The topic of
interest here in Psalm 119 is how our love for the law is a love for the
Messiah. Sometimes people think the two are opposites. Well, if you love the law
that means you can’t love Messiah, and some assume that if you love Messiah then
you can’t love the law. They view the two as being completely opposite from one
another. But this is not biblical.

Now I recognize
on one hand that the law does not save us. The law does not get up on a tree and
die for us. So it can’t bring us salvation… but it can teach us the right way to
live.  And if you love Yahushua the Messiah, one of the reasons why you do is
because He was so perfect in His law keeping.

Now, to the mind
of some today that sounds silly but everything that’s in the law, as we shared
in the tail-end of last week’s study, is about love. Yahweh could have very
easily just told everybody, “Hey look guys,” (back in the days of the children
of Israel going in the wilderness), “…just love each other, love Me, and we’ll
all get along just fine.” And if you were to tell your children that, they might
have their own definition of what love is.

And that is the
problem today. Everybody has their own definition of what love is. And because
everyone has their own definition of what love is, (and even though they don’t
follow their own definitions), we have mass confusion on a grand scale of how to
live our lives.

So we have in
front of us, the law of Yahweh to teach us what love truly is from the
perspective of the most….wisest, powerful, all knowing, all seeing entity in the
entire universe…Yahweh.

And so, if we
would submit to His commandments then we would be walking in love, and we would
have clarity as to what love truly is… and we would justify Him rather than
ourselves, or rather than what everyone else kind of thinks what love is.

I gave an example
last week about the Sabbath. To keep the Sabbath is to love Him.  Some people
don’t see it that way. But, as I shared last week, if someone gave you…say your
father gave you a precious…something very precious, a gift that had been handed
down from one generation to the next for as long as anyone knows, and you took
that gift and you just kind of threw it on the ground and stomped all over
it…would that be love?

Well, our
Heavenly Father has given us the Sabbath. He wants us to remember it….to keep it
holy, as a gift to man. The Sabbath was made for man. It doesn’t say for Jews
only, it says for man. And so the whole world today is stomping all over it, and
just rubbing it in the dirt, and treating it as common. When in reality it’s a
holy day.

And so, it is
love to keep the Sabbath holy because He asked us to. You know, it was so
important He kept it Himself . And so, to love Messiah…He kept Sabbath. He’s the
standard bearer. He’s the one we look to. And so, if we love Messiah, we’re
going to love the law, also.

And we were
talking about this….the Spirit-filled life. You may not think of walking in the
law as something that’s Spirit-filled, but let me show you a few things
here…just in case you think that it’s something contrary.

First of all, I
want to say that our walk with Messiah is progressive. Some of you are just
getting started maybe, and even having faith at all, or have any understanding
of Scripture. You are every bit accepted as someone who has been in the
scriptures for 40 years. Because it’s not where you are today, it’s where you
want to be in your heart….and where your willingness is to go further than where
you are now.

And when Yahushua
was talking to His disciples, He accepted them….He accepted Peter, the
fisherman, the man who said, “Depart from me. I’m a sinful man.”  He accepted
Peter right where he was cause Peter was willing to follow Him.

And there were
many others. And he told them….

And so, it’s the
work of the Spirit to guide us, to direct us, to teach us all truth…all truth.
And His word, His Torah is truth. It’s called the Spirit of Truth. Yahushua said
in John 6:63… (I don’t have it up there but…) It says, ‘…the words I speak to
you are Spirit.’ John 17:17 says, ‘Thy word is truth’.

Now, He
understands if we’re ignorant. We don’t know any better. The same way….we
wouldn’t punish our children if they didn’t know any better…if they did the best
they knew how. Yahweh can meet us right where we are.

But He’s put His
Spirit in us for a reason, to do what? …To lead us to all truth. And what does
that involve, according to Ezekiel 36:27? Yahweh is predicting the future here.
He says….

And so this idea
that there is a completely different, radically different ideas, in the Old and
New Testaments, is foreign to anything the scriptures will actually teach.

And so we cry out
to Yahweh that He might teach us His word. Can we do that? Can we cry out to
Yahweh to let Him teach us His word without man coming in and saying, ‘Oh no,
don’t do that part. Don’t do that part over there. And I don’t have to do that
anymore’.  Just cry out to Yahweh. Ask Him to teach you His word.

You know what?
I’m completely confident you don’t have to listen to another word from
eliYah.com… if you just do that. Now, I’m not saying don’t come to eliYah.com.
I’m saying you don’t have to come, necessarily, unless Yahweh directs you to.
Yahweh Himself wants to teach you. You don’t have to have a teacher. The same
anointing abides in you, too. OK?

Now He has set in
the assembly…teachers, to teach, and that’s all good. He can use men to teach
us. But we can cry out to Yahweh, like the psalmist, to not let His word be
hidden in our eyes.

Well, the people
in the old covenant, they had that, too. May not think of it that way but here
He is…’Your word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against You!’

