessary
to build a grand temple for God. Nathan the prophet comes to him
and tells him that he should do as he wishes. But that night,
the Lord comes to Nathan and tells him that it will not be
David who builds the great temple, but instead it will be David's
son. And we know, of course, that that is Solomon. But the
Lord uses this speech to Nathan the prophet as a means to tell
David through the prophet that his dynasty will never end. Listen
to these words. The Lord declares to you that
the Lord will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled
and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring
after you who shall come from your body and I will establish
his kingdom. He shall build a house for my
name and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
I will be to him a father and he shall be to me a son. My steadfast
love, there's our term again, my steadfast love will not depart
from him. Your house and your kingdom shall
be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established
forever. And David responded to the Lord
with a prayer of gratitude. Later on, Ethan the Ezraite reflected
on this event when David received the words of the Davidic Covenant,
and Ethan wrote in Psalm 89 these words. I have found David my
servant, with my holy oil I have anointed him, so that my hand
shall be established with him, my arm also shall strengthen
him, my faithfulness and my steadfast love, there are those two words,
my faithfulness and my steadfast love shall be with him, and in
my name shall his horn be exalted, my steadfast love I will keep
for him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him. You
see, David's language in Psalm 138 mirrors these very words. The spoken word of God is a word
of truth and may be trusted at all times. And we should say
that this is true everywhere it occurs in Scripture. When
God spoke with Adam in the garden, or Noah before the flood, when
he called Abram from Ur of the Chaldees, when he met with Moses
in the burning bush, when he spoke through the prophets, his
word was faithful and true. The first reference that David
has in mind here when he speaks about the exalted word of God
is every word that comes forth to His people from His servants. Now, we're not saying that any
of us will hear the voice of God. When Scripture records some
form of verbal communication from God to humans, it is always
about the great events of redemption. It's not about personal wants
and needs. It's about God's eternal purpose coming to reality in
history. Don't ever expect that God will
speak to you in an audible voice or through a dream or an angelic
visitor or any other way. As our confession of faith says,
the former ways of revealing His will to His people have ceased. Nevertheless, we must recognize
that when God in His sovereignty spoke to His people as recorded
in Scripture, His word was true. And this is the first thing that
David has in mind. The word that you've spoken to
me through the prophet Nathan is a true word, and it will come
to pass forever. Now, the second referent that
we find in Psalm 138.2, of course, refers to God's written word. And this is probably the most
common way that David's words in this text are understood and
taught. The Lord has ensured that each
generation will have his word, and it is written out so that
we might be able to read it. Paul said in Romans 15.4, whatever
was written in former days was written for our instruction,
that through endurance and through the encouragement of the scriptures,
we might have hope. The book that you hold in your
hands is the inspired and inerrant word of God given to us. Peter
calls it the prophetic word fully confirmed. He tells us that God's
Holy Spirit moved on the minds of the writers of Scripture,
causing them to record the exact things that God intends for us
to hear, to read, and to know. Paul says that the books of the
Old Testament and the New Testament are God-breathed. By this he
means that the Lord was directly active in giving Scripture to
us. Everywhere, Scripture testifies
to its own truthfulness. Psalm 119, verse 160, David wrote,
The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous
rules endures forever. In fact, as you know, the entirety
of Psalm 119, the longest psalm in the Bible, is about the law
of God. It's about God's written word.
