–William MacLeod Raine  (Mavericks)

       “But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand…  But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.”

                         –Acts 28:3,5 (NKJV)
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               “The ancient Hebrews were so tied by tradition they couldn’t recognize the Messiah when he was right there in front of them, and he was crucified.
               The disciples, who walked and worked with the Christ, were very afraid of him; they hoped, but they also doubted, and they ran that night, and he was crucified.
               The common people mobbed him, showed him their sicknesses and sores, and they threw down an aisle of palms for him and sang to him, and he was crucified.
               His family was embarrassed, and stood outside, and wished he’d come home, and he was crucified.
               Would we crucify Jesus today?  It’s not a rhetorical question for the mind to play with.
                    I believe, we are each born with a body, a mind, a soul, and a handful of nails.
                    I believe, when a man dies, no one has ever found any nails left,
                             clutched in his hands
                                   or stuffed in his pockets.”
                                                    –Lois A. Cheney  (God Is No Fool)

     We’ll never understand it, but we must try.  It is not anything we can do.  “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.  For we are His workmanship…”  (Ephesians 2:8-10, NKJV)  Paul also wrote in Romans, “The just shall live by faith.” (1:17, NKJV)

               “Grace, grace, God’s grace,
               Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
               Grace, grace, God’s grace,
               Grace that is greater than all our sin!”
                         –Julia H. Johnston

       We are saved by grace, but here is what I want you to focus on this morning.  We are sustained by grace as well!  On this pilgrim journey with Christ as the Holy Spirit as our guide we are kept by grace and we grow in grace.  “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” (1 John 5:19, NKJV)  We continue on the upward way; that narrow trail that is always winding upward.  Oh, the obstacles that are in the way that we must climb over, the hidden rocks and roots in the path that we sometimes stumble over, but we continue on.  Why?  Because we are kept by grace.  
       “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God” (1 John 4:15, NKJV).  Grasp hold of that truth.  Believe it, rest assured in it!   Work on living righteously.  That’s right–work on it.  “If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him” (1 John 2:29, NKJV)  When I played ball, I practiced continually.  I practiced in a formal setting with the team, but then I would spend hours practicing on my own.  I practiced to become a ballplayer.  Now, we must do the same as a Christian.  We practice righteousness continually.  No, we will never gain it, for only Jesus is righteous, yet we are to be like Him.  
       We stumble, but the Holy Spirit is there to help us maintain our balance.  We hit a rock and fall to the ground, but the Holy Spirit is there to help us up.  We must put forth our effort:  to walk, to get up, but it is through the power of God that we are righteous.  Remember, the Epistles were written for believers, for those who are a new creation, for those who are walking toward their heavenly goal.  The path is not always easy for there are many different types of snares, traps, battles, storms, sicknesses, sorrows, and the life that may come our way–that will come our way.  Yet, as a believer, as one who has Jesus Christ as Lord, you can rest in the comfort of the words of John, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, NKJV)  This is for the Christian, and get it, get it!  He will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  Oh, that we could grasp that we do not walk in our righteousness, for they are filthy rags, but we walk in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

                         –Isaiah 5:20(NASB)
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I am currently doing a study of which I will share more of it with you in weeks to come.  However, one verse, Psalm 119:53, has caught my attention.  Psalm 119 is such a great Psalm about obedience and commitment to the Word of God, but let’s look a little deeper at verse 53.

          Burning indignation has seized me because of the wicked,
          Who forsake Your law.  (NASB)