That’s where His
word needs to be. And if Messiah is there then His word it there, also. And once
Yahweh’s word’s in our hearts, we won’t be able to hold back. We will have to
speak it. And so he said next:

And so, we want
to treasure within our hearts, the Word, the Messiah…which are synonymous.

Yahushua said,

So what is in our
heart? …The good Messiah is in our hearts. And the goodness He had came from
Yahweh.

And so, he says,
“…Why call Me ‘Master, Master’ and do not do the things which I say?’” What’s in
your heart? Is Yahushua the Master in your heart?

And so, if we
have the law of Yahweh in our hearts, we will speak the things which are in our
hearts. See, ‘…the good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth
good’. Out of the abundance of the heart….what happens?

When the Spirit
of Yahweh… when the word of Yahweh is in you, you will speak it. If you have
other words, if you have words of the enemy…if you have your own words, your own
thoughts, your own priorities, it’s going to come out, too. There’s not a whole
lot you can do about it. Because…

So forget about
taming the tongue. It’s not going to happen.  Ask Yahweh to place His law in
your heart and the words that you speak will then be holy, and just, and good.
No other way around it cause it’s just going to come out. Whatever’s in the
heart…it’s going to come out.

Now, we have to
treasure it first….more than the riches of this world. And so the psalmist next
says in verse 14…

The people that
win the lottery…they often rejoice. They’ve got all this money now. Well, the
psalmist rejoices in the way of Yahweh’s testimonies as if he just won the
lottery!

If you think
about it…to have understanding of Yahweh’s ways are, spiritually speaking, the
true riches that will never perish. And those that win lotteries, or those that
gain earthly riches, they’ll see… everything they have will perish with them.

…Can’t take it
with you. But if you gain wisdom from the study of Yahweh’s word, then we find
true riches that will never rust, will never rot, and will never perish. And
that’s why David said…..

But you know,
Yahweh’s riches never lose their value. And we’ll find, as we apply them, they
begin to increase in value to us.  It’s so much better…

In fact, in many
ways the gain of silver, the gain of gold, the gain of houses, and riches, and
cars, and belongings and just… stuff. The more we gain those things, the more
difficult it becomes to focus on the real priorities because all this ‘stuff’
has a way of taking up all of our time.

Yahushua warned
us saying….

Wow! Think about
that!

Now, the Aramaic
suggests that maybe the word ‘camel’ should mean ‘rope’. But either way, it’s
not too easy for rope to go through a needle, is it? It’s not any easier really
than a camel, cause it’s just not going to be able to fit through there.

And so, what
Yahshua says here, we need to take note, and His warning, because we live in a
wealthy society today….very wealthy. And with the word of Yahweh being so
available….just push a few buttons on a key board, and search it, and find it,
and study it….there’s Hebrew tools available, and get into the Hebrew…study and
go deep.

Ah man, what kind
of excuses will we have in this generation to not be seeking thing out? There
won’t really be too many of them.

So Yahshua says….

Do we do that? Do
we seek the Kingdom of Elohim?

There’s some
people here listening to the broadcast…they feel convicted to keep the Sabbath
but their employer requires them to work on Sabbath. And maybe some have this
mindset that, ‘Well, I can’t keep Sabbath because my job tells me that I can’t.

If you’re really
convicted about this, about the keeping of the Sabbath, let me go over that
scripture again.

‘…seek the
Kingdom of Elohim and all these things shall be added to you’.

Put him first….
not your boss, not your employer, not what people may say if you do something
radical. Put the Kingdom of Elohim first and Yahweh will take care of you. You
won’t have to worry. Maybe you have to lower your standard of living a little
bit. And maybe after that He’ll bless you even more. Maybe He’ll even give you a
better job. He did that for me on more than one occasion.

So, don’t be
afraid. Yahushua says next in Luke 12…

He even
admonishes us. It’s talking about our generation here, if you look up the
context. He’s talking about our generation.

“..Sell what you
have and give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a
treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth
destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Are we like men
who wait for our master? Is our waist girded? Are out lamps burning? Are they
filled with the oil of Yahweh’s Spirit?  Are we lukewarm, or are we on fire for
Yahweh?

You know, it’s
amazing what men will do for the pursuit of riches….work themselves to death.
But who will work to obtain the true riches? Let that be us. Let that be us.

You know, once we
have spent some time in the word….next comes meditation….meditating on His
precepts.

You know, you
might think that meditating on precepts only occurs when you’re reading it, but
really it’s after we read His precepts. We need to spend some time meditating on
what we just read…and doing what? …Contemplating our ways.

And so, when we
are reading scripture, our goal is that the word would take root in our hearts
and bear fruit. And that first requires a heart that is filled with good soil.

Some people, they
read the scriptures just like a story book. You know…’Oh, cute little tales I
get to read. They’re so fun’.

Other people,
when they read the scriptures are like, ‘What can I learn through this? What do
I need to change in myself so that I can be what I need to be, like Messiah? My
pursuit is that I would seek to be just like Yahushua’.

