Please stand for the reading of Holy Scripture. Our New Testament lesson comes from the book of Hebrews, chapter 4, beginning in verse 12. For the word of God is living and powerful. and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even the division of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and opened to the eyes of him to whom we must give thanks. account. Seeing then that we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weakness, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. This is the word of the Lord. Let's turn now to our Old Testament lesson and sermon text, Psalm 19. Last week, we studied the first six verses of Psalm 19. This morning, we'll read verses 7 through 11. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean. Enduring forever, the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover, by them your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. Grass withereth, the flower fadeth. The word of God stands forever. Amen. You may be seated. Last week we raised the question, how can I know God? And the answer we saw is divine revelation. God must reveal himself to you. And specifically, we considered his revelation in nature, both internally, the light of nature in man, and then externally, God's works of creation and providence. This morning, I want to address a related question, and that is, how can I know God as my Savior? How can I know God as my Savior? Or even more simply and starkly, how can I be saved? And here we are confronted with the fact that natural or general revelation However effective in leaving us without an excuse for rejecting God, this kind of revelation in nature is insufficient to save anyone. It's insufficient to save you. If you are to know the way of salvation, if you are to have a right relationship with God, you need God's special, his supernatural revelation as it is recorded in the pages of the Bible. Look at verse seven of our text. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. In addition to the book of nature, God has also authored the book of scripture. The Belgic Confession says this. Secondly, he makes himself more clearly. and fully known to us by his holy and divine word. That is to say, as far as is necessary for us to know in this life, to his glory and our salvation. This morning, we're gonna consider what the word of God has to say about the word of God, about itself. As God's Word, the Bible is uniquely self-attesting, self-evidencing, and self-authenticating. We stand in awe of God's Word. We're gonna look at this text in three parts. The nature, the attributes, and the efficacy of the Bible. In other words, we're gonna look at three questions. What is scripture? What is scripture like? And then finally, what does scripture do? And my hope along the way that this will not simply be an exercise in head knowledge, but in heart religion, that you'll be led to say with the psalmist, oh how I love thy holy law, oh Lord. I stand in awe of the word of God. Let's begin, first of all, with the nature of the Bible. What is Scripture? Most of you probably own a copy of God's Word, the most published book in world history. And yet, what is it? Scripture is a subset of what theologians like to call supernatural or special revelation. Unlike general revelation, the sun, the moon, the stars, your conscience, which is accessible to everybody, God's special revelation is given to a particular people. More than that, if we want to talk about the Bible, this is God's special revelation written down. This is God's supernatural revelation recorded in a book that you can hold in your lap, that you can pull up on your iPhone. It's the word of God written. And I say that because there are examples in the Bible of special revelation that was not written down, at least not initially. For instance, Joseph received dreams. Daniel received visions. Isaiah received oracles. God revealed himself through miracles, the crossing and division of the Red Sea, through signs and seals like circumcision or the Passover, and theophanies, the appearance of God's glory in the burning bush where God told Moses to take off his sandals. He was on holy ground. But the reason that any of us know about those words and those deeds is because they were written down in a book. They were written down in the holy scriptures. The Westminster Confession of Faith tells us in good summary fashion that God put his special revelation into writing for at least two reasons. First, to preserve and propagate the truth, and second, to establish and comfort the church. Now, God could have told us to pass down His statutes and His precepts orally. You can do that by oral tradition, but we all know what it's like to play the telephone game. If you move down the line, even across a pew of people, suddenly the message gets garbled and confused, and by the end of it, it might look like something totally different. And so God knew for our comfort, our establishment, for the preservation of his truth, it would be good to set it down in a canon of scripture, in a collection of documents known as the Bible. God, who wrote the Ten Commandments on tablets of stone with his finger, so to speak, this God, who revealed himself to us, to our fathers in various ways, in these last days has spoken to us by his Son, and then sent out his apostles to write down that New Testament scriptures that bear witness to Christ. He's given us everything we need in terms of special revelation in the Old and New Testament