$
Select Payment Method
Personal Info

Credit Card Info
This is a secure SSL encrypted payment.

Terms

Donation Total: $100

All Sermons
Silhouetted person with raised hand at sunset, promoting event "A Believer's Reward." Text includes "Psalm 19" and date "May 18, 2025."
Bible Passage Psalm 19

Psalm 19 A Believer’s Reward

  • Tony Raker
Date preached May 18, 2025

God has revealed Himself in His creation (19:1-6) and revealed His expectation through the revelation of Scriptures (vv. 7-11). By studying and keeping God’s convictions, we have both temporal and everlasting rewards.

Psalm 19:11: “Moreover by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

  • Grammatical Usage: “warned” or in the Hebrew, “niz·hār” meaning, “enlighten” (offering both guidance and caution); “reward” or “ê·qeḇ” meaning, “a heel” (last result; compensation). 
  • Literal Interpretation: In addition, your servant is enlightened with both guidance and caution by them; in keeping them there is abundant compensation.
  • Contextual/Comparison: God keeps His Word: God continually uses His Word.
    1. Before we think about the rewards that God promises and gives for obedience, vv. 7-11 reveal seven things about the commandments of the Lord within His Word which we are to “keep”:
      1. They are POWERFUL – “reviving the soul” (v. 7). The Word of God is the instrument He uses to turn men and women from darkness to light, from Satan to Himself (Acts 26:18; 1 Thessalonians 1:9), and what a powerful instrument it is (Romans 1:16; Hebrews 4:12)!
      2. They are PLAIN – “making wise the simple” (v. 7). The commands of the Lord are so clear and plain that the “wicked fools” need not be in any doubt about them (Isaiah 35:8).
      3. They are PLEASING – “giving joy to the heart” (v. 8). We are sometimes tempted to think that God’s will is hard – but see Romans 12:2; 1 John 5:3.
      4. They are PURE – “The commandment of the Lord is pure” (v. 8 KJV), with no mixture of evil. God’s commands are holy, like God Himself.
      5. They are PERMANENT – “enduring forever” (v. 9). They are never out-of-date; they are appropriate and applicable for every age and circumstance and are never in need of revision (Matthew 5:17).
      6. They are PRECIOUS – “more precious than gold” and “sweeter than honey” (v. 10). To the true believer Jesus is precious (1 Peter 2:7); His blood is precious (1 Peter 1:19); so is His Word (Psalm 119:72; 2 Peter 1:4).
      7. They are PREVENTIVE – “by them is your servant warned” (v. 11). “An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure,” and God seeks to prevent us from sinning and grieving Him by giving us His commandments.
      8. They are PERFECT (v. 7).

B. What are the rewards God promises those who will keep His commandments?

    1. LONG LIFE. Can obedience impact one’s length of days? Look up Deuteronomy 32:46-47; Proverbs 3:1-2. As a general principle, if we will seek to live in the will of God and obey His laws, then our days will be lengthened; but if we break His laws by living careless, intemperate, self-led lives, then our days may be shortened.
    2. PROTECTION. There is a wonderful promise in Ecclesiastes 8:5. Does it mean that nothing will “go wrong” if we obey God? It means that Romans 8:28 will be fulfilled in our experience. Sorrow, trials and tests will come, but as they come from Him they will never be “evil”, always “good” (Deuteronomy 23:5).
    3. GLADNESS. In Nehemiah 8:13-17, notice the last words in v. 17. The most joyful people in the world are those who are constantly seeking to keep God’s commandments and please Him – look up 1 Chronicles 16:27 and compare Acts 2:41; 46. Obey God and you will discover abiding joy.
    4. GREAT PEACE. Yes, great peace – Psalm 119:165. What a priceless reward this is – to enjoy great peace even in this world of trouble, fear and war (Isaiah 26:3; Philippians 4:6-7)!
    5. THE ASSURANCE OF SALVATION. Many Christians lack the assurance of their salvation, but God wants us to know that we are secure in Christ our Savior (Colossians 3:3; 1 John 3:24).
    6. ANSWERS TO PRAYER. There is a wonderful promise in 1 John 3:22, where we also discover why some of our prayers are not answered. If we seek to obey God, He promises to answer our prayers. What a reward!
    7. THE CONSCIOUS PRESENCE OF CHRIST. In John 14:21, notice that the emphasis is upon the word “manifest”. The Lord is always with us (Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 13:5), but we are only made conscious of His presence when we are obeying Him.

C. What does it mean to keep God’s commandments?

    1. It means SEEKING them. We cannot know them until we find them, and we can only find them by seeking them (1 Chronicles 28:8).
    2. It means seeking them ALL. Read 1 Chronicles 28:8: this is a life-long occupation!
    3. It means OBEYING them. Not only finding them but doing them (John 2:5; Acts 9:6; James 1:22).
    4. It means obeying them PROMPTLY, as the psalmist did in Psalm 119:60! Why are you hurrying? To keep God’s commandments!
    5. It means DELIGHTING in obeying God, as the psalmist did in Psalm 112:1.
  • Conclusion: Have I positioned myself for God’s rewards?