David Bailey – Talking With God – Class 5 – The Word and Prayer

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It’s interesting how the studies
tend to dovetail in subjects as

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we shall see.
The daily tending of the the

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Tabernacle with the replenishing
of the incense for the the altar

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of incense and also the the oil
for the lampstand was by design.

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The word of and prayer go
together is this intimacy that

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that exists between those two.
God talks with us through his

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word.
It’s sort of a cliche to say

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that we we, we, we say that
often, but it it’s less

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contrived than we may think.
There is a living person behind

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these words, the words of
Scripture.

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God spoke those words.
If you come with me to to Psalm

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119, Psalm 119, and we begin.
Verse 13 with my lips, have I

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declared all the judgments of
thy mouth?

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Verse 72 The law of thy mouth is
better unto me than thousands of

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gold and silver.
Verse 88 quicken me after thy

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love and kindness, so shall I
keep the testimony of thy mouth.

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It’s obvious God spoke these
words and this expression is not

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sort of a poetic device used in
the Psalms.

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It’s it’s through the Word.
Once you see it, you see it

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everywhere that these words were
spoken out of the mouth of God.

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Consider how the word of our
Father can speak to us.

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Look at this in Proverbs chapter
6.

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There’s 20.
It’s up on the screen here.

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My son, keep thy father’s
commandments, and forsake not

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the law of thy mother.
Bind them continually upon thine

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art, and tie them about thy
knee.

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When thou goest, it shall leave
thee.

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When thou sleepest it shall keep
thee, and when thou awakest it

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shall talk with thee.
His words talk with us.

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John chapter one, verse one.
Those famous words in the

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beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word

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was God.
That expression tells us that

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the Word is Him.
It expresses who He is, His

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purpose, what He wants.
So the Bible and Bible study is

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coming to know Him and His Son
whom He has sent.

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Now look at what the Psalmist
says in Psalm 119.

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Again, come back to to verse 2.
Blessed are they that keep His

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testimonies, and that seek Him
with the whole heart.

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Verse 10 With my whole heart
have I sought Thee.

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Oh, let me not wander from Thy
commandments.

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Now we know Psalm 119 is all
about the Word of God, and the

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seeking of Him is through His
Word.

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But look at it.
It’s personal.

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We’re seeking Him through the
pages of that Word.

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We’re trying to find Him, His
personality, who He is, how he

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thinks, how He feels.
There’s a personality that spoke

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these words about Himself.
Now this is what Proverb, Bible

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study and meditation is about.
We seek Him as a living person.

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But it goes further because you
see, we involve God personally

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in our study of His word.
Look at verse 27.

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Make me or cause me to
understand the way of Thy

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precepts.
So shall I talk of thy wondrous

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words.
The psalmist is praying to God

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and asking him to show him that
God help him to see these

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things.
It’s again in verse 33.

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Teach me, O Yahweh, the the, the
way of thy statues is not just

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his statues, it’s the way of his
statutes.

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And he’s asking God to see that
that way, and I shall keep it

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unto the end.
Verse 35 Make me cause me to go

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in the path of thy commandments,
for therein do I delight incline

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my heart.
He’s asking God to incline my

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heart unto thy testimonies and
not to covetousness.

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Now each of these passages is a
prayer, and the psalmist asks

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for help not only to understand
the Scripture, to understand the

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way of that Scripture.
The precepts have away a path,

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and it’s the path of God’s
precepts and statutes and his

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commandments that he wishes to
understand.

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It’s not just the preset, it’s
the way and the principle, how

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it works in all its avenues,
really.

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As he meditates upon God’s Word,
the psalmist ask God to become

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involved with him personally in
his Bible study.

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So Bible study isn’t about
getting just the gems and, and

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the, and the, you know, the
points and so on.

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Bible study is about coming to
know him personally.

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That’s a lifetime’s worth.
And the psalmist is asking God

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to become involved in teaching
him that that happens through

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his hand at work in our lives.
So Bible study is more than just

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academic.
It’s involving ourselves with a

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personality whose voice is heard
through the pages of this book.

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But what about the word of God
in our prayers?

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I’m going to come back to this
concept soon that we’ve just

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been looking at.
But what about the word of God

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in our praise?
People in Bible times cited

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Scripture in their praise.
And you just look at the prayers

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of Moses, Jeremiah, Daniel,
David, his car, all the faithful

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whose prayers are recorded in
the Bible.

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They they cite, they allude to
Scripture continuously, as it

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were.
Jonah, they’re full of

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citations.
But brothers and sisters, they

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didn’t do this to show off their
Bible knowledge.

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They didn’t do it to sound
spiritual.

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Jonah didn’t pull out a pocket
Bible in the whale’s valley to

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pick out the passages that might
impress God.

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These passages came out of their
hearts from their inner being

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because it was there that
scripture was part of them.

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It came out automatically from
them.

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Their minds were full of these
things.

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Our brother in our previous
previous session, Brother Tim,

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he he made in his points at the
end there search the scriptures

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to be to be able to apply them
to the challenge, challenging

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choices of life.
And that’s what they did.

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They used the scriptures, but
they didn’t have a dedicated

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room for doing their Bible
study.

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They had to commit the
scriptures to memory because

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there’s only the Levites that
had had the scriptures.

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There were very few scriptures
available or copies of the

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scriptures, so they had to
commit these things to memory.

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So it was there, it was in them.
Now I want to demonstrate what

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I’ve been talking about with a
couple of examples.

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I’m going to use Moses and
Daniel and we’re going to turn

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to Numbers 14.
Numbers 14 when Israel murmured

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against God at the border of the
Promised Land, Yahweh declared

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unto Moses, I will make a smite
them with the pestilence and

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disinherit them and will make of
thee a greater nation and

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mightier than they Numbers 14
verse 12.

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Now this is the second time that
God offered Moses this this new

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beginning to start off through
Moses and he could have kept the

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promises to to Abraham if he did
this.

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But we know what Moses did on
the first time he appealed on

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the guard and said no, look you,
you will be look an idiot in the

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eyes of the nations because what
you started you haven’t

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completed and so is he was
concerned with God’s honor.

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Well, he does the same again.
Why?

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Because it worked the first
time.

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Now on the previous occasion as
part of the reconciliation

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process and in Exodus chapter 32
onwards, God declared His name

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to Moses as part of that.
And he he gave the the virtues

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of His name in Exodus 34, six
and seven.

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So what does he do this time?
Look at Numbers 14 and verse 17.

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And now I beseech thee, let the
power of my Lord be great,

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according as thou hast spoken,
saying Yahweh is long-suffering

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and of great mercy for giving
iniquity and transgression, and

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by no means clearing the guilty,
visiting the iniquity of the

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fathers upon the children unto
the 3rd and 4th generation.

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Pardon, I beseech thee, the
iniquity of this people,

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according unto the greatness of
thy mercy, as thou hast forgiven

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this people from Egypt even
until now.

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See what he’s done.
He’s appealed to God’s own

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words.
Let the power of my Lord be

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great according as thou hast
spoken.

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And then he cites the
declaration that God made to him

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back to God in from Exodus 34,
six and seven.

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Now in effect, Moses said to
God, you declared unto me that

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this is what you’re like, and
now is a time to give power to

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your words and your character.
And it worked because in verse

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20 it says I have pardoned
according to thy words.

