There are a lot of people who think God grades on a curve that you're likely to go

to heaven because compared to others you're not so bad. Today on Truth For Life we get a more

accurate perspective of ourselves by first taking a closer look at God.

Alistair Begg is teaching today from the closing verses in Psalm 139.

If you remember when we began we said that although this Psalm is attributed to David there

is no historic reference that allows us to pinpoint it with any accuracy. We mentioned

that the closing section and the presence of these enemies in verses 19 and 20 probably

provided for David the context for the way in which he then reflects on the security

that is his in God. And if you like the presence of the enemies finds him retreating or if

you like advancing into the security and provision and protection of God. You know when I sit

down, you know when I rise up, you hem me in, not a word of constriction but a word by way

of protection. And if the harsh reality of the wicked did give rise to the first 18 verses

to all that is contained there then I think we can also say that the first 18 verses prepare

the way for this closing section. In other words when we read this closing section we need

to remember that David is not bloodthirsty, that the one who writes the concluding verses is the

same one who has written the first 18 verses who has spoken of the intimacy and care and protection

and provision of God. Now the reason that is important for me to say that is because if we are

honest when we come to verse 19 it almost appears to be a discordant note. There's no question that

of the 24 verses in the Psalm we would regard it as the most difficult because it seems on first

reading to be a kind of abrupt intrusion, a strange intrusion. Causing us as we read our

Bible is perhaps the morning on our own and we're reading through Psalm 139 and as we perhaps even

ever so often read it out loud to ourselves so that it might stick in our minds and we come to

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