Iliff and Saltillo UM Churches
June 22, 2003
“Taking a Trip Out of God’s Will--Where Does it Lead?”
Psalm 1:1-6
INTRODUCTION: How many of you have heard people say, “I didn’t have any choice in the matter?” Maybe you have made this statement yourself, “I didn’t have any choice.” When you think you don’t have a choice in things how does it make you feel? --powerless, defeated, hopeless, depressed??? We might not have any control over some things like a job lay off or storms and natural disasters or other fortuitous circumstances. I don’t think we realize how many choices we really DO have in our daily life.
Every day you make many decisions about things. You decide what to eat, what to wear, you decide what stores to shop at and you make long-term plans such as what kind of a job you want, where to go to college, what kind of car to drive, where to live, what to do in retirement, and where to go on vacation this year.
Look at this past week. What choices were presented to you and you look back and see that you made a pretty good decision? You say, “I’m sure glad I did that. That was a smart move. That was the best thing I ever did.”
What ones were a bad decision and you said, “I sure wouldn’t do that again” or “if I had known then what I know now, I sure wouldn’t have done that.” Our life is probably a mixture of both good and bad decisions. Today’s scripture speaks about our being presented with two basic ways to live our life. Today’s message from Psalm 1 is entitled, “Taking a trip out of God’s Will--Where does it Lead?” Let’s see what we can get out of this scripture.
1. Distorted Information: Sometimes people get the idea that if they decide to be a Christian they will never have any fun anymore. That God will deprive them of all good things. That they will always be poor, just barely getting by, always having their nose to the grindstone. A lot of people will say, “Well, the Lord doesn’t give you what you want but he will give you what you need.” Christianity is painted by some people as a barebones lifestyle. A really miserable way to live. Just barely getting by until we all get to heaven and then we will shout the victory.
One woman told me, “Oh, you don’t want to become a preacher. If you do you’ll live a horrible life. The people will treat you horrible. You’ll have an awful life.”
The devil presents us with many distorted views of what the Christian life is like. He uses even family and friends to present these distortions of the truth. We believe the lies of the devil and make our decisions based on inaccurate or incomplete information.
The psalmist begins this introductory psalm by saying,
“Blessed is the [person] who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers but his delight is in the law of the Lord.”
A paraphrase of this is “Oh the joys of those who do not follow evil men’s advice, who do not hang around with sinners, scoffing at the things of God but they delight in doing everything God wants them to do...(The Living Bible, Ps. 1:1).
The Amplified Bible says, “Happy, fortunate, prosperous, enviable--is the person who walks in a different way from the world and the counsel and advice of people who don’t even know God.”
Who do you take your advice from? Who are you following and where are they leading you?
Many people surround themselves with people who do not give very good counsel or advice. Teenagers especially are susceptible to people they hang out with. Advice comes in many subtle and attractive ways. Scripture says that Satan even comes to us “masqueraded as an angel of light” (II Cor. 11:14) looking pretty good to us. I Peter 5:7 says that “the devil is also like a roaring lion prowling around seeking whom he may devour.”
Another scripture tells us that “the way of the transgressor is hard” (Proverbs 13:15). In contrast to that Jesus said, “The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that [you] may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
So who do you believe? What choices are you going to make for your basic lifestyle? Will you try to find out God’s will for your life or will you decide to take a trip out of God’s will going it on your own?
God leaves the choice to us. He doesn’t force us to be a Christian, but all the time he wants us to plan our life’s trip in his will. II Peter 3:9 says that “he is patient with [us] not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.”
2. A Clear-Cut Decision: Making a clear-cut decision to follow the Lord is necessary in order to walk in God’s will. This psalm clearly states three things. The godly person is not going to:
1. walk in the counsel of the wicked
2. stand in the way of sinners
3. sit in the seat of mockers
If you do, you’re going to be ensnared. One of the things that people do today is try to live in both worlds--they say, “I’ll go to church once in awhile and try to live right, but at the same time I’m going to continue in my sinful ways. It won’t hurt.”
Much of the trouble that people get into today is self-invited because they are doing what they know they shouldn’t be doing. People have a tendency not to take anyone’s advice. Many Christians are especially this way, “Bless God, nobody’s going to tell me what to do--I’ll do it my way.” God just lets you go ahead. “Take your own trip." A lot of people say, “I just have to learn the hard way Ha Ha Hah,” and they just laugh it off. Are you like this?
We might find that we get into “uninvited” trouble but “self-invited” trouble is sure not something we should walk into deliberately.
Look at choices that present themselves to you and you say, “I know I shouldn’t do this. I don’t feel good about this. I have a funny feeling inside about it. I know the Lord doesn’t want me to do this, but I’ve got to do it anyway.” Think back at situations where you went right ahead and did something and there was one red flag going up after another and you just kept going on your trip out of the will of God.
You say, “Oh well, what will it hurt this one time?” Taking a trip out of God’s will--where does it lead????
3. How to apply what God is saying: God gives us some good common sense. Don’t override it. He gives us some good spiritual perception. Don’t override it. Learn to listen to the “funny feeling” inside. How do we sort out the best choices and make wise decisions?
This psalm tells us to “delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on it day and night.”
You learn to reflect on the Lord in your walking, standing, and sitting. To meditate on something means to think about it. To take time to read and to study and to figure out, “How can I apply it to my life? What is this saying to me personally?”
If you want to take a trip in God’s will you’ve got to know what he says and learn how to follow his road map. Psalm 119:11 says, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against thee.”
A question to ask yourself today is, “How should I change so I’m living as God wants?” What is God trying to tell me to do? Am I receptive to doing it?
What is the result of our choice? If we decide to go God’s way the psalmist uses the imagery of a tree to describe the outcome.
...like “a tree planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers” (v. 3).
The tree is not like trees just growing wild in a field where the amount of rainfall varies--sometimes too much and sometimes a drought--leaves drying up and blighted. The psalmist envisions a tree that has been Purposely planted by irrigation channels. It is a fruitful, productive tree in every season.
He is saying, “You are like this--God is watching out for you. He is making sure that His care is upon you, He supplies what you need, and you are going to be a fruitful and productive person.” You are going to be a blessed person. God has a deep commitment to love and care for his own.
Taking a trip out of the will of God--where does it lead?
Verse 4 says “but for sinners, what a different story! They blow away like chaff before the wind. They are not safe on Judgment Day. They shall not stand among the godly.” (The Living Bible vs 4, 5).
The metaphor of the chaff reveal uselessness. Chaff is the outer shell or husk that must be removed to get to the valuable grain inside. Chaff is a symbol of a faithless life that drifts along without direction.
The psalm concludes by saying, "The Lord watches over the path of the godly but the path of the wicked leads to destruction" (v. 6).
A trip out of God’s will leads us where we don’t want to be. But we have the invitation to take a better trip for our life than that.
1. Don’t believe the lies of the devil or of people who paint a distorted picture of Christianity.
2. Make a clear-cut decision to follow the Lord totally. Quit trying to live like the world and follow Christ at the same time.
3. Ask yourself, “How should I change so I am living as God wants?”
Shall we Pray:
