Psalm 119: 97: "O, how I love thy law! It is my meditation all the day."
The longest chapter in the Bible is Psalm 119.
It deals exclusively with the written Word of God.
It consists of 176 the verses and each verse, with one or two exceptions, has something to say about God's Word.
Psalm 119 is an acrostic.
The first eight verses begins with Alef, the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
Each of the second eight verses begins with the letter, Beth, the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet,
and so on through all the Hebrew letters, making 22 sections in all, containing eight verses each.
Throughout this great Psalm of 176 verses, the psalmist expresses his love for the written Word of God.
"I will delight myself in thy statues; I will not forget thy word." (Verse 16)
"Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counselors." (Verse 24)
"And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved." (Verse 47)
"The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver." (Verse 72)
"0 how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day." (Verse 97)
"How sweet are thy words unto my taste: yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth." (Verse 103)
"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." (Verse 105)
"Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage forever; for they are the rejoicing of my heart."(Verse 111)
"Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross; therefore I love thy testimonies."
(Verse 119"
"Therefore I love of thy commandments above gold; yea, above fine gold." (Verse 127)
"Thy word is very pure; therefore thy servant loveth it." (Verse 140)
"Consider how I love thy precepts; quicken me, 0 Lord, according to thy lovingkindness." (Verse 159)
"I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil." (Verse 162)
The psalmist loved God's Word!
As we love Christ we will love the Word of God; and conversely, as we love God's Word we will love Christ.
Why did the psalmist love God's Word?
Why do you love God's Word?
Why do I love God's Word?
I love God's Word because it is inspired!
(Galatians 1: 11, 12; 2 Timothy 3: 16; 2 Peter 1: 20, 21)
"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness." (2 Timothy 3: 16)
The Bible is the inspired Book, the God-breathed Book.
It differs from all other books.
It is a divine library of 66 books.
It has 39 books in the Old Testament.
It has 27 books in the New Testament.
It was written by more than 40 authors over a period of 1500 years under the direction of God, the Holy Spirit.
God's Word is for all people.
The Bible is God's Word for me.
In the Old Testament, alone, the words, "Thus saith the Lord God," are used 1960 times.
The Bible is God's inspired Word.
I love God's Word because it convicts the sinner.
(2 Timothy 3: 16; Hebrews 4: 12; James 1: 22-25)
Hebrews 4: 12: "For the word of God is quick, powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword,
piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow,
and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."
Have you ever heard a former drunkard say, "I was converted by reading secular literature"?
Have you ever heard a former criminal say, "My life was changed eternally by reading secular literature"?
No, and you never will!
Have you ever heard anyone say that he or she was eternally changed, and converted by reading,
studying and hearing God's Word?
Yes, and many have testified to this fact.
Dr. C. I. Scofield used to say: "The Bible led me to Jesus, and Jesus transformed my life."
God's book, the Bible, points out our sins, teaches us to confess them after being convicted
by the Holy Spirit, and points us to God's great grace by which we are saved through faith.
I love God's Word because it guides us in our faith.
God's Word is the sole and sufficient sourcebook for faith and practice.
The Bible is the sourcebook for truth about Christ, about salvation, about eternal life.
There is no other sourcebook from God.
What is not in the Bible should not be taught and preached as Christian truth.
When God's Word is read and followed, we will grow strong and great in our faith.
We should read and study God's Word to be wise, and follow it to be true to the Christian faith.
I love God's Word because it comforts the Christian.
God's children need comfort!
The comfort Christians need is not a flabby, sentimental comfort, but a practical, down-to-earth
comfort that is found in God's Word.
The comfort found in God's Word is solid.
It will uphold and support the Christian in life, in suffering, and in death.
The Old Testament provides comfort. (Psalm 23; 119: 135; 121; Isaiah 41: 10)
The New Testament also provides comfort. (John 11: 25, 26; 14: 1-6; 2 Corinthians 5: 1;
Philippians 4: 13, 19; Revelation 21: 1-7; 22: 1-7)
I love God's Word because it confronts the world with Christ.
The central character in the Bible is Christ.
He is central in all the Bible – the Old Testament as well as the New Testament.
He is the heart of the Bible.
The Bible tells us He came from heaven, from God the Father.