No One is a Villain in Their Own Story (Psalm 1)
Summer in the Psalms • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Today we are beginning a new sermon series through the book of Psalms. The Psalms are a rich book of prayers, hymns, and spiritual songs.
It is the one book of the Bible where no matter what we are feeling, we can go there and find some way to commune with God, regardless of whether we really want to or not.
I love the way Pastor Ben Stuart says it, “The Psalms are in the Bible to let you know that you aren’t crazy.”
Every possible trial or doubt that you have gone through, God’s people have gone through before. So, God put the book of Psalms in the middle of your Bibles to remind you that this world is not always sunshine and rainbows, but your good father is there, and desires to walk with you through every triumph and tragedy you will face.
So, with that, Father we turn our eyes to you by opening our heart and our mind to receive your word.
Guide us to your grace and assurance through the words of these psalmists. We long to see you and witness your power. Help us to leave here, loving you and trusting you more than when we arrived.
On to today’s reading!
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.
Introduction
Introduction
Well, no one is the villain in their own story.
Here are a few quotes that help us to see that:
"I am right in my heart. I am right in my struggle. And I am at peace with myself, my God and my cause.” - Timothy McVeigh
“As a Christian I have no duty to allow myself to be cheated, but I have the duty to be a fighter for truth and justice.” - Adolf Hitler
"America was hit by God in one of its softest spots. It’s great buildings of commerce were destroyed, and we thank God for that.” - Osama Bin Laden
These men were all certain that God was behind their cause. Even though all of us would classify their deeds as evil. This goes to show us that even the most evil of mankind can always find some good reason to justify their actions.
There have also been several movies that have come out within the last few decades that are attempting to prove that no one is a villain in their own story as well.
Think of movies like “The Godfather,” “Scarface,” “Taxi Driver,” and “The Joker.”
They have all taken characters that we would historically consider villains, and have attempted to give them backstories that help us as an audience sympathize with and understand the reason for their actions.
This is an interesting concept to consider, because if we are all the heroes of our own stories how will we ever know which of our actions are good and which of them are bad?
Transition
Transition
Well today’s text gives us some insight and direction toward answering that question with clarity.
In this Psalm, God’s Word compares and contrasts the blessed and the wicked, allowing us to examine ourselves in light of how God views these two.
Let’s read
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;
The term blessed is the idea of being happy and fulfilled, but where we as a culture might tend to limit that to circumstance alone, Jesus helps give us a much bigger view of what blessedness is in His sermon on the mount.
“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.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
We see here that we are not blessed in circumstances alone, but rather in our spiritual orientation towards God the father.
When we know God, we are blessed, regardless of circumstance, because our assurance is much greater than our present moment.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Even if you are being persecuted right now, you are blessed because yours is the kingdom of heaven.
So to be blessed, according to God’s Word, is spiritual security regardless of worldly worries.
And 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.
So the first thing we learn about those who are blessed is not what they do, but rather, what they do not do.
First, They do not walk in the counsel of the wicked.
The wicked throughout God’s Word, are those whose lives are turned against God’s wisdom and God’s ways.
Christopher Ash says in his commentary on the book of Psalms, that are actually bent toward wickedness. “We naturally want to walk in step with the wicked of the world, because we long to fit in. From the school playground to the nursing home, we instinctively want to say the same things as the wicked, to laugh at the same jokes as the wicked, to share the same values as the wicked, and to make the same life decisions as the wicked. Whatever your age, stage of life, ethnicity or culture, this will always be an insidious temptation for you. It will never be easy to walk out of step with an insistent world.”
Yet God’s Word says that those who are blessed do not walk the same path as the wicked, but rather their footsteps are ordered by the wisdom and the ways of God.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
He makes a way where there appears to be none, because He is a way maker. Those who are blessed will trust the Lord to make their paths straight, even if they don’t understand what it is He is doing.
Next, They do not stand in the way of sinners.
Where walking tends to denote a pathway filled with choices we will have to make, standing brings with it this idea of staying a while and hanging out.
When we stand for something, we are showing our support of the thing we stand for. And sinners are in the habit of standing against God and standing for self.
And even though, we are still sinners ourselves, we don’t identify ourselves by those sins anymore. We have been freed from the condemnation of sin, through the work of Christ on the cross.
And as Paul said, in Galatians 5:1
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
We are no longer slaves to sin, we have been given a new identity in Christ.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
That is who we are!
We do not stand where sin is practiced and promoted. We stand, chosen, holy, and set apart as saints of the living God.
So, the blessed do not walk the path of the wicked, and they do not stand in the way of sinners.
And lastly, they do not sit in the seat of scoffers.
If walking is a pathway full of choices, and standing is showing our support of and hanging out with, then sitting is finding our rest or comfort in these things. We feel at home and so we become settled in the seat of scoffers.
These are not just those who stand in opposition to God’s wisdom and ways, but openly ridicule and mock those who walk according to God’s Word.
So we can get a view from this that those who are living in sin go from bad to worse. They walk in the counsel of the wicked, stand in the way of sinners, and sit in the seat of scoffers.
And this reminds me of an interaction that Jesus had with a demon possessed man in the gospel of Mark.
In Mark 5:2-4
And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. He lived among the tombs. And no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart, and he broke the shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him.
In the middle of that passage it says that “no one could bind him anymore.” Which means that at one time they could.
He probably started walking down a path that didn’t seem too bad to him, and then he began standing in opposition to God’s wisdom and ways, and he finally just made his home there. It is easy to start down a path that we shouldn’t be on and then ultimately making our home there.
God’s Word warns us of how easy it is to do this. Which means to be blessed, often comes at great cost. You will have to avoid certain pathways, and not hang out with certain people, which might even result in you openly being mocked and ridiculed by those who seem to be living it up and enjoying themselves.
