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A visit with Psalm1

For those saved by faith, there will always be two directions we go: away from God or to God. Ps. 1:1-2 shows that a person follows unreliable sources on one path while the real way is with the Lord. In the present age, spiritual disciplines lead us to spiritual maturity. When we prepare ourselves in advance of attacks from the evil one, the less we stray, although that isn’t guaranteed. For example, Adam and Eve spoke directly to the Lord continually in the Garden of Eden. The cunning serpent then deceives the two in Gen. 3:1-7). Whether the source of deception comes from Satan or one of his agents is not the issue. The seeds of this deception can occur in the past and continue their damage in the present. The key is that our opinions about God’s trustworthiness and whether He has our best interests don’t change during a spiritual attack. That is the crux of verse 2 in our Psalm – we are fully satisfied with the Lord’s instruction.

Timothy Clinton points out that practicing spiritual disciplines is the training required to “cultivate a secure relationship with God.” Training requires discipline to achieve the relationship we long for with God. When we allow anything else to replace God, then we enter the wrong path. Ultimately, this leads to destruction (Matt. 7:13). Remember the example in Genesis? God bans Adam and Eve from the Garden, due to their disobedience and the closeness that existed is no longer[1]. The author lists the following for “starters:” corporate worship, Bible reading, prayer, and fasting[2]. I would also add confession (in a non-liturgical sense) to this list.

Are you blessed?

Psalm 1 opens with a description of a righteous person (Ps. 1:1-2). What is a “blessed” mean? “Happiness” is often associated with the word “blessed,”[3] In this case, the concept is related to a favored individual (by divine grace). This person does not behave or live as do “wicked” people. Scripture warns about acting as the world does – as in, indistinguishable from non-believers. We are either on one path or the other. The way of the wicked can take years away from serving the Lord and bearing fruit. We can understand the Old Testament idea of blessing with selected passages:

1. Deut. 28:2 – Verses 1-6 discusses the benefits that show the Lord has a hand in the events of our lives. This passage says every necessary blessing comes to the obedient one. Again, this is the OT blessings and those for a restored Israel during the 1000-year reign of Christ.

2. Deut. 33:29 - Blessings extends to protection provided by the Lord. 1 Peter 1:3-5 echo this with a New Testament application.

3. Lastly, Ps. 32:1-2 – The forgiveness of our transgressions is the best blessing of all. Forgiveness is the Lord’s way in all dispensations.

4. This idea is also in Matt. 5:3-12. The Beatitudes are the Kingdom of Heaven focused. They describe the comfort and mercy the believers receive after the Tribulation and before the Millennium.[4] Note the shift after verse 11, indicating the trials the apostles and other missionaries would endure before the Kingdom of Heaven appearing on Earth.[5]

What causes me to choose one way instead of another?

Everybody takes advice or direction from somebody or something (social media, for example). Hopefully, this is the Lord (Matt. 16:24-26). How often do we see our friends or children change their behavior when they start hanging out a “bad element.” Enticed by something that proves that another direction is more fun or better can change the course of a vulnerable person’s life.

Once lured from the path of righteousness, that life will sometimes damage relationships with friends and family. This Psalm applies today as much as it did in the past. Wiersbe shares some insight to understand the connection between the Bible as a defense:

• We should not allow ourselves to be contaminated by the world around us (Num. 23:9; Ex. 19:5–6; Deut. 32:8–10; 33:28). John 17:11-17 echos the concept of in the world but not of the world.

• James 4:4, Rom 12:1-2, and 1 John 2:15-17 give stern warnings about friendship with the world, and an example is in James 1:27 [6]. The NT application of Psalm 1 is behavioral. We have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, so physical separation is not as important as the mental aspect to protect believers in fellowship with the Spirit. See 2 Cor. 101-6.

Back in Ps. 1:1, the text is talking about godless people (they could be saved) luring believers away from God’s way. These attacks can come from either inside or outside the church. Today we have more venues that Satan uses to scoff at God: Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, etc. What about hanging out with sinners? It stands to reason that they, too, have been seduced by the Devil’s lie and follow his pathway. What does it mean to stand in their path? The image is a walking trail that leads to a destination. When a person stands in a specific trail, the person is committed to a particular goal. That is the analogy of a person’s behavior. Hang out with sinners, and their destination becomes your destination! These sinners could be life-long friends, but are they your friends if they are guiding you to the wrong place spiritually? No. The text continues by adding the idea of sitting with those who scoff the Lord. Don’t do this.

An example of this idea of two sole directions is in Eph 4:25-5:10. This passage cites the behavior for one path, God's, looks like in practice 4:25-5:5). The last five verses of chapter 5 illustrate the lure I mentioned above. Consider also Gal. 1:6-10.

Verse two clarifies the first verse by stating what the believer should be doing. These activities should bring us extreme pleasure or satisfaction. Those that use the spiritual discipline mentioned above to seek fellowship with the Lord behave differently with those in rebellion.

Verses 3 and 4 give an agricultural contrast between the wicked and the righteous ones. The righteous are like a tree with firm roots able to weather lousy weather and droughts. These trees yield good fruit when those with weaker or exposed roots do not. With Jewish Law, prosperity would refer to the earthly realm. The new testament equivalents are the rewards we accumulate while on earth. Prosperity preachers claim we can have both physical and heavenly rewards. If you ponder this idea, why would you want something you cannot take with you to heaven? In contrast, the wicked (verse 4) don’t do anything of value on earth or heaven. Chaff is defined below:

“Loose hulls separated from the edible grains by threshing and winnowing. In Bible times, the common sight of winnowed grain remaining when the wind blew away the lighter husks gave rise to the vivid image of good people or nations surviving judgment while the wicked do not.” [7]

You see, the wicked are associated with something useless in agriculture.

No matter what happens here on earth politically, the wicked will not be the ones judging the righteous (verses 5-6). We can visit Matt. 13:30 and Isa. 2:10-21 to see that this verse refers to our future. In other words, it has not happened yet. The Psalm has already established that the wicked are chaff, useless.[8]

Footnotes:

1. Clinton, T., & Sibcy, G. (2006). Why you do the things you do: the secret to healthy relationships. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

2. Clinton, T., & Sibcy, G. (2006). Why you do the things you do: the secret to healthy relationships. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

3. Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship.

4. Pastor Robert L. Bolender. (n.d.). The Life of Christ (Lk 6:20–49).

5. Pastor Robert L. Bolender. (n.d.). The Life of Christ (Lk 6:20–49).

6. Wiersbe, W. W. (2004). Be worshipful (1st ed., pp. 12–13). Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries.

7. Elwell, W. A., & Beitzel, B. J. (1988). Chaff. In Baker encyclopedia of the Bible (Vol. 1, p. 422). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.

8. Constable, T. (2003). Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Ps 1:5). Galaxie Software.

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