scriptures. we have a more sure word of prophecy. We have the word of God written. Now with that definition in mind, the word of God written, let's consider what Psalm 19 teaches us about this book. We've already said that God's revelation in nature was given to us in verses one to six, and now he turns, David, the king, turns to God's revelation in scripture in verses seven through 11. Let's read the first three verses. Verse seven, the law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. When it comes to the nature of the Bible, what the scripture is, David lists six names for God's word. The law, the testimony, statutes, commandments, fear, and judgments. First of all, it's called the law of the Lord. Although law can refer to God's moral, ceremonial, or civil laws, the five books of Moses, or even the entire Old Testament period, often, as here, the Bible speaks of the law, or the Torah, to describe all of God's special revelation, the scriptures in general. This tells us something about the character of the whole Bible. That the whole Bible can be described as Torah, as instruction for life, as the law of Jehovah. Second, it's called the testimony of the Lord. Now testimony is a covenant term. The Bible is a witness to covenant history. It's a written record of God's covenant faithfulness throughout our generations to his people, represented by Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Ezra, and ultimately, Jesus. It's the testimony of Jehovah. It's a covenant book. Third, it's called the statutes of the Lord. The scriptures you hold in your hands are a record of the royal decrees of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, the statutes of Jehovah. Fourth, the commandment of the Lord. Although the Bible is to be believed, it is also something to be obeyed. Paul even speaks this way about the gospel, those who have obeyed not the gospel. This is the commandment of the Lord. It's not a suggestion. It's not pious advice. It is the commandment of Jehovah. Fifth, it's called the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord, which is an interesting title. that as God's self-disclosure, the Bible is meant to produce in you a fear of God, a conscious awareness that you stand in the presence of the God who is holy, holy, holy. This book should put the fear of God into you. It is the fear of Jehovah. And then sixth and finally, the judgments of the Lord. The author of this book, our God, is the king and judge of all the earth, and his book declares his judgments, his condemnation of the wicked and his vindication of the righteous. It's the judgments of the Lord. Congregation, this is what the Bible is. It's the word of God written, and specifically, it is God's law, testimony, statutes, commandments, fear, and judgments. That's what it is. But what is it like? If we were to unpack what the Bible is like, what would we say? And that brings us from the nature of the Bible to second, the attributes of the Bible, the attributes of Scripture. Now an attribute is just an adjective that describes something. Now we're more familiar with talking about the attributes of God, aren't we? the attributes of the Lord, that he is immortal, invisible, the only wise God. We can also talk about the attributes of God's word. And here, David lists, under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, nine attributes of scripture. Nine attributes, perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, true, righteous, desirable, and sweet. When David considers what is God's word like, these are the terms that rise to the surface for him. First of all, first attribute, the Bible is perfect. The Bible's perfect. It's the Hebrew word which is often translated blameless. It's used of acceptable sacrifices. Just as a sacrifice would be without blemish, without defect, even so God's word is perfect. Absolutely perfect. As the psalmist says, I have seen an end of all perfection, but thy word is exceeding broad. There are no errors or mistakes in this book. Not one. Not even when it comes to the details of history or the implications of science. Even when it comes to the age of the earth. Even when it comes to the chronology of the kings. This book is perfect. There's no errors, there's no mistakes in it. As Jesus said, the scriptures cannot be broken. Thy word is truth. Sanctify them in thy truth. Thy word is truth. It's inspired, it's from God, it's breathed out by God, it's inerrant, there's no mistakes in it, and it's infallible. It always accomplishes God's purposes. Even when it hardens sinners in their unrepentance, and when it softens them and brings them to repentance, God's word never comes back void. Like the rain and the snow from heaven that waters the earth and causes it to bring forth and bud and blossom, God's word always does what God wants it to do. It is perfect. Second, it's sure. It's sure, which means this book is utterly reliable and it's trustworthy. You can trust it. You can stake your life on it. You can take it to the bank. This is one reason that you should believe that the Bible is God's Word. Some of you might be familiar with the preacher, Vodie Bauckham. And he says, we should believe the Bible not simply because I was raised that way, and not simply because I tried it and it worked for me, but rather we should believe it because it is sure, because it is Reliable because it is trustworthy. I'm gonna quote Wody Bach in length. He says, I choose to believe the Bible because it is a reliable collection