So, if I’m
reading here this scripture…this thing in the law…this thing in the New
Testament, this example we see in Kings, or Chronicles, or something in the
Psalms…’Is there something where I am falling short here?’

I’ll tell you
what, you start reading Yahweh’s word like that, it opens up and He will show
you wondrous things out of His law.

And so, we want
to spend time then…meditating. Think about it. Yahweh’s Spirit may have more to
say to you so that you’ll understand it even better.  Yahweh’s Spirit may be
seeking to counsel you in some area of your life.

But first we have
to delight. We have to delight in His statutes. If we don’t delight in them, it
will just go in one ear and out the other, but if you delight…Halleluyah!

First you walk,
then you stand, then you sit in wrong counsel…the counsel of the unrighteous,
the counsel of the irreverent, the counsel of those who are not according to the
image of Elohim.

So, if you don’t
walk there, you won’t stand there, and you won’t be sitting there, either. Just
don’t even go there. Walk straight…the path that Yahweh has set before you. Let
His word be your lamp.  Anything else is a cheap substitute that will only lead
to the paths of death.

So blessed is the
man that doesn’t walk in this counsel, but instead he walks in the light….

It doesn’t
necessarily mean you’re spending all your time reading, reading, reading,
reading, reading. You need to digest what you’ve read. You know, you put the
word….you take a scoop of food out of the bowl…and you’re eating it. But then it
has to digest and the nutrients there have to go through the rest of your body
so that you can be healthy and strong.

Yeah, you can
spend all day reading the scriptures, but you don’t spend time thinking about
what you just read….now, ideally you think about what you just read as you read
it. But if you don’t spend any time thinking about it, you’re not really going
to get blessed because it just shows it’s a ritual. It’s just a discipline that
you have to do. You feel like you’ve done your duty for the day.

If that’s what it
is….just some kind of a discipline…that you’ve done your duty now and you can go
do what you want… you’re missing it. You’re not getting the continual feeding of
Yahweh’s Spirit giving you the nutrients you need.

And the reason
why we’ll be like a tree planted by the rivers of water is because the rivers of
water…trees that are planted right next to the river, don’t they get a continual
supply of water? No matter what the drought is, they’ve got the river there.

They get a
continual supply of water, and they’ll always bring fruit because they’re
continually drinking from this water, all the time. And their leaf doesn’t’ dry
up. And they’re prosperous in their ways. And that‘s how it is for a man who
meditates on the things he read. He’s getting a continual drink.

And so, what
happens as we mediate on it, we just start talking about it all the time…”You
know, I was just thinking about it the other day…this right here, this right
here, that right there….”  We’ll be at our house, you know, and we’ll start
talking to our families about things that we’re thinking about. “What do you
think about this?” …And getting other thoughts.

And that‘s the
Spirit filled home, brothers. That’s the Spirit filled home that we all need.
And so that’s why Yahweh says in Deuteronomy 6….

You get this?
It’s awesome! To have this kind of thing going on, Yahweh’s word continually
around you, before you in your homes, in your gates…guards you like a watchman
guards over a city. There’s no room for anything else!

You know, maybe
the key to being an over-comer is…not having sin find its way into our lives is
(so that it becomes a snare) is if we would continually meditate on the law day
and night.

We would see
anything contrary to that as some kind of an intruder into our hearts. And we
would recognize the snares, and the traps, and the pitfalls. We’d become so
accustomed to what’s true, and right, and pure, and lovely, and holy, and
good….. Something foreign comes in we’re like, “What is this garbage? Get it out
of here! Rebuke you in Yahushua’s name… I reject that in Yahushua’s name…I want
no part of that over there.”

And so, if you
are so filled with Yahweh, and His ways, and His Spirit, there won’t be any room
for anything else. The enemy will not win. He’ll lose.

You see the
motivation the psalmist has here for receiving goodness? He’s not selfish. He’s
not saying, “Be bountiful with me that I may go spend it on my pleasures”….So
much for prosperity doctrines.

…It’s that I may
live, that I may keep your word. It is so that, when things are going so
well…(we’re not on the path of temptation, and trial, and difficulty)…that’s
where keeping His word is easier.

And so, it’s when
we’re on the path of temptation that it’s more difficult to keep. And so, it’s
ok to pray. Yahushua told us…

We don’t want to
be in temptation. We don’t want to face temptations and difficulties. I mean,
it’s not a bad thing to not want those, because we want to be a people who live.
We don’t want to die. We want to live and keep His word rather than fall into
temptation and risk the possibility of sin.

And so we pray,
“Lead us out of temptation. Keep us from temptation. Deliver us from the evil
one. We don’t want to be tempted.” Now we know, we get tempted, we pass the
test, that Yahweh will give us the crown of life which He’s promised to those
who love Him.

