Today we’ll be looking at Psalm 1:
Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.
This Psalm sets the stage for the rest of this book, which means it’s crucial that we get this Psalm right to correctly interpret the rest of the book! This Psalm paints a picture of 2 men, one who is blessed, and one who is “wicked.” We begin with a look at the blessed man.
This man has nothing to do with sin! He runs the other direction. Just as Joseph fled the temptation of Potiphar’s wife, the blessed man won’t even stay in the same room as temptation. Notice the trajectory of this fall into sin. You begin by walking with the wicked, then your walk slows down as you become enticed by their rhetoric so you stand there with the sinners, then you finally take a lot off and sit down with the scoffers. It’s a slow but natural progression. Instead, the blessed man focuses all his attention and energy on the law of the Lord. Instead of being tempted he fixates on how he can be obedient to God and follow in his path. Because of this, he is like a tree that is planted by water. Notice the intentionality of that! It’s not like the Amazon jungle where trees are haphazardly scattered about, this is intentional. God ensures that the blessed man will have rich soil and deep roots so that he will have what he needs (think of Job!). Because of this foundation, everything this blessed man does prospers. Once again, this is not material blessing, this is God’s economy at work! We serve a different king and a different kingdom than the world!
On the other hand is the wicked. The wicked are tossed to and fro by the wind, unable to have their roots sinking deep into the soil in which they find themselves. This is the person who chases after all the latest trends and ideologies of the day. They are always chasing after the latest and greatest ideas and are thus changing their opinions as often as they change their clothes! But we know the outcome of this kind of person: perishing. Apart from God miraculously intervening and bringing their dead souls to life, they will continue down the path of wickedness. And it’s true for all of us as well! So we need to do our best to cling tightly to Christ! Then we will be blessed and prosper in all we do!
SONG:
Today’s song is from one of my wife’s favorite singers Audrey Assad! The song is called ‘Even Unto Death.’ You can listen on YOUTUBE or SPOTIFY.
FREE STUFF:
One of my favorite authors has just released a new book on church history, and released one of the video episodes for free! You can watch it HERE.
Pastor Mike's Musings 