of historical documents written down by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses. They report supernatural events that took place in fulfillment of specific prophecies and they claim that their writings are divine rather than human in origin. Now that is a mouthful, and it took me a while just to write that down. And so just to distill what Vody is saying into just one word, you should believe it because it's sure, because it's trustworthy, because it's reliable, because you can bank on it. At this book, written by 40 or so men over 1,600 years in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, providentially preserved in the manuscript witness, the Masoretic text, and the Greek New Testament that God has seen fit to make his word absolutely sure. When we talk about the authority of the Bible, we're not engaged in circular reasoning. No, we are building a cumulative case that is linear and logical, presupposed yet demonstrated. It is sure. It is reliable. Third. It's right. It's right. Literally, it's straight or it's smooth. It's not crooked. It's not uneven. It's right. It shoots straight. Other documents get things wrong. Give you an example of a document that gets something wrong. In 2023, Nature, which is a well-respected, peer-reviewed, scientific magazine, retracted, pulled back 10,000 published articles. 10,000 research papers. Why do you think they did that? This supposedly prestigious magazine, periodical. Well, they admitted it was because of plagiarism, manipulated outcomes, and straight-up lies. They may not have used the term lies, but you can read between the lines. A lot of times, man-made documents get things wrong. In congregation, praise be to the Lord, the Bible's not like that. Hallelujah, amen. Our word is not like that. Our word is right. It never gets the story wrong. It always sets the record straight. It's right. Fourth, it's pure. This book is pure, like a pure metal. It's got no dross or impurities in it. It's like silver tried in the furnace of earth, purified seven times. It's pure. Congregation, there are so many impure. so many dirty and wretched things to watch or read in this world, so why not spend more of your time reading the Bible, a pure book? Why not spend more of your time listening to the Bible? A pure word. Why not spend more of your energy meditating, memorizing, marinating your soul in this book? It is pure. What does Paul say? Whatsoever things are true. Whatsoever things are honest. Whatsoever things are just. Whatsoever things are pure. Whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on these things. And all of those descriptors of Paul describe this book. It's pure. It's wholesome. It's good for you. Not just your brain, it's good for your soul. It's good for your whole person. This is also one reason we know the Bible is God's word. As larger catechism says, the scriptures manifest themselves to be the word of God. They prove themselves by their majesty and purity, by the consent of all the parts and the scope of the whole, which is to give all glory to God. The Bible is pure in a way that nothing else is. Fifth, It's clean. It's clean. This term is often used in the Bible of ceremonially clean animals. This book is not dirty or defiled, but it's clean. Some of you know what it's like to regret sins that defiled your conscience, and the blood of Christ needs to be sprinkled upon those sins, to cleanse you from an impure conscience, to give you a good conscience. Take heart, this book is clean. It's like garments of white linen. Every letter washed red in the blood of Jesus. This book is clean. Sixth, it's true. true. And for those living adrift on a subjective sea of postmodern relativism, the fact that God's word is true should be like water in the desert. It should be like an oasis in a dry and thirsty land because you live in a world of lies, hype, and spin misinformation and fake news in which the media is 24-7 trying to shove down your throats a liberal, secular, and demonic agenda. And we need desperately to have truth. We're starved for truth. We're thirsty for truth. We're crying out for truth. And God's word is truth. Give me an example of what we face today, kind of postmodern relativism, where you have your truth and I have my truth. That's yours truth. Those kinds of statements, they flow from a postmodern relativism. And again, I'll show you one example. Catherine Mayer is the former CEO of Wikimedia Foundation, which is the parent organization for Wikipedia. Most of you are familiar with that. She's also the current CEO of NPR, National Public Radio, a supposedly objective journal source. Well, in 2021, Catherine Mayer, in a TED Talk, said this, Seeking the truth and seeking to convince others of the truth might not be the right place to start. Hear what she said? Seeking the truth might not be the best place to start. In fact, our reverence for the truth might be a distraction that's getting in the way of finding common ground and getting things done. Notice the sleight of hand. All you want to talk about is facts and truth and reality. Let's just put all that to the side. Let's not look for truth. Let's not try to persuade each other with arguments. Put logic and truth and facts, put that on the side. Let's just focus on getting things done, which knowing something about her means let's push the agenda of radical, secular liberalism. What she's done is she's taken post-modern relativism and enforced it for the sake of a political