And the trials
are there, and we accept them to make us stronger. And that we might receive
blessings and rewards for having been faithful in spite of all the difficulties
coming our way.

So, continuing…
(I like this verse)….

Wondrous
things…you ever had that? Ever had wondrous things pop out at you as you’re
reading the Word? …Things that are just marvelous…extraordinary…beyond our
power. Yes, many we times, we open His word and we’re like, “Whoa, how can
something be so awesome?!” But it takes Yahweh opening our eyes to it.

And so, the
psalmist prays that Yahweh would open his eyes. And the more we see wondrous
things out of His law, the more we’re going to realize, “You know what, I’m a
stranger in this earth. I’m a stranger.”

What was he
doing? I mean, its right there…the scriptures are right there for the psalmist
to read…the law.  Why would anything be hidden?

Or… if you think
for a minute, that just because you’ve read it now you know everything, you’re
mistaken. Because you can gloss right over something, and miss it, because it’s
hidden from your eyes.

And so the
psalmist here knows that. He’s noticing this. See, he’s reading the Torah and
he’s like, “Wait a minute. I read that before…I never noticed it, though.”  So
he says, “Open my eyes. Don’t hide your commandments from me. I didn’t realize I
was doing this thing.”

His desire is
that he would know more about how to walk as Messiah walked. He didn’t know how
Messiah would walk. Maybe he did know, but he didn’t know about all the fullness
of Messiah yet.  But how the Torah (the commands) tell us to walk, is how
Messiah walked.  And so….

…do not hide Your
commandments from me.

The Scribes and
Pharisees, they heard, but they didn’t hear. They saw, but they couldn’t see.
They were like the idols that they followed. Dumb idols…seeing, they don’t see;
hearing they don’t hear. Mouths they have, but they don’t speak.

And Yahweh will
turn us…

So we’ve got to
put Yahweh in His place. And all of a sudden…get the idols out of hearts, out of
our minds, and He will start opening our eyes.

They will not
grow any more. They’re done. They’re retired believers now. They’ve learned the
Law; they’ve learned the commandments; they’ve learned the scriptures. (They
haven’t really learned the Law; they’ve learned the New Testament). And they’re
done.

They think
they’ve found the truth and they’re content to sit right there in the status quo
and go out and live their life, and they’re finished.

Because no one,
no one is perfect…but we want to be. We want to have Messiah in us completely
and perfectly. And that’s a heart that Yahweh can work with.

I repeat this
same concept over and over, because we have had denominationalism driven into
our brains for the last, I don’t know how many hundreds of years, and it’s so
erroneous.

And that’s…I love
it, I love the journey. How about you? It’s an awesome journey. And we don’t
have to sit and think, “I’m not accepted yet. I don’t live up to the Law. I’m
waiting to be perfect so He’ll accept me.”

Excuse me, but
did Messiah die for the perfect ones, or the imperfect ones? It’s the imperfect
ones who turn their heart away from the things they know are wrong and are
trying to live right now…the ones who are pursing righteousness.

But, you know,
others may not have that passion. But we see here…it says,

… My soul breaks
with longing for Your judgments at all times.

Not just
sometimes, always…

Every
circumstance, everything that you could fathom, he wanted Yahweh’s ways. He
wanted righteous judgments to come in. He wanted to see His ways accomplished in
the earth.

And so, you know,
others don’t see that thing that drives us and so we’re strangers in the earth.
You look around you, it’s pretty obvious. But, we see here the Psalmist is
crying out for Yahweh to open his eyes.

And as we said
earlier, Yahushua has many things to teach us. And He will teach us, little by
little, every day…if we want to learn. That’s why I don’t condemn those that
don’t do the things I do, or see the things I see. It’s all our own personal
relationship with Yahweh.

As I shared a
couple of weeks ago, Acts 15…the apostles were willing to accept Gentiles who
were ignorant about the law, and not throw the entire law on them as a condition
for accepting them as believers. Because we all have a personal relationship
with Yahweh….Each of us are responsible for the things He teaches us.

So, learning and
growing, it’s a daily thing. None of us sit down at the dinner table and eat
everything we’re going to need for the next month, or the next twenty
years…and then not eat again until later. I mean, our bodies wouldn’t be able
to handle it all. We’d be hungry again in a day, or two. Because it’s just too
much, we can’t digest everything in one sitting.

And so, that’s
how the apostles treated the gentiles. They were new to the law. They knew that
they would be learning the law every week in the synagogues….According to Acts
15:21, they would go to Sabbath in synagogues. In fact, they met many a gentile
there.

But, the Spirit
will lead us into all truth, but we’re all in different places along this narrow
path. And just because someone knows more than you doesn’t mean they’re ahead of
you, either. Because it’s all about where we are with what we know, and what
we’re doing now.

Are we continuing
to pursue the truth? Or, are we too prideful and we assume that we know
everything. And thereby, we don’t really cleave to his commandments. We don’t
really cling to them.

