The Torah is Perfect – Praying Psalm 19

Automated transcript, lightly edited for readability. Scripture appears as spoken; the video is the authoritative teaching.

Do you ever find yourself searching for something bigger than you? For a community to be a part of? A place founded on truth and love? A place to worship the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, and the Son of God? Welcome to Founded in Truth, where we're more than just a fellowship. We're a family. So welcome home. Shabbat Shalom everybody. We are so happy to come together again online to explore God's Word and mind it as our center in a world that seems to have such a tumultuous volume right now. And as we entered this series on the Psalms, it wasn't intentional in the planning of it, but it started at the beginning of the pandemic.

We had it planned out, and then the pandemic hit, so maybe it was divinely inspired. I don't know. But I hope it's been edifying. I really do. Historically at FIT, we like to exhaust a topic before moving forward. If you haven't noticed, our series don't typically last just three weeks, especially when it comes to what some would say the heartbeat of the Hebrew Bible, the Psalms. And so last week we dared to journey into the dark side of Psalm 119, a psalm that is typically celebrated as boasting of God's law, but when we actually read it, we're faced with a rather grim reality of a petitioner crying out to God, finding himself not consumed with the blessings of the Torah, but almost wondering where those blessings are actually at.

In 90 out of 172 verses, the petitioner is crying out to God to act, to do something, intervene in this suffering that he is experiencing. It's caused many Christian scholars to believe it's actually a psalm of lament, which may be shocking for some. When we read Psalm 119, it's... For those of us who are excited about the Messianic side and the Hebrew language and excited about Torah, it's not a psalm that we would typically think of as a psalm of lament. But when we read it, that's what we see. And we explored how the questions, how the lament, and how the anticipation of God's salvation searched for within Psalm 119 can be found in only one place.

And that is the person of Yeshua and the person of Jesus. And so I hope you enjoyed that message last week. It was definitely one of our favorites. You can view it on our channel. This week... I felt it seemed good to the Holy Spirit for us to jump into a similar but different psalm, often called the Torah Psalm, Psalm 19. And Psalm 19 is packed full of energy. There's a little bit of lament, there is a proclamation of God's Torah being perfect, and there is possibly some polemic in regards to pagan sun worship. And who doesn't find that neat, right? So, let's read it together now. Turn with me to Psalm chapter 19, and let's take a look at this short but jam-packed psalm.

If you'll join me now, verse 1. Verse 7, The law of Yahweh is perfect. The rules of the Lord are true. Verse 11. Verse 12. So it's a pretty potent verse. And before we get too far into it, I want you to notice that seven times in this psalm, and this is intentional for you Bible nerds out there, seven times the Tetragrammaton, the formal name of God is used, Yahweh is used. And as we'll see, there's three sections to the psalm. In the second section, Yahweh's name is used six times regarding the Torah, and then it's used a seventh time, indicating a type of hyperlink back to the Sabbath, the completion and perfection of God, right there at the very last verse: Oh Yahweh, you are my rock and my edemer.

So it's neat to study and have that knowledge. It's pretty cool. This is such a potent psalm.

The Three Sections of Revelation

So as I said, there are three sections in Psalm 19. You have verses 1 through 6 pertaining to creation. You have verses 7 through 10 pertaining to the Torah. And then you have verses 11 through 14 pertaining to the personal struggle of the actual petitioner. Now, the first section details creation, filled with similes pertaining to the sun, and the level of detail concerning the author's obsession here with the sun has actually caused many scholars to suspect that the psalm may have originally been a pagan song of sun worship that was later taken and conflated and edited to attribute the power and servitude of the sun to Yahweh. So it's polemic, it's kind of an in-your-face back to the pagan nations. At least that's how the accusation goes. Maybe, maybe not. I still think it's neat though.