But God calls you blessed.
CHUNK#3
So we have seen what the blessed don’t do, but what do they do?
but his delight is in the law or Word of the Lord,
and on his Word he meditates day and night.
Charles Spurgeon says,
The Treasury of David, Volume 1: Psalms 1–26 Exposition
He is not under the law as a curse and condemnation, but he is in it, and he delights to be in it as his rule of life; he delights, moreover, to meditate in it, to read it by day, and think upon it by night. He takes a text and carries it with him all day long; and in the night-watches, when sleep forsakes his eyelids, he muses upon the Word of God.
The law of God is the Word of God. And if you feel like the Word is condemning you and beating you down, you need to learn to delight in the Lord.
The westminster catechism says that “Man’s chief end is to enjoy God and glorify Him forever.”
John Piper says, “God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him.”
If the way you view God is as some sort of spiritual disciplinarian, with His arms crossed in utter disappointment. You are thinking too little of Him.
If you think He is the one who sees when you’ve been sleeping and knows when you’re awake and knows when you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake, you are thinking too little of Him.
He is the blessed and boundless God.
Here are just a few things the Bible says about Him.
He is the author of life, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. He proved His love for us through the death of Christ on the cross. His love is unfailing. He sustains the cosmos by a word of His mouth. He cannot lie. In His presence is the fullness of joy. In Christ, He calls us His children, He delights in us, has made us heirs of His kingdom, and will rejoice over us with singing. Neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God is blessed and boundless.
He loves you and delights in you, and all you have to do is receive that by trusting His Word.
The blessed man is not beaten down by His Word, but He delights in it, because it frees Him from condemnation, and gives Him direction.
The Word fills His heart throughout the day and night. He doesn’t just think about it, He meditates on it, which means He considers it deeply day and night.
Do you delight in the Word of God, or does it beat you down?
Do you deeply consider what the Word of God means for you as a believer?
Do you read it?
Do you pray it?
Do you sing it?
Do you live it?
This is the life of those who are blessed.
They find the Word of the Lord a delight!
CHUNK #4
And next we get to see this beautiful imagery of the blessed life.
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 blessed are like trees, deeply rooted, consistently watered, and not with man made irrigation, but with God supplied living water, evergreen, that means always showing signs of life and bearing fruit in the proper season.
In their time and place, which was a hot climate, where trees were not as plentiful or fruitful as they are in other parts of the world, the only trees that continually bore fruit were those rooted near a life giving source of water.
There is so much that we could unpack in that, but just allow that picture to sit with you.
The blessed are deeply rooted, not easily shaken.
Watered by the inexhaustible living Word of God.
Always showing signs of life, and spiritual fruit as they grow, because of what they are rooted in and sustained by.
This spiritual fruit is spoken of in
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
This fruit only comes from God. We cannot manufacture any of these. And they are collective. It is not fruits of the Spirit, but fruit.
So if you are growing in kindness, but not love, perhaps you are manufacturing kindness to avoid confrontation. Maybe you’re just a coward.
Or if you are growing in faithfulness, but not gentleness, perhaps you are manufacturing faithfulness to avoid people. Maybe you’re just prideful.
Or if you are growing in peace, but not self control, perhaps you are manufacturing peace to avoid hard work. Maybe you’re just lazy.
The desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, even though they might disguise themselves as spiritual fruit.
Scripture says those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
So the way that you can tell that it is spiritual fruit instead of fleshly passion, is that you are dying to self in order to love God and love neighbor.
CHUNK #5
Now we get to see the second half of this psalm.
The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
The wicked are not so.
There is no other path to blessing.
It is only in Christ, the Word of God, that we are deeply rooted in living waters, that produce the fruit of the Spirit and not the deeds of the flesh.
The wicked are not so.
They operate through the deeds of the flesh, and are rooted in nothing. They are like chaff, the dry grass, that the wind blows around.
They are reliant on themselves, and oppose all who oppose them.
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.
Those who choose to stand in opposition to God today, will not stand in the judgment. They will be unable to. They are like chaff that will be blown away at the harvest time.
Daniel Akin says in his commentary that
Exalting Jesus in Psalms 1–50 Stay Away from the Hopeless Life (1:6)
The unrighteous road is the devil’s road, where he and his demons wait. They promise life to the fullest here and now. But he is a liar and the father of lies (
CONCLUSION:
No one is a villain in their own story. Everyone thinks they are the good guy. Even the most evil person, can find some self justifying reason for the acts they commit. But God’s Word makes it very clear that there are two paths that we can take. The path of the blessed and the path of the wicked.
Desiring worldly affirmation can be such a danger, causing us to take the wrong paths, and stand for the wrong causes, and make our homes with those who mock others, so that we can feel good about our choices. But God’s Word says destruction is their end.
We are by our sinful nature inclined to roll with the wicked. The Word says all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Even the ones that work really hard to stay in God’s Word, and do all that God has commanded, can often times be doing it for selfish motives, which Jesus said is just as wicked as those who avoid God altogether.
You see without the gospel of King Jesus, this Psalm will only make us try harder to be good.
We must see that Jesus is the true blessed one of Psalm 1, and because we believe in Him, God sees us as He sees Jesus. All the blessing that Jesus has received is ours by grace through faith.
The gospel only becomes earth shattering good news when you realize that you might be the villain. The sin that tries to disorient you, and identify you by your worst moments, loses its power through the cross of Christ.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
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/WORD of the Lord,
and on his law/WORD he meditates day and night.
Jesus Christ is the Word of the Lord. You truly are blessed as you Delight in Him and meditate on Him and His sacrifice day and night.
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
LET’S PRAY