You know, if
you’re straying from His commandments, it’s because you think you have a better
way for yourself.  We have a tendency to think, “We have a way that will be
good.”…Even though Yahweh says it won’t be good. That’s prideful!

You see, we have
these problems that seem to have no solution. We find a solution to it and
there’s another disaster manifests itself.  Yahweh is trying to what? …Rebuke
us. Rebuke us.  And by allowing circumstances in our life to occur, to show us
how flimsy and frail our foolish ways really are.

Now, be glad and
rejoice if you get this. You run into a brick wall because…

And that’s the
way that our Father is. He is like we are, as fathers…as parents. We’ll correct
our children and cause them to face some kind of consequence for their behavior.
That’s why we get disciplined.

And Yahweh was
trying to teach Israel this, when He gave the law. He said…

Walk in His ways.
Not your own ways…His ways. That’s what we need to do. And if we’re willing to
be corrected, we’ll change, and we’ll remain in His house. It’ll be an ‘in
house’ problem.

You got to endure
it. Don’t get mad at Him for what’s going on. Some people, they get chastening
and they get mad at Yahweh because they’ve been having difficulties. And they
think, “Oh, I’m doing everything I’m supposed to do.” Cause they’re not really
meditating on the word. But…

… if you endure
chastening, Elohim deals with you as with sons; for what son is there that a
father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening…

…that‘s a fearful
thing

…of which all have
become partakers,

(cause everyone’s
gotten chastened),

…then you are
illegitimate and not sons.

That’s the
scariest place to be.

It could be that
Yahweh will allow you to even prosper as you stray from His word. And you look
back and you go, “Why am I so…why am I doing so well as a result of my decisions
to walk in own ways?”

And you’re
looking back and you’re like, “I’m so blessed, and I guess the scriptures aren’t
really true…what they said, that I would be cursed, because I’m flourishing. I’m
flourishing and I’m doing great….having the best time of my life right now,
because I am just doing my own thing.” Look out!

The psalmist
cries out…

This is a very
interesting comment here. He’s saying here to Yahweh…he says, ‘I have kept
Your testimonies…I’ve kept them.  So, as a result, please…remove from me the
reproach, remove from me the contempt, because I’ve kept Your testimonies’.

Now, this is
interesting because earlier he said…

So has he really
kept Yahweh’s testimonies? Has he really kept the commands?

So, which is it?
Does Yahweh let His word contradict itself?  We know that all have sinned. All
have fallen short of the glory of Elohim. Yet, we see other verses like this…

…Blameless.

Are we? Is that
how we are? Are we walking in the commandments and ordinances or
Yahweh…blameless? Well, how about these men….I mean, righteous? Ok, they were
both righteous, ‘…walking in the commandments and ordinances of Yahweh’.

That’s how you
define righteous, by the way, is if you are keeping the commandments and
ordinances of Yahweh. Then you’re actually righteous.

But we see…we
know that, even Zacharias and Elizabeth here, at some point in their life, well
had to have broken at least one command. Otherwise, they wouldn’t even need a
savior, at all. I mean, why would the sacrifice of Messiah even be necessary?

Another example
of this:

…Interesting.

So, we see here,
and also in I Kings verse 9, Yahweh’s telling Solomon…

Now wait a
minute! Did David really walk in integrity of heart and uprightness, to do
accord to all that Yahweh commanded? He said…just like David, if you do this…

And then we’re
told in the New Testament….

Do we really know
Him? Do we really keep His commandments? Does that mean if we fail, or mess up
one time,…we’re no longer knowing Him?

We’re no longer
blameless. We no longer say… that we’re law keepers. Did you ever have people
tell you that? “You’re not keeping the law because you’re doing this, that, or
whatever.” They’ve got their reasons why they don’t think you’re keeping it.

And you say, “No,
no we keep the law.” And we have people pointing fingers at us all the time
saying,  “Oh no you’re not. You’re not doing this, that…You’re not stoning
people.” You know, you hear that all the time. “Well, you’re not doing
sacrifices. “

What does it mean
to keep the law? What does it mean to be blameless?

Does it mean if
we mess up and fail one time we’re no longer knowing Him? We no longer are
blameless? We can no longer say we’re keeping His law?

No, no, a
thousand time no. But that’s how may would interpret it today in our very
concrete mindset that we’ve inherited from the ‘Greco-Romans’.

But they say,
‘”Well, you claim to keep the law then you better do this, you better do that,
you better do the other because you have to be perfect, or you won’t be a
law-keeper.” It’s not true.

To say that is to
deny the power of Yahweh’s grace and forgiveness.

You see, if our
hearts truly yearning for the will of Elohim in our lives, and yet out of
weakness we fail in one point to keep His word, we do have an Elohim in Heaven
who will forgive us completely and totally…to the point of where, in His mind,
it’s as if we never sinned.

That was true
even in the Old Testament time.

Now, is that
scripture true?  …As far as the east is from the west.