       We see in this verse horror and anger.  “Righteous anger,” “burning indignation,” “rage,” “fury,” are all terms used in various translations for the first pass of this verse.  Put them together and we see a person gripped by the evil he sees in the world and in individuals.  Spurgeon says, “he was distressed by a foresight of their overthrow.”   It is hard to completely understand the feeling of this individual.  Perhaps the King James says it best, “Horror hath taken hold upon me…”
       This term, “taken hold,” or “seized” literally means “gripped.”  Gripping is to not let go.  Holding fast, clenching tightly to an object.  In this case, horror/indignation has gripped this person because of wickedness.  This is where we live.  Look around you at the evil, the wickedness.  “Living in a wicked society should scare us.” (Craig Ledbetter).  My question is, does it?  So many, it seems, are complacent at what is happening around them, or they have been so duped by evil that they either tolerate it, or join in.
       Two things bring this horror.  The first is that the Psalmist remembers how God deals with wickedness.  Unless there is genuine repentance, judgment will come.   Sodom comes to mind:  “Then the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah from the Lord out of heaven, and He overthrew those cities, and all the surrounding area, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground” (Genesis 19:24-25, NASB).  Korah:  “the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, and all the people who belonged to Korah with all their possessions.  So they and all that belonged to them went down alive to Sheol; and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly” (Numbers 16:32-33, NASB).  The children of Israel refused to believe the report of Joshua and Caleb, thus spurning the Lord, and they wandered in the wilderness until all of that generation passed.  Of course, we cannot forget that mankind, with the exception of Noah and his family, was destroyed by the Flood because the people were doing evil continually.
       So the writer of this psalm remembers what happened to those who practiced evil and wickedness in the past.  Because of that, he looks at what is currently happening, as we should do, and knows that God is holy and will only for so long allow evil to bring forth its rotten fruit.  One day the “man of lawlessness” will appear and will bring his wrath upon the earth.  When that happens God will say that is enough and will counter.  Just in the Fourth Seal (Revelation 6:8) we see that power was given to them “to kill with the sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth” (NKJV).  Continuing in chapter 6, there is the Sixth Seal that will bring great disturbances on earth and in the sky.  Go on and read chapters 8-9 regarding the Trumpets, then chapter 16, the bowl judgments.  
       When we read these our response should be like that of the Psalmist–horror.  God’s character and word is not to be scorned.  His judgments are not to be laughed at.  They should bring horror at what will happen as well as indignation at those who commit such things.  True righteous anger brings abhorrence of all that is contrary to it.  Too often we groan, or smile, or say “let live” or maybe the most appalling, “whatever makes them happy.”  No, the wicked should cause us to cringe.  Their acts should bring an indignation to our being.  It should be as Charles Bridges wrote, “Every stroke at His law you will feel as a stroke at your own heart.”  Wickedness and evil should cause us severe pain for it strikes against the very character of God.

                         –Louis L’Amour  (The Shadow Riders)

       “I will refuse to look at anything vile and vulgar.  I hate all crooked dealings; I will have nothing to do with them.  I will reject perverse ideas and stay away from every evil.”

                         –Psalm 101:3-4 (NLT)
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Integrity–where has it gone?!!  Ethics is all relative, gone are the virtues, values that come from God’s Word.  What are you going about it in your own life?  It starts with each one of us.  Do we go along with the crowd?  Do we accept woke and progressive ethics and values?  No!  The need is for personal holiness and integrity.  “Believers must be different if they are to make a difference.” (Steven Lawson)  Psalm 101 is a psalm of commitment.

          1 — I will sing of mercy and justice; to You, O LORD, I will sing praises.
          2 — I will behave wisely in a perfect way.  Oh, when will You come to me?  I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
          3 — I will set nothing wicked before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.
          4 — A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness.
          5 — Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; the one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, him I will not endure.
          6 — My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in a perfect way, he shall serve me.
          7 — He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who tells lies shall not continue in my presence.
          8 — Early I will destroy all the wicked of the land, that I may cut off all the evildoers from the city of the LORD.  (NKJV)