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How powerful was that?
God heard Moses prayer because

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of what Moses said, and what
Moses said was what God had said

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about himself.
But God wasn’t merely chuffed

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that Moses cited God’s words
back to him as if he’s vain like

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man is.
Simply quoting God’s words in

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prayer don’t make them spiritual
or acceptable.

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Moses didn’t recite Exodus 34,
verses 6 and seven verbatim.

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A lot of it is, but it’s not all
you compare.

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Here it is on the screen.
I’m sorry, I forgot about that

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emphasis.
Right, Exodus 34.

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Here it is on the screen.
And notice the words I’ve given

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emphasis to long-suffering and
goodness.

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That all that he said of God is
covenant mercy which forgives.

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It’s the mercy that forgives.
Those are the two qualities he’s

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picked out of God’s name and
give an emphasis to because

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those are the two he
specifically mentions.

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He selects part of Yahweh’s
declaration that were

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appropriate to this occasion.
So he called upon Yahweh’s

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virtues of long-suffering, His
slowness to anger, and he said

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His covenant mercy.
So Moses drew upon those

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attributes because he understood
Israel’s situation and he

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understood how God thinks, His
personality.

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And God accepted Moses request
because that is how God thinks

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and how he feels.
Now we have here 2 very powerful

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principles that God will respond
to.

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Belief in what God says.
And more than that, thinking

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about what He says and finding
out how He heals or thinks is

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not just a case of quoting back
to Him, but you hear His words

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and believe it.
And secondly, searching further,

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you see how He thinks about that
and how it that that that what

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he says shows his personality.
It’s accepting those things and

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the character behind his words.
Now many faithful in the

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scriptures have followed Moses
example and they’ve used these

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attributes of God that they’re
all the way through Scripture

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and they’ve used them in their
prayers.

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They’ve thought upon my name as
Malachi says they did Bible

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study on God’s name as a very,
very good exercise for anyone is

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to think upon those virtues of
his name to do a Bible study on

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his name, get to know him
because that’s his declaration

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about him.
That’s why they’re often used in

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prayer.
Now the second example is in

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Daniel.
Come with me to Daniel in

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Chapter 9, Daniel 9.
Now Daniel had been studying

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God’s word that had been given
to Jeremiah, and he discovered

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that juice, Jerusalem’s
desolation, would last for 70

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years.
That’s in Daniel 9 verses two to

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three, and he realizes that the
70 years were almost up, and so

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he prays about it.
Now.

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He didn’t just launch himself
into a prayer in a bit of

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excitement.
First he prepared himself and he

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prepared his prayer.
He studied the whole situation

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and he can tell this from his
prayer, even how he addressed

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God in Daniel 9 in verse four it
says, and I prayed unto Yahweh

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my God, and made my confession
and said, O Lord, the great and

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dreadful God, keeping the
covenant and mercy to them that

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love them, and to them that keep
his commandments.

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And so he described God as the
great Gadol and the dreadful

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Yahweh God ale.
Now I’m giving emphasis to those

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words because he is in fact
alluding to a whole passage in

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Deuteronomy 7 verse 21.
It’s not just one part and

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picked out.
He’s citing the spirit of

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Deuteronomy 7.
Yahweh my God is among you, a

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mighty Gadol ale and terrible
Yahweh.

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And Deuteronomy 7 verse nine
says Yahweh thy God, he is God

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the faith will ail which keeps
covenant and mercy with them

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that love them and keep his
commandments to 1000

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generations.
Now he didn’t quote verbatim but

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this is where his mind was as he
addressed God.

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He didn’t simply live some nice
sounding phrases, but instead he

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used expressions because of
their relevance.

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He next admitted their guilt and
justified God for their current

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00:19:15,840 –> 00:19:21,280
situation in in June Daniel 9 in
verses 5 through to 15.

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But again, look at how he does
this.

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He was guided by God’s Word, and
he draws from Exodus, Leviticus,

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00:19:29,720 –> 00:19:33,760
Deuteronomy, Kings, and Psalms,
which are all relevant.

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In other words, he did an awful
lot of Bible study, brothers and

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00:19:38,000 –> 00:19:40,280
sisters, to prepare for this
prayer.

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It was a special prayer.
Now look at the strong things

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and language in His prayer,
because I mentioned several

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00:19:50,840 –> 00:19:54,840
times some of these expressions
that we have sinned, we have

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00:19:54,840 –> 00:19:58,640
committed iniquity in
trespasses, we rebelled and

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00:19:58,640 –> 00:20:01,120
departed from God’s precepts and
judgments.

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00:20:01,280 –> 00:20:04,520
Look at how He’s acknowledging
what they’ve done wrong.

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Neither have we obeyed the voice
of Yahweh God.

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Therefore, the promised curses
of the Law of Moses have come

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upon us, and God is absolutely
justified.

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00:20:25,040 –> 00:20:31,120
Righteousness belongs to God.
Now Daniel went out of his way

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00:20:31,280 –> 00:20:40,560
in verses 5 to 15 to acknowledge
Israel’s sin and to acknowledge

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00:20:40,920 –> 00:20:47,800
God as being right.
And in doing this, he was

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following a special passage that
advised him, that’s what you

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00:20:53,480 –> 00:20:59,160
have to do, because it’s in
Leviticus in chapter 26, verses

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00:20:59,160 –> 00:21:02,400
40 to 42.
Now hear the echoes.

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If they shall confess their
iniquity and the iniquity of

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00:21:11,360 –> 00:21:16,960
their fathers with their
trespass, which they trespassed

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00:21:17,000 –> 00:21:22,840
against me, and that they also,
and that also they have walked

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00:21:23,040 –> 00:21:29,000
contrary to me, and that I also
have walked contrary unto them,

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00:21:29,440 –> 00:21:31,720
and have brought them into the
land of their enemies.

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00:21:31,800 –> 00:21:35,960
If then their uncircumcised
hearts be humbled, and they then

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00:21:35,960 –> 00:21:40,800
accept the punishment of their
iniquity, then, well, I remember

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00:21:40,800 –> 00:21:44,040
the covenant under Jacob and
Abraham and so on.

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So Daniel does exactly what that
passage says.

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00:21:50,720 –> 00:21:56,960
He isn’t cited, he does what it
says.

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00:21:58,400 –> 00:22:01,720
His prayer is a confession.
Verse 4 and 20.

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00:22:02,200 –> 00:22:06,440
He confessed precisely in the
same spirit as he read it in

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00:22:06,440 –> 00:22:10,960
Leviticus.
Now, Daniel wouldn’t have known

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00:22:10,960 –> 00:22:15,920
what God required unless he had
studied this passage.

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00:22:18,240 –> 00:22:21,680
But there’s more.
You see, Daniel also cites the

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words of another prayer, the
prayer of Solomon.

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00:22:27,280 –> 00:22:32,680
We’ve already looked at it, of
his prayer at the inauguration

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00:22:33,120 –> 00:22:38,760
of the temple, one King’s eight.
And it’s evident from Solomon’s

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00:22:38,760 –> 00:22:44,040
prayer that Solomon also had
studied his Bible because he was

258
00:22:44,040 –> 00:22:52,320
drawing from the same passages.
God accepted Solomon’s prayer,

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00:22:53,080 –> 00:22:57,880
so Daniel knows that that’s how
God thinks, and so he studied

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00:22:57,880 –> 00:23:02,120
those passages.
Now notice the language and the

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00:23:02,120 –> 00:23:05,560
ideas in this comparison.
Now we don’t have time to go

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00:23:05,560 –> 00:23:07,560
through it.
You can just see at a glance

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00:23:07,640 –> 00:23:12,040
that Daniel was borrowing from
Solomon the same expressions.

