THE PSALM ONE BLESSING
We’re supposed to be like a tree
Ps. 1:1-6
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: BAD INTENTIONS
1. A boy wanted to get into his neighbor’s yard to climb their tree, but he was terrified of their bulldog. But one day the bulldog was absent so he jumped their fence, only to see the dog running toward him.
2. He began to scream as the dog began licking him on the face. His mother came running, “Did he bite you, Billy?” “No ma’am,” whimpered the little boy, “but he IS tasting me!”
B. TEXT
1 Blessed is the one who does not walk [in the counsel of] the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, 2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. 3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which [brings forth] its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers. 4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction. Ps. 1:1-6, NIV. Insets are NKJV.
C. THESIS
1. In this Psalm, 2 ways of life (the Righteous & Wicked) and their 2 outcomes are contrasted. The biggest reason for their difference is their attitude toward God’s Word!
2. The psalm is divided into 3 parts; 1.) What the Righteous do; 2.) We’re supposed to be like a tree; and 3.) The outcomes of each way of life.
3. The title of this message is “The Psalm One Blessing.”
I. WHAT THE RIGHTEOUS PERSON DOES, Vss. 1-2
A. WHAT THE RIGHTEOUS DO NOT DO
1. Verse 1 portrays the REGRESSION INTO SIN. The verbs indicate the THREE POSITIONS OF DRIFTING into the company of the wicked: WALK, STAND, SIT. If you’re “walking,” you’re still mobile. When you “stand,” you become stationary. When you “sit,” you become settled.
2. Little by little we can lose our connection to God and drift into the world’s mindset and slowly begin to adopt its views.
3. “In the COUNSEL of the wicked.” This Hebrew word means, “viewpoint, way of thinking.” The Christian adopts the Bible’s worldview and rejects the culture’s. WICKED is a Hebrew word which means “to be loose, unstable;” loose in morals and loose from God – without Him as an anchor or controlling factor.”
4. “Mockers” refers to those who actively put down the things of God and His Word. Mockers not only do so by words, but also by a way of life that mocks the moral absolutes of Scripture and its roadmap of life.
5. This Scripture shows that people don’t remain passive about God. If they choose compromise – when they defend their choice – they have to contradict righteousness; they become mockers!
6. Many in the church today have been brainwashed by the information media. Polls show little difference between the churched and the unchurched. Many who call themselves Christians are materialistic, immoral or amoral, and earth-centric.
7. Martin Luther said that the Devil’s strategy is not to martyr the saints, but to get them to fall asleep! We need a revival of Bible revelation and application.
B. WHAT THE RIGHTEOUS DO
1. David said in Ps. 37:4, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Delight means to “feel the highest pleasure in.”
2. The written Word is God’s love letter to us and we’re to have a love affair with God through His Word. Just as one would read the love letters of his or her sweetheart, so are we to read and study God’s Word with the same delight.
3. If we lose our delight in the Lord and His Word, then our heart will find another object to delight in. WE DECIDE what our heart will delight in. What are YOU delighting in? David counseled us to deliberately “delight yourself in the Lord!”
4. The godly believer reads and memorizes God’s Word every day, seeking to apply it to their life. They walk by God’s Word, not popular opinion or what the culture/man’s wisdom/science is saying.
C. POWER OF THE WORD: FEW PAGES WASH ONTO BEACH
1. Vincent Quiroga in Chile found a few pages washed up on the shore after a tidal wave. He read them and wouldn't rest till he got a complete Bible.
2. He became a Christian and devoted his life to distributing the Scriptures in northern Chile. [Barclay, William; The Daily Study Bible: Timothy, Titus & Philemon, p201.]
II. WE’RE SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE A TREE, Vs. 3
A. THE SECRET OF A GODLY LIFE
“That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which [brings forth] its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers,” Vs. 3.
1. “PLANTED BY STREAMS OF WATER.” “Planted” actually means “to transplant,” not merely “plant.” We’re planted by God’s own hand (not self-sown) by “streams of water.” This is a reference to the Holy Spirit. God wants us to be where we can drink of the Spirit.
2. Like the seed planted on the good soil, we sink our roots deep in God. Our souls are rooted in Christ (Col. 2:7). This gives us spiritual strength which comes from a long-term relationship with God in his Word.
3. Such a person is very sturdy (especially when compared to a tumble weed) and can withstand the storms of life. The times of drought which might kill others don’t affect those clinging to God and His Word.