activism. Well, congregations, thank God, his word is objectively and absolutely true. It not only perfectly coheres within itself in all the rainbow-like colors of the various genres it contains, but this book absolutely corresponds to reality. It is true. Where the world doesn't know the difference between a man or a woman, the Bible says, in the beginning, God made them male and female. And he defined marriage and gave us biology all at once. This book is objectively true. Seventh. It's righteous. It's righteous. We live in a time of unequal weights and measures. We live in an era of woke social justice. We live, not us personally, but in the United Kingdom, there is a total two-tiered police system where they don't treat even illegal immigrants the same way they treat native-born British citizens. We live in a time of great injustice, and we need the righteous standards of biblical justice. We have the word of God. In Deuteronomy, God says through Moses that there's no other nation that was blessed with righteous laws like Israel. This book is righteous. Eighth, it's desirable. It's desirable. Look at verse 10. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold. God's judgments are more valuable than gold. This book is a treasure map and a treasure chest all at the same time. It's the map that tells you where to look for the treasure, and inside, you find the treasure itself. Because in this book, if you seek for it by faith, you will find the pearl of great price. In this book, you will find Jesus Christ himself. Jesus Christ, the seed of the woman. who crushed the head of the serpent. Jesus Christ, the seed of Abraham. Jesus Christ, a prophet greater than Moses. Jesus Christ, the ark of our salvation. Jesus Christ, the priest who offered himself as a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice. Jesus Christ, the righteous king who suffers crying out, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me on the cross? Jesus Christ who said in Moses, the law, the prophets, the writings, the Psalms, they all testify of me. This book is a treasure chest in which you find Jesus Christ himself, the desire of nations. This book is desirable. It's desirable, it's valuable. Ninth and final attribute, it's sweet. It's sweet. It's one of Jonathan Edwards' favorite words to describe truths that he loved. He said, it's delightful, it's sweet. Well, here David says, when I think about the Bible, I think of something that is abundantly sweet. Look at verse 10 again, the second half of that verse. Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Not just desirable, not just valuable, but sweet. In Revelation 10, we're told that John ate a book and it was as sweet as honey to his mouth. Well in this case, David's saying not just as sweet as honey, it's sweeter than honey. It's better than honey. It works on your spiritual taste buds. And it's a helpful diagnostic question to ask yourself this morning. Do you value this book? Is it desirable to you? Is this book sweet to you? Covenant children, when your parents have you read the Bible or maybe listen to the Bible as part of your daily practice of private worship, of getting alone with God, when you gather around the table for family worship, can you honestly say, this book is sweet to me? I long to hear the words of life. Is this book sweet to you? And if it's not, if this book is not sweet to you, let me tell you, congregation, that's not a problem with this book. And it's not a problem necessarily with the preacher. It's a problem with us, that our taste buds have grown dull. We have a defective spiritual palate, and we need to pray and say, God, God, give us the ability to appreciate your word. Give me spiritual taste buds that find this book sweet. Give me a heart that treasures your words. That's a prayer God loves to hear. You have not because he asks not. If you don't enjoy your Bible reading, if you don't enjoy coming to public worship, then pray to the Lord to give you that desire. You'd find it sweet. I just love how David piles up the adjectives, the attributes, the descriptors, perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, true, righteous, desirable, sweet. That's what the Bible is like. There's one final perfection of scripture I want to talk about, and that is not just its nature or its attributes, but what the Bible does. You realize this is not a static book. This is not a book you put under glass in a museum. This doesn't belong in a museum. It belongs on your nightstands. It belongs on your phones. It belongs in your lap. It belongs on your shelf. It belongs in an opened posture. It's a book that is meant to be used like a sword in battle, like a lamp in a dark maze, like fire that quickens and warms the sinews, like a hammer that smashes the rocks. This book does something. That leads us to our final point, the efficacy of the Bible. the efficacy of the Bible. That's a big word, it really just means we could say the effectiveness of the Bible, or the sufficiency of scripture. I love what Martin Luther said, he said, the power is in the book. The power is in the book because God has promised he's gonna accompany the reading and the preaching of the Bible with his own Holy Spirit. The Spirit bears witness by and with the Word in the heart of man, convincing us that it is the very Word of God. God's Word and Spirit go together like two hands, like a one-two punch, and this book does something. God put his power in the book. David lists seven things the Bible