Maybe you remember the words that David wrote recorded in
the latter part of Psalm 19. The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul. The testimony of the Lord is
sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are
right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is
pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean,
enduring forever. The rules of the Lord are true
and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than
gold. even much fine gold, sweeter
also than honey in the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by
them, is your servant warned, in keeping them there is great
reward." While the works of creation and providence tell us much about
God, He exists, He's powerful, He will judge all people. They
do not tell us that He is a glorious Trinity, Father, Son, and Spirit. They don't reveal to us the way
of salvation in Jesus Christ and the hope of eternal life
through Him. For these things, we must have
the written word of God. As David says in Psalm 119, verse
89, forever, O Lord, Your word is firmly fixed in
the heavens. That word forever is the same
word that you read 26 times last night in Psalm 136. Eternally,
O Lord, your word is fixed firmly in heaven. Because the Scriptures
are God-breathed, the written Word is worthy of our love and
our trust. Reading it, studying it, will
give you the greatest assistance to live this life you can possibly
imagine. It is a full record of everything
that you need to live a life as a child of God. It reveals
to you this great God in beautiful ways. It teaches you how to worship
Him, how to love Him with every part of your being. You'll read
that you may find forgiveness of your sins and that you may
have a hope of life beyond the grave. The Word of God written
instructs you in the ways of the life of godliness. You don't
have to guess if something pleases God or if you should do this
thing or flee from that activity. Everything that you need is here
and you may depend upon it at every moment because it is an
unchanging Word coming from an unchanging God. Though he used
human instruments to record it, he is its author, and he assures
its trustworthiness. It is in every way complete and
sufficient for all our needs. Now, sometimes some good men,
and I mean that, good men, will agree with most of this doctrine,
but they want to add a brief disclaimer. They'll say something
like this. God is the Lord. He does as he pleases. Couldn't
God, if he wanted, give further special revelation? And if so,
shouldn't we be willing to receive it? But this is the wrong question
to ask. If you consider it for a moment,
it's based upon the doctrine of God's sovereignty, and it
reasons something like this. Since God is sovereign and is
free to accomplish his own holy will, if he sovereignly determines
to give further special revelation, we are obliged to accept it,
aren't we? And so we must leave open the possibility of further
special revelation. Now at first that sounds reasonable,
but there's a flaw in the argument. Here's the problem. God is not
sovereign over himself. Nor does the doctrine of his
sovereignty imply that there is nothing that he cannot do.
For example, the scripture says in Titus 1-2 that God cannot
lie. If he were to lie, he would cease
to be God, and reality would no longer exist. The issue is
not whether God can give further special revelation, because when
the question is expressed in this way, it leads us to only
one answer. You're forced, like cattle, being
led to the slaughter. Well, I guess so. Why would I
limit God's sovereignty? The real issue is, will God give
further special revelation? Has he revealed to us that that
special revelation is final and complete? And if he has revealed
that, then we can say, no, God can't give further revelation
because he's told us that it's done and over. That's the question
that we need to ask. We'll see in a moment that the
Word itself teaches us that there is no further need for special
revelation. When David says, you have exalted
above all things your name and your word, he ties together the
being of God and the word of God. In the same way that every
word that was spoken by his servants was true, so he ensures that
every jot and tittle of his written word is true. The Lord speaks
to you through the book that is before you. And I would assert
to you that you must believe it. So first David thinks of
the spoken word, then David thinks of the written word, But there's
a third way in which God has exalted his word. You might want
to put a marker here in Psalm 138, but turn with me to Hebrews
chapter 1. Listen to the first four verses
or follow along with me. Long ago, At many times and in
many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets. But in these
last days, he has spoken to us by his son, whom he appointed
the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint
of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his
power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the
right hand of the majesty on high having become as much superior
to angels as the name he has inherited, is more excellent
than they." This is a fascinating text. Now, I'll argue later on
today that the book of Hebrews is a sermon. But let me just
say that to you right now. At the beginning of this sermon,
the preacher of Hebrews turns the attention of his audience
to some historical facts. In the past, prior to the time
when he's preaching to the people and when it's written down and
recorded for our benefit, in the past God spoke. And he did
so in a variety of ways. An encounter in the Garden of
Eden, a dream or a vision, a word of prophecy that was given to
a seer. These were all true words to be believed and received when
they were given. But now in these last days, in
the final era of world history, in the period when the ends of
the ages have come, God has spoken in another way. Now, once again,
as we saw last night, we need to know that the language of
the original is even more precise than our English translation.
This is a fault of the English language. It's a difficulty that
we encounter simply because our English language doesn't have
the ability to express with precision what the original language does.