B. HUMOR
1. A farmer invited his pastor to come out to his farm. He proudly displayed his fields, covered with corn, wheat, and orchards. The farmer said, "I'm proud for how all my hard work has paid off."
2. The pastor said, "Now remember, brother, that the Lord is the one who causes all the blessings in our lives. Be sure and give him all the credit."
3. The farmer said, "Follow me." He walked over to a nearby fence and pointed to the field next door, overgrown with cactus, waist deep weeds, and scrub bushes, and said, "That's what it looked like when the Lord had it."
4. My Point is: God does His part in providing the sun, rain, good Earth, and seed, but God expects us to do our part in planting, cultivating, and weeding – our lives spiritually!
C. FRUITFUL, REPRODUCING THE KINGDOM NATURE
1. Because we abide in Christ (John 15:7) we bring forth fruit. The kind of tree pictured in this allegory is not a pine or oak, but an evergreen, fruit-bearing tree, like the orange tree which may have green fruit and ripe fruit at the same time.
2. WHICH BRINGS FORTH ITS FRUIT IN SEASON. Each tree is to have some fruit. Fruit is a proof of the nature. Just as the trunk is Divine, so the fruit proceeding from us should have evidences of the Source. “In season” is at the proper, suitable time (Ps. 104:27). It also means being prepared to bear fruit when opportunity knocks (2 Tim. 4:2).
3. “WHATEVER THEY DO PROSPERS.” This is not a blank check to be filled in as we want, but the conducting of a life as ordered by the Lord. This doesn’t mean there won’t be adversity or failure; sometimes God uses failure to engineer future success, as we see in the life of Joseph.
III. OUTCOME OF THE TWO WAYS, Vss. 4-6
4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.
A. DESTINY OF THE WICKED
1. Instead of producing good fruit, their life only produces worthless chaff, the husks of the grain.
2. STATUS AT THE FINAL JUDGMENT:
a. They won’t be able to face God. Their evil deeds and wasted life will condemn them. When Jesus comes back they will hide themselves “in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16 They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?” Rev. 6:15-17.
b. Without being washed from their sins and clothed in Christ’s righteousness, they won’t be able to stand with the Righteous.
3. Verse 6 tells their final destiny – destruction.
B. DESTINY OF THE RIGHTEOUS
1. Those who love God and put His Word into practice in their lives will be blessed of God. We will have fruitful and prosperous lives, in direct proportion to our knowledge and application of the Word.
2. We will be able, because of Christ’s atonement, to stand at the Judgment as saved by God’s grace. We will be privileged to be among the assembly of the Righteous.
3. In the end, we will find that “the Lord has watched over” His people, which means He foreordained our salvation, sent His Son for us, and worked all things together for our good every day to get us there!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: THIRSTY FOR HOLY SPIRIT
1. John and Sandy (missionaries)and their two daughters were on vacation. The girls wanted to see elephants in the wild, so they drove to a wild-life refuge in South Africa, May 24, 1985.
2. They saw some elephants at a distance. John decided to get out of the car (leaving Sandy & the girls) and walk down to the river to get some good pictures.
3. As he was heading back to the car, he saw a terrifying sight. The ground began to tremble. A terrible crashing noise was heard in the jungle. Trees were falling and a cloud of dust was coming toward them: at least 200 hundred huge, dry, thirsty, elephants were stampeding! Elephants can go a while without water, but sometimes they get desperate and panic.
4. John remembered a missionary telling him, “NEVER STAND BETWEEN THIRSTY ELEPHANTS AND THEIR SOURCE OF WATER; they become violent if their access is threatened.” Right in the middle of their path were John and his family in the car!
5. John dove into the car as the first wave of elephants arrived at full speed. They were engulfed in dust and the car lurched as elephants banged into it on every side.
6. Miraculously they only did minor damage. When the last of the elephants passed and the dust settled, everything on the hillside was flattened except the car. John said, “Someone must be praying for us, only a miracle kept us from being crushed.”
B. THE CALL
1. THIRST DROVE THE ELEPHANTS TO THE WATER. ARE YOU THIRSTY FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT? DO YOU WANT TO BE?
2. If you honestly look at your life, would you have to admit you’re drifting toward the world’s position? Are you growing in Christ?
3. We should be reading the Bible daily. Are you doing that? Will you make a new commitment to get into God’s Word and put it into practice?
4. Prayer, then sing “Fill My Cup, Lord!”
[J. Hampton Keathley’s, “Psalm 1: Two Ways of Life – A Psalm of Wisdom” was a source for this message.]