does. Again, six names for the Bible, nine attributes of Bible now, seven things the Bible does. Converting, making, rejoicing, enlightening, enduring, warning, and offering. If you can't write all these things down and you can't remember this catalog of perfections, make sure that the total effect is not lost on you, that this is a majestic and matchless book, that this book is a book that is meant to master you and lead you to heaven, lead you to Christ, Let that have its full effects. With that in mind, let's look at each of these seven things the Bible does. First, converting the soul. Converting the soul. We know that nature is insufficient to save us, but you might wonder, well, how can the law save us? I thought the law condemned us and the gospel saved us. What does David mean when he says the law of the Lord converts the soul? Well, a couple observations. First, converting the soul could be translated as reviving or restoring the soul. The law has this use for redeemed sinners. Not only curbs sinfulness in society and reveals man's need for a savior, but it functions as a rule of life for the Christian. It's one of God's means of grace in reviving and restoring us. There's also a second observation that builds on what we already talked about earlier, and that is that David often uses the word law in a broader sense than, say, the Ten Commandments. That he's using this in a broad sense to describe all of the Bible. In all of the Bible, the whole counsel of God includes the message of the gospel. Think of 2 Timothy 3.15, that from a child, thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, which is through faith in Christ Jesus. The law, in the sense of the whole Bible, is able to make you wise unto salvation, that faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. It's through this book that God converts people ordinarily. That's worth asking. Are you a converted man, a converted woman, or a converted child? Do you know the Lord as your Savior? Have you turned from your sin and are you trusting in Christ, alone for salvation? If that's not the case this morning, and I don't want to make assumptions about where everybody is, I realize that not only is there a distinction between the church and the world, but even within the visible church, there are tares. There are false sons within her pale. There are those who profess Christ with their lips while their hearts are far from them. There are even those who profess faith publicly and come to the Lord's table, but they don't really believe it. They don't really love this book. They don't really love Jesus. And if you're here today and you're not converted, then I would plead with you, embrace Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Receive and rest upon him alone as he's offered to you in the gospel in real time right now. Trust in him and you will be saved. Because this word is able to convert and convince sinners. As Larger Catechism says, by their light and power to convince and convert sinners and to comfort and build up believers unto salvation, converting the soul. More briefly, second thing Bible does, making wise the simple. Making wise the simple. James says, if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God. because God is generous with his gifts. But I will say, if you lack wisdom, part of the answer to that prayer is found in the Bible itself. If you lack wisdom, yes, pray for it, but also go to the source of wisdom, go to the fountain of wisdom, go to the Bible, because this book is a book of wisdom. I'm gonna encourage everybody here, but especially the young men who are here, the young men. you need to be spending a particular amount of time in the Proverbs of King Solomon. Because that book was given to make you wise, not to despise the instruction of your mother, not to turn a blind eye to the law of your father. It was meant to help you to take ownership of your body. to enslave your body so that your passions don't enslave you. It was meant to lead you to wisdom so that you're not a slave, but a son, a king under High King Jesus. So if you lack wisdom, you need to spend time in this book. Spend time in the wisdom literature. Learn the Psalms, learn the Proverbs, study Ecclesiastes and the Song of Solomon. It's gonna make you wise. Third, the Bible rejoices the heart. Are you sad this morning? We all go through seasons of sadness. If you're sad, the Bible encouraged us to sing a psalm. The psalms were given to us in our periods of distress to cry out to the Lord, Lord have mercy upon me. Hear me when I cry, O God of my righteousness. Turn not a deaf ear to my pleas. Sing a psalm. Are you weary? Pray the Lord's prayer. Are you discouraged? Meditate upon the promises of scripture. The psalmist says his feet had well nigh slipped when he saw the prosperity of the wicked, but then he came to the house of God, and he heard the judgments of God, and he knew the end of the wicked, and he knew the end of the righteous, and his heart rejoiced. Whom have I in heaven but thee? If there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth, but God is the strength of my heart. He's my portion forever. And how do you know God like that? You know him through his word, through the scriptures. It's like what Jesus said to his disciples. They said, show us the Father. And Jesus says, if you've seen me, you've seen the Father. If you've been with me such a small amount of time that you don't know that I am the revelation of God, well, in an analogous