Captivated By The Word Of God

Psalm 119:97-104

Psalm 119:98

My title this morning is “Captivated By The Word”

Now I made us all read the text so we will have a feel of it. Did you feel the heart of the Psalmist when you read the text? Did you feel the tone of the text? The tone of the text is simply the author's attitude or emotion around what they wrote. That word "Oh" opening the verse is an exclamatory word that describes a range of emotions. In grammar it is called interjection.

An interjection is a word or phrase that is grammatically independent from the words around it, and mainly expresses feeling rather than meaning (Merriam Webster).

Oh is used to describe a range of emotions, from disappointment, despair, surprise, joy and intense desire. I think you find it most often in the Psalms, but it is spread across the Scriptures.

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord, let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! (Psalm 95:1).

Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together (Psalm 34:3)

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints for those who fear him have no lack (Psalm 34:8-9).

In Malachi, we find that same word used by God to expresse a strong desire for a mediator to stop the false worship of his name:

Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the LORD of hosts, p and I will not accept an offering from your hand (Malachi 1:10).

To be sure, God doesn't possess emotions like us, where he is affected emotionally by events. Today he is happy, the next moment, he is sad. No, God doesn't have emotions. Anytime you read of God’s emotion, it is adaptation of human language.

Paul in Romans 11 after he had explored the depth of God’s sovereignty, broke into deep Doxology

33Oh, the depth of the riches and s wisdom and knowledge of God! t How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! 34 “For u who has known the mind of the Lord, or v who has been his counselor?” 35“Or w who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” 36For x from him and through him and to him are all things. y To him be glory forever. Amen.

"Oh how I love your law" It will be wrong to just read this text without connecting with the emotion of the Psalmist. Without connecting with the tone of the text. It is an affectionate expression of a strong desire and craving for God's word. It's a man Captivated By The Word Of God.

"Oh how I love your law" Do you love God’s law? Do you love his word? I have said it before, that a litmus text to know you are saved or there is life in you is your attitude towards God word. I use the Apostle Peter’s words in 1 Peter 2:2

Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual l milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3if indeed you have m tasted that the Lord is good.

Are you saved? Have you tasted that the Lord is good? Then you will have a longing, craving and desire for the word. You will be captivated. It will be your joy to know God's word (v.103). Can you truly testify of God’s word in this way? It's sweet. It is the words of your Saviour. The God who saved you has opened up his heart to you in his word. In his word he tells you how to honour him, how to live for him, what he has done to save you. He gives you wonderful promises in his word. In God’s word you see the heart of God: "Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law" (v.18).

Dear friends I don't know how the word affects you. But sometimes I wake up and feeling empty. Like I sense the day is going to be a drag. But then when I read the bible, my devotion, I get this renewed vitality for the day. These are not theoretical things. The word can give you a boost for the day. It can give inner peace and strength you couldn't get from anywhere. When you are stressed look to the word. Turn your eye upon Jesus in his word. Let the word captivated your heart.

Now if you are captivated by the word, it will show in your attitude towards the word:

You Meditate on The Word (v.97-99))

You think about the word. You internalise it. If you love the word of God, read it. You will study it. You will seek to grow and mature in the knowledge of the word. We will listen to it being preached. It is one thing to say you love God's word and yet it has no place in your life.

Dear friends as believers, the word should be our constant companion: "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." (Joshua 1:8).

In the heat of life, in the uncertainties that comes with living, make the word your meditation. Be captivated by the word. Draw your strength from the word. Feast on God’s promises.

Motivation To Love The Word

Now, while the Psalmist talks about his love for the word, he also speaks about what I will consider as motivation to love the word. Why should you love the word? Why should you meditate upon it?