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00:23:13,440 –> 00:23:20,320
So he’s got that prayer in mind.
So see how careful Daniel was in

265
00:23:20,320 –> 00:23:25,640
preparing his prayer when he
studied those passages.

266
00:23:25,720 –> 00:23:30,880
He was genuinely affected by
God’s feelings.

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00:23:32,040 –> 00:23:35,240
He was genuinely involved,
therefore, in his prayer.

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00:23:37,560 –> 00:23:40,840
And how do you think God felt
about a prayer like that?

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00:23:41,680 –> 00:23:45,080
Well, we know because at the
beginning of this application,

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00:23:45,080 –> 00:23:48,640
Gabriel was ordered to respond
to Daniel’s prayer in verses 20

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00:23:48,640 –> 00:23:52,400
to 23.
So the faithful not only

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00:23:52,400 –> 00:23:58,040
searched God’s Word to prepare
for their previous, they studied

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00:23:58,080 –> 00:24:02,040
other people’s prayers as well.
Now we’ve already seen Daniel

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00:24:02,040 –> 00:24:09,240
drew upon Solomon’s prayer when
he came to his in in this

275
00:24:09,240 –> 00:24:11,880
prayer.
But what we find then when

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00:24:12,760 –> 00:24:16,840
Solomon comes to asking for
forgiveness, he didn’t just have

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00:24:16,840 –> 00:24:21,800
Solomon’s prayer in mind, he had
the prayer of another king.

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00:24:22,640 –> 00:24:26,800
Come with me to verse 18.
Verse 18.

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00:24:28,000 –> 00:24:34,880
Oh my God, incline or bow down
thine ear and hear.

280
00:24:35,680 –> 00:24:39,800
Open thine eyes, and behold our
desolations in the city which is

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00:24:39,800 –> 00:24:42,800
called by Thy name.
For we do not present our

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00:24:42,800 –> 00:24:46,440
supplication before thee for our
righteousnesses, but for thy

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00:24:46,440 –> 00:24:52,800
great mercies.
O Lord, here, O Lord, forgive, O

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00:24:52,800 –> 00:24:58,160
Lord, hearken, and do defer, not
for thine own sake, O my God,

285
00:24:58,280 –> 00:25:01,080
for thy city and thy people are
called by thy name.

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00:25:02,480 –> 00:25:09,360
And Daniel’s appeal here alludes
to the language of Solomon’s

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00:25:09,360 –> 00:25:13,240
prayer in Second of Chronicles
chapter 6, verse 40.

288
00:25:14,320 –> 00:25:19,480
But he also draws upon
Hezekiah’s prayer with

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00:25:19,480 –> 00:25:24,920
Sennacherib’s letter in his
hand, because here is is are

290
00:25:24,920 –> 00:25:29,040
those words.
And 2nd of Kings 19 and verse 16

291
00:25:29,240 –> 00:25:34,560
Yahweh bow down thine ear and
hear, open Yahweh thine eyes,

292
00:25:34,640 –> 00:25:38,560
and see and hear the words of
Sennacherib, which hath sent

293
00:25:38,560 –> 00:25:41,600
him, which hath sent him to
reproach the living God.

294
00:25:43,600 –> 00:25:46,120
He cites just that little bit
there.

295
00:25:48,680 –> 00:25:53,160
It is not just because that nice
sounding, it’s because he he

296
00:25:53,160 –> 00:25:54,560
quotes them.
He doesn’t even quote them

297
00:25:54,560 –> 00:26:01,600
verbatim, but it’s clearly
alluding to them and he evokes,

298
00:26:01,640 –> 00:26:10,040
invokes the spirit of Hezekiah’s
prayer because Daniel saw the

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00:26:10,040 –> 00:26:14,920
connection.
Their prayers were over the

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00:26:14,920 –> 00:26:19,600
welfare of the same city,
totally different circumstances.

301
00:26:22,320 –> 00:26:27,520
Now He’s the car too was a man
of prayer and a man of the word.

302
00:26:28,800 –> 00:26:33,480
And he too was alluding to
Solomon’s prayer and also to

303
00:26:33,480 –> 00:26:38,240
David in Psalm 31, verse 2 and
Psalm 71 verse two.

304
00:26:40,000 –> 00:26:47,000
Now there was another man who
based his prayer on Daniel’s

305
00:26:47,000 –> 00:26:50,160
prayer.
And come with me to Nehemiah.

306
00:26:51,000 –> 00:27:00,640
Nehemiah and chapter one.
When Nehemiah heard the report

307
00:27:01,800 –> 00:27:04,320
that the walls of Jerusalem were
broken down, in the gates

308
00:27:04,320 –> 00:27:10,200
thereof burnt with fire,
Nehemiah reacted very similarly

309
00:27:10,200 –> 00:27:13,240
to to Daniel.
He sat down, and wept, and

310
00:27:13,240 –> 00:27:16,960
mourned certain days, and fasted
and prayed before the God of

311
00:27:16,960 –> 00:27:19,760
heaven.
He prepared himself, and He

312
00:27:19,760 –> 00:27:26,440
clearly prepared his prayer.
Look at how he opens his prayer.

313
00:27:26,440 –> 00:27:32,600
Verse 5I beseech thee, O Yahweh,
Elohim of heaven, the great and

314
00:27:32,600 –> 00:27:37,760
terrible ale that keeps covenant
and mercy for them, that love

315
00:27:37,760 –> 00:27:41,240
them, and observe His commands.
Those are Daniel’s expressions

316
00:27:41,680 –> 00:27:45,320
and his sentiments.
And then look in verse 6, Let

317
00:27:45,320 –> 00:27:49,720
thine ear now be attentive, and
thine eyes open, that thou must

318
00:27:49,720 –> 00:27:54,200
hear the prayer of Thy.
Those are Hezekiah’s expressions

319
00:27:54,560 –> 00:27:58,000
and sentiments.
And then he continues in the

320
00:27:58,000 –> 00:28:02,280
spirit of Daniel, which I pray
before thee now day and night,

321
00:28:02,440 –> 00:28:07,160
for the children of Israel, thy
servants, and confess the sins

322
00:28:07,160 –> 00:28:11,080
of the children of Israel, which
we have sinned against Thee.

323
00:28:11,080 –> 00:28:18,400
Both I and my father’s house
have sinned as precisely the

324
00:28:18,400 –> 00:28:22,520
same confession based upon the
same scriptures that Daniel did.

325
00:28:22,520 –> 00:28:27,280
But look how he is thinking for
himself about the Word.

326
00:28:30,280 –> 00:28:32,960
The word that Daniel directed
him to.

327
00:28:34,400 –> 00:28:38,880
Verse 8.
Remember, I beseech thee, the

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00:28:38,880 –> 00:28:42,080
word that that has commanded
that that commanded thy servant

329
00:28:42,080 –> 00:28:46,160
Moses, saying, If ye transgress,
I will scatter you abroad among

330
00:28:46,160 –> 00:28:49,160
the nations.
But if you turn unto me and keep

331
00:28:49,160 –> 00:28:53,360
my commandments, and do them,
though they they were of you

332
00:28:53,360 –> 00:28:57,240
cast out into the uttermost part
of heaven, yet will I gather

333
00:28:57,240 –> 00:29:01,040
them from things, and will bring
them unto the place that I have

334
00:29:01,040 –> 00:29:05,120
chosen to set my name.
There, now he cites the, the the

335
00:29:05,120 –> 00:29:12,640
phrases of Daniel’s passages,
and yet he more directly cites

336
00:29:12,760 –> 00:29:18,760
Leviticus 26, verse 33,
Deuteronomy 425 to 27, third

337
00:29:18,760 –> 00:29:22,160
chapter 30, verses 2 to 8, and
chapters 12.

