Blessed is the Man...

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. Psalms 1:1-6 ESV

If we want the blessings of Psalms 1:3, if we want to be planted firmly by a stream of water, and if we want to yield fruit in season, and we don’t want our leaves to wither; moreover, if we want to prosper in all we do. To gain these things we mustn’t sit around wondering why God has not given them to us. Psalms shows us the blessings come after verse one and two are followed. Are we willing not to walk in the counsel of the wicked? Are we willing not to stand in the path of sinners? Are we willing not to sit in the seat of scoffers? There are three things we are not to do, and that is not all the commands in Psalm 1. The man who is blessed is the one who delights in the law of the Lord. It is not something he enjoys, or does out of duty, but it is his delight! Think about something you delight in, can you bring that same desire, to delight in God’s law? Next, the man who I blessed meditates on God’s law day and night. God’s law is not something he follows to gain a blessing or avoid pain. It is something he intentionally meditates on day and night.  The reason he is firmly planted by a stream of water is that he is firmly planted in God’s Word, which is living water. The reason he doesn’t follow the counsel of the wicked is because he looks to the counsel of God through His Word. The reason he does not stand in the path of sinners is that he looks to stand with God. The reason he does not sit at the seat of scoffers is that he knows the One whom they scoff. If we want the blessings of the man in the first section of Psalm 1, we have to be willing to follow what he does in verses 1 and 2. Our motivation is not to gain something from God’s hand, but to love Him from our heart, mind, soul, and strength.