Rooted in Righteousness (Psalm 1:1-6)

Weak Roots

Weak tree roots can lead to various problems. Trees with weak roots are more likely to topple over, especially during extreme weather conditions such as heavy snow or high winds. Falling trees can cause significant damage to individuals and structures on your property. Trees with weakened root systems may lean, indicating instability and potential hazards. Root damage can impede a tree's growth because the roots are unable to supply water and nutrients to the canopy. Damaged roots can also make trees more susceptible to diseases and insect infestations. Additionally, tree roots can lead to foundation issues by lifting up structures or causing soil shrinkage.

Psalm 1 contrasts the lifestyle of the righteous, who delight in the law of the Lord, with the lifestyle of the wicked, who are like chaff blown away by the wind. This passage challenges believers to prioritize God's Word in their lives and to seek righteousness in all areas. It reminds us that following God's ways leads to blessings and stability while choosing a sinful path leads to destruction. The Psalm teaches that true happiness and success come from walking in obedience to God's Word and avoiding the influences of the ungodly.

LCS, this morning, I want you to forsake sinful paths that lead to destruction by rooting yourself in God's Word and living righteously so you can enjoy God’s blessings and stability.

The Psalmist offers us four roots we can sink deep into the ground of our hearts.

Be Rooted in Godly Council

Psalm 1:1 ESV

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;

To be blessed is to be joyful. It is not mere happiness. Happiness changes with your circumstances. Joy is deeply rooted in contentment. A person who is content is blessed. Their joy always remains regardless if they have much or little, are imprisoned or free, healthy or sick, rich or poor. Kevin Warstler says the word blessed expresses the sense of joy and satisfaction in one’s state or circumstances that comes from trust in and obedience in the Lord. The Bible says,

Psalm 34:8 ESV

8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!

Psalm 40:4 ESV

4 Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!

Psalm 84:5 ESV

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.

When you trust and obey the Lord, He roots deep in your heart joy and satisfaction that is so nurturing and so good that your life will not fall apart when the waves of trauma and tragedy come crashing against your house.

Walking in the scriptures is a metaphor for how you live your life. Its the decisions you make every day, the small bricks you lay down to build your house. The Lord says through his servant David that a blessed man or woman will walk, or live, in a way that pleases God by listening to godly council.

The Lord says through David, there are two things a godly person does not do. The first is to walk with evil doers. Psalm 1:1

Psalm 1:1 ESV

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;

You see three words: wicked, sinners, scoffers. This describes people who are inclined by evil in such a way their life is marked by it, and they mock God’s ways.

There is good reason to not walk with the wicked. When you decide to hang around the wicked, you take their council, that is, you will immerse mind, heart, and will into their ways. You will see the world through their eyes. You will love what the wicked loves. You will try to rationalize sin, something God hates, as good. You will do acts of evil. The wicked do not love with all their might nor their neighbor as themselves. In short, they reject His wise and good council.

The righteous are not so. The righteous are rooted in the fear of God. And John Calvin says,

The fear of God is the root and origin of all righteousness.

John Calvin (French Reformer)

Where do we learn righteousness? David says we learn righteousness by meditating on God’s law day and night. We first receive council from God’s word, which we will learn more on in the next point. Notice, however, we also befriend people who value the word of God. Instead of walking with the wicked, sinners, and scoffers, the righteous walk with the righteous, the saints, the peacemakers. Rooting yourself in Godly council means to one, root yourself in God’s word, and two, root your friendships with people who value God’s word.

Be Rooted In God God’s Instruction

Psalm 1:2 ESV

2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

To learn Godly council is to receive God’s word, his Torah, the law. To meditate on God’s torah is to immerse yourself in His teaching, his instruction. It’s to hide the word of God in your heart so much that it makes you joyful, like finding one hundred dollar bills every time you open the Bible.

I love the way A.W. Tozer describes how we should meditate on God’s word. He says,

The Spirit-filled walk demands, for instance, that we live in the Word of God as a fish lives in the sea. By this I do not mean that we study the Bible merely, nor that we take a “course” in Bible doctrine. I mean that we should “meditate day and night” in the sacred Word, that we should love it and feast upon it and digest it every hour of the day and night.3

A. W. Tozer

For David it was much of the Old Testament. The Old Testament tells us

Deuteronomy 10:12 CSB

12 “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear the Lord your God by walking in all his ways, to love him, and to worship the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul?

and that,

Proverbs 1:7 ESV

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

On this side of the cross, God’s fully authoritative, inerrant, and sufficient Bible which includes the New Testament tells us that,

2 Timothy 3:16–17 ESV

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

God’s instruction equips you to do every good work in a world that is not always good. The world is cursed by sin. Everyone is broken and in need of the redemption Jesus offers us. Paul describes the world as crooked and wicked, which makes it hard, at times, to listen to God’s council and walk in his instruction, to do the good work. The word of God helps you navigate the narrow road of righteousness in a fallen world.

