Pastor Craig Ledbetter
Bible Baptist Church
Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland
Focus Verse: Psalm 150:6
Lesson Verse: Jer 5:1
A.
The Book of Psalms
in the Old Testament is God's answer to the headaches and heartaches of life.
Without it the Bible would not be complete - as a matter of fact, next to the
Gospels, Psalms is probably the most read part of the Bible because of the
reality and the promises found there!
B.
Most of the Psalms
were journal entries for David, recording the thoughts of his heart as he faced
different struggles and troubles. They were written to be sung in worship.
C.
This Psalm is about
the struggle he had watching godly men fall away
II.
Background (Jer 5:1)
A.
Truly godly people
are a rare item in this world today (Jer 5:1)
B.
This world doesn't
need more "men". Not even more "Christian men"
C.
But rather GODLY,
Christian men. The same is true with women and teens!
D.
Godly in the sense
of:
1.
Not religious
exercise - acting out "Christianity"
2.
Clean thoughts,
clean conscience
3.
Glorifying not self
but God
4.
People who live like
Jesus would if He were in their shoes
5.
Godly in heart, and
mind, and spirit
6.
Godly at home - in
the shows we watch
7.
Godly at work - in
the things we say
8.
Godly when things go
wrong
9.
Godly at school - or
when no one is watching!
10.
Godly is a rare
trait for sure.
E.
I’m glad for godly
women, and godly teens, but…
F.
It is getting harder
and harder to find a Godly MAN
III.
Message -
The Godly Man
A.
The Godly
Man is Rare (Pr 20:6; Eccl 7:28; 1King 19:10-14,
18)
1.
In David's day.
There were many religious people, but few godly men!
2.
A Godly man is
called the good man in the New Testament
3.
It meant:
a.
Converted – none
start out righteous
b.
Clean living – not
perfect, but living differently so that they can stay clean
c.
Committed to staying
that way – not up and down – not hypocritical
4.
They were so rare
that the Godly man would stand quit alone sometimes (1Kings 18:22; 22:1-8)
B.
Godly Men
Struggle.
1.
Finding it hard to
do right, and obey God
2.
So many are
"ceasing" - giving up – giving into sin and temptation
a.
It is not that they
are being killed off
b.
They are finding the
strait and narrow way too hard
c.
They are quitting –
ceasing
d.
And the world is
hurting for it!
3.
Many are failing –
not just a few
a.
They are not
reaching their potential
b.
Nor the target that
the Lord had set for them (Philp 3:14)
c.
Their numbers are
dwindling - never been in majority (Pr 20:6). But it is getting rarer and rarer
to find men who love God, and love godliness!
4.
Why are they struggling?
Because Godly Men live in an Ungodly World (12:2-4)
a.
A world of vain,
empty talk (12:2,3) - talk shows, radio
shows, TV shows, ipods, modern fool music
1)
Nothing but vain,
empty talking. The way people talk to each other these days – they talk for
hours and actually say nothing!
2)
Flattery is the name
of the game - hidden agendas in what they say
3)
Double heart – not
expressing what they really are thinking
b.
A world of pride -
ungodly pride (12:4)
1)
Not giving any glory
or thankfulness to God (Rom 1:21)
2)
Out only to conquer
3)
Out of control -
independent of authority - like Pharaoh was
c.
A world of
oppression (12:5) – wrong doing, unfairness
1)
Life is not restful
and safe, but worrisome and concerning!
2)
There is constant
Physical oppression – bullying. Mocking, scorning
a)
On the job
b)
At school
c)
At home even
3)
Spiritual oppression
- there is always more to oppression than meets they eye
a)
Depression,
discouragement - "sighing"
b)
Drives people to
anger, drugs
d.
A world of promotion
– a world that promotes, praises, honours "vile men" (12:8)
1)
On the TV – Emmy
Awards, Grammy Awards
2)
In the movies –
Bruce Willis, Jennifer Aniston
3)
In Music –
4)
Comedy – Irish
comedian Brendan O’Carroll
5)
In magazines
6)
AND in modern
“churches”
C.
Godly Men
have One Anchor.
1.
