Psalm 1 - The Way of the Righteous

Introduction

Good morning, and welcome to our family service this morning.

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.

Since we have the whole family together this morning I wanted to focus on a section of scripture,

that we can live out at any age.

So if you have your Bibles please turn with me to Psalm 1.

Grandpa

I was very blessed to grow up with four grandparents who all demonstrated faithfulness and godliness in their lives.

All of them have now gone on to be with the Lord,

but God used each of them speak into my life, and the lives of my sisters, brother, and cousins.

One of my grandparents who I spent a lot of time learning from was my Grandpa Wes.

When he passed away a few years ago,

I received two things of his that he used every day.

Both are made of leather, and each represented something he was well known for.

Weightlifting Belt

The first was his weightlifting belt.

Now My grandpa Wes was a unique guy.

He had a disease called alopecia which meant that he didn’t have any hair, even eyebrows or eyelashes.

He was very smart and funny, and people loved to be around him.

But one of the things most people knew him for was that he was a lifelong bodybuilder.

For nearly his whole life, and nearly every day,

he would tie this thing around his waist and lift weights for an hour and a half.

Which made him absolutely jacked.

His build, paired with his lack of hair, and his habit of wearing white t-shirts,

made him look a lot like Mr. Clean.

All of us grandkids, at least once, brought him to show and tell at school.

There he would do handstands,

and one armed push ups.

And then the kids would all line up and punch him in the stomach.

The kids all loved it.

When I was in my late teens/early twenties I worked out with him weekly,

and even then in his eighties, he was hard to keep up with.

Bible

But as much use as that weightlifting belt got,

it was nothing compared to the other item I got from him,

This is his Bible.

It is in rough shape, you can tell it has gotten a lot of use.

Though Grandpa was known for bodybuilding,

what he delighted most in was the scriptures, the word of God.

He actually got me into reading the scriptures for myself when I was a young kid,

by showing me the amazing stories of the heroes of the faith from the Old Testament.

But as I got older he showed me how God instructs us in how to live through the scriptures,

how they can be applied to every area of life.

He lived his life according to God’s instruction.

And taught me how to do the same.

My Grandpa Wes’ favourite passage in the Bible is all about that,

how God gives us good instruction in his word,

instruction that leads to blessing for God’s people.

That is our passage this morning, Psalm 1.

Psalm 1

Exegesis

The Way of the Righteous (vv. 1-2)

Blessed

Our passage begins with this statement in v. 1,

Psalm 1:1 (ESV)

Blessed is the man

But right off the bat we have a question to answer:

What does it mean to be blessed?

The world has its own idea.

Probably the first thing that comes to mind unfortunately,

is what I have seen tagged on to peoples photos on social media:

#blessed.

Someone is sitting on a tropical beach with a drink in their hand - #blessed

Someone is surrounded by family at their Christmas gathering - #blessed

Someone is hugging their dog - #blessed.

Now, if I’ve mentioned something that you have posted,

that was purely an accident.

And none of these things is bad.

Beaches, and family, and even dogs are all wonderful,

and they are blessings from God.

But is that what it means to be blessed?

What we see in the scriptures is that blessedness is something far greater

than merely the physical blessings that even the world recognizes as good things.

Rather, what we see in the scriptures, is that blessedness is the favour of God.

The simplest definition I could think of is this:

Blessedness is happiness, that God bestows.

We saw this a few weeks ago in our Christmas series

when we took a brief glance at Mary’s Song called the Magnificat.

She begins her song like this in Luke 1:46-49, where she sings:

Luke 1:46–49 (ESV)

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,

for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.

For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

for he who is mighty has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.”

There we see it - Happiness bestowed by God.

We also see it in the Beatitudes that Jesus taught at the beginning of his sermon on the mount in Matthew 5;

where he says over and over again, “blessed are, blessed are, blessed are”

and he pairs those those statements of blessing

to things most people wouldn’t think of as blessings.

Matthew 5:3–6 (ESV)

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

See, to be blessed is not what the world thinks it is - its not just enjoying good physical things through the senses.

It is a happiness beyond what your circumstances might give you.

It is happiness bestowed by God.

And God blesses his people through his instruction.

Righteous vs. Wicked

Our passage goes on to say in v. 1,

Psalm 1:1 (ESV)

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;

Here we see two ways of living contrasted, weighed against each other.

The way of the wicked on one side.

and the way of the righteous on the other side.

This is a theme that we see throughout the psalms and wisdom literature of the Bible.

The way of the righteous vs. the way of the wicked.

And the way of the righteous is the blessed way as we will see.

Walks, Stands, Sits

Here in v. 1 we see that the way of the righteous is discerning.

Meaning that the righteous person sees the way of the world, the way of the wicked,

and he or she makes the decision not to live in that way.

