1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand
in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight
is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. 4 Not
so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore
the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the
righteous. 6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the
way of the wicked will perish.
- Psalm 1, The New International Version, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing
House) 1984.
In the name of Christ Jesus, dear friends:
I admit it. I am guilty. Maybe you are too. What is my terrible crime? Whenever I read a book, I almost never bother to read the introduction. Maybe you can remember a situation like this one from your school days.
You have just been given an assignment for English class. You are required to read a novel, the kind of book you measure by inches thick, not by pages long. You really don’t want to read it, but you have to. You grudgingly open the cover, but you promise yourself that you will not read one page more than the assignment calls for. So you skip over the preface and all the introductory material and start scanning on page one.
Looking back now, the decision to pass over the introduction was probably not the best idea. Often, those introductory pages contain important information. They might help the reader gain a better understanding of the setting of the story. They might help the reader understand the background of the author. They might even give the reader some insight about the message the writer wants to convey.
In some ways, the text before us this morning is like the introduction to a book. Of the 150 psalms, it is no accident that Psalm One was placed in the first position. Some ancient manuscripts do not even give it a number, treating it like a preface to the book. This psalm serves well in this capacity, but it does more than provide the reader with useful information. It sets the tone for all the psalms that follow.
It is our privilege this morning to take a closer look at the opening words of Psalm One, words that gave light to children of Israel as they used the psalms for worship and prayer, words that are good for us to take to heart as we read the rest of Scripture. And in these verses of poetry, the psalm writer draws up for us.
God’s Blueprint For Blessedness
I. Blessed is he.who shuns evil
II. Blessed is he.who loves God’s Word
III. Blessed is he.who bears fruit
Before we look at God’s blueprint for blessedness, we need to have a clear understanding of what it means to be blessed. The Hebrew word translated "blessed" means more than to be on the receiving end of God’s blessings. The word carries the meaning "happy" or "fortunate." So blessings are not just what we receive. God’s blessings also create a response in our hearts. We are happy because we belong to God. We understand that we are fortunate because this relationship is entirely God’s doing.
What are some of the distinguishing characteristics of the person who is blessed? "Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers" (1). It is interesting that the first description of the "blessed" person does not describe what he is, but what he is not. Blessed is the person who does NOT get involved with the wicked, who does NOT associate with sinners, who does NOT join in with those who mock God.
If you look closely at the words chosen by the writer in this verse, there is a progression.from walking.to standing.to sitting. Strictly speaking, this is a verse of blessing. But it also contains an implied warning. It warns Christians not to let sin gradually penetrate into our lives.
Don’t walk with sinners. Don’t listen to the wisdom of the world and begin to accept their values.
Once you are walking with the wicked, it is much easier to stop and stay for a while. And once sin gets a firm grip on us, it is hard to break free. It starts to feel good, maybe even preferable, to stand with other sinners and join in their sinful actions. And if we stand around long enough, if we continue in sin, the final step is to take a permanent seat among those who openly defy God and disobey God’s Word.
The question for us is this: Can you locate yourself anywhere along this line? Do you always avoid sin, or do you allow it to walk along side of you? Are you walking in a particular sin right now? Is there a sin that used to bother your conscience, but over time has become rather comfortable? When you see how God’s commandments are trampled and God’s name is trashed in the media, are you filled with anger and outrage? Or do you go with the flow because that’s just the way the world is? Or do you even take notice?
What the psalmist used a picture to describe, we know to be true from our own experience. Sin slowly works its way into our lives. In theory, it promises pleasure. In reality, it brings pain. Ultimately, it separates a person from God.
Listen to God’s assessment of the wicked: "They are like chaff that the wind blows away" (4). When farmers in Israel harvested their grain, they separated the good from the bad by tossing it into the air. The heavier grain would fall back down to the ground. The chaff would be carried away by the wind. The chaff wasn’t useful. It had no value. Sometimes the farmer would burn it. Other times he would just let it fly away.
We don’t live in the country. Not many of us are farmers. We don’t have a big problem with chaff in Wauwatosa. But we do face a similar situation in the city as the snow slowly melts away. Already the bare spots reveal garbage along the highways. In the spring, litter and debris will be blowing across the medians and boulevards. All of it is worthless. All of it destined to be collected and burned.
This is what the wicked are like. This is what the wicked deserve. This is what those who associate with wicked deserve. Because we are sinners, this is what we deserve. These are strong words warning us against sin, warning us about the seriousness of sin, warning us about the consequences of sin.
Blessed is the person who does not walk with the wicked. Blessed is the person who shuns sin. But God’s blueprint for blessedness does not dwell only on negatives. In no uncertain terms God tells us what to avoid, but he also tells us what to pursue. Blessed is the person who loves God’s Word.
