Psalm 119:57-64 - Sermon Outline

An Alliterated Sermon Outline for Psalm 119:57-64.

v. 57a - The Psalmist's PORTION - "Thou art my portion, O Lord."  Desiring God and only God.

v. 57b - The Psalmist's PROFESSION - "I have said that I would keep thy words."  Part of the same profession we made when we trusted Christ, were baptized, joined a church, rededicated, shed tears down at the old fashioned altar call, etc.  Hebrews 10:23 - "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised)."

v. 58 - The Psalmist's PETITION - "I entreated thy favour with my whole heart."  How often we ask for God's favour with nothing but our lips, and our heart is not behind our prayers.  What is God listening to when we pray, our voice or our heart?

"Be merciful unto me according to thy word."  Repeating God's promises in prayer is effective.  Many can give testimony that powerful answers to prayer have come when God's promises were claimed.

vv. 59-60 - The Psalmist's PASSION - "I thought on my ways and turned my feet unto thy testimonies."  Passionate Conviction.  "I thought on my ways" - Conviction a matter of seeing sin for what it is.  "...Unto thy testimonies" - Conviction a response to the word of God.

"I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments."  Passionate Repentance, in response to Passionate Conviction.  Delayed obedience is disobedience.  Repentance is a matter of the mind and heart changing.  Repentance is measured not by the action, but by the attitude that prompts the action.  Here we see a true change of attitude that makes the sinner passionate to correct his wrongdoing.  A delay is in fact a denial.  Any so-called repentance that hesitatingly, begrudgingly or grumblingly changes the action is not "repentance toward God" or "godly sorrow [that] worketh repentance."  Illustration here of examples of such.  Anything short of a truly passionate desire to change the ways before God is a vain repentance and "ye shall all likewise perish" Luke 13:3, 5.

v. 61 - The Psalmist's PERSISTENCE - "The bands [companies, gangs] of the wicked have robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law."  Not like the seed landing in the stony places, who received the word and sprang up but by and by he was offended and withered (Matthew 13:20-21).  Despite the difficulties of the world that we all face, the psalmist continues to endure in serving the Lord.  After all, he made his PROFESSION, v. 57b.  The problems of life are not going to stand in the way of his continuing in the word of God.

v. 62 - The Psalmist's PRAISE - "At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments."  Thankful ALL THE TIME, even at MIDNIGHT.  Even in the darkest hours.  Compare Acts 16:25, where Paul and Silas locked in the dungeon at midnight are singing, praising God and praying.

v. 63 - The Psalmist's PARTNERSHIP - "I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts."  Lessons here on the importance of fellowship, on local church unity, on separation from unbelievers and the disobedient, etc.  Cross reference II Timothy 2:22 - "...with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart."  Who are you WITH?  Cross reference I Peter 4:4 - "Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot..."  Who are you NOT with?

v. 64 - The Psalmist as a PUPIL - "The earth, O LORD, is full of thy mercy: teach me thy statutes."  Teach me, he says.  All throughout this Psalm, the man begs to be taught.  He obviously has a TEACHABLE SPIRIT.  The lack of a teachable spirit is the cause of many hurtful dissensions, contentions, wounded Christians, unrecoverable offenses, church splits, etc.  An unteachable spirit manifests itself how?  Who is prone to it?  What is the root cause?  What is the solution?

VM
7/21/2011