"You only go around once in life, so you’ve got to grab for all the gusto you can." Some of us remember that television commercial. But, what exactly is gusto? Well, according to my dictionary, it means "vigorous enjoyment, zest." Good stuff, but where do we find it? Well, according to that commercial, it is by drinking a certain brand of beer. Now, that is certainly a bizarre claim, and I am not going to even spend time refuting it. But the question that commercial raised is very important. As human beings we are on a quest for gusto, but it is a commodity in rather short supply. In our culture many people find a certain degree of happiness in the comfortable lives they lead, but that happiness tends to be very shallow. Not too far below the surface they often struggle with boredom, disenchantment and even despair. I often think of what one of the Dallas Cowboys said after winning Super Bowl XXX. As he sat in the locker room an hour after the game, he asked, "Now, who do we get to play next?" Even our most magnificent achievements seldom bring total satisfaction. Straight A’s on a report card, scoring the winning touchdown, buying a new dress, getting a promotion at work, all make us happy for a few hours, maybe even a few days, but that feeling doesn’t last. Where do we go to find gusto, to find real joy in life?
Friends, today we are going to look at the Bible’s answer to that question. Our text will be Psalm 1:1-6. Here we find a description of the "blessed" individual. What does that word mean? Well, the Hebrew word "hesher" could also be translated "joyous, deeply happy, blissful, even full of gusto." Thus, I like to say that this passage teaches that true gusto is found in godliness. Let’s pause and pray that as we explore God’s Word today, He will show us how we can find true satisfaction in life.
How do we find gusto in life? What road can we take? The psalmist begins by telling us that the road to avoid is ungodly counsel. I might say, "If you want to go to Hibbing from here, don’t turn east on Highway 169. That road will get you to Virginia, not to Hibbing." In the same way, the Lord says, "If you want to find joy and gusto, don’t go this way." Psalm 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. These three all have much in common, and they are all roads to avoid. The wicked, sinners, and mockers are all people in rebellion against God. In our day mockers or scoffers seem to be becoming more and more plentiful. On many television sitcoms and other shows, Christianity is ridiculed. It seems that conservative Christians are often the target of jokes and verbal abuse. We need to realize how evil that is because those people are not just making fun of us, they are often making fun of God. Those folks think they are going to find gusto in living in rebellion against the Lord, but they are mistaken. Oh, initially it may look like the right road to take. There are signs that say, "This way to gusto" but these roads are paved with money, sex, and power and are really dead ends. I remember one woman saying to me, "Pastor Dan, I thought if I just left my husband for someone else, everything would be better. Now I realize I will never be happy again." Friends, rebellion against God will not bring happiness in this life and certainly will not bring it in the next. This is not the path that we want to take if we are looking for gusto, and we should not join people who are going in that direction.
Now, at this point some of you may be thinking, "Wait a minute, Pastor Dan. A few weeks ago while preaching on 1 Corinthians 9, you told us that we need to associate with people who are not believers in Christ." Yes, we are supposed to have contact with wicked people, and we should even try to befriend them. But we should not be listening to their advice or adopting their values. We must not start to think or do things their way. In fact, when that begins to happen we should cut off those relationships. Any friendship which results in our turning against the Lord whenever we are with that person is not a good relationship. If we are in one like that, we need to end it.
Where then do we find true gusto? Well, the road to joy is God’s Word, the Bible. 1:2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. Let me ask a question: What gives you a genuine thrill? Is it hitting a home run in a softball game? (It’s been a few years since I did that.) How about shopping at The Mall of America, or seeing that one of the stocks you own went up three points Friday? Or maybe it is getting a phone call from that boy you like at school? Here, in Psalm 1, we learn that a person who experiences real gusto is someone who is thrilled, delighted, when he/she reads God’s Word. Now, maybe that seems strange. What can be so exciting about sitting around reading the Bible all day? For many of us the fifteen or thirty minutes we spend in our devotions seem like a long time. But I don’t think the psalmist spent all day reading the Bible. Oh, he read the Bible often, but what he did constantly, day and night, was think about what the Scripture says, what it means, and how it should be applied in life. He meditated on the Bible. In eastern religions, TM, yoga, etc., meditation involves emptying the mind. Biblical meditation is about filling the mind with the truth of God’s Word.