"But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night" (2). The psalmist makes the bold claim that the person who is blessed delights in "the law of the LORD." If what I just said is still lingering in your minds, maybe you have some questions about this verse.
If you looked back at the previous week, everything you did, everything you said, everything you thought, and then had to explain all your actions to the all-knowing, all-seeing God, how would you feel? Is delighted the first word that comes to mind? The fact that we can’t obey God’s commands is a source of frustration for the Christian. When we compare what God demands with what we do, it isn’t a source of delight. More likely, it is cause for despair.
The key word in this verse is "law." It literally means "teaching" or "instruction." This includes the entire Word of God, both law and gospel. The believer can take great delight in that. We love God’s Word because of what it says.
God’s Word tells us that we are sinful, but it also tells us that we have a Savior. It makes it abundantly clear that we can’t be perfect, but it makes it just as clear that Jesus kept the law perfectly in our place. The law demands that there be a payment for sin, but the gospel assures us that Jesus’ blood shed on the cross is payment in full.
God speaks to us through his Word. It is there that God reveals his plan of salvation. It is there that God gives us blessing after blessing. Therefore, we cherish it. We delight in it. And those who are blessed "meditate on it day and night."
Do we do that? Do we meditate on God’s Word day and night? There are 168 hours in a week. How many of those hours do we spend in the Word? One hour in church? Another hour in bible class? How much time in private study? How much time in prayer? How many minutes with the family? And how much is enough?
To answer that last question, let me make a comparison. I am not big on New Year’s resolutions, but I made one to myself for 2001. My goal was to work out at the gym three days a week because that is what the fitness gurus say is the minimum amount a person can do and still produce results.
How am I doing? So far I am averaging about once a week. That is better than my total lack of activity before, but it isn’t enough. One day a week does some good, but it isn’t much when it has to compete with long hours behind a desk, a healthy appetite and a family history of heart disease.
Church attendance is important for our spiritual health. We come to hear God’s Word. We come to receive the sacrament. But if we spend all of the rest of our time out in the world and on our own, the battle will be up hill all the way. The devil is dangerous. The world is enticing. And the sinful flesh is stubborn. If we want God’s Word to guide our lives and shape our thinking, we need more.
We need to study the Bible with other Christians. We need to reserve time for personal study and private prayer. We need an extra measure of God’s wisdom as we apply the Word in our lives and use it to fight against temptations.
Being a Christian is not just something we do, it is something we are. God wants his Word to be woven into the very fabric of our being. He wants it to be on our minds and in our hearts when we get up in the morning and when we go to bed at night.
When the Lord is at the center of our lives, when God’s Word directs everything we say and do, God promises that our lives will be blessed. And other people will take notice because the person who is blessed by God, the person who shuns evil and loves God’s Word, will bear fruit.
"He is like a tree planted by streams of water" (3). The believer is like a strong, healthy tree. What makes the tree so strong? Even though we will probably never see it on the surface, every strong tree has a strong substructure. Its roots spread wide and deep. And it is nourished by life giving water.
And so is the Christian. He is planted in good soil. His faith is strengthened regularly by the Word of life. Even though his neighbor might never see him in church, even though his co-worker might never see him reading his Bible, even though his own children may not be able to hear the prayers he offers for them every night before he goes to sleep, his life will be evidence that he is blessed.
"He is like a tree.which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers" (3). A tree will remain strong and healthy as long as it is connected to the source of its nourishment. Its leaves will be green and full. If it is an apple tree, we won’t expect it to produce bananas. But if it is a strong and healthy tree, it will yield its fruit in season.
And so will the Christian. God doesn’t expect us to do things we are not capable of. He doesn’t expect us to perform miracles or convert the world. God does call us to be faithful, to use the gifts that we have been given, to serve the Lord wherever he has placed us. When we do, he promises that whatever we do will prosper.
That doesn’t mean that our lives will be perfect. That doesn’t mean we will never experience any setbacks. That doesn’t guarantee success for everything we set out to do. But everything we do out of love for God, every kind word, every heartfelt prayer, anything we do to show our thanks for his great love, is a fruit of faith.
Since this psalm was written (probably about three thousand years ago), many things have changed in the world. But two things have not changed: man’s sin and God’s faithfulness. These verses speak directly to our daily struggle with sin. These verses assure us that God will never go back on his promises.
With God’s help, we are able to shun sin. With the eyes of faith, we love God’s Word. With God’s love to motivate us, we bear fruit. And there is a single word that perfectly describes the individual to whom these three truths apply. Blessed. Amen.