Because It Is God’s Word

Before I will say any other thing, it's important to note that what the Psalmist is talking about is the law of God. See how he qualifies it: “your law”. He is talking about his love for God's law, and not some words of a poet or philosopher or legend. So you and I don’t have an option in this matter. It's God’s word. It's in it he has revealed his will so we must love it. For all who have come to faith in Christ, God’s word is our spiritual meal. We must eat it to grow or we will suffer stunted growth. It's also his word that calls sinners to repentance. The only way by which sinners can know how to come to him (John 3:16).

You see, in his word, God has revealed his love. Not that we first loved him, but he loved us first:

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

The Word Produces Wisdom (v.98)

What is wisdom? The ability to apply the word of God to our lives. We live in times where people have no regard for the word. But that should not be our lives as believers. We must let the word of God guide us. It must lead us.

The Psalmist tells us the word of God made him wise. It gave him understanding (vv.98-100,104). What we see in these verses is wisdom and understanding that comes from the word. Look at the number of times the Psalmist speaks of understanding. The word truly makes wise unto salvation.

Without understanding of the word of God, we will not come to appreciate our need of a Saviour. The Bible is clear that the natural person doesn't understand or accept the things of the Spirit of God because they are foolishness to him (1Corinthians 2:14). That's the picture here. His enemies are those who reject the truth of God’s word. But by the word and Spirit of God, the Psalmist has understanding. His soul is regenerated to accept spiritual truth. He is taught by God (v.102). If we are left on our own, nobody will be saved.

You remember what James said?

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him." (James 1:5).

The Word Produces Maturity ( vv.99-100)

We begin the Christian journey as it were like babies. But we must grow with time in our knowledge and application of biblical truth. In Hebrews, the author rebukes the believers of immaturity when at the time they were supposed to have matured and to teach others. The Psalmist here says he has more understanding than his teachers and the aged. Commentators have noted that, he doesn't say this in a negative sense making his teachers and aged inferior to him. But rather he has grown in what they have taught him.

When he claims the credit of being superior in knowledge to his instructors, he does not mean to deny that they also had learned from the word of God what was useful to be known. But he gives God thanks for enabling him to surpass, in proficiency, those from whom he had learned the first elements of knowledge. (432) Nor is it any new thing for the scholar to excel his master, according as God distributes to each man the measure of understanding...He adds the same thing respecting the aged, for the more abundant confirmation of his statement. Age is of great avail in polishing, by long experience and practice, men who, by nature, are dull and rude. Now the prophet asserts, that he had acquired, by the Divine Law, more discretion than belongs to aged men.

The Word Restrains From Evil (vv.101-102).

The Psalmist keeps God’s precepts, he holds back his feet from every evil way. That is self-control brethren. We live in a fallen world in a fallen body and the opportunity to sin is always present with us. But we must excercise self-control. We must discipline ourselves to obey God.

He also says he doesn't turn aside from God's rule. I see this as a dedication and intentionality to obey God’s words. Brethren, as believers, we must be clear in our mind that we will obey God’s rule at all times. It doesn't come easy. Sometimes we may find ourselves in compromising situations, but we must be determined, we must purpose in our hearts, like the Hebrew boys that we will not defile ourselves. We must be determined to keep ourselves.

Let's not be only hearers of the word, but doers of it too.

The Word Produces A Distaste for falsehood ( v.104).

Anyone who loves the word of God will hate falsehood. There's a lot going on out there in the name of Christianity that is no Christianity at all. Many are deceived things they are following Christ when indeed they are following their own passions. They have itchy ears and are hearing what they want to hear.

For the time is coming when people will not endure n sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions (2Timothy 4:3)

This is as true today as when it was written. Any foolish thing in the name of Christianity gets peoples attention because of course it feeds their sin and greed. Sound teaching confronts sin, calls for conformity to the image of Christ and calls for us to leave our ways for God's way. And people will have none of that. They will hear what they want to hear.

But those who love God's word will be put off by falsehood. We can't hear people twisting the word and be silent. There must be a distaste and disgust for false teaching. You and I who have believed in Christ must defend his word. By propagating truth and not falsehood. We must be involved in spreading the truth and exposing falsehood in whatever means is available to us.