We need to remember that the gusto, the joy, really comes not just when we read or memorize Scripture, but when we are putting the Bible into practice. In first grade it is kind of fun to learn how to read a clock, not a digital one, but one with hands. The real thrill, however, is to be able to walk into the kitchen and tell mom what time it is, to apply what you have learned. Yes, there are all sorts of interesting facts we can learn from and about the Bible, but the thrill is when we are able to apply it, as James says, to become a doer of the word and not just a hearer. And the greatest thrill of all is when, through the pages of Scripture, we really get to know God through Jesus Christ. As Jim Packer reminds us in his book by that title, Knowing God is what life is all about. Years ago President Jimmy Carter wrote a book called Why Not The Best?. Well, friends, the best thing in life is to know God. That is what will bring us gusto, deep and lasting joy, both in this life and the next. Through this Book we read God’s words and come to know Him.
Friends, here at First Baptist Church we believe reading and meditating upon what the Bible says should be a priority in each of our lives. Our Sunday School classes, Wednesday night programs, the sermons on Sunday mornings are all geared in that direction. You have probably heard before that God commands us to read His Word. You have probably heard before that God delights when we study and obey what the Scripture says. Today we add another reason why it is so important to make this Book central in our lives. It is this: We will find joy and gusto when its words begin to shape how we think and who we are. Friends, in the next few years I hope I enjoy good health; I hope I experience a degree of financial security; I hope I see my boys enjoy success in school, sports and other things in which they are involved. But, I need to remember that what is going to really make me happy, what will really enable me to experience gusto, is if I delight in the law of the Lord, if I find my biggest thrills in hearing God as He speaks to me through His Word.
Where do the roads lead? The psalmist now describes the results of following each of these paths. First, he describes qualities of a godly person. 1:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. The analogy is a tree planted by a stream or river. This tree does not rely on rainfall for moisture. Its roots sink into the river bank and each year, no matter what the weather is like, it produces fruit. No matter how dry it gets, even if there is a severe drought, its leaves do not wither. They remain green and fresh because the tree is receiving nourishment from that stream. As the years go by, the good years, and the not-so-good years, that tree continues to flourish.
That happens to godly people as well. When our roots are sunk down into God’s Word; when the truth of the Bible is our source of spiritual nourishment; when we feast on the great and precious promises that this Book contains, our faith remains fresh. Oh, that doesn’t mean we don’t struggle. Doubt, discouragement and spiritual drought await us around every corner. Yet, by God’s grace and through His Spirit, those who focus their hearts and minds on His Word are able to endure these trials. Their faith will stay strong and joy will continue to fill their soul. They will find gusto in life. Stu Briscoe says that Psalm 1 describes "a man who is happy even when his happenings don’t happen to happen the way he wants them to happen." Even tragedy - getting fired from a job, facing a serious illness, watching a spouse die - cannot eliminate joy from a soul that is rooted deep in God’s Word. It is fun to see real life examples of that. I think of Joni Eareckson Tada. There is a woman who is happy, really happy, even though she has been in a wheel chair for over thirty years. Or I think of Fanny Crosby, the great hymn writer in the last half of the19th Century. Even though she had been blind since she was six weeks old, she used to describe herself as "the happiest woman on earth." She experienced gusto through godliness. Yet, it is not just tragedy that threatens our happiness. Often an even greater challenge is dealing with the spiritual "blahs." These are times when there is nothing really hard about our circumstances; it is just that we don’t feel like doing the right thing, we feel like doing our own thing rather than what God wants. But like that tree that flourishes in a drought, the godly person who delights in God’s Word survives this spiritual desert as well. C. S. Lewis describes it so magnificently in The Screwtape Letters. He says, "Satan’s cause is never more in danger than when a human being no longer desiring, but still intending to do God’s will, looks around upon a world from which every trace of God seems to have vanished and asks why he has been forsaken, yet still obeys." Friends, the Lord does not intend that our obedience to Him be done merely out of duty. He wants us to serve Him with gladness. But when we have found gusto in godliness, when the roots of our soul are deep in God’s Word, we will obey even when that gladness cannot be felt.
There are people in this room today who are like trees planted by the stream. It is my privilege to know them and call them my friends. The fruit of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, etc. - is being produced in their lives. I know that they delight in the law of the Lord not because they know lots of Bible trivia, not because they carry a big black Bible wherever they go, but because their life is characterized by healthy fruit. They have gone through hard times, maybe they are going through hard times, but their faith is still fresh. Like Daniel’s three friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, they have been in the furnace; but in the midst of those flames the Lord has been there, and because of that, in whatever situation, they are able to say "it is well with my soul." They have found gusto in life, gusto through godliness. Friends, I hope and pray that I am becoming like one of those trees. I hope you are as well.
