KEEPING my WAY CLEAN - Psalm 119:9-16 (God's Alphabet Song of Truth-Beth) - #2

Christianity Today's January 2016 issue features yet another story on Christian leaders' struggle with pornography.

George Barna's firm did the research.  Three-thousand surveyed.  770 pastors in the group.  "Most pastors (57%) and youth pastors (64%) admit they have struggled with porn, either currently or in the past," Barna reported.  "Overall, 21% of youth pastors and 14% of pastors admit they currently struggle with using porn."

Most keep it mostly under wraps. "Almost 6 in 10 recommended that pastors tell their spouses (58%), and even fewer (21%) said to tell the church elders or board.  Almost none (1%) said to tell the congregation."

The battle for personal, sexual purity is as old as the Garden of Eden.  Guilty and shamed in sin, Adam and Eve worked to grab leafy greens to cover their nakedness, while hearing God draw near for his daily visit.

What we do behind our personal "closed doors" we certainly don't want published outside those doors.  Few live in glass houses.

BETH - CAN I REALLY KEEP MY WAY PURE? (119:9-16)

The second stanza of Psalm 119's alphabet of truth about God's word begins with "B", or BETH (the 2nd letter in the Hebrew alphabet).  These words are priceless.

How can a young man keep his way pure?

By guarding it according to Your Word.

With my whole heart I seek You;

let me not wander from Your commandments!

I have stored up Your Word in my heart

that I might not sin against You.

Blessed are You, O Lord;

teach me Your statutes!

With my lips I declare

all at the rules of Your mouth.

In the way of Your testimonies I delight

as much as in all riches.

I will meditate on Your precepts

and fix my eyes on Your ways.

I will delight in Your statutes;

I will not forget Your word.

The young Psalmist asks a timeless question, especially for us who long for the fresh cleanness of a living void of maintaining a secret, locked closet of dirt.   Our recent American generations are flooded with sexual failure.  The question in line one seems almost ludicrous.  The answer feels like "He can't."

But, a negative answer is not the truth.  Note the keys to personal purity.

GUARD - the author knows that purity comes with keeping with, rather than being inattentive.  The Word can pull successful guard duty, if we will station it at its post.

SEEK - this young man recommits to seeing God with a wholeheartedness, even as he is fully aware how easy to is to simply wander off into trouble.

STORED UP - for the life to be successfully guarded, one must store up in the heart (or memorize and rehearse) the Lord's Word.  No stored up Word - no guarding gets done.

TEACH ME - maintaining a humble, teachable attitude to learn more.

DECLARE - speak it!  Say God's Word out loud.  Repeatedly.  It's the key to memorizing and storing.  Verbalizing it and hearing it reinforces the protection.

DELIGHT - MEDITATE - DELIGHT - loving the good that God has commanded and directed will grow inside as you meditate on Scripture.   Meditation leads to application...which becomes a guarded and clean living.

GUARDED WAYS or A SLIPPERY SLOPE?

Just a few days ago, I was discussing personal purity with a young, unmarried couple.  They were awash in impurity.  At first, they simply said it was impossible.  It was too hard to remain out of bed and in purity.  

Further discussion revealed that, in fact, they had done little to "guard  their way," often placing themselves together on a "slippery slope" (dark places, alone, at night).  "Once," I said, "you begin to slide down a muddy hill, there's little chance of stopping."

They weren't storing God's Word up in the heart.  None of the steps above were being attempted.

And, they had not known, or perhaps forgotten, this Divine pledge.  No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  God is faithful.  He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation, He will also provide a way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.  Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry" (1 Corinthians 10:13-14).

True or not true?  If true, then we can guard, seek, store up, be taught, declare and delight/meditate/delight.

Yes we can.  And God's personal shepherding is also in the mix.  

We can walk purely.  Yes, we can.

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P.S.  For a teaching on Hearing God's Voice-The Cherished Word (Psalm 119), go to www.ccames.org and access the Resources tab for this sermon on-line.