The language the Psalmist uses is walking, standing, and sitting.

Psalm 1:1 (ESV)

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;

And this language of walking, standing, and sitting,

is meant to make us think of all aspects of our lives.

Whether you walk, stand, or sit,

in everything a righteous person does,

it is not done in the same way as the wicked.

Sinners and Scoffers

The words wicked and sinners in this passage are synonyms,

they mean basically the same thing.

These are people who pursue evil and vice because it feels good in the moment even though its wrong.

But the word “scoffers” in this passage,

speaks to people who have been told what they are doing is wrong,

but instead of repenting and turning from their sin,

they mock righteousness, and pursue evil all the more.

They are in deeper trouble.

As v. 1 tells us, the blessed person does not walk as the wicked person walks,

they do not stand as the sinner stands,

nor do they sit as the mocker sits.

In all that they do they do it differently from the world.

This is exactly what we were talking about over the last few months,

in our study of 1 Peter.

That we as Christians; the blessed people of God,

are peculiar, we are weird,

we are different in who we are, in how we live, and in what we hope for.

Delighting in the Law

We live differently.

We don’t live like the wicked, we don’t live like the world.

So how then shall we live?

The Psalmist tells us in v. 2 that for the blessed man:

Psalm 1:2 (ESV)

“his delight is in the law of the Lord,

and on his law he meditates day and night.”

Law of the Lord

When the Psalmist says the word “law” here in v. 2,

he is using the Hebrew word Torah, which refers to the law given to Moses.

It’s also what the people of Israel called the five books of Moses.

But it can also refer to the whole of the scriptures.

And this is the sense that it is used here in Psalm 1.

The psalmist is referring to the whole of the scriptures,

the whole counsel of God.

I think the best way to think of the word law here, is not just the 10 commandments,

or the moral laws that tell us what is good and what is evil.

Yes, it does include those.

But the Psalmist is talking about more than that.

He is talking about all of the instruction that God gives us in the scriptures.

This is like what Paul writes in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 : That,

2 Timothy 3:16–17 (ESV)

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

The Psalmist here in Psalm 1 is talking about all of the scriptures,

the complete instruction of the Lord.

Delight

And what does the blessed person do with the instruction of the Lord?

He delights in it.

Do you delight in the instruction of the Lord?

People put time into the things they delight in.

I’ll tell you, my Grandpa Wes delighted in the instruction of the Lord.

They say that generally when your Bible is falling apart, that means your life isn’t.

And you can see from his Bible that it got a lot of use.

When you look inside it every page is full of underlines and highlights.

He also marked countless passages in here that he had memorized.

And man, could he quote scripture.

He had hidden God’s word in his heart.

Do you delight in God’s word?

Do you love his instruction?

Do you spend time with it?

Do you memorize it?

With all of print, and digital, and audio options we have to take in scripture,

it has never been easier to encounter the word of God.

I want to encourage you, if you have not been in God’s word for some time,

or if you have been inconsistent in spending time in the scriptures.

It is not hard to grow in your delight in them.

Pick it up, read it, listen to it.

Start with a chapter a day.

If you have questions, write them down.

Bring them to your small group,

or shoot me an email, I love to talk to people about the scriptures.

You cant grow in your delight of the scriptures, if your not in them.

And if your not in them, you will miss out on the blessed instruction that God gives his people.

Meditate

See, God’s instruction is for your benefit.

It is there to do you good, to experience the blessing of God.

This is why the blessed man in v. 2 meditates on God’s instruction.

This is not the emptying of the mind that is done in the meditation of buddhism, and the new age movement.

This meditation is focusing on the scriptures for the purpose of understanding them,

and then applying them to your life.

Instruction is meant to be understood,

and the instruction of the Lord is meant to be understood,

and to be applied to every part of our lives.

This is why we are instructed in James 1 to “be doers of the word and not hearers only.”

James goes on to say in James 1:25: that,

James 1:25 (ESV)

“The one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.”

An Image of Blessedness (v. 3)

This is why God gives us his instruction, that we might experience his blessing,

by living out the instruction that he gives.

And the Psalmist gives us a picture of what this blessedness looks like in v. 3 of our passage.

He says this about the blessed man,

Who delights and meditates on the instruction of the Lord:

Psalm 1:3 (ESV)

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.

Tree Planted by Streams of Water

If you are looking for an image of what blessedness is, this is it.

It is like a tree, planted by streams of water.

For the Psalmist, who lived in Israel,

a place where there is very little rain;

those streams of water are very precious.

Even in a dry and hostile environment, this tree gets the water that gives it life.

For the people of God,

especially for those living in a culture that unashamedly pursues the way of the wicked,

having a steady stream of the instruction of the Lord,

strengthens us to reject the way of the wicked,

and to walk in the blessedness of the way of the righteous.

