The Blessed Man -- October 14, 2009

1Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.
4The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
Psalm 1

Beautiful poetry and beautiful theology. The psalmist zeros in on the Godly. They are happy because they do not participate in the progression of sin. People get caught up in sin. They don’t usually sit right down and make themselves comfortable. First they just walk by and say “hi”. Then they stop for a visit. Finally they have seated themselves and are comfortable. With the scornful they see themselves as too good for the rest of us. The godly man avoids all of this by staying away from ungodliness. He focuses on God’s word. He loves it! It is all he thinks about. That word is like a river of water. He draws on it to maintain his prosperity. When his time comes he is ready to act. He doesn’t miss opportunities to produce.

The writer also differentiates between those who pursue God and those who pursue their own agenda. Those who meditate on and live out God’s word have weight and substance like a tree that is well watered. Those who are ungodly have no weight in their lives like the chaff that is blown away in the breeze. They can’t stand up to the pressures of normal life much less God’s final judgment. They aren’t even comfortable around God’s people because of the substance issue. God knows where the righteous are but the ungodly are on a path to nowhere.

Thanks for Your word Lord. We need it to stay fresh is a dry world. We need it to be fruitful so that we have produce to give others to demonstrate Your love.

Thinking About His Word,

Pastor Jason