The lord knows the path of the blessed

Date of Sermon Delivery: 30. June . 2024

Place of sermon Delivery:  Delhi, India

Sunday Worship Service 

Speaker: Brother Jatin  

The lord knows the path of the blessed

Bible : Psalm 1:1-6
1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with 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 yields 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.

 

 

Today I want to take your attention to Psalm 1.

When we see this scripture, we get one picture about two lives or two people, and these two people takes two different choices, two different ways, and two different destinies with two different consequences.

This kind of choice always comes before us, like the garden of Eden, between good and evil.

One is the way of righteousness, and the other is the way of wickedness.

The righteous, according to the psalm, will lead into an evergreen tree, will flourish and prosper.

But the wicked are like chaff that can be blown away, and it is not going to endure.

Today we will look deeper into it.

A Bible scholar says to collect this 150 psalm, it is a work of about thousands of years of various authors, and Jewish scholars brought it all together.

When they brought the book of Psalm together, they wanted an introduction to the psalm.

They wanted to tell the people who read it that this is the gateway to the psalm, this is how you enter the psalm, and through it, you will understand the entire theme of the psalm that God has given to us.

As you will see in Psalm 1, verses 1–3 talk about the blessed man, verses 4–5 talk about the wicked man, and verse 6 talks about the consequence of that man’s action.

If he makes the righteous choice, he has the blessed consequence, and if he makes the wrong choice, he has the wrong consequence. 

Before moving on to the message,.

I want to understand with you the word blessed. Even this psalm starts with the word “blessed.”.

In Hebrew, it’s called eh-sher. Haiysh eh-sher means blessed is the one.

The meaning of blessedness, or ehsher, is a blessed destiny.

It is a future blessing for the one who takes a certain path.

It is not happiness in the present.

It is not joy in the circumstances.

But if a person takes a certain path of life, they will end up in eh-sher.

So that blessed future is based on our present relationship and our walk with God.

A blessed person will walk through difficulties in life, and he will walk through a narrow gate, as Jesus said, for the blessed future that is awaiting us.

In Job 5:17 Blessed is the one whom God corrects, so do not despise the discipline of the almighty.

If I am blessed according to the world, my circumstances should be happy, and everything should be fine for me.

But when God is pressing me to out my sins, it will be uncomfortable in the company of the wicked.

A blessed man is disciplined by God, and that discipline is not always a joyful experience. So when we go through pain and situations in life, that means the Lord is disciplining us in our lives so that we may have a blessed future.

In the New Testament, the beatitudes and the beatitudes of Jesus Christ. Who are the blessed people?

Matthew 5:10-12 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kind of evil against you because of me.

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you(12).

Therefore, who is the blessed person?

A blessed person, according to Psalm 1, is not a person whose things are fine, finances are fine, and there are no problems in life.

But the blessed person is one who takes a certain path of life, and in that path of life, he may go through challenges and difficulties, but he is assured of God’s presence in that path because he shares the spirit of God, and that leads to prosperity and an evergreen experience in his life.

Therefore, the topic of today’s message is that “God knows the path of the blessed people.”

We will look at this from three points of view. 

 

The path of a blessed person is based on the word of God (1-3)

The path of a wicked person is worldly (4-5)

The end/destiny of the path of these two people is determined by God(6)

 

Let us look at the first point

The path of a blessed person is based on the word of God – A person is blessed because his life is based on the word of God, his life fully depends on God’s word. Therefore, he does not do something, which is so common in this world. 

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers. (1)

 

This man does not walk in the counsel of the world, does not take advice from the world, and neither is he following the persuasive word and the policies of the world; he does not do what the world is doing.

When the world is moving towards carriers or success, this man is not just for  career;  his life is living according to the word of Christ.

When the world is talking about bribes, when the world is talking about moving up in position, when the world is talking about making identity then this person is not engaged in that.

So this man does not take or accept the advice of those who are ungodly. But sometimes we commit the error of looking at the ungodly/unrighteous and thinking that we should take advice from them because they look prosperous. But always remember that the ungodly have different values, different goals, different standards, and different concerns than what we are supposed to have.

 

Secondly, he is running away from sin.

The person who wants to commit sin stands and waits with the sinners on the road, but it has nothing to do with sin, he is denying sin and running away from sin. He will not stand on the path of sinners, that leads to destruction. If we are standing on that path, we need to quickly get ourselves off that road and turn around before it is too late.

 

The third thing is that he does not sit in the seat of mockers, to sit with them suggests that you are one with them. So this man is not showing his identity according to the worldly standard.

