Summer Psalms #1 - You Can Have Heavenly Happiness
Psalm 1:1-6
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - May 27, 2009
*Are you happy? I am -- sometimes! Psalm 1 reminds us that God wants to give us more happiness in life. John Phillips explained:
-The book of Psalms begins with the word “blessed,” or (as we would say “happy.”) In the original it is not in the singular but in the plural. We can translate the first word of the Psalms “Oh the blessedness-es of the man,” or “Happy, happy is the man,” or “Oh the happiness-es of the man. . .” God does not dole out His blessings one at a time. He pours them out in the plural. (1)
*God wants to give you Heavenly happiness, and here’s how to get it:
1. First: Follow the right path.
*We can find the right path by avoiding the wrong path that God shows us in vs. 1. God says, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful.”
*We are blessed with happiness when we don’t head down the disastrous path of sin. And vs. 1 shows us how sin takes us from bad to worse: Foolishly walking into sin, then stopping to linger, then sitting down to camp out with sin.
*Sin always takes us from bad to worse:
-First the ungodly, leaving God out of their lives, and living by their own rules.
-Then sinners, disobeying God not once or accidentally, but habitually.
-Then scorners or mockers, proud, self-sufficient, know-it-alls, mocking God, thinking that anyone who believes is stupid.
*But happy, happy “is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful.”
-The right path leads to joy. -- The wrong path leads to judgment.
-The right path leads to Heaven. -- The wrong path leads to hell.
*In vs. 4 the wrong path leads to a worthless life: “The ungodly are like the chaff which the wind drives away.” -- Not the good part of the grain, but the trash that gets blown away in the wind.
*In vs. 5 the wrong path leads to a weak life: Too weak to stand in the judgment. -- That’s because only the Lord can give us the strength to stand.
*In vs. 6 the wrong path leads to a wasted life: “For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the ungodly shall perish.” That word “perish” means “wandering away, going astray, destroyed, put to death, lost forever.”
*But the Good News is that even if you have gone down that wrong road in vs. 1, God still loves you, and He wants to turn your life around! 2 Pet 3:9 tells us: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”
*God wants to put lost people on the path to abundant, eternal life. And Jesus can do it, because He is the way, the truth and the life.
-How can I have God’s abundant happiness? Follow the right path.
2. And take the right pleasure.
*Vs. 2 is talking about the happy, happy man, and it says, “His delight is in the law of the Lord.” What delights you? What gives you pleasure?
*God’s Word should give us great pleasure, because Psalm 19:7-8 tells us:
7. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
8. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
*What delights you? What gives you pleasure? It is easy for us to get far too much affection for the things of this world, not necessarily bad things, but temporary things, things that will have no weight in eternity.
*It’s easy for us to lose sight of the things that matter most. That’s what Vance Havner was getting at when he told the story about some little boys in Africa who were playing marbles in the dirt with some rocks. It turned out that they were playing marbles with diamonds, missing the value of what they held in their hands. (2)
*God help us not to miss the value of His Word. May our delight be in the law of the Lord! How can I have God’s abundant happiness? Take the right pleasure.
3. And make the right pursuit.
*Vs. 2 tells us that the blessed man intentionally and consistently pursues the Word of God. He meditates day and night in the God’s Word. This is the same thing God told Joshua to do when the Lord called Joshua to lead the Children of Israel into the Promised Land. In Joshua 1:8, God said, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”
*God want us to be fully committed to learn and live by His Word. He tells us to meditate on His Word. But remember that God is not talking about the kind of mindless repetition we find in Eastern mysticism. Meditating here is simply spending time every day focused on the Scripture, -- Letting God’s Word touch your lips and mind so that it can also touch your heart and actions.
*We should delight in the law of the Lord. But we can’t do that unless we digest the Word of God. Then God’s Word will make a difference that people can see.
*Pastor Herb Miller told the story about a trial that was beginning many years ago. The courthouse was in a tiny town. And when they got ready to swear in the first witness they couldn’t find the old Bible they had used for years. Finally, the judge told the bailiff to go down to the clerk’s office and get Ed. This man had been a faithful Christian longer than anyone could remember. He was a shining example of what believers ought to be.
*When Ed came in, the judge said, “Ed, you have communicated more of the Bible to more people than most of the Bibles in this town. You will make a good substitute for the one we can’t find.” So the first witness placed his hand on Ed’s head, swore the oath and the trial began. (3)
*The people of that town knew that Ed’s delight was in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditated day and night. R.A Torrey was one of the greatest Bible teachers who ever lived, and he said, “Anyone who wishes to obtain and maintain fullness of power in Christian life and service, must feed constantly on the Word of God.” And the great preacher Charles Spurgeon said: “A Bible which is falling apart usually belongs to someone who is not.” (4)
*How can I have God’s abundant happiness? Pursue the Word of God.
