“Blessed (happy, fortunate, prosperous, and enviable) is the man who walks and lives not in the counsel of the ungodly [following their advice, their plans and purposes], nor stands [submissive and inactive] in the path where sinners walk, nor sits down [to relax and rest] where the scornful [and the mockers] gather. But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night. And he shall be like a tree firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity].(Psalm 1:1–3) (Amplified Bible)
According to the above text, one who delights in the law of the Lord is "blessed." It is his primary focus. He meditates on it day and night. It is a source of refreshment and life to him. He becomes as a tree that is planted by a river because the word of God makes his life fruitful and productive. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus describes him as "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled."(Matthew 5:6) The blessed man keeps God’s word before him all the time; it occupies his thoughts constantly as he goes through life. It is an expression of who he is. The posture of one's mind makes him what he is. Words and deeds are mere reflections of the heart. It is highly important to develop a good attitude. "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he" (Prov. 23:7). Here are some ways in which it is imperative that one show a good attitude toward God and His word:
Our attitude (how we approach God) can hinder us from being able to hear the word of God. In Solomon’s day the sacrifice at the Temple was central to their worship of God, but even this could be empty and meaningless is the person’s heart attitude wasn’t right; I believe Solomon must have learned this truth from his father David. He said “You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Psalm 51:16-17)
Approaching God demands the appropriate attitude. What is your attitude towards God? Do you have a healthy fear (reverence) towards God? What is your attitude toward the Bible? Do we delight ourselves in the Word of the Lord? Do we have a sense that when we read the Bible, we will touch God and we will realize it is worthwhile to seek Him and love Him! We need to have a change in concept – we need a change in our view of the law of God. We need to regard the law as the living word of God which contains the life of God to be dispensed into us. Why should we fill our minds with God’s Word? First, because God commanded it, and has given us His word, commanding us to read it. Second, because it will help us avoid sin and live a holy life. God gave us the divine word to guide us. We are not capable of directing our own steps (Jer. 10:23). God's revelation shows us the way out of darkness into light, out of sin into righteousness, out of gloom into hope, out of failure into success, out of misery into joy, out of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of Christ.
David wrote in Psalm 119:9 “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” When one looks to the Bible they are approaching God. They are placing before their mind, God’s mind – before their heart God’s heart – and before their eyes God’s words. The proper attitude towards God’s word is one that is open, humble, and willing to heed. The ungodly will choose to avoid, conceal, withstand, or reject it! The righteous will listen, accept, and obey it! Bible warns us “So see to it that you obey him who is speaking to you. For if the people of Israel did not escape when they refused to listen to Moses, the earthly messenger, how terrible our danger if we refuse to listen to God who speaks to us from heaven!”(Hebrews 12:25 Living Bible)
Nehemiah 8:1-8 is a classical Example for us to have a Proper Attitude toward the Word of God. The Jews people after their return from Babylonian captivity, the people of Judah set about to restore worship to God in Jerusalem. In Nehemiah 8, they asked Ezra the scribe to read the law of God to them. He assembled all the people, opened the book of the law before them, and then read clearly from it to make sure the assembled crowd understood its message. Notice the attitude of people when Ezra opened the Book, all the people stood up and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. Then Ezra praised God, the great God, and all the people responded, “Oh Yes! Yes!” with hands raised high. And then they fell to their knees in worship of God, their faces to the ground. Our attitude toward the word of God will determine how we handle the truth.
When Paul preached the gospel to the Thessalonians long ago, they displayed a good attitude toward the truth. They received the word of God, "not as the word of men, but as it is in the truth, the word of God" (1 Thess. 2:13). God's word is to be reverenced and obeyed because it is the word of God. To have the right attitude toward God necessitates the right attitude toward His word. This is the disposition to believe and yield to the authority of His will.
Truth is absolutely indispensable to our relationships with both God and man. Nothing can take its place! Everything that can be done must be done to secure and safeguard the truth. The man who would be God’s servant is admonished to: (1) call upon God in truth (Psa. 145:18); (2) serve God in truth (1 Sam. 12:24); (3) walk before God in truth (Psa. 86:11); and (4) worship God in truth (Jn. 4:23-24). Our service to God and our relationship with Him must be founded upon truth, because truth is an inherent characteristic of God. God is a God of truth (Psa. 31:5). Jesus is the very embodiment of truth (Jn. 14:6). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth (Jn. 15:26). Our service to God and our relationship with Him must be based upon the word of God, because it is the word of truth (Jn. 17:17). Now, I’ve said all this to emphasize the fact that our attitude toward truth is of supreme importance.
Every truth that is revealed to us in God’s Word is there not only for our information but also for our inspiration and transformation. The Bible has been given to us not to gratify an idle curiosity but to edify the souls of its readers. The sovereignty of God is something more than an abstract principle which explains the rationale of the Divine government: it is designed as a motive for godly fear, it is made known to us for the promotion of righteous living, it is revealed in order to bring into subjection our rebellious hearts. A true recognition of God’s sovereignty humbles as nothing else does or can humble, and brings the heart into lowly submission before God, causing us to relinquish our own self-will and making us delight in the perception and performance of the Divine will. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Pro. 1:7). “Our attitude toward life determines life’s attitude towards us.”