If you go to a government office but there is no officer, you are told to wait for a while.

 

Even if you have never seen that officer, you will recognise him because he comes and sits on that chair because that chair is his identity, and that sofa is his identity, but this blessed person is not identified with the mockers, he does not sit in the mocking chair.

Who makes fun of people? 
the one who wants to humiliate others (nicha dikhana chahta hai)

the one who is full of pride/dirt inside

The one who wants to put others down and himself up.

The one who makes fun of the weaknesses of others and does not want to help them.

This is the way the world works, but the blessed man does not do this at all, he is not identified with the world.

If he is not taking the advice of the world, he is running away from sin, and he is not identifying himself with the world, then what is he doing?

But whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night.(2)

He delights in the law of the Lord.

What is the law for him?

The law is Torah for the psalmist.

The Old Testament of the Law is the first five books of the Bible.

Torah means teaching, or instruction, on the way of life.

When God delivered the child of Israel from Egypt and brought them to the promised land, a land flowing with milk and honey, then God gave them law and said you have to take it in your life because you cannot live like the Canaanites, you cannot live like the Amalekites; they have different way of life but now I redeemed you out of Egypt, I have brought you to the promised land and you will have a special way of life, you have different way that leads to prosperity and the blessing.

So, the law of the Lord is not a burden to this man, he is not under anyone’s pressure to accomplish it.

As I said to you, when the psalmists wrote this psalm, they had the Torah, the first five books of the Bible.

There are rules in it, and the ten commandments are not to steal, not to kill, not to commit adultery, not to be greedy, not to false witness, but those who are in the world want to do it, because they enjoy doing it.

But this man is not doing that, he is doing what the Lord is telling him. because he knows that the rules are for his benefit.

Many times we get worried, now we have to wear helmets and go. We have to follow traffic lights; we have to follow speed limits.

But think, if instead of considering them as a burden, we start enjoying them and start practicing them well, then the traffic in our city and the number of deaths due to accidents will reduce a lot.

Rules are not there to suppress us, but for our welfare and benefit.

God gave us his word, because he loves us, and this blessed man knows that God’s word is for our benefit and for a better future; therefore, he enjoys it.

He is not just aware of these things and is not just happy with the fact that the Lord has given him the 10 commandments.

But he keeps meditates on his law day and night (2b). 

 

What does it mean to meditate on God’s word day and night?

What does it not mean to meditate on God’s word day and night?

It does not mean that he reads the Bible for 3 hours and then lies down for 4 hours, closing his eyes and thinking how good it was? It is the wrong mediation.

To meditate means to apply it in our lives. This blessed man applies these words, which are in our hands.

 

 He is not just thinking; he is not closing his eyes and saying how good your words are, Lord. 

 

But he is applying the Word of God every day to his decisions, to his desires, and to his plans.

 

When he wants to grow his city, he will not look at the money; he will look at the word.

When he has to decide about the marriage of his children, he will not look at the people, but he will look at the Word to see what the Word is saying.

When he has to take a decision for his work, when the time comes in front of him that he can move ahead by lying, then he will not follow the advice of the world, but he will actually implement the words of God in his life.

Many times it happens that he suffers from a worldly perspective.

He did not lie, therefore he did not get the position.

He did not give a bribe; he could not enter the train.

He did not give a bribe; he could not get a degree from college.

But the word of God says this man is blessed. Hallelujah

 

This man is not living according to the world but is living his life according to the words of God; therefore, he remains stable in his life.

How?

3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither whatever they do prospers.

 

This tree did not plant itself but was planted. It is planted by streams of water.

It has been planted for some purpose or for some reason.

Why do we plant a tree near a water source?

so that it gets energy, water, and nourishment.

This man is living a joyful life because God is allowing this to happen in his life.

The Lord brought Israel out and planted them in the land of promise, and along with him, he gave them living water.

 

 

God planted it, and God made it fruitful in His own time.

As it is written, it bears fruit in its own season.

If we see a mango tree, it bears fruit in the summer.

Similarly, the Lord planted this man, gave him the water of life, and also determined when he would bear fruit.

And the palmist further says that its leaves never wither.

When do the leaves of a tree wither? when there is too much sunlight or when water is not available.

But the leaf of this tree never withers, because God gave this man such a grace through his word that no matter what circumstances of this world he goes through, be it sorrow or trouble, he will not despair.

Therefore, whatever he does, he will prosper.

Do not take this the wrong way, that from tomorrow you will start making silver into gold, because here the psalmist is speaking according to God, not according to the world.

