Sermon Tone Analysis

INTRODUCTION

Today as we dive into the second message in our series, “The Bible: Prioritizing God’s Word in Our Lives,” we will focus on the Blessing of the Word.

Life offers so many options and opportunities.

We have to evaluate what we will receive back when we invest our time, talents, and treasure into any option in life.

Many invest their money in stocks, bonds, and other money-making opportunities.

When considering all of the investment options available, one has to look at many factors before pulling the trigger on taking the dive to make the investment.

Ultimately, when one invests, they are looking for a good return on their investment.

The same principle is true concerning the investment one makes in the path one chooses to follow.

Have you considered the cost and return of where you are investing your life?

Have you thought about the path you are currently investing your time, talent, and treasures in?

When it is all said and done, what will the return on your investment be?

Today we will dive into Psalm 1:1-3.

We will examine two investment opportunities for your life and the return you can expect on your investment.

The First Psalm is an introduction to the entire book of Psalms.

It celebrates the “person who is ‘blessed’ because they meditate on the Torah, prayerfully reading and obeying it.

The Hebrew word ‘Torah’ simply means ‘teaching,’ but it also came to refer to the first five books of the Bible that contain the foundational laws of Judaism.

It seems that the word has both of these meanings in Psalm 1.

The book of Psalms is being offered as a new Torah that will teach God’s people about the lifelong practice of prayer as they strive to obey God’s commands in the first Torah” (The Bible Project, Read Scripture: Illustrated Summaries of Biblical Books [Portland: The Bible Project, 2017], 36).

Psalm 1 is a wisdom Psalm, most likely written by David.

The author of the Psalm encourages the reader to forsake the lifestyle of the wicked and instead be loyal to God and His Word.

What we find in Psalm 1, is a contrast between the destiny of the righteous and the wicked.

The Psalmist offers a prospectus on the return on the investment one chooses to make in life.

Let’s turn to Psalm 1, and we will begin with verse 1.

Psalm 1:1 (NET 2nd ed.)

1 How blessed is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand in the pathway with sinners, or sit in the assembly of scoffers.

SERMON

I.

The path to ruin.

When you live life, there comes a point at which you realize you must decide how you will live that life.

As you walk the path of life, you inevitably reach the point where you must choose a path.

Verse one describes the path that leads to ruin, or put another way, the path that, if we choose to invest our life, will offer a horrible return on our investment.

Notice in verse 1, the passage begins with HOW BLESSED.

The Palmist tells us that if we follow the path in verse one, we will NOT be blessed.

The word BLESSED represents the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce.

The term “blessed” does not imply that God has given some particular favor; a different Hebrew term is used to indicate that.

Instead, it means that the person has so conducted himself that a condition of blessedness has resulted.

“Oh, the happiness that man experiences,” the Psalmist says.

And it is a happiness that is very definitely related to conduct.

The good life is attractive and brings real, not superficial, happiness.

When you dig into verse one, what you see is a progression.

The progression is FOLLOW, STAND, SIT.

We will examine the downward course and the deeper level of intimacy we find as one starts down the path of ruin.

The first step on the path to ruin is to

Verse 1 says HOW BLESSED is the one who, first of all, does not follow the advice of the wicked.

The word follow denotes walking alongside, going through, and going with.

One of the first steps in walking on the path of ruin is who you choose to go to for advice.

When you seek where to place the investment of your life, who do you go to?

If you want to see blessings from god, you need to consider who you will follow.

The righteous person does not seek the advice of the wicked.

Who are wicked people?

The Bible tells us that a person who does not walk with God is wicked.

Wicked sounds harsh, but when you realize that there are only two sides, God or Satan, you can see why this is true.

By man’s standards, you have to be pretty rotten to be wicked, but in God’s sight, all it takes is a person who does not walk with Him to be considered wicked.

When we go to those who follow Jesus, we cannot expect to receive godly counsel.

Here is why.

1 Corinthians 1:18 (NET 2nd ed.)

18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Another reason for being careful who you go to for life counsel is the differing value systems.

2 Corinthians 6:14 (NET 2nd ed.)

14 Do not become partners with those who do not believe, for what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship does light have with darkness?

We are called not to follow the counsel of the wicked.

Malachi 3:18 (NET 2nd ed.)

18 Then once more you will see that I make a distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between the one who serves God and the one who does not.

When Christians start following the world's advice, we will find ourselves in deep trouble.

When we begin down the path of ruin, it starts with following.

Then as we follow, the intimacy goes deeper as we move to standing with those on the path to ruin.

We are blessed when we do not STAND IN THE PATHWAY with sinners.

Note the progression—“walks, stands sits.”

That is the nature of involvement in sin.

One begins by tuning in on evil counsel.

He next ventures an occasional indulgence in the presence of bad company, even if it means a violation of his conscience.

The path speaks to the lifestyle of those on the path to ruin.

We move to closely associating with them in sinful behaviors.

1 Corinthians 15:33 (NET 2nd ed.)

33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”

Then we take the final plunge; we sit with the scoffers.

We are blessed if we do not SIT IN THE ASSEMBLY OF THE SCOFFERS.

A scoffer is an arrogant individual who loves conflict.

Proverbs 22:10 (NET 2nd ed.)

10 Drive out the scorner and contention will leave; strife and insults will cease.

To sit with means to completely identify with those on the path to ruin as well as embracing their proud, sinful ways and behavior.

Before we realize it, our life can become cast in a new mold.

The change becomes so complete that we become one who takes delight in sneering at God and His people and ways.

Let’s move to verse 2.

Psalm 1:2 (NET 2nd ed.)

2 Instead he finds pleasure in obeying the Lord’s commands; he meditates on his commands day and night.

II.

The path to blessing.

In contrast to the one on the path to ruin, the path to blessing begins with a different mindset.

The path to blessing and happiness in one’s life has more to do with what one does versus what one refrains from doing.

One does not refuse to walk on the path to ruin because of guilt, but rather because you KNOW God has a better path, a better way to walk.

When it is a choice between the counsel of the wicked and the way of the Lord, it is no contest for the one who is on the path to blessings.

When we are forced to do something we do not want to do, the thing we are forced to do becomes a burden.

The path to blessing is not just about doing what is right; it is about finding pleasure and joy in doing so.

That joy and pleasure spring forth from one’s love for God.

The mindset moves from fighting God to finding joy in Him.

A Handbook on the Book of Psalms (Psalm 1:2)

The law of the Lord (LORD’S COMMANDS): here this term refers to the Torah, which is the most important part of the Hebrew Scriptures, that is, the first five books (traditionally known as the Books of Moses).

The word “Torah” means teaching, instruction, guidance.

It stands generally for the Hebrew faith, Yahweh’s revelation of himself as the God of the Hebrew people, and particularly for the written record of that revelation in the Hebrew scriptures, especially the first five books