way, congregation, you might say, show us Jesus. Show us Jesus. Well, congregation, he's told us where to look. It's in the Bible. The written word bears witness to the living word. If you want to find Jesus, don't look for him in pop culture. Don't look for him in online gurus. Look for him in the pages of holy scripture. Search the scriptures. Christ is here for those who have faith. Rejoicing the heart. Fourth, enlightening the eyes. If your eyes have become dull with ignorance or weariness, you can ask God to enlighten them by his word and spirit. The entrance of thy words giveth light, enlightening your eyes like the honey that brightened the countenance of Jonathan in battle. Fifth, enduring forever. Enduring forever. Is your money spent? Bank account drains? Your youth withered, opportunities lost, your body aged and broken. Well, go back to this book because it endures forever. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth. The Word of God stands forever. In fact, the whole Bible stands forever. Often we want to pit the Old Testament against the New, but what did Jesus say? He said, think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, not one jot or one tittle Shall no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled, enduring forever. Forever thy word is settled in heaven. Do you hear a preacher on YouTube saying, well, that was true for Paul, but we're in a different cultural context, so feminism's okay. Turn that radio preacher off. Click out of that YouTube video. They're telling you a lie. No, this book is enduring forever. It's steadfast. It's forever settled in heaven. Sixth thing the Bible does, it warns God's servants. Verse 11, moreover by them your servant is warned. This book is full of sober warnings, sanctions for disobedience. Don't go down that path. Don't listen to lady folly. Don't listen to the wanton woman. Don't drink the wine when it sparkles in the glass and you're in a low state and you might be tempted to get drunk. You need to heed the warnings of the Bible. They are meant for your good. They're meant to lead you to repentance. Warning and rebuke from the pulpit is not meant to browbeat you or hit you upside the head with a two by four. It's meant as a gracious word to warn you from destruction. Flee from the wrath, come. Seventh and final thing the Bible does, it offers great reward. Great reward for faithfulness. Look at verse 11, and in keeping them, that is God's judgments, there is great reward. Not only is the Bible full of sober warnings, it's also full of precious promises to those who love God. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. You and your household. Lo, Jesus says, I am with you always, even to the end of the worlds. This book offers great reward for faithfulness. That God promises to crown his own graces when by his grace we stand before him. clothed in Christ's righteousness, and he says, well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your master. Nature, attributes, efficacy of the Bible. What the Bible is, what it's like, what it does. In Psalm 19, we find an answer to the question, how can I know God as my savior? How can I be saved? And just to build on that, you could ask a follow-up question. How does the Bible, how does the Bible become effectual to salvation? How do I use this book well? Well, briefly, as we close, the Shorter Catechism says this, that the word may become effectual to salvation. We must attend thereunto with diligence, preparation, and prayer. Receive it with faith and love. lay it up in our hearts and practice it in our lives. It's not enough to have this on your dashboard. It's not enough to have you version downloaded on your phone. You need to use this book in faith. Attention, preparation, prayer, faith, love, memorization, meditation, application. I've quoted this a million times by Terry Johnson, but read the word, hear the word, pray the word, sing the word, see the word. Hear the word read publicly and preached right now. Read it in family and private worship. Pray it back to God. Sing the Psalms. See the word in the sacraments. And in all these things, and you can't miss this. If you get nothing else, don't miss this. In all these things, through the Bible, lay hold of Jesus Christ himself by faith. Lay hold of Jesus. Working out your own salvation in love and gratitude. Congregation, to know God as your savior, not simply as your creator and judge, but to know him as your redeemer. This is more vital than food or drink. It is more precious than silver or gold. It's more urgent than life or death. Man doth not live by bread alone. but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Remember when Michael Barrett was retiring from a ministry post at Faith Free Presbyterian in Greenville, and he closed his farewell sermon, and he said, not knowing what to exhort his congregation, he closed his Bible and said, read your Bibles. Read your Bibles. And he said that, not in a kind of check-off-the-box sort of manner, but he wanted God's people to love this Word because they love the God of the Word. So if I can leave you with anything else, you need massive doses of the Word of God. More, likely more than you are currently receiving. You need more of God's word flowing through your veins so that like Spurgeon, if they prick you, you might bleed Bible. You need more of the word in your life so that you can say, oh how I love thy holy law, oh Lord. Day and night it is my meditation. I stand in awe of thy word. Let us pray.