That aside, look at the passion that the author uses in celebrating the revelation of God's glory through the created order of the heavens. I mean, look at those. Let's just reread these sections again. Starting in verse 1: The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky proclaims His handiwork. Day by day pours out speech and night by night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor are there words... There's this visual of God creating a house for the Sun to hang out in. Here's a tent for the Sun and every day the Sun wakes up and, like a bridegroom filled with joy, walks out into creation and shines forth, and this is a reminder that our God is king of creation.

There are similes and metaphors in the Bible, and they're beautifully crafted, especially in poetry. We know the sun does not go into a house at the end of the day. This is a creative expression using a simile of a bridegroom coming out of his tent. And what a beautiful expression it is. Now, the author is making a point to show you that the blessing and the gift that God has given to mankind is creation itself. And creation has been given to you by God. This is the gift to you and He is in charge of it. And when you look at it, it testifies of His glory.

The Gift of Torah

Now, the second part of this psalm reveals another blessing, another gift from God to you, and that is, of course, the Torah itself, the commandments in verses 7 through 10. The law of Yahweh is perfect, reviving the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The rules of the Lord are true. Now, here the author moves to the gift of Torah, developing the awesome power of God's commandments and instructions. The Torah of Yahweh is perfect.

It is more desirable than fine gold, sweeter than honey. The Hebrew gives an emphasis in verse 10 that the Torah of Yahweh is sweeter than the most desirable honey that bees could ever create. It's the bee's knees, in other words. And the author here is claiming that when mankind is able to fully embrace the ways of God, the precepts and the commandments of God, they surround your life with a blameless atmosphere. This is the source of wisdom from God. It can make the simple wise, and it is also the source of joy for all of mankind.

Now, that sounds great, right? But if we can be honest, is that actually the reality that we've experienced? Can we be honest? Sure, we have the commandments, but have they actually provided us with a life where joy, wisdom, and sweetness have overflowed in every single area? And if the answer is, "Eh, not all of the areas in my life." "Eh, not most of the areas in my life." "Eh, no." If the answer is not, then it's appropriate to also ask the question, "Why not?" Why not? Why hasn't Torah done everything that it says it's supposed to be doing here in section 2 of Psalm 19? Why not? Is it defective? Can we ask that? The Psalm actually is addressing that. It's building up for the third section of the Psalm.

The Heart's Hidden Faults

See, when we come to the third section of the Psalm, the author brings us back to this very hard reality. God has given us a gift of creation. He has given us the experience of His glory demonstrated by the sun, the moon, and the stars. He has also given us His written word, His written law, the precepts, the Torah, these commandments that are divinely charged to get us to focus and walk towards the goal of manifesting heaven on earth, showing the world God's kingdom. Part 3 of Psalm 19, however, shows us that we are incapable of fully embracing and internalizing these gifts because of the lacking of our own human heart.

And that's not something that we like to admit. But here the psalmist is calling us out. It shifts attention to the inward life of the psalmist or the author here, especially pertaining to his heart. Despite the constant reminder of God's goodness in creation and despite God's goodness revealed to us through the Torah, the psalmist is trapped in his own flesh where he is constantly hitting a brick wall of sin in his life. He knows that he can overcome sin if he can overcome the constant failing of his human heart. If he can be fully present in the Lord, then he will be able to join the heavens and the Torah in speaking and thinking rightly about God's ways.

Here's part 3 of Psalm 19. Not 119, Psalm 19. Moreover, by them is your servant warned. In keeping them there is great reward. Who can even discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. I know I do stuff all the time. I don't even know when I'm tripping and falling. I don't even know when I mess up sometimes, God. I'm so backed up with this. I don't even know how bad my heart is because sometimes I don't even notice I do it. It's so ingrained in me. Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless and innocent of great transgression.

Hold Me Back

Man, is that not a prayer that everybody has prayed, if not still praying? God, keep me back. Hold me back. Just tackle me before I get to a place where I'm intentionally transgressing against you and showing disservice to fellow mankind through my own selfish sins. Please, God, don't let them have dominion over me any longer. Verse 14 says, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Yahweh, my Rock and my Redeemer." It's such a heartfelt prayer of reality.