338
00:29:22,160 –> 00:29:26,520
This is Deuteronomy 12/5 to
seven and 1423 to 24.

339
00:29:28,840 –> 00:29:31,720
Now you have, I hope of copying
all that down, but that’s

340
00:29:31,720 –> 00:29:35,520
where’s mine going.
He’d gone there.

341
00:29:35,640 –> 00:29:38,840
That’s the point.
He’d studied that for himself.

342
00:29:40,360 –> 00:29:43,320
Daniel directed them there, and
he studied it for himself.

343
00:29:45,880 –> 00:29:52,240
See, these people wanted to make
sure that what they said to God

344
00:29:52,840 –> 00:29:56,920
was in tune with how he thought
and how God thinks.

345
00:29:58,600 –> 00:30:04,000
So they learned from the prayers
of the faithful, and they saw

346
00:30:04,040 –> 00:30:08,800
how God responded to them, not
just the words, but the thoughts

347
00:30:08,800 –> 00:30:14,320
behind them, and they went to
the word itself to discover for

348
00:30:14,320 –> 00:30:18,880
themselves.
So they were, they prayed and

349
00:30:18,880 –> 00:30:23,240
they were heard.
They studied their Bibles to be

350
00:30:23,240 –> 00:30:26,360
able to do this, brothers and
sisters, and they built up this

351
00:30:26,360 –> 00:30:31,920
kind of relationship with God.
Now, I mentioned earlier to the

352
00:30:31,920 –> 00:30:35,120
Hebrews, Bible study wasn’t a
thing where you could go into a

353
00:30:35,120 –> 00:30:39,560
room full of lexicons and, and
dictionaries and, and all your

354
00:30:39,560 –> 00:30:43,920
reference materials and, and sit
there studying.

355
00:30:43,920 –> 00:30:46,120
They had to have the Bible in
here.

356
00:30:47,960 –> 00:30:51,800
For the common folk.
It meant sitting at the feet of

357
00:30:51,800 –> 00:30:58,080
the Levites and memorizing.
It was an oral society so that

358
00:30:58,080 –> 00:31:01,120
they had to listen and they
heard and they had very good

359
00:31:01,120 –> 00:31:06,800
memories and then they could
think upon those passages.

360
00:31:07,800 –> 00:31:10,040
That’s meditation, brothers and
sisters.

361
00:31:11,160 –> 00:31:14,840
Now, meditation is not the navel
gazing, emptying of the mind of

362
00:31:14,840 –> 00:31:19,240
the Hindus and the Buddhists,
the New Ages and the therapists.

363
00:31:21,760 –> 00:31:26,120
Look at what the Bible says.
That meditationist come with me

364
00:31:26,120 –> 00:31:31,640
to our reading in Psalm 1
concerning the blessed or happy

365
00:31:31,640 –> 00:31:37,360
man of verse one.
He says in verse 2, but his

366
00:31:37,360 –> 00:31:45,080
delight is in the law of Yahweh
and in His law doth he meditate

367
00:31:45,960 –> 00:31:50,200
day and night.
And the word meditate there is

368
00:31:50,320 –> 00:31:55,240
Hagar and it means to mutter,
talk, meditate or muse.

369
00:31:56,320 –> 00:31:59,640
His delight is in the law of
Yahweh.

370
00:31:59,640 –> 00:32:04,680
His His happiness comes because
he meditates in the law day and

371
00:32:04,680 –> 00:32:07,600
night.
So that cannot mean that he sits

372
00:32:07,600 –> 00:32:11,520
at a desk with his Bible open
and studying day and night.

373
00:32:13,360 –> 00:32:17,040
So what does it mean?
Well, it’s in the next verse,

374
00:32:17,040 –> 00:32:20,160
verse three.
And he shall be like a tree

375
00:32:20,360 –> 00:32:24,880
planted by the rivers of water
that bringeth forth his fruit

376
00:32:24,880 –> 00:32:27,520
and his season.
His leaf also shall not wither,

377
00:32:27,640 –> 00:32:29,880
and whatsoever he doeth shall
prosper.

378
00:32:29,880 –> 00:32:34,040
You see, the tree is the key.
A person who meditates in the

379
00:32:34,040 –> 00:32:38,840
Lord day and night is like a
tree that’s planted right by the

380
00:32:38,840 –> 00:32:42,640
rivers of the waters of the word
and he’s the roots are drawing

381
00:32:42,640 –> 00:32:47,440
up from that water constantly.
Constantly as he goes about his

382
00:32:47,520 –> 00:32:51,120
life and as life throws things
at him, he’s constantly drawing

383
00:32:51,120 –> 00:32:56,160
from that word in response.
That’s what the Lord did, didn’t

384
00:32:56,160 –> 00:32:58,800
he?
In the temptation he just drew

385
00:32:58,800 –> 00:33:03,320
upon the word in answer.
And that’s what Brother Tim was

386
00:33:03,320 –> 00:33:08,240
talking about, using example of
of Josiah, how he would have

387
00:33:08,240 –> 00:33:15,400
approached Veronico’s challenge.
And that’s what they did.

388
00:33:16,880 –> 00:33:19,480
They had that as the basis for
the things that they did.

389
00:33:20,440 –> 00:33:25,960
Now, Exodus 30 shows that there
were set times for replenishing

390
00:33:25,960 –> 00:33:32,240
the incense and the oil.
And we’ve seen that what that

391
00:33:32,240 –> 00:33:35,800
means for prayer, but it’s the
same for Bible study.

392
00:33:37,240 –> 00:33:43,440
That expression morning and
evening we have seen to be also

393
00:33:43,760 –> 00:33:49,560
not just set times, but
idiomatic for constantly day and

394
00:33:49,560 –> 00:33:57,840
night.
So Psalm one is expressing what

395
00:33:57,840 –> 00:34:01,720
that means to draw upon the word
constantly.

396
00:34:02,760 –> 00:34:07,200
Rotherham renders Psalm one
verse two this way and in his

397
00:34:07,200 –> 00:34:12,880
law Duffy talk with himself day
and night.

398
00:34:13,400 –> 00:34:18,760
Meditation is about talking with
ourselves about the word.

399
00:34:19,360 –> 00:34:22,080
It’s really talking to the word
in ourselves.

400
00:34:23,040 –> 00:34:26,400
So as we go about our daily
lives, as we assess those things

401
00:34:26,400 –> 00:34:30,760
that happen in our lives, but we
we discuss with ourselves or

402
00:34:30,760 –> 00:34:34,960
with the word that we have, we
have knowledge of and we think

403
00:34:34,960 –> 00:34:36,800
about the issues and then apply
it.

404
00:34:38,480 –> 00:34:40,400
That’s what it’s really saying.
And this makes sense.