The Godly Man Trusts
in the Lord (12:5-8; Prov 3:5,6) - the greatest
testimony anyone could have!
a.
This is the theme of
the first section of Psalms - over and over - trust; trust; trust!
1)
He Trusts the Lord
for safety - salvation from hell, and daily danger
2)
He Trusts in the
Lord for sanity (1Tim 1:7)
a)
By word of God -
pieces your mind back together (Ps 119:97-ff)
b)
By the present power
of God - holds it together
3)
He Trusts in the
Lord for more and more each day (Eph 5:18)
b.
Why Trust ONLY in
Jehovah God?
1)
The words of Men
have failed them
a)
They are flattering,
deceitful, and proud.
b)
Those words are to
be cut off.
c)
God will deliver
them the humble
2)
God's Words are
pure, tried, and purified seven times.
a)
Those words are
preserved forever
b)
Tested, and tried
like purified silver
3)
Because God CAN be
trusted - fully trusted (12:6,7; 119:140)
a)
His word is more
important that His name (Ps 138:2)
b)
His words have been
put to the test - there is NO dross! The Bible has passed through the furnace of
persecution, literary criticism, philosophic doubt, and scientific discovery,
and has lost nothing but those human interpretations which clung to it as alloy
to precious ore. The experience of
saints has tried it in every conceivable manner, but not a single doctrine or
promise has been consumed in the most excessive heat.
4)
Because this is the
only way so that the world's ungodliness doesn't have lasting affects on him or
her!
5)
Because it is the
only way to persevere is to have your eyes on Jesus, and your course laid out to
follow in
6)
Because it is the
only way to counteract all the wickedness - the only way so that the vilest are
not exalted - they cannot conquer the already conquered (1Jn 4:4; 5:4) - unless
they can conquer God (Jn 10:28,29)
c.
If sinner's talk is
vain and empty - ours should be full of Jesus’ words and the Gospel!
d.
If the words of
sinners are impure - ours should be pure, strong, and precious
e.
What God's words
are, the words of His children should be. If we would be Godlike in
conversation, we must watch our language, and maintain the strictest purity of
integrity and holiness in all our communications.
D.
Godly Men
Are Needed More than Ever (Psalm 12:8)
1.
The wicked walk
everywhere – no fear
2.
We need more godly
men
a.
Pray for godly men -
pray for new recruits, and for those on the front lines!
b.
Preach to ungodly
men – don’t expect them to get right until they have been provoked and motivated
to get saved and right!
c.
Produce a new godly
generation! Through Sunday School, devotions!
d.
Persevere! Stay true
to the Bible. Preach the word - it is the only thing that makes true men and
women of God out of people. More preaching, teaching, and churches all across
this country
e.
Praise godliness!
Honour godliness in our young men especially!
1)
Don't be like Job's
friends.
2)
Support your pastor,
SS teachers, the workers here!
3)
Honour the girl who
decides to live clean and different than her class – dresses modestly
4)
Honour the boy who
climbs mountains and reads books and works hard
5)
Honour the dad who
loves HOME
6)
Honour and praise
the Mom who has children and stays home and raises a godly generation
7)
Honour and praise
the politician who stands upon Biblical principles like less welfare and more
work
8)
Honour masculinity
9)
Honour femininity
10)
We need more godly
people!
3.
And the only way to
have more godly people is to turn people BACK to the perfect words of God!
4.
Let’s talk about
those words!
E.
The
Preservation of the Words of God (Psalm 12:6,7)
1.
God’s
Words are Plural – not WORD (singular)
a.
THE theme of the
entire psalm is WORDS.
1)
David speaks of the
words of men and the words of God more that he speaks of the poor and the needy.
2)
The poor and needy
accent the theme of words, but the main theme or emphasis is on words.
3)
In the first verses,
David speaks about the words of men. In fact, he refers to the words of men nine
times (speak, lips, speak, lips, tongue, speaketh, said, tongue and lips) in
verses 1-4.
b.
Literal words from
God (Rom 10:17)
c.