If you were to
walk east, assuming there was no water covering the oceans, if you were to go
east, when would you stop walking east? You would keep circling the globe and
never find the end of east. …Same thing about west…infinitely, in both
directions.

That’s how far
He’s removed our transgressions from us! Another words, they don’t apply to us.
They’re not placed on us….those transgressions.

There’s a memory
of it. I mean, Yahweh did inspire the scriptures to be written….what David did
wrong. But He did not place those sins on David.

Where did they go
then? Where did all the sins go that these men, even though they were people who
failed Yahweh, where did the sin go? Why did Yahweh call them blameless and
upright?

They were placed
on another person. Thank You, Yahweh.

Since Yahushua
became sin for us, since He is bearing all our iniquities, and He was wounded
for our transgressions which we have done, Yahweh does not regard us as being
sinners.

And Yahweh will
see us as He saw David, even though David sinned with Bathsheba….A people who
walk in integrity of heart and uprightness.

He sees us as He
saw Noah…a just man perfect in all his generations. He sees us as He saw
Zecharias and Elizabeth, righteous before Elohim… “Walking in all the
commandments and ordinances of Yahweh blameless” …because you can’t be blamed.

You can’t be
blamed. Messiah bore your iniquities. He got blamed. It all was put on Him.
Isn’t that freeing?! Isn’t that beautiful?! Isn’t that the power of grace? Yes!

We have to pursue
righteousness, and not sit back and say, “Oh, grace covers everything. I’m not
worried. I’ll do what I want. Grace will cover it all.”

That’s the wrong
attitude. That’s not the attitude of a child that’s trying to do the will of his
father. It really is a father/son relationship. If there’s any confusion about
where grace applies, and many times that’s where we can look….as long as we’re
righteous fathers and mothers.

And so, the
psalmist says here,

And so, even
though the psalmist hasn’t been perfect, he says you don’t want to be brought
reproach and contempt, Maybe even the reproach and contempt was because he
failed to keep testimonies in the past. But, he knew the power of grace,
brothers. Even then he knew the power of grace.

So, it’s because
people don’t understand grace they speak against you. The reality is that they
don’t understand grace. It’s only the power of grace, the power that’s in the
blood of Messiah, that can be so complete as for this man to say, ‘I have kept
your testimonies…take away from me reproach and contempt…’

Yes, people will
speak against you. That goes with the territory. And that’s what he says next.

He just knew the
life we were trying to live, didn’t he? He knew…he faced the same challenges and
difficulties that we face…while we’re trying to live Yahweh’s ways.

So, what’s he
meditating on? He’s not meditating on what the princes say. He’s meditating on
the statutes of Elohim.  That’s what he’s meditating on.

So don’t expect
applause from the world when you choose to walk in Yahweh’s ways….expect the
opposite. Expect reproach, and for people (even people in important positions)
to speak against you.

That goes with
the territory. It’s what we signed up for. Leaders in Yahushua’s day, all the
time, spoke against Him. They couldn’t convict Him of any sin because He had
done no wrong. They had to invent false accusations in order to get to Him.

If someone is
falsely accusing you of wrong doing, it may be a good sign, actually. Because
they can’t really find anything true because you’re walking uprightly. Their
only recourse is to find something that isn’t true, in order to find fault with
you.

So, it could be a
good sign, if you’re getting falsely accused. Same thing happened to Yahushua in
His day. They could not accuse Him of wrong and so they had to falsely accuse
Him.

If Yahweh’s testimonies are our
delight then our actions will reflect that. There are so many competing forces
seeking to be that which we delight in….entertainments, media, television,
internet….these things are often competing forces for our attention.

But our delight is in the law
of Yahweh.

So, we will
meditate on it, therefore….day and night. The testimonies of Yahweh will be our
counselors.

If you’re looking
for a reliable true counselor to help you in a situation….just kind of get you
out of a jam…not to say others can’t help, but I suggest you delight yourself in
the testimonies of Yahweh and let that be your meditation, day and night.
You’ll find the counsel you’re looking for.

To delight in the
law of Yahweh is to delight in the Messiah, who is the living word of Yahweh.
And we see here, the author of this psalm, that he had this love affair with
Yahweh’s word.

Yahweh wants to
know…what’s our delight? What do we value? What do we make a priority in our
life? Do we desire His word more than gold and riches? Do we love the law and
therefore love the Messiah? That’s a question that only you can answer for you
and I can answer for me.

Part of
repentance though is despising our former ways and delighting in the ways of
truth.

And so, if we
find ourselves in transgression of any of the commands and we tend to gravitate
toward this carnal inclination, we have a promise here…

Now, it’s a very interesting
verse here, because we’re created from the dust, right? We’re created from the
dust of the ground. Our soul has a tendency to gravitate toward its carnal
inclinations. Toward the ways of death…to dust we shall return, right?

But Yahweh can revive us.
That’s what we need. We need a revival, don’t we? …A real revival that will take
us back to His word.