In contrast, the psalmist says that people who live in rebellion against God, the wicked, are like chaff. 1:4-6 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. Instead of being like a tree, the wicked are mere husks of grain. Whatever gain those rebelling against God seem to enjoy is only temporary. The wind blows it away. Whether it is power, pleasure or fame, it doesn’t last. That is especially obvious when it comes to wealth. It can be so quickly lost. Even if the wicked are able to hang on to money for awhile, there is really no gusto. The Roman philosopher Seneca was right when he said, "Money has never yet made anyone rich." One billionaire put it this way: "I spend 1% of my time enjoying my money and 99% of my time worrying about it." But the real tragedy is not that people without God lead empty lives. Far worse is the fact that one day they will be judged for their rebellion against God. As someone said, "In the choir of life, it is easy to fake the words, but someday each of us will have to sing a solo before God." I love that.
The Bible, both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, makes it very clear. Those who do not know God, those who don’t trust in Jesus Christ, face a terrible fate. For example, listen to what Revelation 20:15 says: "If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." There is no other verse more solemn in the entire Bible. One of the reasons people without the Lord never experience gusto is because the possibility of hell hangs over their head. Oh, most of these folks scoff at the mention of hell. They loudly insist that no such place exists. Yet, I think deep down inside, almost every unbeliever fears it is a reality. A fellow skeptic once asked the famous atheist Voltaire if he would speak some words of comfort to a friend who was dying. Voltaire responded, "I don’t think I can do that. The thought that there might really be a hell plagues me continually." For the wicked, for those without the Lord, there is no gusto in this life or the next.
Friends, the message today is simple. Real gusto, true joy, is found in godliness. If we are looking for it somewhere else, we are making a mistake, we are not going to find it. So what do we need to do?
First, we need to realize we will only find gusto in Jesus Christ. If you are not a Christian, not a believer in Jesus, you are on a dead-end road. The good news, however, is that no matter who you are, no matter what you have done, no matter how ungodly you have been in the past, it is not too late. As God enables you, what you need to do today is repent. That simply means to turn away from trusting in yourself and putting your faith in Jesus Christ. Maybe you are thinking, "What is so important about someone who lived 2000 years ago?" Well, what is so important is that Jesus Christ is the Eternal Son of God. His death on the cross was for sinners like us and it provides forgiveness for our sins. His resurrection from the dead provides hope for those who trust Him both in this life and the next. Though it has been almost 2000 years since Jesus was on earth, He is just as much alive right now as ever, seated at the right hand of God the Father, waiting to return to this planet as King of kings and Lord of lords. When we realize who He is, it is no surprise that He is the only One who can offer true gusto in life.
Secondly, those of us who are Christians need to stop allowing ungodly people to influence our thinking and actions. As a pastor, it disturbs me when I see good Christian people walking in the counsel of the ungodly. I know Christians whose opinions on various issues have been formed by watching Oprah, reading Time Magazine, listening to a college professor, or talking to a next-door neighbor. Am I saying that Christians should isolate themselves and not listen to any of these? Of course not. Am I saying that Oprah, Time Magazine, college professors or next-door neighbors don’t sometimes have good ideas? Of course not. What I am saying is that because these are often not godly sources of counsel, we need to screen them very carefully before we allow them to shape the attitudes of our hearts and minds. As Christians, we need to make sure we have a biblical worldview. The way we look at reality, our opinions on all sorts of issues, should not simply reflect that we are part of 21st Century American culture, but should show that we are people to whom God speaks through His Word and who desire to honor Him in what we think, say and do. Friends, this week I read a couple of interesting articles. One was about a theologian in South Africa who thinks that married couples should always have sex before they get married. The other was about an Anglican priest who wants to conduct seances to try to convert dead people to Christ. Friends, these are people who have been watching too many television talk shows and not reading their Bible enough. We need to make sure that the attitudes of our heart and mind are not being shaped by the ungodly.
Instead, (#3) we need to make sure that God’s Word shapes our attitudes. We need to fill our minds and our souls with the truth of Scripture. The assignment I have for you today is, with God’s help, to start doing one thing which will increase the influence of the Bible in your life. Maybe it means starting to have a daily quiet time or Bible study. Maybe it means that instead of spending three minutes skimming through The Daily Bread, that you spend twenty minutes meditating on the Scripture passage used that day. Maybe it means you start coming to church an hour earlier and begin attending a Sunday School class. Maybe it means getting involved in small group Bible study. Maybe it means taking a correspondence course and really getting serious about your study of Scripture. Maybe it means not just reading the Bible, but also doing what it says. Ask the Lord to show you one way that His Word can have a bigger impact in your life.
Friends, there is nothing wrong with grabbing for all the gusto you can. The mistake is to look in wrong places. By His grace, through His Spirit, and with His Word, may God help you find gusto in godliness.
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Go to www.life.1stbaptist.org/sermons.htm for Pastor Dan’s full text Bible based sermon site
