Assurance For the Doubters
Psalm 119:65-72

Intro: 6 questions-- called the reporters friends....who-what-where-when-why-how... understanding God at times is difficult. We ask many questions.
We question God in 3 directions.....past....present....future.
"We live by faith"....Faith is the absence of answers! If we need ans..not liv by faith! God knows we all have weaknesses! We all doubt! We all question!
Where do we go?....what do we do? Ps. 119 is the song of the scriptures
Unusual! 22 stanzas 8 verses in each stanza it is an acrostic in the original Hebrew
When we doubt and question God,,,go to the scriptures

I. His Attitude v. 65-66
the summary of his life--the sum of his life. it is an attitude of heart. God is good God...excellent Father..would he harm you? Has he harmed you?
1Co 11:32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

1. The Beauty of His Attitude
dealt well=fashioned appropriately, done an excellent job
according to thy word=just like you said you would! Teach me=train, instruct some people don't want to learn! On the job, they are the unhappy ones, unpleasant to be around
good judgment=taste, discretion knowledge=perception, skill Has a teachable spirit.

2. The Basis of His Attitude
believed=assured, verified He is just gonna believe God!

God is trustworthy! A group was going to a game together. All said they would meet at a given time. One did not show, the trustworthy one! One stayed behind to see what happened to him. Found him at home, passed out in the floor...had a diabetic seizure. Did not know he had diabetes!

How much do you trust God to do what He says!

II. His Afflictions v. 67-68
There is no doubt the writer had hard times. Some act like they are always on the mtntop! Fakes! The writer had many opportunities to doubt-and he did. He went astray--just like us. But he had learned a lesson. Don't miss this! This includes a lot of things: afflicted=depressed, downcast, humbled, to be humiliated, to be made weak.

1. His Straying went astray=sinned, erred as a sheep from the shepherd, as a child from his mother. Weakness, careless, negligent. Sometimes ignorantly, more often willfully.
My way! I understand! I know best! The prodigal son----Peter said "I'll never leave you"

2. His Staying kept=regarded, give heed to, take charge of, give respect to. But

Now only after affliction. Thou art good and doeth good. Affliction humbles, brings patience, brings appreciation, stops worldliness, show the real you, drives to scripture Affliction is God's intense training! Spurgeon said "it is like a dark schoolhouse with no windows to let in cheerful light, and only God's grace shines like a candle within, and by that light we see things we have never before seen.

III. His Adversaries v. 69-70
It seems that much of his affliction is coming from persecution. He focuses on his advasaries, those who are causing his affliction. There will be a human element to your affliction. Whether a job, a spouse, the lost, creditors, or your own flesh.

1. They are Satisfied in their Sin
proud=arrogant, presumptious, those who go ahead without God forged a lie=covered over truth with a lie as plastering over like a post-it note heart=inner man, fat as grease=insensitive, coarse

2. He is Satisfied in the Scriptures delight in=to play as a sport, to smear oneself with, to identify with because of strong attachment. They smear him with lies, he smears himself with truth.

IV. His Answer V. 71-72
He now comes to the end of the matter. We sometimes question God, at least in our minds. He hasnt always been here. He is here because of affliction. He looks back over his adverse experiences and makes his final statement. It is good= appropriate, fitting, becoming, it is agreeable to me...

1. Learning by Experience learn= law-mad' translated both to learn and to teach, to become skillful in, to know a subject so well you can teach it to others. You have to learn the hard way! We all do. Its called experimental knowledge. You can go to school all you want to learn how to learn a profession -but you really don't know until you do it.

2. Living as an Example The law of my mouth=directions, instructions from his mouth. He identifies with them as his own. Better than thousands of gold and silver= inumerable

Ps 94:12 Heb 12:10-11

Conclusion: When affliction finds you, realize that you are now in God's school. Remember Spurgeon's description...no light but the candle of Scripture. Will you make His law" the law of your mouth"?

Jesus said when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?