Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb19981101.htm

PSALMS: DIARIES OF GODLY OLD TESTAMENT SAINTS
Psalm One Hundred And Nineteen (Samekh) - Finding Help In Having Relationship Strains For Obeying God
(Psalm 119:113-120)
  1. Introduction
    1. Paul wrote that we must try getting along with others as best we can, Romans 12:18. However, when people become so carnal that they turn abusive, we Christians are supposed to shrink back from them according to Paul's teaching in 2 Timothy 3:1-5!
    2. Well, one may wonder, "What am I supposed to do about the incessant pain of trying to obey the Lord when doing so causes a rift between me and others who do not obey His Word?!"
    3. The psalmist in Psalm 119:113-120 reveals practical suggestions on handling this need as follows:
  2. Finding Help In Having Relationship Strains For Obeying God, Psalm 119:113-120.
    1. The psalmist notes that his love of and adherence to God's Word in his life produces an automatic relationship chasm between himself and others who do not obey God's Word, Ps. 119:113.
    2. In view of this fact, he describes how the godly are to adjust to this relationship strain in verses 114-120:
      1. God provides rewards for the faithful that offset this relationship strain with the ungodly, 114, 116-117.
        1. God gives those who obey His Word protection from damage caused by strains that this obedience causes in his relationship with the disobedient, Ps. 119:114.
        2. God provides those close to Scripture emotional sustenance in this stress, Ps. 119:116.
        3. God gives the faithful deliverance in crisis encounters with the ungodly, Ps. 119:117.
        4. In view of these divine provisions, the psalmist can separate himself from ties that would tend to drain his obedience to Scripture, Ps. 119:115.
      2. God works to encourage those who obey His Word who are caught in such relationship strains because of their separation from evil, Ps. 119:118-120.
        1. God completely counteracts and eventually destroys all who depart from His Word, 119:118-119a.
        2. This fact has a two-fold edification on the psalmist's relationships, Ps. 119:119b-120: (a) When the psalmist sees God dealing out judgment on those who stand opposed to his godly obedience to God, he experiences relief and appreciates the Word's reliability all the more, Ps. 119:119b. This draws him closer to God to compensate for the pain of feeling separated from ungodly people. (b) When he sees the seve rity of judgment on the ungodly, it makes the psalmist fear his ever getting on the side of divine judgment. Thus, he adheres all the more to God's Word, Ps. 119:120.
Lesson: (1) There is a HUGE chasm between God and those who disobey Him so that our siding with ONE of these parties NATURALLY puts us at ODDS with the OTHER! (2) However, God Himself takes up the slack in that tension through offsetting the pain the godly feel for that difficulty, for He provides relief by HIS OWN filling the vacancy left by their strained relationships with others. (3) The ungodly cannot provide that fulness, making one's siding with God the only SENSIBLE, although temporarily CH ALLENGING route to take!

Application: (1) To find FULFILLMENT in relationships, we must eventually CHOOSE EITHER to OBEY GOD OR to fellowship with those parties who disobey God. (2) When we REALIZE this, we must WEIGH (a) getting along with ungodly associates for a while only to lose blessings in the end, or (b) getting along with GOD that causes initial pain with others but fulfills in the end. (3) The psalmist urges us side with OBEYING God. An encouraging passage to this end is Matthew 5:10-12: "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great i s your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."