In fact, a literal translation might not seem to make sense,
but we need to know what it is. The text of verse 2 in Hebrews
1 says this, In these last days he has spoken to us in sun. not in his son, not by his son,
simply in son. Well, that doesn't immediately
make sense in English. We need that possessive pronoun
his. If you consider it for a moment,
it makes great sense. Here, the preacher is saying
to us something very important. It's true that the one who is
described is his son, the second person of the Holy Trinity. That's
not the difficulty. But this translation, smooth
as it is in English, and perfectly orthodox in every way, doesn't
reflect the full sense of meaning. By saying that God has spoken
to us in Son, our preacher is telling us that the Son is the
Lord's full and final revelation. Revelation is contained in Him. He Himself is the revelation. and we need to receive it. Everything
about him is a revelation of God's truth. Now this is really
astounding when you begin to think about it. Think about the
high and lofty concepts that we are taught in this text. We're
told that the Son is the creator of all things. Does that remind
you of Genesis chapter one? And what does Moses write to
us in Genesis chapter one? In the beginning was the Word
and the Word was God. He spoke, he said, Let there
be light. And what happened? There was
light. He spoke. He gave a word, a true word.
And a result of the power of his word is that light came into
being. We could work our way all the
way through Genesis chapter 1 and see that it was the word spoken.
that brought into being all of creation. His word effected creation. The writer here wants us to think
in those terms. Everything that is not God received
its being and its existence by His spoken word. And this is
precisely the first observation we've made on our text. He is
the radiance of God's glory, the exact imprint of His nature. That which may be said of God
may be truly said of Him. Eternity, self-existence, love,
truthfulness, majesty, power. In every way, the one spoken
of here is God to be worshipped and adored. But there's something
else that we must consider. Turn with me now to John chapter
one, the beginning of John's gospel. This is a new Bible and the pages
don't turn very easily. Again, we have creation language,
but it's amazing. John 1, verse 1. In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with
God. All things were made through him, and without him was not
anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life
was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it. Then we're told some things
about John the Baptist and his ministry. Skip down to verse
14. And the Word, the Word who was in the beginning, who was
with God, who was God, who made all things, and the Word became
flesh and dwelt among us. And we have seen His glory, glory
as of the only Son from the Father, full of steadfast love and truth,
full of grace and truth. Remember I said before, keep
that in mind. That's what John refers to when he speaks about
our Lord Jesus Christ. The word became flesh. the eternal
Son of God, second person of the Holy Trinity, the One who
was and is and is to come, the Creator and Sustainer of all
things, the One who with the Father and with the Spirit has
existed eternally. This One assumed a true human
nature. He became one with us in the
same way that every attribute of deity may truly be spoken
of Him. So also, every attribute of humanity
now belongs to Him. In that remarkable series of
events that are recorded in Matthew's gospel and in Luke's gospel,
God took human flesh. We've noticed the final words
of verse 14, full of grace and truth, the same words that we
find in Psalm 138, verse 2, translated there as steadfast love and faithfulness. The word became flesh. Jesus Christ, truly God, fully
man, is the embodiment of everything we have been describing. In these
last days, God has spoken to us in son. His word is exalted
along with his name, his spoken word, his written word, his beloved
son, who is the eternal word, exalted above all things. Would
you know what love is? Look to Jesus Christ. Do you
want to understand truth? Bow before Jesus Christ. Let
him be your teacher in all things. Now come back with me to Psalm
138. David confesses this great reality
about the threefold Word of God, the spoken Word, the written
Word, the incarnate Word. He says that the Lord has answered
his prayer. But then notice verses four through
six. Do they remind you of something in this light? All the kings
of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord, for they have heard the
words of your mouth, and they shall sing of the ways of the
Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord. For though the Lord
is high, he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows from
afar. When will it be that all the kings of the earth shall
give thanks? When will it be that they will have heard the
words of the Lord's mouth and sing of his ways and how great
his glory is? Will it be on that day when every
knee will bow and every tongue will confess, you know what they'll
confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the
Father. David writes prophetically here.
He writes looking forward to that day when the word who became
flesh will be worshiped by all the peoples of the earth. Now
we need to bring together these three expressions, the name of
God and the word of God that have been exalted above all things.