And so, as we read earlier,
about ‘…as far as the east is from the west so far has He removed our
transgressions from us’…it says, ‘…as a father pities his children, so Yahweh
pities those that fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are
dust.’

There it is. He knows our soul
has a tendency to cling to the dust.

So, the dust will return to the
earth, but the mercy will remain

…on those who fear
Him, and His righteousness to children’s children, to such as keep His covenant,
and to those who remember His commandments to do them.

So if we remember His
commandments we can be delivered. Yahweh can make us alive again. And His mercy
will be from everlasting to everlasting….as far as the east is from the
west….our transgressions can be removed.

And so we regard ourselves as
already dead…And Messiah is alive in us by His Spirit. We are…

But we have to confess and
acknowledge we have sinned and need a savior.

My ways are not good ways; my
ways are different than Yahweh’s ways….he’s acknowledging this. So, asked
Yahweh, teach him His statutes. By the Spirit He gives us, He will.

And so, He goes
on to say,

You know, it’s
one thing to read, it’s another thing to understand. “Make me understand!”

And if we receive
that wisdom and we apply if, as the psalmist says later on in verse 99…

…Because I keep
them.

Too many people,
they want the understanding first, then they’ll keep it. But it’s not until we
apply the word to our life that we can really understand it.

There are a lot
of people who demand that they understand…but if we, out of an obedient heart
begin to apply Yahweh’s law to our life, it’s often then He’ll give us the
understanding as to why.

Can’t we just be
like children and obey our Heavenly Father without having to understand all the
reasons? Can’t we just trust Him…. that He’s all knowing, the source of all
wisdom? If we do, we’ll begin to understand.

Halleluyah!    (Continuing) ….

Have you ever
felt that way? …A moment of grief, heaviness, of great challenge, and
difficulty. Even Yahushua felt that way.

And Yahweh can do
that. He can send His angels…strengthen you in the way. We can also, as brothers
and sisters, be agents to strengthen one another.

Yahshua charged
Simon, after he failed and was restored…

And Paul, he also
went around to various congregations, on his journeys, strengthening the
brethren. It says…

Job, when he
walked, he was blessed. It says…people were saying to him…

He recognized
that when Job was in his days of greatness he was a man that would strengthen
others. The word of Yahweh, the wisdom from Yahweh’s mouth poured out of him.
And as we gain wisdom, we will gain strength.

See, for those of
you that may be kind of new to this walk, you may think, “I don’t know if I’m
going to make it!” Maybe you’re thinking about following this way….but maybe
you’re questioning whether you’re going to be able to make it.

Well, as you gain
wisdom, you will also be granted the strength. As you seek the counsel of wise
men, you will be granted the strength to walk in that counsel. And so, if you’re
in this time of need, even now, maybe in this life you feel like your soul is
melting from heaviness,

…cry out to
Yahweh to strengthen you according to His word. Open the word and just read,
meditate, read, meditate and pray.

Seek the counsel
and the fellowship of others, because we need Yahweh’s wisdom….whether it be
reading His word ourselves, or the words of wisdom from our family in the faith,
we need that wisdom to give us strength.

We can cry out to
Him for strength. And it may be Yahweh will do for you what He did for
Messiah….have an angel come and strengthen you. And so, pray for your brothers
and sisters who seem to be weak.

And when he got
on the phone, right off the bat he said, “I don’t know what just happened, but I
was feeling really down. I wanted to call and talk to you but all of sudden I
just had this peace come over me. I was calling you for counsel but for some
reason I feel ok now.”

And so we can’t
forget to pray for each other….and Yahweh may send an angel, a word of wisdom
from the scriptures, or something to open our eyes to wondrous things out of His
law.

You know, we live
in a world full of lies and liars, but when we hear Yahweh’s word we know we’re
hearing the way of truth. Yahweh doesn’t give the understanding that we should
keep His law to everybody. . It has to be granted to you.

It says here…look
what it says, “…grant me Your law graciously.” Not everybody gets that granted
to them…with grace. And so, be thankful to Him for that.

There are many
today that do not want His law and so it’s not granted to them….because they do
not what to walk in righteousness. They would rather have pleasure in
unrighteousness. Instead, they believe lies.

Don’t rely on
miracles to tell you that you’re walking uprightly…that you’re walking the right
way.

…and with all
unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the
love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason Elohim will
send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,

Was that true?
No. It was a lie.

…For Elohim knows
that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like
Elohim, knowing good and evil.”

…..The lie is
that we can go ahead and intentionally violate the law without having to face
judgment for having done so. That’s the lie. The lie is that we can be like
Elohim…make our own judgments as to what’s good and evil. The lie is, we can be
like the Most High. The lie is (that Satan himself is following) that we can be
like Elohim and have our own standard of good and evil, and act as if nothing
will happen as a result.

So those who
follow the ways of the enemy will act just like him. You try to tell them that
they’re doing something wrong and they’re not worried… they will not surely die.
They don’t really love the truth and so they believe the lies of the enemy.
They’re under a strong delusion.