405
00:34:40,400 –> 00:34:45,000
You see, if God’s word is in our
heart and we, when we ask of

406
00:34:45,000 –> 00:34:48,520
that word, answers to those
issues, the word gives an answer

407
00:34:48,520 –> 00:34:51,040
back.
That’s what it said in Proverbs

408
00:34:51,040 –> 00:34:54,520
6, didn’t it?
When our awakest it shall talk

409
00:34:54,520 –> 00:34:58,880
with thee and the words that
were spoken by our heavenly

410
00:34:58,880 –> 00:35:03,400
Father.
It’s like a conversation with

411
00:35:03,400 –> 00:35:07,440
God.
Now there are several words for

412
00:35:07,440 –> 00:35:12,960
meditation in the Old Testament.
Here’s a list of them and I

413
00:35:12,960 –> 00:35:15,760
think there there are others
that are used as synonyms as

414
00:35:15,760 –> 00:35:17,760
well.
But here’s words that are used

415
00:35:18,080 –> 00:35:23,080
for meditation.
Hagar, hagiks, siak, suak,

416
00:35:23,320 –> 00:35:26,840
zakhar, and generally they all
mean the same thing, thinking or

417
00:35:26,840 –> 00:35:32,800
talking about something.
The word Zika and Zakhar have

418
00:35:32,800 –> 00:35:38,120
the idea of recalling.
It’s still talking about

419
00:35:38,120 –> 00:35:42,520
something that you’re recalling
in your mind now.

420
00:35:42,520 –> 00:35:47,680
The sounds are made-up of two
basic types.

421
00:35:48,840 –> 00:35:56,320
They are either meditations or
they are prayers, or a

422
00:35:56,320 –> 00:36:04,760
combination of both.
Come with me to Psalm 143.

423
00:36:05,920 –> 00:36:12,600
Let’s have an example of a
prayer, Psalm 143.

424
00:36:12,600 –> 00:36:19,960
Now look through the Psalm.
Who is David speaking to all the

425
00:36:19,960 –> 00:36:30,640
way through the sun?
God.

426
00:36:30,880 –> 00:36:35,760
Yeah, this one.
He opens with an appeal to

427
00:36:35,880 –> 00:36:38,840
Yahweh to hear his prayer.
And throughout the Psalm, David

428
00:36:38,960 –> 00:36:41,840
addresses God.
It’s clearly a prayer.

429
00:36:42,880 –> 00:36:48,080
Now, it’s the personal pronouns
for a little bit of grammar

430
00:36:48,080 –> 00:36:52,640
again, but it’s not too hard.
The personal pronouns are the

431
00:36:52,640 –> 00:36:56,360
key to whether it’s a meditation
or a prayer.

432
00:36:56,800 –> 00:37:01,280
It’s like this, the speaker is
in the first person, I, me, my,

433
00:37:01,480 –> 00:37:05,560
and we ourselves and so on.
That’s the first person.

434
00:37:05,600 –> 00:37:10,040
The second person is those that
are spoken to you, your and so

435
00:37:10,040 –> 00:37:11,400
on.
You’re speaking directly to

436
00:37:11,400 –> 00:37:17,640
someone and then the the third
person are those spoken about.

437
00:37:19,560 –> 00:37:24,120
Now prayers are spoken to.
That’s in the second person to

438
00:37:24,120 –> 00:37:28,520
Yahweh.
Meditations are spoken about

439
00:37:28,720 –> 00:37:33,200
Yahweh in the third person, and
that’s the key.

440
00:37:34,600 –> 00:37:39,080
So in the Psalm, it’s always
thee, thy, thy well in the AV.

441
00:37:39,840 –> 00:37:44,080
That’s what it is.
It’s a it’s a prayer spoken to

442
00:37:44,080 –> 00:37:46,320
God.
It’s in the second person.

443
00:37:47,280 –> 00:37:53,520
Now notice how a meditation
speaks about God, not to him.

444
00:37:54,240 –> 00:38:05,720
Come with me to Psalm 103.
Now notice how he’s speaking

445
00:38:05,720 –> 00:38:08,200
first of all to himself.
Verse one.

446
00:38:08,440 –> 00:38:12,080
Bless Yahweh, O my soul and all
that is within me.

447
00:38:12,080 –> 00:38:15,320
Bless His holy name.
Bless Yahweh O my soul, and

448
00:38:15,320 –> 00:38:18,200
forget not all His benefit.
He’s talking to himself.

449
00:38:19,600 –> 00:38:26,760
That’s meditation and all the
way through the Psalm you you

450
00:38:26,760 –> 00:38:29,400
skim through and you’ll see it’s
all in the third person he’s

451
00:38:29,400 –> 00:38:34,240
speaking about.
He is all the way through until

452
00:38:34,240 –> 00:38:38,440
you get to verse 20, and then
he’s speaking directly to not

453
00:38:38,440 –> 00:38:44,960
God, but to others.
In fact, it’s the angels in

454
00:38:44,960 –> 00:38:48,640
verses 20 to 22, and he calls
upon others to bless Yahweh.

455
00:38:49,200 –> 00:38:54,640
Now, meditations often do that.
Meditations speak to oneself,

456
00:38:54,680 –> 00:39:02,040
one’s soul, or they call out to
the congregation, to their

457
00:39:02,040 –> 00:39:07,840
enemies, to angels to also join
with him.

458
00:39:09,760 –> 00:39:12,080
And that’s what meditations are
like.

459
00:39:12,160 –> 00:39:18,160
It’s like a real conversation
with either oneself or with

460
00:39:18,160 –> 00:39:20,480
others.
And let’s have a look at another

461
00:39:20,480 –> 00:39:24,040
example.
Psalm 105, verses one to four

462
00:39:24,560 –> 00:39:28,280
calls the seed of Abraham.
It’s there in verse six because

463
00:39:28,280 –> 00:39:31,320
he says, Oh, give thanks unto
Yahweh, call it upon his name.

464
00:39:31,320 –> 00:39:33,800
Who is he speaking to?
Well, he tells us in verse six,

465
00:39:33,960 –> 00:39:36,920
O ye seed of Abraham, his
servant, ye children of Jacob

466
00:39:36,920 –> 00:39:41,360
has chosen.
So he’s calling upon his people

467
00:39:44,600 –> 00:39:46,840
to give thanks unto God.
And then you look through the

468
00:39:46,840 –> 00:39:52,480
rest of the sun, all the way
through.

469
00:39:53,000 –> 00:39:55,240
It’s about God.
It’s all in the third person.

470
00:39:55,240 –> 00:39:58,840
He is all the way through.
But notice at the end of this

471
00:39:59,200 –> 00:40:05,520
20, I’m sorry, it’s in verse.
No, I’m getting mixed up here.

472
00:40:05,520 –> 00:40:11,520
What we’ve got is in verse five
he says, remember his marvellous

473
00:40:11,520 –> 00:40:15,440
works, that he had done his
wonders and the judgements of

474
00:40:15,440 –> 00:40:18,920
his mouth.
So he calls upon the people to

475
00:40:18,920 –> 00:40:23,520
think upon what God has done and
the rest of the sons, not just

476
00:40:23,640 –> 00:40:28,160
that word, remember, that’s that
word, Zachariah, it means to

477
00:40:28,160 –> 00:40:30,840
bring to remembrance, to to Mull
over in the mind.

478
00:40:31,520 –> 00:40:35,080
And so he’s remembering the
things stored in the mind about

479
00:40:35,080 –> 00:40:40,720
the history of the people, about
God and his history.

480
00:40:43,960 –> 00:40:46,200
This is typical of Israel’s
meditations.

481
00:40:46,240 –> 00:40:50,960
Their history, creation, God’s
character, his works are all

482
00:40:50,960 –> 00:40:54,000
significant themes for their
meditations.

