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Alright, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 119. Psalm 119 verses 1 through 8 is our text this morning. Psalm 119 verses 1 through 8. And the title of our message this morning is Specific Holiness. Specific Holiness. Well, we are going to begin by reading Psalm 119 verses 1 through 8. Hear now the word of the Lord. Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways. You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently. Oh, that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes. Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments. I will praise you with an upright heart. When I learn your righteous rules, I will keep your statutes. Do not utterly forsake me. May the Lord again bless the reading of his word. Let's pray. Father, as we have prayed and as we have sung, and as has been our heartbeat this morning in this Lord's Day service, may your word be central, may your righteousness be wonderfully applied, and may the believers here be edified and exhorted by your wonderful, wonderful word here before us. Give us humble hearts, we ask in Christ's name. Amen. Well, the word of God is most central in the life of a Christian. It is God's word that the believer is directed and guided by. Without God's word, one is, as the Pharisees were, blind, leading the blind. God's word is most central in the life of a Christian, and this is obvious as we approach Psalm 119. Now, within the book of Psalms, the largest Psalm is the one before us, chapter 119. It is the largest chapter in the Bible. It's 176 verses, and it is the only chapter in the Bible where every single verse references God's word. It does so by using words like this: precepts, statutes, righteous rules, commandments, law, and testimonies. Now, all of these words are meant to point to God's word. But what is meant by them? Well, simply, law refers to what was given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Testimonies are witnesses of God. That's anything that bears witness to what God is and his promises. Precepts are what he has entrusted to man. Righteous rules are his right decrees, they're pure declarations. Statutes are what God has prescribed to be done. And lastly, commandments are simply what God has commanded to be done. Now, all of these act in this wonderful psalm, in a way in which the great Charles Spurgeon says, the announcement of God's revealed will. The announcement of God's revealed will. All of these fall into this wonderful category. Now these act within the Psalm as being a thorough way to cover all aspects of life. Said this way, they exhaust all of God's counsel. It's complete in its power and insight. It does not lack. I remember years ago being in a Bible study, and we were talking about a certain issue in life, and someone said this I wish God's word wasn't silent on these issues. Life would be much easier if the Bible spoke to everything. End quote. Can't be. But upon further discussion, it was clear what was meant. And this is what it's meant. God's word does not tell you who to vote for, what job to take, where to move, what car to buy. In that sense. But not in the sense that it does not direct you in making those decisions. God's word is not silent in helping us make those types of decisions. God's word speaks to each of these decisions and more, and of course every believer ought to believe, every aspect of life. It's interpretive and applicable to every circumstance. Where do we gather this type of truth? Well, Jesus says to the Apostle John in Revelation 22, behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. You ever wondered that imagery? Why is Jesus saying that? Well, Alpha, the first letter of the Greek alphabet, and Omega, the last. Jesus is saying, I am from beginning to end. And in between. This is, believer, exhaustive and thorough. Spurgeon called Psalm 119 the golden alphabet. Why did he call it that? Well, it's because Psalm 119 contains 22 stanzas, each begin with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. So then, God's word is centrally emphasized by being from the beginning to the end. And all in between. In other words, in a poetic and a literal way, God's word is everything in between and nothing is left out. Well, we use this terminology today. A business advertises something to the effect of, we have what you need from what? A to Z. And they mean by this that from A to Z and everything in between, they are the business where you need your thing. In fact, if you ever wondered, if I'm allowed to say this tech giant or this shopping giant Amazon, you ever wondered their logo has a little arrow underneath it. From where? A to Z. That's because that's their logo. They think and their desire is you get everything you need from Amazon from A to Z. Well, did businesses come up with such literary devices? No, I think the concept originates here before any business of our day. God penned such phrases. God penned such a concept. It's from God. From beginning to end. God's word is central and all in between. He's from beginning to end. He is the word. And here's the psalmist saying, in all of the Hebrew alphabet, God's word is central. Our confession of faith, our statement of faith, says this. First chapter of