That’s the strong
delusion that many people are under. And the world thinks their ways are right
and Yahweh’s ways are wrong….they’re all antiquated…out of date. They think the
will not surely die. But they will certainly die.

Yet, they don’t
know this because they’re under strong delusions. See…

The backslider’s
got his own ways on his mind, but the good man will be satisfied from above.

They are filled
with their own ways. They are under a delusion because they don’t seek to be
satisfied from above. They’re believing and loving a lie because they do not
have a love for the truth.

And there are
some, even among believers, who don’t really have a love for the truth. And
they’re thinking they’re saved because they call Yahushua their Master, but then
they don’t do the things He says. He said…

…cast out demons in
Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’

…lying wonders….

And the word
‘lawlessness’ there, if you look it up in Strong’s, means violation of the law.
See, there’s a way of truth and there’s a way of lies. Yahweh’s law is the way
of truth.

We need his law
and we need it to be given graciously.  We need His law for instruction in our
lives but we cannot bear it without grace.

The more we read
it the more realize we have turned everyone to own his way. But we also realize,
Yahweh has laid on Messiah the iniquity of us all.

And because we
have received Him, we can read the law without fear of condemnation. We can read
about what he expects of us without fearing He’s ready to strike us down at any
moment for our past sins.

All of our
iniquities…past, present, and future… have been laid on the back of the Good
Shepherd, who gave His life for the sheep who were going their own way,

And so let’s hear
the voice of the Good Shepherd and stop listening to the voice of strangers, the
voices of hirelings, hireling preachers who do not care for the sheep because
they’re getting a pension.

Let’s cling to
the words of the Good Shepherd.  The words of the Good Shepherd, is the law of
Yahweh which was made flesh and dwelt among us. And now, by His Spirit, He is
writing the law of Yahweh on our hearts, and teaching us His wisdom.

Yes brothers, His
words may hurt sometimes, because it’s sharper than a two-edged sword piercing
even to the joints and marrow. But listen, the Good Shepherd is building a
temple. We are that temple.

With those nails
He is creating something beautiful. Yahushua the Messiah bore the well driven
nails and received the condemnation that we deserve. For this reason He is the
foundation and the cornerstone of the building.

And so, let’s
cling to His words…follow His voice. Knowing His voice is the voice of the
Torah, Yahweh’s law….Genesis to Revelation… not just Matthew to Revelation; not
just Acts to Revelation. Genesis to Revelation is the voice of the Shepherd.
It’s the whole book.

And if we seek to
run the course, and cling to the testimonies of Yahweh, His word, we will not be
put to shame in the end.

There will be
many who will be put to shame. It says in Daniel 12:2…

They’ve heard the
voice of the Shepherd and they’ve gained wisdom.

…shall shine like
the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like
the stars forever and ever.

So if we’re
seeking to be wise, let’s seek the wisdom of Yahweh’s law.

And as we run the
course, and cling to His commandments, it says, ‘our heart will be enlarged.

(Psa 119:31-32)

…Because Yahweh
will fill our hearts with overflowing joy. Our hearts will be filled more and
more with His wisdom. Our hearts will become the dwelling place of Yahweh’s
Spirit. And His Spirit will overflow, causing us to spread His wisdom to others.

…And causing us
to turn many to righteousness. We won’t’ be able to contain it because out of
the heart the mouth speaks. And we will turn others to the true, original way of
righteousness….the righteous paths…where the good way is.

And Yahweh will
so fill us with His light that we will shine like the stars forever and ever,
because the law of Yahweh is light. It is the lamp. Look up in the heavens, and
whenever you see the stars at night, remember the promises of Yahweh. Remember
Daniel 12:3.

They are living
testimonies, of what Yahweh promises those who, like the author of this psalm,
has a heart that pursues the ways of Elohim.

Do we value those
promises? Are the promises and His rewards more important to us than anything
else this world may set before us?

Do rivers of
waters run down from our eyes? …Because men do not keep His law?

I’m impressed
with the heart of this man…whoever wrote it. They pursued righteousness. It’s
time we do, also. Wouldn’t you say?

…Because they
have rendered Yahweh’s law as…what? What do they tell you? “Oh, it’s no good.
It’s abolished. It’s void…null and void.” But to us, it’s alive. It’s alive
because Yahushua is alive.

And Yahushua will
fill our hearts with HIs law, writing on it as the New Covenant promises, if we
will only let Him…if we only let Him. Let’s allow Him to do that.…because that
is the true way of love.

Love is the
solution to every problem this world has. Love is the answer to
everything….every problem they’re facing out there. But who will seek to receive
the Creators definition of what love is?

The law and the
prophets hang from the two great commandments….to love Yahweh and to love one
another. Every commandment given is a revelation of how to love.

And as we turn
toward that way of love…which really is the way of Yahushua the Messiah…. may
Yahweh bless you, and have mercy on us all.