483
00:40:54,240 –> 00:40:58,040
And they’re drawing upon the
word in in connections through

484
00:40:58,040 –> 00:41:01,840
the word on these matters.
Now, other meditations are more

485
00:41:02,080 –> 00:41:07,360
personal now dealing with
observations of life, of trials,

486
00:41:07,600 –> 00:41:13,040
and of one’s need for God, what
others simply contemplations

487
00:41:13,040 –> 00:41:22,200
about God.
Psalm 100, I just want you to

488
00:41:22,200 –> 00:41:28,720
notice the superscription
because Psalm 100 is a Psalm of

489
00:41:29,240 –> 00:41:32,400
praise or Thanksgiving as it is,
but it’s a Psalm.

490
00:41:33,080 –> 00:41:38,560
And it’s interesting that that
these meditations are sounds.

491
00:41:40,360 –> 00:41:43,720
They were meditations set to
music.

492
00:41:44,720 –> 00:41:49,160
And if you think about it,
psalms contemplate and discuss a

493
00:41:49,240 –> 00:41:55,720
particular theme, and so do our
hymns, and many of which are

494
00:41:55,720 –> 00:42:02,800
meditations.
Both psalms and hymns can also

495
00:42:02,800 –> 00:42:07,240
be prayers.
They’re thinking about the

496
00:42:07,240 –> 00:42:10,960
person, and sometimes it’s to
the person or to Yahweh.

497
00:42:12,080 –> 00:42:16,000
Now, haven’t you found that?
Now most psalms I mentioned

498
00:42:16,000 –> 00:42:19,720
earlier that some are
combinations of, in fact, most

499
00:42:19,960 –> 00:42:23,200
are combinations of prayer and
meditations.

500
00:42:23,400 –> 00:42:26,880
And I want to just give you an
example of this Psalm 93.

501
00:42:30,520 –> 00:42:32,880
Now we don’t have time.
I’m really skipping through

502
00:42:32,880 –> 00:42:36,160
this, I know, but and I’ve sort
of made it simple.

503
00:42:37,160 –> 00:42:40,840
This is how it goes in.
Verse one is a meditation

504
00:42:40,840 –> 00:42:45,840
because it speaks about God.
Verses two to three are a prayer

505
00:42:46,360 –> 00:42:48,520
because they speak directly to
God.

506
00:42:49,040 –> 00:42:51,400
Verse four is another
meditation.

507
00:42:52,200 –> 00:42:56,320
And verse five closes the Psalm
with a prayer, and not just how

508
00:42:56,320 –> 00:43:00,400
it drifts from meditation into
prayer and then back again.

509
00:43:00,640 –> 00:43:04,560
The the the psalmist meditation
in verse one is about God’s

510
00:43:04,600 –> 00:43:09,440
majesty and his strength and the
surety of God’s word that the

511
00:43:09,560 –> 00:43:12,200
earth or the land will not be
moved.

512
00:43:12,480 –> 00:43:18,760
And that thought spawned his
prayer in verses two to three,

513
00:43:19,320 –> 00:43:24,120
which mentions the floods, which
leads to his meditation in verse

514
00:43:24,120 –> 00:43:27,200
four about Yahweh being mightier
than many waters.

515
00:43:29,640 –> 00:43:33,080
And then his meditation becomes
a prayer at the end.

516
00:43:33,280 –> 00:43:35,360
Now you can see how natural this
is.

517
00:43:36,360 –> 00:43:41,440
Can you see how this works?
There’s a certain informality

518
00:43:42,480 –> 00:43:51,800
and yet a very deep reverence,
even an intensity here in these

519
00:43:51,800 –> 00:43:57,720
times spent with God and His
Word, and it’s all taking place

520
00:43:57,720 –> 00:44:02,360
in the mind.
We’ll look at one more, Psalm

521
00:44:02,360 –> 00:44:15,230
16, Psalm 16, and once again
I’ll put it up here.

522
00:44:15,230 –> 00:44:19,710
The breakdown, verse one this
time opens with the prayer, and

523
00:44:20,830 –> 00:44:24,910
then verses 2 to halfway through
verse 5 is a meditation.

524
00:44:25,070 –> 00:44:27,750
And then there’s this little
prayer, the second part of verse

525
00:44:27,750 –> 00:44:32,240
five, as he quickly gives a
prayer to God based on his

526
00:44:32,240 –> 00:44:37,400
meditation, and then immediately
in verses 6 to 9 goes back into

527
00:44:37,400 –> 00:44:41,480
his meditation.
And then verses 10:50, he closes

528
00:44:41,480 –> 00:44:47,800
with prayer.
Now, often what’s happening here

529
00:44:47,880 –> 00:44:53,480
as they move from one to the
other, that it’s their

530
00:44:53,480 –> 00:44:58,160
reflection, their meditation is
usually about convincing

531
00:44:58,160 –> 00:45:03,280
themselves, adding to what
they’ve asked in their prayer or

532
00:45:03,280 –> 00:45:07,400
said in their prayer.
Have you ever noticed this,

533
00:45:07,400 –> 00:45:15,000
brothers and sisters?
You know, often in our prayers,

534
00:45:15,000 –> 00:45:19,480
our minds will drift off onto
the subject we’ve been thinking

535
00:45:19,480 –> 00:45:25,000
about in our prayers, our
thoughts, sort of wonders and

536
00:45:25,000 –> 00:45:26,560
thoughts about what you’ve just
said.

537
00:45:28,280 –> 00:45:30,640
We view this as a lack of
concentration.

538
00:45:32,080 –> 00:45:36,880
But the faithful in Israel did
this on purpose, yet they

539
00:45:36,920 –> 00:45:42,160
practiced it.
It’s how they meditate.

540
00:45:45,480 –> 00:45:48,480
And sometimes it was how they
prayed and they meditated.

541
00:45:48,600 –> 00:45:51,560
Can you see?
You see that intimately involved

542
00:45:51,560 –> 00:45:56,200
together the two the word of God
in prayer.

543
00:45:58,360 –> 00:46:01,080
There’s more to this than we may
realize.

544
00:46:01,280 –> 00:46:04,960
Notice how the transition from
meditation into prayer in verse

545
00:46:04,960 –> 00:46:08,120
9 Here he’s meditating in verse
9.

546
00:46:08,320 –> 00:46:13,400
Therefore my heart is glad, and
my glory rejoiceth, my flesh

547
00:46:13,400 –> 00:46:17,600
also shall rest and hope for
that will not leave myself for

548
00:46:17,600 –> 00:46:20,280
that.
See, he’s just just slid into a

549
00:46:20,280 –> 00:46:24,640
prayer.
It’s as if the meditation was

550
00:46:24,640 –> 00:46:29,880
part of his prayer.
Now I want to show you just how

551
00:46:29,880 –> 00:46:38,600
close come with me to Psalm 19.
Now Psalm 19 is a meditation on

552
00:46:38,600 –> 00:46:42,800
the Word of God, but it
concludes with the prayer verse

553
00:46:42,800 –> 00:46:45,360
14.
Let the, and this is the prayer,

554
00:46:45,680 –> 00:46:51,080
let the words of my mouth and
the meditation of my heart be

555
00:46:51,080 –> 00:46:55,800
acceptable in Thy sight, O
Yahweh, my strength and my

556
00:46:55,800 –> 00:47:03,000
redeem.
He’s asking God to consider His

557
00:47:03,000 –> 00:47:10,160
meditation in His prayer.
Is He here A prayer and the word

558
00:47:10,160 –> 00:47:18,120
of God put together intimately,
Both are done before God for His

559
00:47:18,120 –> 00:47:21,480
consideration.
Now this is significant.