Before we can come to the aid of others we must first be willing to live the life ourselves.  Before we can judge others we must first judge ourselves.
       George Wood once said, “When you live rightly, you have inner freedom.”  We don’t often have the right view of freedom.  It is to do what we want to do, it is to do what we ought to do.  Notice the “I will” of the psalm.  There is purpose, there is commitment, there is dedication to doing what is right.  God’s truth must be fully integrated into every area of life.  Remember when I wrote quoting Francis Schaeffer, “True spirituality covers all reality”?  
       Faithful we are to be to God and His Word.  We are to have nothing to do with wickedness, we are to keep our heart and determine that we will be faithful.  The unfaithfulness and wickedness of others must not pull us down.  Our hearts are to be pure, not perverse like those of the world.  Evil is destructive, not only to society but to the individual soul.
       As we read the last three verses we must keep in mind that David was the king.  He had to make hard decisions, decisions that would affect others.  But in a manner, each of us is a king, we are kings and priests of the Lord.  We must make decisions in light of who we are in Him.  Who is it that influences your life?  Who is it that you allow to sit at your table?  Who is it that would attempt to bring evil and wickedness into your home?  We must have a sensitive heart to discern those things that would harm us, those things that would hurt our fellowship with the Lord.  David says that “early” or “every morning” or “my daily task” will be to silence the wicked.  No, it may not be a person, but it may the influence of a person, or a thought, or a temptation.
       Be a person of integrity; one who totally integrates all of one’s life into a consistent whole.  That whole being must be a life dedicated to our Lord.  The Word of God will be integrated into every aspect of our lives.  Dedicate yourself, like David, to a total commitment of life; to an honest, holy way.

               “Sing, pray, and swerve not from His ways,
               But do thine own part faithfully;
               Trust His rich promises of grace,
               So shall they be fulfilled in thee;
               God never yet forsook a need
               The soul that trusted Him indeed.”
                         –Georg Neumark

                         –Luke 1:79 (NKJV)
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What is it that makes a campfire so comforting?  Perhaps in cold weather it’s the warmth, but mostly it is the light that is produced.  We are drawn to it, no matter the distance.  At night, on a hillside, a fire is easy to see.  Of course, in the camp our eyes have trouble not gazing into it.
       If you have ever watched Rawhide on television, you may have noticed that on the end of the wagon is a lantern.  It was kept lit at night helping the night guards find the camp, especially in inclement weather.  It was there for safety, to draw attention, and as a beacon.  Remember, in the wilderness the children of Israel had the pillar of fire at night.  It not only gave comfort and safety, but the people could recognize that God was there with them.  One of the major symbols of the Holy Spirit is that of fire–a light to guide our way, heat to warm our souls, comfort to assure us of His presence.
       Red Steagall wrote a very good poem regarding the “Lantern on the Wagon.”  How it is a welcome sight to help guide back to camp.  But think of it as the light of the Holy Spirit guiding us to the camp of God.  The first part of the poem, tells of the storm, the trouble, and how the cowboy saw the lantern, but I want to focus on the last two stanzas:

               “Your life has no direction when you think you’ve lost your way
               I had a friend who helped me, all I had to do was pray
               He’s the one whose love is constant you don’t have to ride alone
               All you need to do is ask him and he’ll lead you safely home.

               Like the lantern on the wagon He will lead thru the storm
               A beacon shining brightly when your lost and all alone
               As you wonder thru the darkness He’s a warm and friendly sight
               His light of love will lead you safely thru the darkest night
               Yes His light of love will lead you safely thru the darkest night.”

The light, the fire–they comfort us, they help us find our way.  The Psalmist wrote, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (119:105, NKJV)  When we have the light of God’s holy Word and we combine it with the fire of the Holy Spirit we will surely not lose our way.
       I doubt that I will ever lay in front of a campfire again.  Oh, we might make one in the backyard when the weather cools some, but I do have the memories of many camps along the way.  Some are pleasant, others not so.  I can remember one night camping in Texas of a fire in the springtime.  It was cold that night and I had to keep turning as I tried to sleep.  I would roast on one side, while the other felt like it was in an icebox.  After a few minutes, I would roll over, defrost the cold side and begin to fry the other.  But through it all, I knew I would survive; I would be kept safe and the warmth of the fire comforted me.  Imagine what it would have been like without that campfire?
       The words of an old song have been going through my mind this week.  I tried to find the composer, but all I could come up with was one person’s name who I know didn’t compose the words, as they are older than he is.  I remember my Aunt had a record by Red Foley and this song was on it.  Let me close with the chorus:

               “There’s a light guiding me, I can see Heaven’s glory,
               And it holds me steadfast to His way and His love.
               It’s guiding me through temptations and evil.
               There’s a light guiding me to that Heaven above.”