Choose Your Path Series

We’re beginning a new sermon series this week called Psalms that can change your life. Music can make such an impact in our lives, as we’ll see from this collection of worship songs found in the book of Psalms. It only seemed appropriate to begin at the very beginning with Psalm 1. Please turn there with me now and let’s read that Psalm. (Pray)

When I was in grade school, just a few years ago, I really enjoyed a series of books called Choose Your Own Adventure. I found a picture of this one called Journey Under the Sea. In these books, the reader is the hero. You read the story until you get to a point of decision. You choose between the presented options and turn to the appropriate page. In this one, you’re a part of a research team that has discovered Atlantis. You operate the sub, interact with the people of Atlantis, and possibly end up in outer space. Your choices could go poorly and result in sickness, injury, or even death, or they could go well and result in fame and fortune. In this particular book, there are 42 possible ways for the story to go. Me being me, I had to keep track of the choices I made until I had read all 42 possibilities.

In a manner of speaking, Psalm 1 is a choose your own adventure book. We are presented with a choice- to be righteous or not to be righteous, that is the question. Now, we aren’t told who wrote this Psalm, but I would not be surprised to one day learn that this was also a psalm written by David to pass on the lesson he learned from his fall from grace with Bathsheba.

His failing started out innocently enough- we’re told it was the spring of the year, the time when kings went off to war, and David chose to stay home. As he’s walking along the wall of his palace, he finds himself caught up in temptation as he spies a woman bathing at her home. He succumbs to the temptation and has Bathsheba brought to him. Afterwards, he learns that they’re going to have a baby and he tries to cover up his sin, ultimately having a man murdered. But when David was confronted by the prophet Nathan, he repented of his sin and God restored him. Today, we know David to be a man after God’s own heart.

He begins by describing who is blessed. To be blessed, simply means to be happy or content. This is not a psalm promoting the prosperity gospel. The prosperity gospel is often in opposition to what the Bible is teaching. For example, there’s a meme that’s been floating around Facebook recently, contrasting the prosperity gospel teachings of Joel Osteen and the writings of Apostle Paul. It quotes Joel Osteen telling people to “Stop looking at your weakness and start declaring the power of I am. Say I am strong, I am healthy, I am blessed, I am beautiful, I am prosperous.” It’s a nice tickle to the ear, isn’t it? The meme then goes on to share these words from Paul, “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.”

Jesus’ description of those who are blessed is in contrast with the prosperity gospel as well. Read Matthew 5:3-11. You see, it is our status in Christ, not circumstances here on earth that determine whether we are blessed. So how does one get blessed? They choose the correct path and avoid the slippery slope of sin as described in verse 1 (read). Let’s look at this progression to see the things we should avoid.

It begins with not walking in the counsel of the wicked. For example, in 1 Kings 22, King Ahab convinces King Jehoshaphat to war together against Syria and regain some of their territory. Before they head out, Jehoshaphat suggests they first inquire for a word from the Lord. Ahab gathers about 400 prophets who all assure them victory. Jehoshaphat isn’t convinced and asks if there isn’t another prophet to consult. Ahab doesn’t want to because this prophet always speaks against him but finally gives in.

The messenger finds Micaiah to bring him and informs him that all the other prophets have told the kings that they will have victory and it would be wise for Micaiah to do the same. Micaiah has to make a choice- is he going to be righteous before God or listen to the instructions and go along with the 400 prophets who are telling the king what he wants to hear rather than what he needs to hear.