Peace
"The righteous path"
Psalms 1:1-6
God's Word Translation
1Blessed is the person who does
not follow the advice of wicked people, take the path of sinners, or join the
company of mockers.
2Rather, he delights in the
teachings of the LORD and reflects on his teachings day and night.
3He is like a tree planted
beside streams- a tree that produces fruit in season and whose leaves do not
wither. He succeeds in everything he does.
4Wicked people are not like
that. Instead, they are like husks that the wind blows away.
5That is why wicked people will
not be able to stand in the judgment and sinners will not be able to stand
where righteous people gather.
6The LORD knows the way of
righteous people, but the way of wicked people will end.
When I was young, I usually had
a hard time trying to discern the good from the bad crowd. At least that was my
claim. I usually ended up hanging with the bad crowd, with some bad influences.
It was almost as if that was my nature, as if I were drawn to people who
gravitated toward trouble. I don't know why I took this path. Maybe it was
because the "good crowd" was boring. I sometimes like to believe that
I joined these ranks because I wanted to be the good influence in the group
that lead others toward a not-so-windy road. That never happen. Much of the
time I found my decisions being poorly influenced. Some people just gravitate
toward the wrong crowd and end up making poor decisions. I will say, that in a
broken world finding the "righteous path" is not always the easiest
of tasks. There seem to always be directions and suggestions acting like road
signs leading us down a windy path. Some of these directions sound great and
may come from a legitimate source. We see adds that tell us to eat this or buy
that to make life easier. Vote for this person or support this cause; it will
make things better. Unfortunately, this is not always the righteous path. Our
decisions are easily tainted by propaganda. What sounds good on the surface is
not always the best option when the layers are peeled away. Much like an ear of
corn, with good intentions you peel away the layer, but sometimes you find the
fruit is rotten.
This morning our scripture
gives a little light on the "righteous path". I struggled with
finding a good title for today's message. I read the scripture over and again,
trying to come up with this title. As I was working on the sermon, I was
listening to one of my favorite bands, The Drive-by Truckers, and the song
"The Righteous Path" came on. It sounds a little cliche' but I went
with it. If you ever happen to hear the song, you're going to say, "that
has nothing to do with the message" but nevertheless, it influenced me.
Most of the book of Psalms is
credited to King David; a man who is quite familiar with sin and life in a
broken world. The book is full of stories of praise, lament, and direction.
This morning we turn to the first chapter of Psalms for some light on the
righteous path and ways to deviate from the sinful path. Were are going to plow
a little bit into this chapter to uncover some beautiful truth. It seems to me
that when you dig a little deeper into the context of scripture, you reveal so
much beauty.
The KJV reads, 1Blessed is the
man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of
sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2But his delight is in the law
of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.
On the surface, this verse
implies that we should not "walketh, standeth, or sitteth" with
scornful people or, rather sinners. As some of us might know, in biblical
translation we lose a lot of meaning of words. As one of my professors notes,
"words don't say something, they mean something". Here, in the
psalms, which is much like music or poetry, we see art. And art, my friends,
can say something that words cannot. The Hebrew words for walketh, standeth,
and sitteth don't necessarily mean to walk, sit, or stand. The Hebrew
translation for these words are more figurative. This verse implies that one is
not to conform to the ways of the sinner. It is implying that the blessed
person does not abide, serve, or become a servant of the sinner. It does not
necessarily mean that we should not walk, stand, or sit with the sinner. As a
matter of fact, as I see it, as common people of faith, walking, standing, and
sitting with the sinner should be a common practice. Taking this action gives
the believer the opportunity to be a witness of the power of our great God and
the saving grace of Jesus Christ. This action of walking, standing, and sitting
gives the believer the opportunity to exemplify verse two, "The blessed
person's delight is in the law of the Lord; and in the law does the blessed
meditate day and night". This
person stays in the presence of God day and night, speaking to God and
breathing prayer at every opportunity. They enjoy the communication between God
and themselves. They need that communication. They have an addiction to prayer.
They have fear of God but they're not afraid to question God. I have learned
that God would much rather you question God's decisions than not speak at all. I believe God had rather you ask why than
not want to know.
Verse three tells us, 3The
blessed person is like a tree planted beside streams- a tree that produces
fruit in season and whose leaves do not wither. The blessed person succeeds in
everything they do.