the Holy Scriptures, the Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience. To that we would echo. Amen. From beginning to end, God does not leave out anything that is to be learned or followed. Meaning God's word speaks clearly and sufficiently to every church. God's word speaks clearly and sufficiently to every believer, in every age, in every society, in every generation. God's word is what is needed. Therefore, no Christian can say, I'm left wanting in God's gracious guidance. Why? Because Psalm 119 offers this exhaustive presence along from the entirety of the deposited word of God. And it is in this word that is to be central in our lives as believers. Psalm 119 points to this fact. If you were to sit down and read all 176 verses, you would come away with this thought. God's word is emphasized and central to this psalmist. And you would not be wrong. It is the heartbeat of the psalm, the centrality of God's word. What does it mean or what does it look like for God's word to be central in one's life? No, I ask you this question because Psalm 119 answers such a question. And to answer is to imply a question. So what does the psalmist have to say about God's word being central? Well, going to the first eight verses of this psalm, we would make these observations. Firstly, blessedness ensues when one walks in God's righteous ways. Blessedness ensues when one walks in God's righteous ways. The psalmist begins with blessed. Blessed is favor. It's to enjoy. It's positive circumstances. It's a supportive state. Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount in a similar way, doesn't he? He uses a series of blesseds. The book of Psalms itself, if you remember a few weeks ago, began with blessed. Blessed is the man. Well, it's meant to say that through what is about to be taught, one is blessed. Through what is about to ensue, one is going to be in a favorable state. What is about to be taught, one can have a positive circumstance. And that is what the psalmist says. Blessed are those who walk in God's ways. Well, what is meant by walking in God's ways? To walk in God's ways is to be in step with him. To walk in God's ways is to come and go alongside of Him. Picture a nice evening walk with a friend. When you picture this and you imagine this, you picture walking side by side with that person. When you picture this, you do not picture the person a kilometer ahead of you and you a kilometer behind. This is not walking together. It's walking apart. So to walk together in the righteousness of God means you are alongside and with the ways of God. They are near you and you're in step with them. The blessed man, the one that is blessed, walks in step with God's righteous ways. Now, on the flip side, to walk in the ways of men is to walk against his laws. It's to be a kilometer or more away from being in step with God's righteous ways. Now, there came a time in history when the thoughts of men were evil continually. And this brought the need for God to cleanse the earth. Proverbs 4, 12 says, there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. The way of the blessed man is the righteousness of God, but the ways of the worldly man are deathly ways. To be against the ways of God's righteousness, they lead to destruction. They lead to worry and doubt. To not be in step with the righteousness of God is to be filled with worry, doubt, fear, and anxiety. Some time ago I had a thrift store find of a pair of shoes. And I wore these shoes working. And it was not long into the day I realized that these shoes were the most uncomfortable shoes to ever be made. I'm not sure what the case was, but they caused great pain to my feet. And I remember a few days I wore them being so miserable, my feet were in such great pain, my whole day seemed to be so miserable. After I switched to another pair of shoes, I remember being far more comfortable. My day was not in pain, but simply conveniently comfortable. A believer, so it is with the one who walks in God's ways and the one who walks in ways opposite God's ways. To be in Him is to not be in pain. To be in Him is not to be miserable. But to walk in God's ways is simply to be blessed. There is a difference between a miserable man and a blessed man. And it is how they walk. It is what they walk in, it is what they are in step with. The miserable man is in step with his own ways, while the righteous man and blessed man is in step with the righteousness of God. The blessed man walks in step with the Spirit seeking to please God. The miserable man walks in his own ideas, not caring how to please Christ, but only seeking to please himself. The blessed man asks this Is Christ, how is Christ glorified in this day? The miserable man asks, How can I please myself today? Walking in righteousness is blessed, walking in the ways of men are miserable. Galatians 5, 16 says, Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Keeping in step with the Spirit ensures purity and it ensures one to be blessed in God and not miserable. Secondly, God's word being central in one's life involves keeping God's righteous ways. Well, blessed is the man who walks in God's righteous ways and also keeps them. The psalmist uses words like keep, seek to describe the relationship between he and God's righteous ways. Listen to what he says again. Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, who walk in his ways, keeping diligently and steadfastly God's precepts. Well, to keep is to guard. It's to watch over so as to preserve. To seek is intentionally and actively to search. To keep is not passive, but instead active investigation. Luke 15 gives us this imagery. What woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it. And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, What? Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost. She found it and rejoiced because she sought diligently to find that coin. And this is the mindset of the psalmist in seeking God's righteous ways. It's to look intently at. Blessed is the man who watches over them with this level of fervency. Not just one coin, but many coins with that level of fervency. Blessed is the man who keeps and guards God's testimonies with this level of examination. Daniel resolved in his heart to not defile himself with pagan food and drink. And in doing this, he sought and wished to keep in step with God's laws regarding what? What to eat and what to drink. He kept and guarded what he ate and drank. Because the testimonies of God evoked, he did that thing. So it is with the blessed man. So it is with one who has God's word being central in one's life. Keeping God's righteous ways. Thirdly, this keeping is steadfast with fixed eyes. It is steadfast with fixed eyes. The psalmist writes, Oh, that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes. Then I will not be put to shame having my eyes fixed on all of your commandments. Notice it is the prayer of the psalmist here that he follows God's statutes with a steadfast heart. A steadfast heart. That is, his eyes be fixed on God's commandments. To be steadfast is to be constant. It's to abide, to remain, it's to be resolute, unwavering. Notice to be steadfast is not just spiritual highs, but it's spiritual. Constance. He wants fixed eyes. Growing up, we used to play a game called Staring Contest. And this game was when you would lock eyes with someone else, and what would you try to do? You not blink, right? Whoever blinked lost. And as a kid, if you lost, that was just the worst thing ever, right? So you would have these contests. Whoever could stare the longest without blinking won. A simple game that we would play as kids. But one that is in the imagery here shown by the psalmist. It's this level of sight that the psalmist has here. Locked in view. Not of another so as to win a contest, but locked in view of God's commandments. A fixed sight. Imovable, settled perception on God's righteousness. A loyal view. He does not want fickle eyes that are at times here and there focused on God's commandments. But the psalmist instead wants eyes that are established on God's truths. Locked in focus towards God's righteousness. Personally, I tend to desire the everyday options. It's a silly little social media thing. But I share this with you because it's important to note that growth in God is the second option. It's the constant one. Growth in God is the one that's needed over a long period of time. It's not one day. Would we as a church rather grow all of our growth now, or would we rather grow little by little until the Lord returns or calls us home? It is this second option in relation to the psalmist using the word steadfast. Steadfast. It's pertinent. God desires steady focus on him. Not once in a lifetime focus, but for all of life focus. God's word to be central, it means that it is an everyday event. It's not a Monday and only or only Sunday event, but it is a weekly, daily, and moment by moment practice. While seasons may bring periods of fast growth, God does work in this way, of course. But in all seasons of life, we abide in Him, being steadfast in heart and soul. Well, before we continue, we pause for a moment and ask ourselves this, and I ask you, are you this? Are you steadfast? Are your eyes fixed on God's righteous ways? Is God's word central in one's life, in your life? Are you keeping in step with his purity, with his righteousness, with his commandments, and with his word? Because, church and believer, to be exhaustive is to be specific. What do I mean by that? Well, one could say that what we've covered so far is general, and they wouldn't be wrong. We've made general statements this morning about having our eyes fixed on God's commandments. That's a general statement of God's law and his truth. But to be exhaustive is to also be specific. What do we mean by that? Well, Daniel resolved in his heart to follow God, and he changed the way he ate and drank. Israel followed God's Ten Commandments, and as a result, their homes were different in how they looked than surrounding nations. Their marriages, their worship, their attitudes, their desires were completely different than surrounding nations. This is what we mean by specific holiness, rather than the exhaustive rule that we have pointed out. Now, we apply general obedience to specific obedience. True obedience is not general in and of itself, but instead it is careful, meticulous, and detailed. For example, a child can be godly in applying specific obedience to God's righteousness. We say children honor your father and mother, and because of that, they