From the dawn of creation, God's speech is true. He made the world
and everything in it. He commanded Adam to fill the
earth. He told him not to eat the fruit of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil. Adam's disobedience brought a
curse, but it also brought a word of promise. God spoke to Adam,
telling him that a woman would bear a son, and that that son
would bring redemption from sin to the world. Dear friends, this
is the central theme of the Bible. Each spoken word heard by one
of God's people, Abram or Sarah or Jacob or Moses or David or
any of the others. Each spoken word gave hope and
expectation that the promise that was delivered to Adam and
Eve in the garden after the fall would be true. and every written
word given by inspired writers was about him. Jesus himself
said, the scriptures bear witness to me. On the night of his resurrection,
he gave two sets of disciples a lesson of interpretation in
the scripture. The pair who walked towards Emmaus
and the disciples who were gathered in Jerusalem behind locked doors
were taught the truth. Jesus taught them that the written
word testifies to him. You see, God spoke eternal words.
Prophets and apostles recorded eternal words. And the eternal
word assumed our flesh. And now He sits at the right
hand of God, exalted to the greatest place of glory in the universe. You see, there's a closed circle
here. God's name tells us that He is
eternal. He is holy, He is love, and He
is truth. When He speaks, Whether he does
so verbally, or through his prophets and apostles, or he does so finally
in his son, his word is always dependable. Because it is a word
that comes from God himself. It's not subjective, that is
something for us to decide is true, rather it is objective,
it takes on the character of its author. He does not change,
and it does not change. It is final. Will God give further
special revelation to us here on earth? No! Because He has
given us everything that we need in Jesus Christ. Peter put it
this way, his divine power, his sovereignty, has granted to us
all things that pertain to life and godliness, everything that
we need, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own
glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his very
precious and great promises, recorded for us in scripture,
so that through them you may become partakers of the divine
nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world
because of sinful desire. The word of God comes from God,
and it always remains the same. As Jesus said, your word is truth. Christian believer, follower
of Jesus, God has given to you a full and final revelation of
Himself. In the Old Testament, you see
the ongoing purpose of God preparing the way for the miracle of the
incarnation of the only begotten Son of God. In the New Testament,
you find His coming described and explained in the words of
His apostles. The Two Testaments provide you
with everything that the God of heaven and earth wanted you
to know. It is a full and final revelation of His glory, sufficient
for your life. You need the Old Testament and
you need the New Testament. You need all the Bible. Listen
to it as it is preached. Read it every day. Learn to love
it. God's Holy Spirit breathed it
out for your good, for your benefit, and for His glory. You must,
you may, you must trust it, rely on it, and live by it. Treat
your Bible as the most important book in your life. It contains
everything you need to know for life and godliness. You have
to ask yourself the question, do I cherish it as I should?
Am I growing in my knowledge of God and His ways through His
Word? Remember this, it is firm and
settled. I remind you of the words of
David, I've already quoted them. Forever, eternally, O Lord, your
word is firmly fixed in the heaven. The word of God is an eternal
word, progressively revealed and brought to completion in
Jesus Christ, and his word is all you need. O Lord, you have
exalted above all things your name and your word. Praise God
for his unchanging word. His steadfast love endures forever. Let's pray. Oh Lord, thank you that you've
not left us to stumble and wonder, but you've given to us your word.
We pray that we would receive it as the inspired and inerrant,
infallible, eternal, Word of God, the nourishment for our
souls, the guide that will take us to heaven. We pray that our
preachers would preach it faithfully, that your people will receive
it. We pray that it will be translated into every language that exists
on the earth, that people will be able to hear of the glory
of God in Jesus Christ. Thank you for giving us something
that is fixed and certain and sure. We bow down before you
and we worship. We give you thanks in Jesus'
name. Amen.
God's Unchanging Word
Series BTC 2021
BTC 2021 Session 4 - God's Unchanging Word - Dr. James Renihan
| Sermon ID | 62221037162321 |
| Duration | 41:20 |
| Date | |
| Category | Conference |
| Bible Text | Psalm 138 |
| Language | English |
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