4. But also allow God to plant you.
*In vs. 3, the happy, happy man “shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither.”
*God wants to plant your life in just the right place: by the life-giving rivers of water. This reminds us that God’s got a plan for our lives. God wants to plant us in a specific place for a specific purpose.
*And when God plants, He provides. That’s not just one river in vs. 3, but rivers. We don’t know how many rivers, but we can be sure that it is more than enough! God is more than able to provide for our needs! So in vs. 3, your leaf will not wither.
*Now that’s an unusual provision, because let me tell you something about leaves: They wither! If you don’t believe it, you can come out to my house. And you don’t have to wait until fall, because my neighbor’s River Birch trees will be dropping leaves on my driveway all summer. Leaves wither -- but not these leaves, because they are protected by Almighty God!
*Another one of our Summer Psalms puts it this way:
1. He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2. I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.’’
3. Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence.
4. He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. (Psalm 91:1-4)
*When you let the Lord plant your life, He provides for you and protects you. But that doesn’t mean we won’t have hard times. I think of Christians in dark places like Saudi Arabia and Iran, Christians who face arrest, torture and death every day. In spite of the dangers, they are like trees “planted by the rivers of water, that bring forth their fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither.”
*I think of our friend Mark, who is on the way home right now with malaria and a bad infection in his ear. Last week he was dodging unfriendly militias in Africa, but he loves the work. God has planted Mark’s heart in a very troubled part of Africa. And he is like a tree “planted by the rivers of water, that bring forth their fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither.”
*Almost 36 years ago, God planted my life here in West Monroe, -- one of the last places I expected to be, and one of the last places I would have chosen to be at the time. But God has blessed me beyond measure and forever, because this is where He wanted me to be. How can I have God’s abundant happiness? Allow God to plant you.
5. And trust God to prosper you.
*Again in vs. 3: “He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.”
*That word “prosper” has the word picture of pushing forward or breaking out to something good, -- rushing forward, advancing, making progress, and that’s what God wants us to do. God wants all of us to have spiritual success in life, and that’s the kind that matters.
*We can trust the Lord to give us that success, even when it seems delayed. God goes to amazing lengths in people’s lives to bring them to Him, to get them saved, to give us the spiritual success He wants us to have.
*Rudy Schober tells about a Christian dad who had a terrible burden for his son’s salvation. Dad had a habit of reading Gideon Bibles in the hotels where he stayed on business trips.
*One time he stayed in the regal Windsor Hotel in Montreal, Canada. And that night Dad felt moved by God to write his spiritual thoughts in the margins of the Gideon Bible. He wrote about his great concern for his son’s salvation. Then, Dad knelt by the bed and prayed.
*Three years later, his son visited Montreal. He stayed in that same, huge hotel. That night he was depressed, and he did something he never did. He picked up the Gideon Bible from the night table, and started to leaf through the pages. That’s when he saw his own father’s notes. He recognized his dad’s handwriting. And when he saw the outpouring of his father’s heart for his salvation, that young man was so moved that he knelt down beside the bed and received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.
*God goes to amazing lengths to get people saved. He even went to the cross for us! So it should be obvious to us that God wants us to have the best life we can possibly have. Trust Him to prosper you.
*God wants to give you Heavenly happiness. Remember how to get there:
1. Happy, happy is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.
3. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.
1. Adapted from EXPLORING THE PSALMS by John Phillips - copyright 1985 - Loizeaux Brothers - p. 14
2. “Playing Marbles With Diamonds and Other Messages for America” by Vance Havner - Baker Pub Group - 1985-10-01
3. Herb Miller, ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN VERBS (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1989.) Found in Holwick’s illustrations #2315 - TEXT: Esth 9:4, Matt 5:33F, Matt 23:16-19, 2 Cor 3:2-3, 1 Tim 3:7, Heb 6:16, Jam 5:12 - TOPICS: Swear Oath; Bible; Reputation; Devotions - SOURCE: Dynamic Preaching Disk, Winter 1992 "A" - TITLE: "Searching For A Lost God" - DATE: 1/1/92
4. R.A. Torrey, How to Obtain Fullness of Power, p. 24 - Found in Christianglobe.com sermon “Going For the Gold” by James Merritt - Joshua 1:1-9
5. Holwick illustration #2026 - TEXT: Isa 55:11, Heb 4:12 - TOPICS: Providence; Coincidence; Bible; Gideon; Salvation; Father & Son; Chance / SOURCE: Gideon Banquet Speaker, East Hanover - AUTHOR: By Rudy Schober, New Jersey Area 2 Coordinator, Plainfield Camp - DATE: 4/2/92
