Opening illustration: In talking to young people about preparing for the future, I’ve had several say something like this: “We must get into the world to experience ungodly situations and ungodly people in order to grow stronger.”
This kind of thinking has swallowed up many immature Christians and eventually turned them against God. Sure, we’re in the world (John 17: 15) and we’re exposed to non-Christian situations (school, job, neighborhood), but we need to be careful that exposure to those situations does not lead to embracing ungodly philosophies. All of us would mature faster by following the divine pattern suggested in Psalm 1.
First, let’s not let our decisions and choices be controlled by the “counsel of the ungodly.” Second, we shouldn’t put ourselves in a place where those who don’t know Jesus can unduly influence our thought processes. Third, let’s avoid getting comfortable with those who mock God, His Word, and His role in our life so that their thinking seems right to us.
Counsel from such sources leads us away from God. Instead, it’s best to get our training, our guidance, and our advice from God’s holy Word and those who know it and love it. God and His Word, not experiences, are our best teacher.
Introduction: This first Psalm stands as a kind of introduction to the rest of the Psalms. Its subject matter is very general and basic, but it touches on two subjects that continually occur throughout the Psalms. It declares the blessedness of the righteous and the misery and future of the wicked. Man’s spiritual life is set forth negatively and positively, inwardly and externally, figuratively and literally. Above all else, it summarizes all that is to follow in the rest of the Psalms, and, for that matter, in the rest of Scripture.
It presents two ways of life: the way of the righteous and the way of the wicked. However, the key subject is the centrality of God’s Word to the life and fruitfulness of the righteous who truly love His Word. Two great thrusts flow out of this:
(a) The importance and absolute necessity of the Scripture, and
(b) The changed character, stability, and fruitfulness it promises to those who make Scripture the core of their lives.
This passage helps us to reflect upon –
(i) There are three degrees of habit or conduct: walk / stand / sit.
(ii) There are three degrees of openness, fellowship, or involvement in evil: counsel / path / seat.
(iii) There are three degrees of evil that result: wicked / sinners / scoffers.
In each of these there is regression from God’s way and progression into sin and Satan’s way. It warns us how man is prone to turn aside little by little and become more and more entangled in the web of sin. He is easily influenced by the way of the world in its attitudes and actions, for actions follow attitudes.
The imagery of the tree is of a believer … so what does it take for the tree to grow? How will the chaff grow? OR for that matter does it really grow? How do you protect the tree from rotting and falling? Are you like a tree or like chaff?
What are the ways of the righteous?
1. Do NOT make decisions and choices by taking counsel of the ungodly (vs. 1-2)
“Does not walk …” “Walk” in the Hebrew which metaphorically means, “To go along with, follow a course of action,” or “to live, follow a way of life.” It has the idea of “go along with, use, and follow.” The tense is decisive; he is one who has chosen not to follow this path.
The Devil is active and will put obstacles in your way. He will use those who are his to hinder and hurt you. The threefold danger: Walking, standing, sitting.
• People you surround yourself with (especially those who are not Christians) will lure, tempt and speak things into your lives that are ungodly - Walking in ungodly counsel.
• The ungodly always are ready to give advice, to give counsel.
• This may be in the form of literature.
• I’m Okay, You’re Okay.
• Advice columns in Newspapers, i.e., Dear Abby.
• This may be in the form of advertising
• This Bud’s for you -- drink this.
• You deserve a break today -- eat this.
• This may be in the form of entertainment.
• Talk shows, with secular opinions, solutions, and their focus on self-esteem.
• Movies: Where violent and immoral men and women advocate revenge, one-upsmanship, material possessions, infidelity, and moral relativism. (Shooting in Aurora, CO Thursday night)
• Radio shows that are full of secular psychology and opinions.
• A children’s cartoon where one of the characters in exasperation says, "I’m voting democrat."
• In all of these, the secular world, mocks the true God.
How should you take decisions and makes choices?
• The word “delight” was also used of that in which one takes delight as in one’s business, pursuits, or affairs of life. Compare: Isaiah 53: 10-11 (“the good pleasure,” i.e., the purpose, business, cause); Isaiah 58:13 (“your own pleasure,” i.e., business, affairs); and Proverbs 31:13 (“and works at the ‘business of her hands’”). The principle is that the study of God’s Word is to be one of the key purposes and affairs in our life in which we delight and to which we give careful attention.
• “He meditates” is an imperfect tense of habitual action. This verb literally means “to moan, growl, utter, speak, muse, think, and plan” (cf. 2: 1b where it means, “devise”). This is a comprehensive term for the study and application of the Word to one’s life.