Suppose you're lost in the mountains and you come across a sign giving directions to safety. Following those instructions may feel uncertain and require trust. Similarly, following God's instructions often demand trust and courage, but ultimately lead to a path of safety and assurance. Root yourself in God’s instruction.

Be Rooted in Bearing Fruit

Psalm 1:3 ESV

3 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.

Trees need to have strong roots. The roots need to dive deep into the ground and be nourished by rich soil and an abundance of water if they are going to bear fruit.

Bearing fruit is often used as a metaphor for maturing in your spiritual life. Jesus says every child of God must bear fruit. John 15:1-2

John 15:1–2 ESV

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

John 15:4–5 ESV

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

You cannot bear spiritual fruit of you are not connected to Jesus. He is the vine, source of life to your heart. The bible says

Ephesians 2:1 ESV

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins

That is, your heart does not have the spiritual life it needs to come to God. It must be made alive, and only God can make it alive through his son. Paul says,

Ephesians 2:4–5 ESV

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

You must bear the fruit of salvation. The bud of the fruit of salvation is repentance. Repentance is Godly sorrow over your sin, a sorrow that compels you to turn from your sin, confess it to the Lord, and ask for forgiveness. Then you must

Romans 10:9–10 (ESV)

9 you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

You must accept Jesus’ gift of salvation by faith. That is what believe in your heart means. Jesus will come into your heart via his Spirit, and he will empower you to bear fruit. What kind of fruit? The kind of fruit Paul describes to the Galatians:

Galatians 5:22–23 ESV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Be Rooted in the Death and Ressurection of Jesus

Psalm 1:4–5 ESV

4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;

Jesus embodies the perfect example of the righteous one who delighted in God's law and fulfilled it completely. In Him, we find the ultimate fulfillment of the righteous life described in Psalm 1.

Notice the contrast between a strongly rooted tree and chaff. Chaff is a fine seed particles that gets separated from corn or wheat. When the wind blows the chaff scatters wherever the wind takes it. It has not stability. There are no roots to keep it in place. Its vulnerable and easily destroyed. This is how David describes the wicked when they stand before God. To stand before God is to survive his wrath. They have no ability to stand before God’s judgement. The only ones left standing are the congregation of the righteous. Who are the congregation of the righteous? It is those who have been justified by God.

To be justified by God is to be made right with God’s holiness. Jesus is God’s justification for us.

Galatians 2:16 (CSB)

16 we know that a person is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we ourselves have believed in Christ Jesus. This was so that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no human being will be justified.

We cannot be made righteous by our works, or by trying to keep God’s law. We cannot keep God’s law perfectly. Jesus kept God’s law perfectly on our behalf. When we believe in Him by faith, God gives us his righteousness and Jesus takes our sin. That is why Paul says,

Galatians 2:20 ESV

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

By faith, Jesus’s death and resurrection (Rom 4:25) moves us from the congregation of the wicked to the congregation of the righteous. Be rooted in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

God Watches the Righteous

Psalm 1:6 ESV

6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

This is our assurance. When we stand in the congregation of the righteous, the Lord knows us and watches over us. He cares for us like a good father, providing all of our needs, securing our future, and giving us the purpose we desire to be alive. Furthermore, when the storms of life come, we will not be lost, scattered like the chaff. The righteous will hold fast, because Jesus is holding them fast for all eternity.

I am reminded of an old quote.

The more a tree of righteousness is shaken by the wind, the more it is rooted in Christ.

Anonymous

Ask the Lord to root you in Christ. In Christ, you can be rooted in the Godly council of his church and his word. You will bear fruit that the world will marvel to see and it will last for all eternity.

Marie’s Pinning

Benediction

"May the Lord bless you with wisdom and protect you from following the advice of the wicked, standing in the pathway of sinners, or sitting in the company of mockers. Instead, may you find joy in the Lord's teachings and meditate on them day and night. May the Lord make you flourish like a tree planted by flowing streams, bearing fruit in its season and never withering. May everything you do for the Lord prosper. May the Lord shield you from wickedness, which is like chaff that the wind blows away. Know for sure the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. Therefore, may the Lord guide you in His righteousness and keep you from the path of destruction that the wicked follow.” (Psalm 1)