We need EVERY word
from God (Mt 4:4)
1)
66 Books (Genesis to
Revelation)
2)
1,189 Chapters
3)
31,101 Verses
4)
783,137 Words
5)
Only 12,000
different words are used throughout the 1200 pages of the Bible
6)
Shakespeare’s
writings used 30,000 words
7)
Most of us know well
over 40,000 different words by the time we are 20 years old
8)
Written so a 12 year
old with a 6th class education could read it with no difficulty
2.
God’s
Words are Pure (Ps 119:14; Prov 30:5)
a.
Inspiration (2Tim
3:16) – God breathed out the words INTO men! God spoke, they heard, and they
wrote
1)
From the moment it
was spoken by God (Mt 4:4)
2)
From page 1, chapter
1, and verse 1 (Psalm 119:160)
b.
The very words are
inspired – not just the idea
1)
It does matter
whether Jesus is the Lamb of God and not the Chicken of God
2)
It does matter
whether there is a comma or a period!
c.
The Bible does not
CONTAIN trauth, it IS truth (John 17:17)
d.
Purified seven times
– HEATED over and over, making sure it had no dross. No one puts silver into a
furnace more than seven times – there is absolutely no more dross by then! Same
is true with God’s words!
e.
Every word of God
has been tried and tested, compared and contrasted, and proven to be true!
f.
Your King James
Bible was translated across SEVEN years, by 54 men, cross checking every word
and every phrase six times to make sure every word was translated RIGHT!
g.
There are NO errors
in the Bible – may be printing errors, but no errors – NONE!
3.
God’s
words are Powerful (John 6:67,68) – words
of eternal life! Words that still CHANGE lives
4.
God’s
Words are Preserved (Mt 24:35; 5:18;
1Peter 1:25) - Preservation
a.
What a waste of
God’s time perfectly inspiring His words onto paper if He didn’t or couldn’t
preserve them!
b.
They are protected,
kept, preserved by God from the time of inspiration – from the time the pen was
put to paper
1)
Started with Moses –
we still have God’s words through Moses (Genesis thru Deuteronomy)
2)
Then Joshua – we
still have Joshua’s words
3)
Then Samuel
4)
Then David
5)
Then Ezra
6)
Then the major
prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, etc)
7)
Then the minor
prophets (Hosea, Amos, Micah, Zechariah, Malachi, etc)
8)
Then the Apostles
and New Testament prophets: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Peter, James, Jude
9)
Until the Apostle
John in the Book of the Revelation
10)
A total of 40
writers, scribes, and prophets wrote (2Pet 1:21) the words of Almighty God down
onto pages and pages, and then, were tested and proven, and combined into one
Book of books – the Bible!
c.
God has kept them,
preserved them, for us!
d.
And He always will
(Mt 24:35)
e.
God preserves His
word:
1)
Ps 100:5 For the
LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all
generations.
2)
Ps 119:89 For
ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. Not changing
3)
Ps 119:152
Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast founded them for
ever. They will exists forever!
4)
Ps 119:160 Thy word
is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth
for ever.
5)
Isa 40:8 The grass
withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
6)
1Pet 1:23 Being born
again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which
liveth and abideth for ever.
7)
1Pet 1:25 But the
word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is
preached unto you.
5.
If he can’t preserve
His word, then he can’t preserve YOU!
IV.
Conclusion and Study
Questions
A.
What is happening to
Godly people, especially Godly men today?
Ceasing, failing, falling away
B.
What does “godly”
mean?
Converted, Clean, Committed
C.
Do Godly men find it
easy or hard to be godly?
Hard
D.
Why do Godly men fail
and quit?
Because of sin around them
E.
What can Godly men
hold onto?
God’s word!
F.
How can we get more
Godly Men?
1.
Pray for godly men
2.
Preach to ungodly
3.
Produce a new godly
generation
4.
Persevere! Stay true
to the Bible
5.
Praise godliness!
Honour godliness in our young men especially!
G.
What does INSPIRATION
mean? God spoke
His word into the minds of His prophets
H.
How pure are God’s
words? VERY
pure!
I.
Peter said Jesus’
words where what kind of words?
Words of eternal life!
J.
Just as miraculous as
Inspiration, what else has God done to His word?
Preservation
K.
List a verse that
says God will preserve His word…
Matthew 24:35