The Kingdom Stands, But Our Hearts

See, how many of us are in a time in our lives where we know God's kingdom stands? We know God is still on His throne. We know God's power is still on high. How many of us know that the Torah is a blessing? It's a blessing. Of course it is. How many of us know that God's commandments bring life—that they are supposed to be sweeter than honey? But how many of us don't acknowledge where our hearts need to be in order for that to actually become a reality? See, it's too easy to say things like the Torah of Yahweh is perfect. It's too easy to say these things and not acknowledge the fact that you aren't.

God's Goodness and Man's Struggle

This is the story of the Hebrew Bible. God's goodness being given as a gift to mankind, and yet, mankind constantly struggling to choose to eat the fruit that gives life, to choose to implement and hold God's wisdom, and instead, choosing to rule the world without any of it. Without God, without His presence, without His witness. Determining good and evil for ourselves. And we all struggle with this. This is the story of mankind. We all know deep down we are wretched of heart. But how can we fix it? How do we fully embrace the power and gift of the Torah that Psalm 19 dispels shamelessly? It's perfect. It's blameless. If you can tap into it—the instructions and the will of God for your life, the wisdom of God. Man, how can we fully embrace the power and gift of creation around us?

Prophets in Exile

See, after the constant failings of Israel, struggling with this exact thing, they were finally faced with exile. And while Judah was in exile in Babylon, prophets arose, prophets such as Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah. And they wrote these prophecies that God is going to do more. Despite the error of our own human hearts, despite our unwillingness, our lack of strength to stand up to our own hearts, God is going to provide a way. And all three of these prophets describe this answer to this worldwide prophetic kingdom that's coming. And they're giving an answer to how God is going to fix the sin that is affecting the world.

And they all speak of this time when God's kingdom will be inaugurated on earth. And they describe it in two different ways. Jeremiah describes it as a time when God will write the Torah on the inner parts of their hearts —the things currently written on their hearts will be written over with the blameless precepts in pursuit of God's will in your life. Ezekiel describes what will happen as an actual literal heart transplant. Here's what Ezekiel says right here in Ezekiel 36, verse 26. That's awesome. What an amazing prophecy. The Torah is perfect, but you are not. And there's a lot of people who love Torah.

This is my soapbox. I feel sometimes we use the perfection of God's Torah as a band-aid to cover our own shame. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? It's so easy to take the Torah and say the Torah's perfect and use it as this big band-aid to cover our shame and our iniquities, the darkness that thrives within our own heart, our sin. That's a clear sign. When we choose to hold up the standard of Torah with so much zeal, just so it can cover up who we really are, that's something that we have to be careful about because it happens all the time with other people.

The Law is Perfect, But So Is the Solution

And see, the thing about Ezekiel's prophecy is it has been fulfilled through Yeshua. This is exactly what Paul talks about. And this is a great reminder, especially as Christians, when we read through Psalm 19. Because all of it, all of it points and culminates to the person of Yeshua. And so here's what Paul says in Romans chapter 8, verse 3: the law is perfect, but it doesn't mean that you are. You limit the blessing of what the Torah can do, not the Torah itself—in us. In us. This is exactly the fulfillment of Ezekiel's prophecy. I love this verse. Love it so much. Through Christ, we are enabled to carry out and live out the Torah. Not simply in some ritualistic manner with our hands, but as a beating life force from our hearts. Jeremiah says something similar. He says, "This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time," declares the Lord. "I will put my Torah in their minds, and I will write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people."

So Paul has the boldness to declare this prophecy has been fulfilled through Yeshua just like the one in Ezekiel. He says this in 2 Corinthians 3:3: "You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts." See, Paul is referencing the Torah written on the Ten Commandments as now being written on human hearts because the pen is Yeshua— that's writing over our hearts.