560
00:47:23,160 –> 00:47:28,320
Just come back to Psalm 18.
Look at verse one.

561
00:47:31,640 –> 00:47:33,840
I will love thee, O Yahweh, my
strength.

562
00:47:35,920 –> 00:47:40,520
That’s a prayer.
Verse two, Yahweh is my rock and

563
00:47:40,520 –> 00:47:43,040
my fortress is the third person.
It’s a meditation.

564
00:47:43,480 –> 00:47:48,280
So there’s this little prayer at
the beginning and then from

565
00:47:48,280 –> 00:47:51,320
verse two right through to verse
48, it’s all on the third

566
00:47:51,320 –> 00:47:53,440
person.
It’s a meditation is spoken

567
00:47:53,440 –> 00:47:57,800
about Yahweh.
It’s a meditation on how Yahweh

568
00:47:57,800 –> 00:48:00,240
saved David out of the hand of
his enemies.

569
00:48:00,360 –> 00:48:03,480
And it right runs right through
to verse 48 and then he breaks

570
00:48:03,520 –> 00:48:08,800
into another prayer in verse 49
and then back to meditation in

571
00:48:08,800 –> 00:48:14,840
verse 50.
Now we have a record of when

572
00:48:14,840 –> 00:48:19,400
this son was first written.
Now I want you to hold your hand

573
00:48:19,400 –> 00:48:25,560
here, and compare with that
occasion and 2nd of Samuel and

574
00:48:25,560 –> 00:48:39,180
chapter 22, Second Samuel
chapter 22 and verse one.

575
00:48:39,820 –> 00:48:44,100
And David spake unto Yahweh the
words of this song in the day

576
00:48:44,100 –> 00:48:46,380
that Yahweh had delivered him
out of the hand of all his

577
00:48:46,380 –> 00:48:48,380
enemies, and out of the hand of
Saul.

578
00:48:48,380 –> 00:48:51,740
And he said, Yahweh is my rock,
and my fortress, and my

579
00:48:51,740 –> 00:48:53,660
delivery.
He goes straight to verse two of

580
00:48:53,660 –> 00:48:56,740
Psalm 18.
He does not open with the word

581
00:48:56,740 –> 00:49:01,880
of prayer, but look at how it
was delivered.

582
00:49:04,520 –> 00:49:13,640
David spake unto Yahweh the
words of this meditation, the

583
00:49:13,640 –> 00:49:19,520
song.
This means his meditation about

584
00:49:20,120 –> 00:49:29,640
God was still uttered to him.
That’s this is pretty powerful

585
00:49:29,640 –> 00:49:31,400
stuff.
This is how they thought,

586
00:49:31,440 –> 00:49:33,880
brothers and sisters.
This is how they did their Bible

587
00:49:33,880 –> 00:49:41,070
study.
It’s incredible really, isn’t

588
00:49:41,070 –> 00:49:43,270
it?
Now we’ve labored the point that

589
00:49:43,270 –> 00:49:48,070
God spoke his word and he speaks
to us through his word.

590
00:49:48,750 –> 00:49:52,470
But here it says that we should
do our Bible study and

591
00:49:52,470 –> 00:49:55,950
meditations in the presence of
God.

592
00:49:58,200 –> 00:50:03,920
It’s like a real conversation.
And so as we’re doing our Bible

593
00:50:03,920 –> 00:50:06,840
study, we also talk with him
about it.

594
00:50:08,480 –> 00:50:10,640
That’s meaningful Bible study,
isn’t it?

595
00:50:14,960 –> 00:50:18,920
We view Bible study as studying
about God, don’t we?

596
00:50:21,640 –> 00:50:24,960
But this is how they did it.
It should be done in his

597
00:50:24,960 –> 00:50:27,120
present.
We should include Him in our

598
00:50:27,120 –> 00:50:30,880
thinking about him and talk to
Him about it.

599
00:50:30,880 –> 00:50:34,400
It is this intimacy in the
communication.

600
00:50:34,440 –> 00:50:38,080
It is this is a relationship.
Because He’s real, we believe he

601
00:50:38,080 –> 00:50:41,040
exists and he’s talking to us.
This is real.

602
00:50:43,040 –> 00:50:46,960
Now, because of this close link
between meditation and prayer,

603
00:50:47,400 –> 00:50:52,560
we often find that the words
translated meditation are often

604
00:50:52,600 –> 00:50:57,760
also used for prayer because
they’re closely linked.

605
00:50:58,080 –> 00:51:01,000
Look at this example, Psalm 5,
verse one.

606
00:51:01,760 –> 00:51:05,520
Give ear unto my words, O
Yahweh, consider my meditation,

607
00:51:05,520 –> 00:51:08,120
Hagi.
How can unto the voice of my

608
00:51:08,120 –> 00:51:12,440
cry, my King and my God, For
unto thee will I pray my, my

609
00:51:12,440 –> 00:51:15,640
voice shall shall thou hear in
the morning, O Yahweh, In the

610
00:51:15,640 –> 00:51:19,680
morning will I direct my prayer
unto Thee, and will will look up

611
00:51:20,080 –> 00:51:22,920
so clearly.
He’s talking really primarily

612
00:51:22,920 –> 00:51:26,560
about prayer here.
And even the word meditation

613
00:51:26,560 –> 00:51:31,280
here means mutterings, but
they’re mutterings of much

614
00:51:31,280 –> 00:51:36,360
thought in prayer.
And here look at this one, Psalm

615
00:51:36,360 –> 00:51:40,560
55, verses 16 to 17.
As for me, I will call upon God

616
00:51:40,680 –> 00:51:43,800
and Yahweh shall say to me
evening and morning, and at noon

617
00:51:43,880 –> 00:51:47,880
will I pray and cry loud.
And he shall hear my voice.

618
00:51:48,360 –> 00:51:51,200
And he’s clearly speaking about
prayer here.

619
00:51:51,640 –> 00:51:55,320
But the word pray is siach, a
word for meditation.

620
00:51:56,280 –> 00:51:59,280
And it, it obviously is
referring to the kind of prayer

621
00:51:59,360 –> 00:52:02,440
that we’ve been talking about, a
meditative prayer.

622
00:52:07,520 –> 00:52:10,560
And so here we have both the
word and prayer brought together

623
00:52:10,800 –> 00:52:15,160
at the times of prayer, morning
and evening, morning at noon,

624
00:52:16,040 –> 00:52:19,600
they go together.
Really, brothers and sisters,

625
00:52:19,600 –> 00:52:28,280
meditation is a form of prayer.
Now, I’ve already got to

626
00:52:28,280 –> 00:52:31,240
conclude them.
I wanted to give you a fantastic

627
00:52:31,240 –> 00:52:33,600
example.
I’ll leave you with that.

628
00:52:35,200 –> 00:52:37,760
Just to let you know you’ve
missed out on something amazing

629
00:52:41,280 –> 00:52:46,840
in Psalm 77 and you’ve got all
these words for for prayer.

630
00:52:49,840 –> 00:52:53,120
Brother Daniel, am I able to
finish right on 11?

631
00:52:54,320 –> 00:52:56,520
Is that OK?
Or should I finish now?