What is success for the world?

For the world, success is that thing or that time when they get the thing they desire the most.

If a man gets married to a woman, then they think that their life has been successful.

If a man gets an army job, then he thinks that his life has become successful.

If a man wins the lottery, then he thinks that his life has been successful.

The world views success very differently.

You are successful in the world when you achieve something in it.

When you get money, when you have a lot of wealth, when you have a great position, when you have a lot of property, back balance, Audi RS.

But the word of the Lord is not talking about such success. Because this person actually has a truly successful life, he has the joy that comes through the words of God.

This person is doing every work of his life on the basis of the words of God, hence, his life is successful in front of God because every work of his is according to God’s word.

 

This is all about the blessed man.

Then the psalmist took our attention into other man.

2. The path of a wicked person is worldly (4-5)

 

A wicked person walks in the ways of the world, and verse 4 says the wicked are not like that.

They do not follow the word of God, they do not walk on the word of God, and their lives are not based on the word of God.

So, what is their life based on? Their life is based on the world.

 

Verse says they are like chaff that the wind blows away.

When they live like the world, then their life is empty, nothing is stable and permanent in their life, and their life blows away like the wind.

They have been running after worldly things all their lives, and they will go wherever the wind blows.

Chaff has no use, it is used as fodder or for burning. There is no depth or weight in it; it is empty. 

1 John 2:16–17 for everything in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, comes not from the father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

A blessed man remains because he follows the word of God.

But for a wicked man, who follows the world, what will happen in this life? He will not be able to stand in the judgement.

 
Therefore, the wicked will not stand in judgement, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. (5)

 

In verse 1, a blessed man does not sit in the company of mockers, but in verse 5, a wicked man does not sit stable in the assembly of the righteous.

There is a separation here, and it is very clear that they cannot meet each other. 
just like a tree planted by streams of water completely different from a chaff, because that tree will not break no matter how strong the wind is blowing, but this chaff will blow through the wind.

 

First, we saw that the path of a blessed person is based on the word of God, and second, we saw that the path of a wicked person is worldly.

So what can we do? Why do we need to know this?

 

Let us see verse 6

For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to destruction. (6)

 

third thing psalmist explained about these two people because the end/destiny of the path of these two people is determined by God. 

 

The Lord knows the path of the righteous.

What does it mean? We also know many things, we know how to go from Delhi to YMCA.

But God is not talking about a path, a road path.

 

In this verse, God says he knows the way.

It has a deeper meaning, because this way or path was made by God himself and is based on God’s word; therefore, he knows this way.

But the ways of the wicked led to destruction. Whatever the world, worldly things will perish.

 

 

Dear brothers and sisters

You might be thinking that we are Christians, so we are blessed, and others who are not Christians are wicked, which is a fast in itself.

But we need to know which path we are on, through which path our desires are fulfilled.

It is important that we live according to the gospel.

But if you find it a burden to live out the gospel, then something is wrong.

If you feel difficulty loving our brothers or sisters,

If you still have problems with fellowship with people, doing good to people, or living a life for the church, then there is something wrong, and then we are like the chaff who gets blown away by a little wind.

If you want to be a green tree, take joy in His words and live your life according to His words.

Dear brothers and sisters

We have to surrender to God daily. Every day we must arise and make the choice that we want to be the righteous ones who will be before God and have an intimate relationship with him. Every day, we are presented with choices as to who is number one in our lives. Will I choose to do the things I want to do or what God wants me to do? We must surrender our will to God so that He can plant us by the streams of living water.

We must spend time with God daily – The Bible says the ones who live the blessed life are those who meditate on God’s law day and night. We must focus our minds on God and spend time with Him every day. Relationships do not last when you do not spend time together. Spend time talking to Him, reading His words, and thinking about the goodness of God.

 

We must separate from defilement daily – The Bible says the ones who live a blessed life separate themselves from the ungodly. We can not walk in step with the wicked, stand in the path of sinners, or sit in the company of mockers; keeping ourselves separate from these things will enhance our lives and grow us closer and stronger to the Lord.

 

Only Jesus Christ perfectly did these things and showed us the way. Jesus has shown us how to enter through the narrow gate. There are two roads to choose from. One road is the easy path that many are travelling on, but its end is destruction. The other road is more difficult because of the difficulty, not many are travelling on it. But it is the right road to be on, and its end is prosperity and intimacy with God. Choose who you will serve today. Choose to follow Jesus, which leads to life, and that will make you a blessed man.

Amen.