A New Creation

Isaiah had a prophecy that described this time of God's kingdom being inaugurated on earth as a time when the lame will walk, when the blind will see, when the deaf will hear. It will be a time where something so radical will happen. God's kingdom will emerge in such an unexpected way, but it will carry a new standard that can only be described as a new heaven and a new earth. A new creation will take place. In Isaiah , "See, God... God's kingdom manifesting on earth will be the key indicator of a recreation, a new creation." And this is exactly what Paul tries to bring our attention to, at least in his second letter to Corinth.

He wants the Corinthians to know that this prophecy has been inaugurated, it's been birthed, in the person of Yeshua. This is where we find new creation. We spoke last week about why John starts with John 1, reformulating Genesis 1, because he wants to start his witness of Yeshua with a new creation story. 2 Corinthians says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is here." This is the same thing that Isaiah is saying. Paul is saying it's here and the former things won't even come to mind anymore. This is exactly what Paul is saying. Gosh, it's powerful!

Sin and the Mark of the Beast

Do we really accept the power of Yeshua and the power of God and the power of God's graciousness to be able to defeat sin and death in our own lives and in our own hearts? See, the heavens declare the glory of God. This is Paul's point to the non-believing Israel in Romans chapter 10. The Torah is the blameless way of God restoring man. Our heart is the issue. The sin that we have allowed to consume our lives is the issue. And the Torah is not the answer to fix that problem. See, Israel had the Torah ever since they left Egypt. And even with the Torah, they became Egypt. A people that enslaved other people, forcing them to build their cities under King Solomon.

They became the beast of Daniel 7. Here's the thing: In 1 Corinthians 10, it speaks about Solomon and Israel becoming the beast of Daniel 7, a beast like that, becoming Pharaoh and becoming Egypt and becoming the people that exploit and enslave others through war and exploitation of other nations. And it says that the gold that was the annual income under King Solomon's reign was 666 talents a year. 666. Even with the Torah, you can still take the mark of the beast. That's exactly what John is trying to draw us back to.

Either We Believe or We Don't

This is a Yeshua thing to enable you to actualize God's law, God's kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. And that's something that we have to come to terms with. Either we're going to believe in the power of the Holy Spirit, in the power of Yeshua to restore mankind and to actualize Torah for what it was always meant to be, or we're not. That's what the entire Sermon on the Mount was about. It was about Yeshua going up on the mountain as the greater Moses delivering the reconstitution of Torah the way it was always supposed to be lived out. Do we believe that? And do we trust God with making our hearts so vulnerable before Him and allowing Him to change them so that we can walk out His kingdom?

Praying Through Psalm 19

How do we pray through Psalm 19? We pray through Psalm 19 with joy and celebration that God has allowed us to partake in His creation. To celebrate and be filled with joy that God would give us His Torah and precepts through the person of Yeshua. And to humble ourselves, acknowledging our sinful nature, but also being filled with the confidence and hope of how Yeshua has enabled us to truly keep the Torah of God. Walking out God's commandments. This is exactly what Matthew 5-7 talks about with the Sermon on the Mount. It was the reconstitution of the Torah, given in a new way. So I don't know where you're at today. Maybe you're at a place where God truly has fully charged your heart to view the world through the lenses of Yeshua, being filled with an indescribable joy.

Weighted Down by Darkness

Maybe you're at a place where you understand the perfection and the righteousness of the ways of God. But maybe you find yourself weighed down by sin, by darkness. Sins maybe you don't even know you've committed. But also praying that God would lead you away from the presumptuous sins as well. Maybe you can't see God's light when you look out into the world at all right now. Seeing only darkness, anxiety, stress, and fear. We are at a time—I don't even want to say in our nation, but we're at a time in human history where there's a lot of unknowns. It's a bit chaotic outside if you haven't noticed. And because sometimes the unknown makes us as humans uncomfortable, we sometimes allow fear to consume our hearts. Can we admit that? Sometimes we let it. Sometimes we drop our guard. Sometimes we decide to put hope back in the closet. Sometimes we just say, "Take me." And we allow fear to consume our hearts, not allowing God's joy to even gain root. Anybody know what I'm talking about?