2. Do NOT put yourself under ungodly influence (vs. 3-4)
Standing in the way of sinners does not mean standing against them, but with them, agreeing with them.
• The people you hang around with regularly, you tend to be drawn to be in their likeness.
• Show me your friends and I will tell you your character.
How should you be influenced?
You will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water. What a beautiful illustration - The tree reaching down its roots into the stream drawing life from the water.
• The river represents the Holy Spirit.
• A tree has deep roots and is usually very sturdy, especially when compared to a weed. A tree portrays stability and the capacity to withstand the storms of life (Jer. 17: 5-8). It’s the picture of mental, emotional, and spiritual stability in every kind of situation (see Philippians 4: 11f).
• It also pictures the concept of growth and time. As it takes time to produce a huge sprawling oak, so it takes time to grow and mature in the Word. The problem, especially in our ‘instant tea’ society, we want and expect an overnight transformation and change. But true spiritual strength comes from a long-term, established relationship with God in his Word (Hebrew 5: 11ff; 1 Peter 2: 2; 2 Peter 3: 18).
• The tree mentioned here bears fruit.
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law" (Galatians 5: 22-23).
• His leaf shall not wither (his testimony).
• In whatsoever he does, he will prosper (profoundly manifested growth in the ways of the Lord).
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" (Romans 8: 28).
Illustration: Tubing down the ‘Little River’ near Pigeon Forge, Tennessee a humungous tree just gave way and came crashing down just a few feet ahead of Sunny. It looked healthy and strong from the outside but was completely eaten up by worms and the surrounding weather from the inside.
3. Do NOT get comfortable with the ungodly (vs. 5-6)
“Sitting Down” - emphasizes a thoroughly settled state or condition - settled down, comfortable, content with the world with its patterns entrenched in our lives. I’m afraid this is the state of the majority - even of the majority of the church. Past Gallop polls which compared the churched and unchurched showed there was basically no difference in the way they lived their lives. Many people in the church today are comfortable with their religion; they are merely playing at church. They are not advancing in their life with Christ, but are materialistic, earthly-oriented, living as earth dwellers and not sojourners. They are sitting in the seat of the mockers.
“In the seat.” “Seat” is the Hebrew word means: (i) a seat, a place of sitting, or (ii) an assembly where many are gathered together to sit and make deals or have close associations. The point is, when you sit in someone’s seat, according to the idiom, you act like or become what they are. You are viewed as in a confederacy with them.
“Of scoffers.” “Scoffers” is the Hebrew word l’s. It means “to mock, deride, ridicule, scoff.” Grammatically, it is a participle of habitual action. It refers to one who is actively engaged in putting down the things of God and His Word. But please note that scoffing can occur by declaration of words or by declaration of a way of life that scorns the moral absolutes of Scripture and its way of life.
Illustration: Just this week Cathy the son of Chick-fil-A founder and chairman said, "I think we are inviting God’s judgment on our nation when we shake our fist at him and say We know better than you as to what constitutes a marriage," said the business leader. "I pray God’s mercy on our generation that has such a prideful, arrogant attitude to think that we have the audacity to define what marriage is about."
From this retrogressive process, it is easy to see that people simply do not remain passive about God. We can’t. Passivity toward God and His Word leads to activity in sin and finally to overt activity against God. That is a law of life.
How do people scoff at the Word of God?
• By blatant ridicule or rejection. But there are other ways.
• By indifference. We think we have better things to do with our time.
• By substituting one’s own ideas, experiences, emotions, feelings, or traditions for the Word and its principles.
• By listening to the Word proclaimed, but then ignoring it. In essence we scoff at the Word when we fail to obey it and order our lives accordingly (cf. Prov. 1:22 with 29-33).
• Those who mock, in their ignorance, the ways of God, adopting their attitudes.
Note: The road of the scornful is always downward.
Application: What is it, then, that the church needs? It needs the Bible! What is it that pastors and elders ought to be doing? They need to be preaching and teaching the Scripture. What did Paul tell his young coworker in the faith? First, he told him, “Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching” (1 Timothy 4: 13). Later he wrote, “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with great patience and instruction,” and then he quickly warned, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4: 2-3).
Watch out for these dangers. Notice the progression.
• Walking in the counsel of the ungodly - accepting advice.
• Standing in the way of sinners - being a party to its ways.
• Sitting in the seat of the mockers - adopting its attitudes.
Reflection: If you desire to walk the path of righteousness, let God’s Word fill your memory, rule your heart, and guide your life. May God find you faithful, sincere, honest, committed and dedicated to that walking, standing and sitting with Him. Will you take a stand to walk the way of the righteous?