Water in the midst of a desert.

Fruitful

And we see what results of the water: this tree is healthy,

it’s leaf does not wither,

and it bears fruit.

If you want to flourish spiritually, if you want to be spiritually healthy,

you need regular interaction with the instruction of the Lord.

In the same way, if you want to bear fruit in your life as a Christian,

the Holy Spirit uses the word of God to instruct and nurture the Christian,

to bear fruit.

This is what God desires in his people.

Jesus’ teaches this in John 15:5, where he says,

John 15:5 ESV

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.

Then he says in vv. 8-10,

John 15:8–10 (ESV)

By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.

God is glorified when his people bear fruit.

That fruit comes in many forms:

Leading people to faith in Christ,

raising godly children,

doing good works, loving our neighbour

building good institutions and businesses that serve people,

and meet their needs.

All of this fruit is borne by abiding in Christ.

And we abide in Christ and in his love,

by keeping his commandments.

His instruction that he gives us in his word.

Prosperous

By abiding in Christ, by keeping his commands and instruction,

the blessed man, the blessed woman, the blessed boy or girl - prospers.

This isn’t the prosperity of the world, getting rich, getting popular, getting the stuff of this world.

No, it is far far better than that - this is the prosperity of God.

As 1 Corinthians 15 tells us, “the work that you do for the Lord is not in vain,” it lasts.

God uses it for his purposes, and his purposes are eternal.

This is the prosperity of God - that the work you do for the Lord,

done in his way, and in his power,

will be used by him for his eternal purposes.

The fruit we bear as Christians is not for our enjoyment,

or for our glory, but it is for the glory of God.

And in the end he will reward it.

Even though we might not see all the results of the fruit we bear in this life,

I am certain we will be able to see it all when God rewards his people at his return,

when he comes to judge the world, and reward his faithful, fruitful people;

When he says to them, “well done good and faithful servant,

enter into the joy, [into the blessing] of your master.”

I want to hear that from Jesus, don’t you?

The Way of the Wicked (v. 4)

Sadly, there will be many who don’t hear that.

Our passage says in v. 4

Psalm 1:4 (ESV)

“The wicked are not so,

but are like chaff that the wind drives away.”

Rather than bearing fruit for eternity,

the works of the wicked will be discarded, thrown out.

Their works will perish as v. 6 tells us.

The image that is used here in v. 4 is that of chaff,

the left overs from the grain threshing process.

While the grain is kept and made into life-giving bread,

the chaff, the stems and the husks are left for the wind to drive away.

This is about as different a picture as you can get from the tree planted by streams of water.

Contrasting Endings (vv. 5-6)

Our passage ends in v. 5-6 where the Psalmist writes:

Psalm 1:5–6 (ESV)

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.

The End of the Wicked

The End of the wicked is judgment,

they don’t enter into the rest and reward of the Lord for eternity,

but are judged for their sins,

and instead of receiving the eternal rewards of righteousness,

they receive the eternal punishment of wickedness.

Gospel

The wonderful thing is that no-one is beyond saving.

Where there is life there is hope.

Jesus came to save sinners.

He took the penalty for their sin on himself at the cross.

So that through repentance and faith they can be completely forgiven of all their sin.

And be declared righteous before God.

And they are declared righteous,

so that with God’s help they can live lives of righteousness.

Through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ,

the way of the righteous is opened to people who before could only walk in the way of the wicked.

If you have been walking in the way of the wicked.

The blessed life of the righteous is offered to you through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

As someone who for years walked in the way of the wicked,

I can tell you that the way of the wicked will leave you exactly as hollow and dried out as that chaff that is blown by away by the wind.

The blessed life is so much better.

Repent of your sins,

believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,

and walk in his way.

The Lord knows the way of the righteous because it is his way.

And it is the way that leads to blessing,

true, lasting happiness bestowed by God.

Application

The Westminster Shorter Catechism begins by saying that the chief end of man,

humanity’s purpose,

is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.

I think that’s incredibly beautiful - I want that.

To glorify God, and enjoy him forever.

The way to experience both, is the way of the righteous.

Abiding in Christ by following his instruction by faith.

That is how to live the blessed life.

That is how to bear fruit that lasts.

And the way to know the instructions of the Lord,

is to delight in his word.

Do you want that?

Conclusion

What would it look like if we made that our goal as the people of Faith Baptist Church?

Whatever stage of life you are in, whether your a kid, a teenager, an adult.

What kind of lives would we live, if our Bibles worn out through use,

because we delighted in God’s instruction?

Living as a blessed people - like trees planted by streams of water.

What do you think God might do through us,

to bring flourishing in this spiritual desert that we live in?