Last spring I took a trip to
southern California. It was the first time I have ever been to the western
state. I'm still trying to soak in and process the landscapes. I keep recalling
some of those magnificent images. I was left in awe. It gave me the awareness
that not all land is created equally or alike.
It was amazing! I have a love for geography. I love hills and mountain
scapes. One of the most notable memories of the trip was the flight. As the
flight approached California I could clearly see the mountains below. I could
see the tops of the mountains and all around it trickled lines of greenery like
the veins of a leaf. What I was seeing was the mountain streams trickling off
of the mountain. Where the streams were coming off of the mountains, trees were
growing. These streams were giving life to the earth and trees that planted
themselves a long these streams. I could talk about this all day but I beg you
to see that the blessed person is the person who plants themselves along side
this allegorical stream of life. This person shall produce fruit and they shall
not falter. This stream is the word of God and the fruits produced are the
rewards of the spirit. The verse tells us that by this produce, the blessed
person will prosper in all that he or she does.
Verse four tells us 4The
ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. It is
interesting to me that throughout the Hebrew Old Testament as well as the Greek
New Testament, the word "wind" has a dual meaning. The Hebrew word,
ruwach and the Greek word pnuema also mean "spirit". Verse four
implies that the spirit will drive away the ungodly like chaff, which refers to
the husks of corn. If we take a closer look at an ear of corn, when the husks
are removed we have our fruit, our harvest. I'm going to take this verse a step
further. Stay with me here because I'm going to dig a little deep. This verse
is not implying that the spirit will simply drive away the ungodly person. That
would be too simple for our complex, almighty God. The spirit of God is driving
away the chaff, the layers of ungodliness, to reveal the beauty, the true
character of what lies on the inside of an ungodly person. Even ungodly people
are people created by God. And, they too, are God's people. These people simply
need the stream of life to produce the fruit of the spirit. What better
catalyst is there than the blessed people of God to lead them to the stream?
What better way for someone to experience God's love than one who feels it
everyday?
Verse five and six tell us
5Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the
congregation of the righteous. 6For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous:
but the way of the ungodly shall perish. This tells us that the ungodly shall
not stand among God nor shall they be among the people of God. Let me allow
this verse to summarize the point I'm trying to make: I believe the ungodly
people of the world, the sinners of the world are the people we are called
to...to make a difference in. I think the Psalmist is using a rhetorical device
to persuade God's people to hear God's missional call. We want the ungodly to
stand among the divine. We want the ungodly among our congregations. This text
is not telling the believer to sit back, relax, you're good, they're bad,
you'll be with God, and they won't. I believe this text is, however, telling us
that there is a purpose, a path, a righteous path for all of God's creation.
There are some of them who are lost. There are some of them who have wandered
from that road of righteousness, or some who have never experienced it. God's
blessed people are called to lead them to it or back to it. The Psalmists tells
us in verse six that God knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the
ungodly shall perish. The text doesn't say that the ungodly will perish. It
tells us that the way of the ungodly
will perish. The lifestyle that they are living will come to an end. The Hebrew
translation implies that "the
journey of the sinner shall be undone."
My friends, I had a realization
some time ago and this scripture reminds me of it. God created us out of his
own pleasure. God created human for God's self. God created human out of love.
I believe that God never leaves, forsakes, or walks away from God's people.
God's people, God's creation walks away from the creator. When the person is
walking down the dark, windy path God is there nudging, persuading, and
reminding them that God is there. Much of the time, though it is ignored. I
commonly use the illustration of the parent and the child. The parent brings
the child into the world, nurtures it, teaches it, shapes it to be the person
that they want it to be. As it grows older, it may sometime sway. It may wander
away, find trouble. He or she may start spending time with the wrong crowd...
But, the parent will always have open arms, saying, "you can come back
home, we will fix this". Much is the same for God as our parent and we are
God's children. The difference is that God's love for us is much greater than
any love we can imagine. But still, there are and will be many who choose to
ignore it. There are some who just don't hear, who don't feel, who are unable
to experience the love of our great parent. This is why God calls a number of
blessed people to amplify God's voice, touch, presence, and love so that it may
be experienced. May God be our guide down this righteous path.
