We need keystone species. Forty-five years ago Mount St Helens erupted and all kinds of devastation happened. According to an article in Institute for Creation Research titled “Biological Bounceback At Mount St. Helens,” many ecologists believed the devastated landscape was sterile and it would take more than a century for biology to recolonize the land that looked more like the moon’s surface than anything on earth.
But it didn’t take that long. Right away certain species of trees and plants were taking root. These plants and trees “form symbiotic relationships with microbes that partner with their root tissues, pulling vital nitrogen from the air and plugging it into the soil.” These plants and trees are what are called “keystone species.” Keystone species are those species that have big impacts on the health, structure, function, diversity and survival of the whole ecosystem. So that’s why at Mount St Helens the ground around these keystone species was flourishing with more plant life – it was because of those critical keystone species.
Christians, we need to plant keystone species in our lives too. Our spiritual function, structure, and health depend on it. We need to plant things in our lives that make us grow and thrive as Christians. The one keystone species we’ll focus on today is God’s Word. What view of God’s Word do we have? Do we have the right view?
Psalm 19:7-10 is giving us keystone species to plant in the landscape of our faith. There are 5 things we should see about the Bible: it is PERFECT, TRUSTWORTHY, RIGHT, PURE, and of MATCHLESS VALUE. Seeing the Bible this way will be like planting keystone species in our faith that will lead to spiritual stability, strength, health and flourishing.
As a refresher, we are back in Psalm 19 today, which divides neatly into 3 parts. The first part focuses on God’s Revelation in Creation in verses 1-6. The second part focuses on God’s Revelation through His Word in verses 7-10. The third part focuses on Man’s Response to God’s Revelation, verses 11-14.
Our focus today is the second part, God’s Revelation through His Word, verses 7-10. In this section, notice the Hebrew style of couplets. The first line tells us a quality of God’s word that is objectively true (“the law of the Lord is PERFECT”). The second half tells us the benefit of God’s word to us (“REFRESHING the soul”). So I want to focus today on the first lines where the objective quality of God’s word is declared. So our sermon today will cover these qualities of God’s Word: It is perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, firm, righteous, and valuable. We will not cover the benefits to us this week. We’ll do that next week.
#1: GOD’S WORD IS PERFECT (v7)
God’s Word is perfect. Notice the first line in verse 7, “The law of the LORD is perfect.” The word perfect in Hebrew means “complete, whole, sound, lacking nothing.” We covered this one point 3 weeks ago so I’ll only briefly say this: God’s word is His spoken revelation to us and God has spoken perfectly to us. He didn’t speak inadequately. He didn’t forget something or leave something out. Within the Scriptures we find EVERYTHING we need to have life and live life to Him because God in His perfect wisdom has spoken to us EVERYTHING we need. This leads to 2 important applications:
APPLICATION: Because God’s revelation is perfect and complete, it is a sin to add to or take away from God’s words. Deuteronomy 4:2 says, “Do not add to what I command you today and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.” Proverbs 30:6 says the same thing, “Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.” The last words of the Bible famously warn, “If anyone adds to the words of the prophecy of this book God will add to to him the plagues that are in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this prophecy God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll.” Do not add to God’s words. Do not take away from God’s words.
APPLICATION to the APPLICATION: Don’t add to God’s word by elevating your favorite Christian authors to be more influenctial in your life than the actual Scriptures. The Pope just died so I’ll say this, the Pope speaking ex cathedra and the Magisterium establishing Catholic dogma are in actuality adding to God’s word the unqualified words of men. Which is why the Catholic Church has unbiblical teachings like the perpetual virginity of Mary, Mary as a co-redeemer alongside Jesus, purgatory, indulgences and so on. When you add man’s words to God’s you end up leaving God’s words for man’s and contradicting the Scriptures. But I have more specific applications: study to know the Scriptures better than you study to know your favorite Christian authors and speakers. Don’t let your understanding of God be defined 99% by 2nd hand information when you should have your faith and convictions formed directly from the Bible. Treat the Bible as superior to psychology.
APPLICATION: Because God’s word is perfect, it means God’s word is sufficient. It is sufficient for life and godliness 1 Peter 1 says. God’s word does not need us. Because it is sufficient, it demands our full trust and obedience. Stop going to idols instead of God’s word. Stop turning to worldly philosophies rather than God’s word. Stop turning to doctrines of demons instead of God’s word. Stop following false teachers who distort and lead you away from God’s perfect word. Stop reading books and watching shows that you so easily put your trust in and instead put your trust in God’s Word. Jesus Calling, Supposed “words from the Lord,” mystical experiences, hearing from God in the Silence, blaming your sin on some supposed mental health issue and recategorizing it as something other than sin.
#2: GOD’S WORD IS TRUSTWORTHY (v7b, 9b)
Notice still in verse 7, “The statutes of the LORD are TRUSTWORTHY.” Verse 9b says, “The decrees of the LORD are firm.” Trustworthy. Firm.
The word “firm means something is “sure,” “stable,” and “reliable.” Then the word for trustworthy refers to something that “supports,” or something that is “sure,” or “established,” or “faithful,” or “stands firm,” or “upholds.” The word is used of pillars, the things that are holding a structure up, pillars are relied on, they are faithful, they are established, they support everything. That’s God’s Word – it is trustworthy because it stands firm and is reliable.
Or as commentators K&D say, God’s word is “raised above all doubt in its declarations, and verifying itself in its threatenings and promises.”
APPLICATION: In a world that seems to be changing so rapidly we can rely on God’s Word. It stands firm. We may not be able to rely on anything else, but we know we can rely on God’s Word. It is trustworthy.