What Your Heart Broadcasts

Maybe all you can think about is fear, stress, anxiety. And the thing is, when you have allowed yourself to be consumed by fear, stress, and anxiety, that's all that other people see in your life. You broadcast what is in your heart. That's just human nature. That ends up being all you talk about, all you think about, any conversation that has to be brought up because you have to broadcast it, that's what's consumed your heart. It seems petty, but you know what? Social media is a great indicator of where someone is at in their life. That's what's amazing about social media. It's an amazing observation—we all do it—you can be this friendly person when you engage with people and put on the mask, but man, we don't even try to hide it on social media. Do you ever realize? Oh my goodness, we don't even try to hide who we are on social media. You can look at the tapestry of someone's thoughts and emotions on a literal timeline—just scroll through, right?—and see what they have been consumed by.

The Social Media Challenge

And you know what? If you have a social media account, whatever platform, I dare you, I challenge you today, go to your profile, whatever platform you have, and just scroll. Just take a step back and scroll. Scroll back the past couple days, weeks, months. Just scroll and look and pretend. Pretend for me—what you see is the only thing you care about in your life. Pretend whatever you see is the thing that you yield to and serve. And that sounds ridiculous, I know. But you make that decision. And the thing is, you may say, "No, no, no. Despite what I post on social media, I'm not consumed with fear, anxiety, or anything else in the world."

But the thing is, too many people in your life—what your social media tells them is all they know about you. That is all that they see, what you put up on there. So what picture have you painted of yourself for the world to see? And that could be many things on many different levels. And not all of them are bad. Jeez, it's just good to audit yourself from time to time if you're able to actually sit down and do that. And I dare you to try to do that. Just scroll through. Audit yourself.

Confidence in Yeshua

And I think the thing that we take away from Psalm 19 as believers is the confidence. The confidence that the petitioner had in God. And as a believer, we know that confidence can be found in Yeshua. May His Spirit guide you and give you strength to identify the things in your life that need not be there. And so, that's Psalm 119. Starts out with looking out the window and seeing God's glory. Something that Paul references in Romans 1. And we see His handiwork everywhere. We don't have an excuse not to have hope in God. Look at what he does. Look at the patterns of nature. Look at the sun. God built the sun a house to sleep in every night, and every morning the sun gets up and yields its heat and its light all through the world every day and goes back to bed in his tent.

His Handiwork Everywhere

That should be enough to say, you know what? I don't need to be scared or fearful or anxious in this world. God's got this. He hasn't stopped being God. God has also given us the Torah, His precepts. We know the way. This God is not far away. He is close, close enough to say, hey, I want to give you creation to rule and reign in. And here are the commandments that produce my wisdom so that you can do that and be blameless. This is the way.

We Need Yeshua

But we also have to come to the point in our lives where we understand that sometimes it's a struggle, and we need more. Not because God's Torah is not perfect, and God's creation isn't good. We need more because we have issues in our own hearts that only Yeshua can fill. So I don't know where you're at today, but I hope it's at a place where you're constantly seeking Yeshua and you're constantly wanting to change for the betterment as an ambassador of Yeshua to the world. Because that's what we're called to do. Let the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in the Lord's sight. Oh Yahweh, our Rock and our Redeemer.

Closing

Shalom, I'm Matthew Vanderells and I hope you enjoyed this message. Founded in Truth exists to build a community that bears the image of God and lives the redeemed life only Yeshua gives. If this message impacted you or if this ministry has been a blessing to you, we invite you to take part in making sure the message of Yeshua and the truth of God's word continues to reach others. To make sure this happens, you can donate through our online giving portal at foundinatruth.com slash give or by texting any amount to 704-275-0752. Don't forget to like and subscribe for new content every single week. And we thank you for your continued support. And we look forward to seeing you next time. Shalom.