632
00:52:56,520 –> 00:52:57,800
I don’t mind finishing right
now.

633
00:53:01,440 –> 00:53:03,520
Thank you.
All right, let’s do this at

634
00:53:03,520 –> 00:53:08,320
super speed.
Psalm 77 and we’ve got several

635
00:53:08,320 –> 00:53:12,800
of our words for meditation that
all in this this the sun.

636
00:53:13,720 –> 00:53:19,600
It’s clearly a meditation about
meditation, but it also includes

637
00:53:19,600 –> 00:53:27,760
prayers.
Psalm 77 And in verse one I

638
00:53:27,760 –> 00:53:32,280
cried unto Yahweh with my voice,
even unto God with my voice, and

639
00:53:32,280 –> 00:53:36,360
I gave, and he gave ear unto me.
In the day of my trouble I

640
00:53:36,360 –> 00:53:39,440
sought the Lord.
My soul ran in the night and

641
00:53:39,440 –> 00:53:42,560
ceased not.
My soul refused to be comforted.

642
00:53:42,800 –> 00:53:48,880
I remembered Zakah God and was
troubled.

643
00:53:49,200 –> 00:53:58,400
I complained seer he meditated
and my spirit was overwhelmed.

644
00:53:58,520 –> 00:54:00,640
Sina.
Now why was he troubled when he

645
00:54:00,640 –> 00:54:04,560
meditated upon God’s word?
Well, he was so distressed, he

646
00:54:04,560 –> 00:54:08,560
says, and verse 4 Thou wholest
my eyes waking, and I’m so

647
00:54:08,560 –> 00:54:12,800
troubled I cannot speak.
His meditation caused his

648
00:54:12,920 –> 00:54:17,000
sleeplessness and he finds it
difficult to continue with his

649
00:54:17,000 –> 00:54:18,600
meditation.
Why?

650
00:54:19,240 –> 00:54:23,760
Well, this is what he had done.
Verse five I have considered,

651
00:54:24,120 –> 00:54:28,400
counted, reckoned, thought upon.
He meditated, meditated upon the

652
00:54:28,400 –> 00:54:31,360
days of old, the years of
ancient times.

653
00:54:31,520 –> 00:54:38,160
I called to remembrance my song.
This was a meditation he had

654
00:54:38,160 –> 00:54:44,360
written and he’d made into a
song and and he recalled that

655
00:54:44,360 –> 00:54:47,160
song in the night I commute.
See ya.

656
00:54:47,280 –> 00:54:52,760
He talked with my own heart and
my spirit made diligent search

657
00:54:52,880 –> 00:54:55,480
and he searched the scriptures
in his mind.

658
00:54:55,720 –> 00:54:58,120
This is part of what meditation
is.

659
00:55:01,000 –> 00:55:02,600
What was it then that disturbed
him?

660
00:55:02,720 –> 00:55:07,200
Well, he says verse seven, will
the Lord cast off forever?

661
00:55:07,720 –> 00:55:09,600
And will he be favourable no
more?

662
00:55:09,880 –> 00:55:12,880
Is his mercy clear?
God forever Does his promise

663
00:55:12,880 –> 00:55:15,720
fail forevermore?
Hath God forgotten to be

664
00:55:15,720 –> 00:55:18,600
gracious?
Hath he in anger shut up his

665
00:55:18,800 –> 00:55:20,720
tender mercies?
Sealer?

666
00:55:21,200 –> 00:55:25,600
And he searches the Scriptures,
He searches the Word, and he

667
00:55:25,600 –> 00:55:29,040
can’t find anywhere that God has
cast off forever.

668
00:55:33,920 –> 00:55:37,160
But the circumstances he’s in
seem to deny this.

669
00:55:39,160 –> 00:55:43,360
It’s like that at times, isn’t
it, Brothers and sisters, what

670
00:55:43,360 –> 00:55:46,600
the Word says in our own
circumstances at times seem like

671
00:55:46,600 –> 00:55:51,000
God has forsaken us.
That’s how the sun was felt.

672
00:55:51,520 –> 00:55:54,440
And then he pulls himself
together in in verse 10.

673
00:55:55,360 –> 00:56:03,560
And I said this is my infirmity,
but I will remember the years of

674
00:56:03,560 –> 00:56:06,600
the right hand of the Most High.
He’s strengthening himself now.

675
00:56:07,360 –> 00:56:12,520
I will remember the works of
Yahweh, third person about

676
00:56:12,520 –> 00:56:16,480
Yahweh, surely I will remember
thy wonders about.

677
00:56:16,480 –> 00:56:20,000
He’s turned into a prayer man.
He’s trying to strengthen

678
00:56:20,000 –> 00:56:23,040
himself.
He speaks directly to God, and

679
00:56:23,040 –> 00:56:26,080
so he now meditates, but not
only is he speaking to himself,

680
00:56:26,200 –> 00:56:28,640
he’s speaking to God because
he’s wanting to strengthen

681
00:56:28,640 –> 00:56:31,600
himself in God and the reality
of God.

682
00:56:32,000 –> 00:56:36,240
Verse 13 Thy way, O God, is in
the century, and to himself he

683
00:56:36,240 –> 00:56:38,720
says, Who is so great a God is
our God.

684
00:56:39,120 –> 00:56:40,520
And then he continues his
prayer.

685
00:56:40,760 –> 00:56:42,880
Thou art the God that doest
wonders.

686
00:56:42,960 –> 00:56:45,320
Thou hast declared thy strength
among the people.

687
00:56:45,440 –> 00:56:48,400
Thou hast with thine own arm
redeemed thy people.

688
00:56:48,400 –> 00:56:50,520
The sons of Jacob and Joseph
sealer.

689
00:56:50,520 –> 00:56:52,920
The water saw thee of God, the
water saw thee.

690
00:56:52,920 –> 00:56:55,360
They were afraid.
The depths also were troubled.

691
00:56:55,360 –> 00:56:58,920
And so he goes on meditating,
and he’s just filling his mind

692
00:56:59,080 –> 00:57:03,120
to encourage himself.
It’s magnificent, isn’t it?

693
00:57:04,640 –> 00:57:08,320
It’s so helpful.
The thing is, brothers and

694
00:57:08,320 –> 00:57:12,480
sisters, this is how the
faithful of old thought upon

695
00:57:12,480 –> 00:57:14,840
God’s word.
That’s why Christ broke into

696
00:57:15,040 –> 00:57:17,160
prayers and then continued on
talking.

697
00:57:17,280 –> 00:57:21,920
That’s why Nehemiah in his his
diary is writing along his diary

698
00:57:21,920 –> 00:57:25,200
of the facts of the day, and he
includes his prayers dotted all

699
00:57:25,200 –> 00:57:28,200
the way through it.
That’s why Paul in his letters

700
00:57:28,320 –> 00:57:32,080
just breaks into prayers,
because that’s how they thought.

701
00:57:32,880 –> 00:57:35,680
Now we can do this, brother and
sisters, and we can start

702
00:57:35,680 –> 00:57:40,120
practising it because Christ
gave us a meditation, the Lord’s

703
00:57:40,120 –> 00:57:43,640
Prayer, so easy to remember.
Meditate upon it.

704
00:57:44,400 –> 00:57:49,560
I need to conclude, and I’ll
leave on the screen, the fact

705
00:57:49,560 –> 00:57:55,440
that God loves us to do this.
It’s those who speak one to

706
00:57:55,440 –> 00:58:08,240
another who think upon His name,
that He looks to None.