can specifically have good attitudes in the home. General to specific. A mother can be a keeper of the home so as to carefully follow God's righteousness in specific ways. A father can work hard and support his family so as to walk in God's ways specifically while also being obedient to the general rule of God's obedience. No believer is exempt from specific obedience. Matthew was a chartered accountant of the day, and he not only lied on his taxes, but he also lied on all of those whose taxes he filed. When Christ called him, what did Christ say in Matthew 9? Stop lying on your taxes. That's not what he said. What did he say? Follow me. In other words, when Christ called him, did Matthew stop lying on his taxes? Of course. But the symptom was a result of a greater need, which was spiritual transformation. One comes to Christ to pursue his holiness, and then one is led in time in specific holiness of what to do and how to live. This is where we have this teaching of specific holiness. Holiness is specific. It is to borrow from the psalmist in Revelation, it is from A to Z. It is from A to Z of a person's life. We are called to be people of honesty. The general call. Therefore, we do not lie on our taxes. The specific call. We are called to work hard. The general call. Therefore, we're not lazy. We do not take advantage of welfare, and we do not squander our time. The specific call. Specific obedience is at times what is needed most. And the Christian at times is better at general obedience rather than specific obedience. You rarely will offend someone on general obedience. You will have a greater chance of offending if you specifically preach holiness or obedience. And this is why the psalmist uses these words and the usage of his words are good. It is easier to claim we must follow Christ than actually turning from various sins in one's life. It's easier for one to say, I must follow Christ than it is for one to say, I am in sin in this specific area and I need to repent of it. The second is greater than the first, but the second is what is needed. Holiness is specific. General obedience leads to specific obedience. Well, believer, listener, specific obedience is Christ-likeness. Specific obedience as well as general obedience is found in the person of Jesus Christ. Make no mistake, in the application of the psalm before us, it's not just do better. It's not even this, smarten up. It's not what the application is. There is no do betterness that exists when we become our own righteousness. Even the most smartened up person falls short of the glory of God, and you and I are never following rightly and perfectly God's law. Because Christ is the only one who has and does. He does everything we could not do. He came to do the will of the Father, and as John tells us, Christ never fails what he sets out to do. Christ is blessed. Christ walks in the law of the Lord. Christ is no wrong. Christ walks in his ways. Christ keeps God's testimonies diligently. Christ is steadfast. Christ has his eyes fixed on God. While we sinners look on in wonder and beauty, because we could not. Believer, this is why we must cry out to God. We must seek his righteousness. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. It was not Abraham's works that saved him, it was his belief. In the garden, Adam and Eve were clothed with garments God made for them. So then every believer is clothed with righteousness not of their own, but righteousness that God has made for them, and that righteousness is Christ. Therefore, Christian, know that the fulfillment, in the greatest sense of the term, of this application of this psalm is not found in us. It is found in Christ. It is found in his grace. You, O sinner, need Christ, for without him you are doomed. Which leads us to the conclusion of this little stanza, verse 8. I will keep your statutes, and verse 7, I will praise you. This is, in the greatest sense, a little mini benediction, if you will, of the greatest psalm. And it is a commitment to follow. So I ask you this morning, Christian, listener, both alike, have you committed to these truths that we've seen here this morning? If you're an unbeliever, you must commit for the very first time and be regenerated. For the believer, you must constantly be renewed in this commitment. So we ask ourselves this morning: have we committed in this way to see Christ and to pursue him? Also, to exhort the believers here this morning, believer, have you sought specific obedience to him? Are you crying out to him for growth in specific ways? And if not, my encouragement to you is alongside God's encouragement in his word. Begin this. Begin today, begin now. Commit to living in the Word of God so it is central in your life, so that you are brought from a general call of obedience to God. Help me be specifically holy in this area that I am struggling with, or any area that I am struggling in. In doing this, one is committing to living in the Word of God, and to live in the Word of God is to live near Christ. However, central the Word of God is in your life, do not miss. That is how central you are to Christ. However near you are to his word is however near you are to Christ. Therefore, seek him diligently and so be blessed in Christ. We exhort these things. Let's pray.