APPLICATION: Everything God’s word says stands firm. His promises stand firm. The future it describes stands firm. The day of Judgment is sure to come. The new heavens and new earth are certain. The coming of Jesus is trustworthy.
#3: GOD’S WORD IS RIGHT (v8,a, 9b)
Gods word is right. Verse 8 says, “The precepts of the LORD are right…” The end of verse 9 says, “all of them [decrees] are righteous.” “Right” and “righteous.”
“Right” here means things like “straight,” “upright,” “correct,” “just,” “level,” and “righteous.” “Righteous” means “just” or “to be in the right.” The idea is that God’s commands, and all of His word, are correct. God’s word is always in the right. All His words are righteous and they are just. When our ideas of what is right collide with God’s it exposes how we have ideas that are wrong. And that’s the key here: God’s word is always right and cannot be condemned. It is morally right, historically right, scientifically right. It is right in its description of historical events, places and people. Itis right in its judgments of man, its description of man, of God and His righteousness, of His judgements, of our world and its condition.
It is not wrong. It is true and correct – for all time. It does not become wrong or incorrect over time. It is right in destroying Canaanites, right in its record of creation, right in its definitions and commands for sexuality, right in its warning of judgement. We are wrong and find correction from Gods word.
APPLICATION: One of the gauges of whether or not you are truly a Christian is if you believe the Bible is right.
APPLICATION: It should be obeyed by men, not ignored, and not changed.
APPLICATION: We don’t make God’s word right, Gods word makes us right. It aligns you with right. 2 Timothy 3:16-17….
#4 GOD’S WORD IS RADIANT & PURE
Fourth, God’s word is Radiant, verse 8 says, “The commands of the LORD are radiant.” Then verse 9 says, “The fear of the LORD is pure.” The phrase “the fear of the LORD” is interesting here as usually its used to describe a man’s awe and obedience to God. But here its used apparently as a synonym for God’s Word. I would explain it like this: for a man to walk in the fear of the Lord he has to walk according to God’s word. So God’s word is the way of the fear of the Lord.
But we have in verse 8 and 9 two words: Radiant and pure. Radiant is a word that means “clear,” “pure,” “clean,” “empty,” “sincere.” Pure means something very similar, being defined as “clean” just like “radiant” is. Taking them all together it has the idea of something not having any defiling or adulterating substance in it. The same word is used of people having pure hearts, or clean hands, or being pure virgins. Psalm 12:6 uses the word this way, “The words of the LORD are flawless, like silver purified in a crucible, like gold refined seven times.” God’s word is pure, clean, being in no way defiled and certainly in no way defiling anyone. Radiant in its purity.
This idea of pureness, radiance, could apply to exorcisms in the Bible when people were purified of demonic spirits. Pure could apply to someone’s advice in that they give pure advice – not encouraging foolishness or evil and not having selfish or manipulative intentions. Pure and clean applies to someone’s whole person, as Song of Songs 6:10 says, “Who is this that appears like the dawn, fair as the moon, bright as the sun?” “Bright” is the same word as pure.
Its not a mystery why the word is translated as “radiant.” Purity is radiant. Pure gold shines. Pure faith shines. Sexual purity shines. A pure heart shines. God’s pure, undefiled word shines. That is why Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path.” That is why Jesus, who is The Word, says, “I am the light of the world.” God’s word is radiant and pure and clean.
APPLICATION: Our faith in God’s word should be radiant like God’s word. Let our hearts be devoted to His word, and nothing else. Let our hearts not have other loves. Let our hearts not trust in other words. But with singleness of heart, with purity of heart, let us believe with all our hearts God’s word.
#5 GOD’S WORD IS A TREASURE (v10a)
God’s Word is a treasure, look at verse 10, “They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold.” The very wealthy Job said of divine wisdom, “It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver. Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be had for jewels of gold.” (Job 28:15, 17). Proverbs says repeatedly the same thing, “Wisdom from God’s word is more precious than rubies, nothing you desire can compare….How much better to get wisdom [God’s words] than gold God’s word is a priceless treasure.” (Prvb 3:15; 16:16).
Think of the way God’s words are treated as a treasure. In Romans 9 it says that Israel was “privileged” by God to receive His words, the Law, the prophets, the priesthood and so on. God gave them – not any other nation – this tremendous treasure of His spoken word. Think of Jesus speaking cryptically to the crowds through parables, leaving them mystified over the meaning of his words, ONLY to then take his disciples someplace private so he could then explain to them exclusively in detail the meaning of what he said to the crowds.
There’s a story I remember reading about one time. It took place in China. There was a team smuggling bibles from a port to underground churches. This was necessary because bibles were illegal, and if you weren’t a State-registered (controlled) church you were illegal. This team was bringing bibles to Chinese Christians who had never seen a bible.
On their journey they were stopped by police, but the team was able to quickly discard the bibles into a sewage ditch running alongside the road. After the police left the team waded into the waist deep sewage and retrieved as many of the bibles as they could. Once they felt they had found as many as possible they set out to finish their mission. When they arrived and gave the Chinese believers the stained and still wet bibles, they wept with joy as they held in their hands for the first time the words of God. They knew the Bible for what it was: a priceless treasure. Gold wouldn’t have had any impact like that on them.
CONCLUSION
Does the bible we own mean that much to us? Is it a priceless treasure to us? Is it also perfect, trustworthy, right and pure to us? It is all five of these things regardless of what we think. Let all of us plant these five views of the Bible in our hearts. These are keystone convictions for us.