When you need an advocate

WHEN YOU NEED AN ADVOCATE

Ps. 119:153-160 (Doctrinally, Jews in the tribulation)

    Situations arise that are beyond our control. There are times when we may need a lawyer. You have been accused in the court of heaven (Rev. 12:10 cf. Job 1-2).
    Christians have an Advocate! "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1). Jesus is my "Counsellor" (Isa. 9:6)! Unsaved don't have an advocate (vs. 155). They have no rights; no hope.
    The Psalmist is in an affliction (v. 153). James says, "Is there any afflicted? Let him pray…"

I. A Case to Ponder--"Consider…" -- Weigh the evidence. Do I have a case? "If you will consider my case, I believe you will come to my aid."
    A. The dilemma--Consider my affliction (v. 153).
          1. Appeal to God's pity.
          2. Appeal to God's power--"Deliver me…"
          3. Appeal to God's promise-- "according to thy word"
    B. The defense--Consider my affection for Your Word (vs. 153b, 159a). He was committed to God's Word:
v. 153,"I do not forget thy law" -- I consider God's Word
v. 157, "…yet do I not decline from thy testimonies" -- I continue in God's Word
v. 159, "I love thy precepts" -- I cherish God's Word.
        1. Cooperation with the advocate is essential to winning a case.
        2. "If I did not love Your Word, my plea for deliverance would be meaningless."
        3. Our prayer is inseparably linked to our attitude towards the Bible-- "He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination" (Prov. 28:9).
        4. Can I honestly, with confidence, ask God to consider how much I love the Bible? He loved God's Word so much it grieved him when others did not keep it (v. 158). Grief is an outgrowth of love.
II. A Cry to Petition--
      A. Rescue-- "deliver me" (vs. 153, 154).
          1. Persecutors (v. 157).
          2. Enemies (v. 157).
          3. Transgressors (v. 158). The measure of one's distance from God is determined by one's relationship to God's word. To be near one is to be near the other.
      B. Revival--"quicken me" (vs. 154, 156, 159). --a new infusion of abundant life. Occurs 11 times in Psalm 119. Cannot be asked too many times.
          1. According to God's Word (v. 154). God's Word is alive.
          2. According to God's judgments (v. 156). A matter of God's conditions. What does it mean to be infused with life? It means to be able to live life to it's fullest extent. This requires the removal of things that God judges to hinder this kind of living.
          3. According to God's lovingkindness (v. 159). A matter of grace. We don't deserve revival.
III. A Cause to Plead-- "Plead my cause…" (v. 154 cf. Ps. 35:1; 43:1; 1 Sam. 24:15; Prov. 22:23; Jer. 50:34; 51:36; Micah 7:9). Isaiah prayed, "O LORD, I am oppressed; undertake for me" (Isa. 38:14)."I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted…" (Ps. 140:12).
      A. Do we have a cause worth pleading?
      B. The cause of Soul winning
      C. The cause of a Christian family
      D. The cause of Christian service

E. The cause of maintaining a good Christian testimony before the lost.